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Potential Edmonton Oilers Rental – Ryan O’Reilly

By Phil Gretzky

Jan 23, 2018; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; The Buffalo Sabres celebrate a second period goal by forward Ryan OÕReilly (90), his second of the period against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 23, 2018; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; The Buffalo Sabres celebrate a second period goal by forward Ryan OÕReilly (90), his second of the period against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports /

One prospect for the Oilers who could be traded away for the right piece in return is the Oilers sixth-round pick from 2018, right D Michael Kesselring.

Kesselring is breaking through this season for Bakersfield in a big way. He currently sports 13-8-21 in 44 games with a +4 in his third season with the Condors after seasons of three and then 13 points (his rookie debut was after his second season of US College hockey and he only played 21 games).

That mark is good enough for fourth in points on the Condors this season and most importantly, leads the AHL in goals amongst defencemen. Naturally, you’d think this might lead to a cup of coffee for Kesselring, right? Maybe, but the thing is, who do you take out of the lineup right now? The right D portion of the roster is pretty set, with Cody Ceci at the top who isn’t coming out anytime soon, leading blueline scorer Tyson Barrie in the second pairing, Evan Bouchard in the third pairing who was struggling earlier in the season but just cracked the 21 point mark and is starting to improve. Even the extra guy is righty shooter Vincent Desharnais, whose contributions to the roster are well-documented at this point.

So, even with Kesselring’s season, there’s simply no place to play him right now. Of course, if the Oilers ever lock up home-ice advantage for the playoffs then I certainly wouldn’t rule it out.

Of course, if the Oilers somehow pull off a blockbuster trade, like this one that Jason Gregor proposed, then Kesselring might make the roster just yet – at least temporarily to see what he can do. Of course, I’m not employed in the Oilers player development department, so it’s entirely possible Kesselring needs more seasoning in the AHL and isn’t ready for the big leagues just yet. But I have to believe Kesselring has at least put himself into the conversation.

However, without major surgery to the roster there’s no denying Kesselring has nowhere to play on the Oilers roster as it stands now, hence why his value might be more as a trade chip right now.

Since he was a sixth-round pick it would be hard not to practice good asset management on him going forward as the bar was set pretty low. Kudos to the scouting staff for finding a gem in the rough.

Kesselring’s ELC doesn’t expire until the end of next season, so it’s entirely possible the Oilers just leave him in the AHL until they decide what to do with him.

He joins Raphael Lavoie and Xavier Bourgault as a player to watch.

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