There has been plenty of news and updates around the NHL, including lots of this news regarding the Oilers or ex-Oilers.
With Kris Knoblauch not inclined to play seven d-man and the Oilers rolling, Philip Broberg needed some at-bats, so the team sent him down to Bakersfield to get more ice time and stay sharp. In his place, the team has called up Ben Gleason, who has put up 2-7-9 in 14 games in Bakersfield with a +5 and has earned a call-up. I don’t expect Gleason to play very much, maybe even not get into a game at all. Gleason has only played four NHL games, and that was in the 2018-19 season for Dallas.
Ex-Oiler Ethan Bear is healthy again
Ethan Bear played last season in Vancouver and ended up needing shoulder surgery due to injury. He is now back from that shoulder surgery that has kept him out of NHL lineups (his contract with the Canucks was up after last season) and is ready to sign on with a new team barring passing a medical exam.
Predictably some were saying the Oilers should bring Bear back. However, even though the right defence is pretty entrenched right now with Cody Ceci, Evan Bouchard, and Vincent Desharnais with multiple guys up for the extra spot, they just don’t have the cap space to sign him. So not only are the Oilers lacking cap space, but there’s nowhere to play him that wouldn’t see him sit for long periods of the season and underutilize him. That’s not fair to the player.
In any event, it looks like Bear’s about to sign with the Capitals.
Corey Perry to the Oilers?
Supposedly Ken Holland is kicking tires on Corey Perry coming to the Oilers. I can’t see it unless we have at least two major injuries in the bottom six, which means two guys are gone for the season and we need replacements for them – not to mention the Oilers could pay him with LTIR cap space.
An amusing rumour that Perry was sleeping with Connor Bedard’s mom circulated around the internet for a while, and he looked to the team to do something about it. However, this was later quashed by Bedard himself. It appears the whole “drunken brawl with an employee” speculation might not have been just a cover story after all.