Since the Edmonton Oilers are now eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs, it is time to look forward to the offseason and the move they need to make. One job that needs to be done is re-signing RFA’s and UFA’s. I have looked at Klim Kostin, Derek Ryan, Nick Bjugstad and Mattias Janmark. In this article, I will examine the pros and cons of bringing back UFA Devin Shore.
No offence to Devin Shore, but he is not a big-name player that the Edmonton Oilers need to make a priority to get signed. Last season Shore was the 13th-14th forward for this team. He only played 47 games for the Oilers, primarily due to the injuries the Edmonton Oilers sustained throughout the season.
In his 47 games, Shore was able to score 1 goal and add 8 assists. He only averaged 8:58 of ice time but was able to be a +6 in that time. He is a serviceable player that can play in your bottom six and on the penalty kill, the thing is there are a lot of players in the NHL that can do that.
The Edmonton Oilers Need Cheap Players, And Devin Shore Is Just That
We are all aware that the Edmonton Oilers major issue heading into this offseason is their cap crunch. They are going to need to be on the hunt for value contracts. In my opinion, Devin Shore will likely cost you the league minimum and he already knows the coaching staff and players.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Edmonton Oilers re-signed Shore to a one or two-year, two-way deal. This way they have an NHL player they can call up if there is an injury or if they need to mix up the bottom six.
If he isn’t on the NHL team he is also a good veteran presence on the Bakersfield Condors. Vetran’s is something you need to have on an AHL team. You need someone to show the younger players what it will be like in the NHL. Shore should be able to bring that down there.
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I don’t really see any negatives for the Edmonton Oilers in signing Shore to the two-way deal I mentioned above. I don’t see why Shore would turn it down either unless some team around the league offers him a one-way deal, which doesn’t seem likely.