If you haven’t seen it yet the Edmonton Oilers have traded Jesse Puljujarvi to the Carolina Hurricanes. In return, the Edmonton Oilers received Patrik Puistola. If you were like me, you had no idea who he is and what he can bring to the Edmonton Oilers organization.
Patrik Puistola was drafted in the third round of the 2019 entry draft 73rd overall. Since then he has yet to play any games in the NHL. He is currently playing for Jukurit in Liiga the Finish Elite League.
If there is anything to take out of his stats in Finland he is currently leading his team in points and goals. He has 15 goals and 23 assists in 56 games played.
If you want Patrik Puistola to come into the Edmonton Oilers organization and make a huge difference you are very mistaken. Make no mistake about it this move was clearly a cap dump by the Oilers.
Patrik Puistola may not even sign with the Edmonton Oilers, or the Edmonton Oilers may not even want to sign Patrik Puistola. There is a chance that they both agree to a deal, but if there is no signing I don’t think any Oiler fans will be upset and they really shouldn’t be.
What Does The Trade For Patrik Puistola Mean For The Edmonton Oilers?
Moving on from Jesse Puljujarvi is something that has been coming for a long time. I can’t even count the number of times I have written an article where I mentioned trading Puljujarvi. In my opinion, this was a good trade for the Edmonton Oilers.
Getting rid of Puljujarvi’s cap hit while only bringing in Patrik Puistola, a non-NHL player, is just what the doctor ordered for the Oilers. They can now have the proper amount of players on the roster and have room to bring in another player.
After the trade cleared $3M for #LetsGoOilers, Desharnais, who was emergency exception call-up, converts to regular $762.5K Cap Hit call-up. They also called up Shore
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) February 28, 2023
As a result, #LetsGoOilers have $1.95M of Cap Space remaining with 21 active playershttps://t.co/yC72vfjRQy https://t.co/UO9arNXJQM pic.twitter.com/psipqsaCmU
According to PuckPedia the Oilers have $1.95M of cap space remaining. With that alone, they can’t afford to bring in a player that will move the needle. If they add in a player going the other way it really does open the door up to make a move. Hopefully, Holland is able to get a good player to improve this team.