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.