Travis Dermott's tenure in Edmonton was a short one, with him limited to 10 appearances earlier this season and admittedly contributing little in that time. He was subsequently placed on waivers in December after the Oilers claimed Alec Regula, with him being claimed by the Minnesota Wild.
Well, as per the team's official X account, the Wild have now also decided to place Dermott on waivers, after just nine games in Minnesota. The question is, should the Oilers look to bring him back to their organisation?
Travis Dermott has some high profile contacts in Edmonton
It really depends on what the Oilers would hope to gain from bringing the 28-year-old back to Edmonton. If nothing else he does have a lot of connections with the team, having previously played alongside Connor McDavid and Connor Brown under Kris Knoblauch when they were all with the Erie Otters, while CEO Jeff Jackson used to be his agent.
However, as previously mentioned, Dermott has done little this season in the NHL, with him currently on course for a career-low average ice-time of 12:16 per contest. He's also never brought much to the table offensively, with him actually yet to produce a single point during his 19 combined games in Edmonton and Minnestoa this season.
In reality, the 2015 second round draft pick is not someone who you would expect to be on the Oilers' NHL roster if he was to return to the organisation. Instead, it would be more a case of him providing some veteran experience in the AHL with the youthful Bakersfield Condors.
Oilers have nothing to lose with Travis Dermott
Along these lines, it i's worth noting that if the Oilers are the only team to put in a claim for Dermott before Wednesday's deadline, he can be assigned to Bakersfield right away with no issues. In addition, as per Caleb Kerney of The Hockey News, he could be a good asset for a Condors team currently with no left-shot defencemen.
This has been a tough period in Dermott's NHL career, after previously being a regular in the NHL between 2017-18 and 2021-22, while he was a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. At the same time however, he would represent a cheap and very low-risk pickup for the Oilers, and you won't find us criticising them if they decide to try and take advantage of the Newmarket, Ontario native's fall from grace.
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