3 Potential Landing Spots For Oilers Forward Warren Foegele
With the second half of the season underway, the Oilers have some decisions to make with their lineup with the impending return of Evander Kane. After being out for more than 30 games, Kane will make his return sooner than expected, causing a cap issue for the Oilers if they plan to reactivate him as soon as he’s healthy.
The Oilers could part with any number of players, but one player in particular I can see the Oilers parting ways with is Warren Foegele. He has a contract through the end of next season worth $2.75M AAV and has underperformed. Through 32 games this season, Foegele has four goals and four assists for eight points which is a pace that would have him well below his career average.
There are a few teams that could be looking for a player like Warren Foegele. Someone who can play a bottom-six role and put up 20-30 points a season while bringing a strong physical presence on a relatively cheap contract. The problem with Foegele is he doesn’t fit what the Oilers need anymore going forward as they have found their guy that can throw the body and be a physical presence each night in Klim Kostin, so it would make more sense to keep the player on a cheaper deal, who is also younger and has been overall playing better.
The three potential fits for Warren Foegele are all teams that lack any type of physicality and would simply be looking to become a tougher team to play against going forward.
Anaheim Ducks
The lack of physicality in the Anaheim Ducks lineup is apparent each and every night. They don’t play like a team that wants to win every night, and it’s clear they have put themselves into full-blown rebuild mode. A 12-27-5 record doesn’t exactly make them scary to play against, as they sit last in the pacific, teams could go into games against them with the mindset that it’s point night.
Adding some toughness would change that mindset, as bringing in a guy like Warren Foegele would at least make the Ducks a bit tougher to play against, and a trade could look something like this:
This trade not only benefits the Ducks as it makes them a tougher team but also gives them a skilled forward who could become a leader going forward. The 20-30 points could help the Ducks as they rebuild and have at least one more season in the dumps.
The Oilers may come out as winners in this deal though. The scouting staff in Edmonton is known for finding good players in the later rounds of the draft, so adding more depth draft capital could help the team find another future stud. On top of that, the team frees up enough cap space to be able to activate Evander Kane.
Foegele unfortunately has little to no value as a depth player who is mildly overpaid, but getting him off the books is the only goal for the Oilers, and a fresh start could be just what he needs to revamp his career and find a scoring touch with a bigger role in Anaheim.
Detroit Red Wings
A team that could come out of left field and acquire Warren Foegele is the Detroit Red Wings. They have been making commitments to their fans that they won’t roll over and tank even with the strongest draft class the world has seen since 2015. Although not having the best season, the Red Wings remain competitive at sixth in the Atlantic with a 18-17-7 record.
A one for one trade between the Oilers and Red Wings gives the Oilers some depth on the blue line while giving the Wings some depth in their bottom-six.
A former Oiler in left shot blueliner Jordan Oesterle coming back to Edmonton in exchange for Foegele not only frees up some cap space, but brings some depth to the left side of the back end. Something the Oilers have been searching for all season.
Through 30 games this season with the Red Wings, Jordan Oesterle has two goals and one assist for three points. His solid play on the back end for the Wings is the reason I’d be interested in bringing him back to the Oil. With a -1, Oesterle is able to shutdown the play when he needs to, and often makes smart decisions with the puck in his own end. Bringing him in as a mentor and a D partner for Evan Bouchard could be beneficial for both players’ games.
The Red Wings adding some toughness and grit to their lineup proves to their fans that they refuse to back down, and sends a message that they will continue to battle through adversity and try to clinch a playoff spot, no matter how they do it.
Florida Panthers
Looking at this deal, most fans will argue that the Oilers are giving up too much for a player that won’t provide anything offensively and won’t do anything but hit and find himself out of position, but that’s not the case with Radko Gudas. He has been one of the best shutdown blueliners this season, and would be the perfect partner for an offensive minded defenseman like Evan Bouchard.
Moving out Foegele and Puljujarvi gives them both fresh starts and gets some money off the books for the Oilers. The Panthers have a system I think could work really well for their styles of play. I tossed Givani Smith in there to make it even out a bit more, and it wouldn’t hurt to have a guy play in the minors and be a cheap call-up option if more injuries occur.
At the end of the day, I think the Oilers need to move on from Warren Foegele. He started the year off hot but hasn’t shown much else as he battles through injuries, and has inconsitent play when he is in the lineup. Any of the three destinations discussed in this article make sense for him, and could be a good fresh start.
The Oilers need to make a decision really soon, as they will be strapped for cap space when Evander Kane makes his long awaited return.