RW Patrick Kane
Patrick Kane was the subject of trade rumours even during the offseason, and it carried all the way through this season’s trade deadline as the Chicago Blackhawks enter its rebuilding mode. Those Kane rumours included a link to the Edmonton Oilers, and at first, we immediately jumped on the idea of what Kane can do alongside Connor McDavid and Leon Draistl. Although Kane’s productive years are already behind him, he can be a lethal scoring addition to what has already been the most deadly in the league this year.
Fast-forward to the current, and Kane is now a member of the New York Rangers, a team Kane wanted to join. It was a long shot to acquire Patty Kane at the deadline as he only wished to go to the Rangers, and we are relieved that the Oilers did not put the trigger on it if they were even presented with the opportunity. There are a lot of moving parts to be able to trade for Kane as he is still owed $10.5 million this season. Although we saw that Ken Holland can maneuver himself well from their cap restriction, this is one addition that the Oilers did not need at the deadline.
Oilers are already one of the top-scoring teams in the league, and adding Kane will indeed catapult them to a juggernaut in terms of scoring, however, that will inhibit Edmonton to address some of the needs they desperately need, which is defence. A sigh of relief for most of us that this trade rumour did not materialize at the deadline, as the Oilers were able to address a glaring need on their defence instead.