The Edmonton Oilers and Ken Holland were busy yesterday, first trading away Jesse Puljujarvi for Patrik Puistola. Then in a much more exciting move, they acquired Mattias Ekholm in a move that sent Tyson Barrie, Reid Schafer and some picks to Nashville.
After both moves and calling up Devin Shore the Edmonton Oilers still have $450K of cap space left. If they were to send Shore down they have $1.3 million in cap space. That means that there is still some room to possible add another player before the deadline.
After the trade, #LetsGoOilers have $450K of Cap Space with 21 players on Active Roster.
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) February 28, 2023
This includes Shore ($850K), so they could potentially add $1.3M in cap hit if Shore was sent down https://t.co/FHfycFkU8q
Should the Edmonton Oilers Make Another Move?
I think if Ken Holland can find a move that can improve this team he has to make it. This could mean anything from a 4th line player that is an upgrade on what they have to adding a scoring winger for the top 6.
It all depends on what is available and what the cost would be. If I am Ken Holland I am looking at the rest of the Western Conference and thinking to myself that this could be the year to make the Stanely Cup Finals. There isn’t really a team in the West that really scares me.
The Eastern teams have really loaded up this deadline and look like they are trying to bring the Cup back out East. One of those teams is the Boston Bruins, who the Edmonton Oilers played on Monday.
After watching that game I do think there is a chance that if the Edmonton Oilers do make the Cup Final that Edmonton could win the cup.
Who Could They Acquire?
With most of the big-name rental players already off the block I think most likely that the Edmonton Oilers will be looking to add a depth piece. I would look at a team that has almost no chance of making the playoffs and pick a player off them.
A good example would be Nick Bjugstad from the Arizona Coyotes. As per usual, the Coyotes are sellers at the deadline, so getting Bjugstad should be pretty easy. It would likely just cost you a later-round pick as he isn’t going to be really needed by the Coyotes moving forward.
There are still a few days till the Friday trade deadline. In that time a lot of things can change for both the Edmonton Oilers and the rest of the league that could change the Oilers’ needs. If the Edmonton Oilers didn’t make any more moves I would be satisfied with what they have done. If they did make more moves I would also really like that as well. I guess we will have to wait and see.