What might a trade look like?
I'm so glad you asked. :) As long as the Canucks are willing to retain salary, then a deal is absolutely possible. If the Canucks refuse to retain salary, then this trade is a non-starter.
To Edmonton:
Vincent Desharnais (50% salary - $1 million retained per season)
2025 and 2026 fourth round picks
To Vancouver:
Ty Emberson
2026 fifth round pick
Why would the Oilers make this trade when Emberson is the superior player right now?
That's a valid question, and it's always a bit of a role of the dice when you trade for a struggling player. However, you have to look past the surface for why this is a valid trade for the Oilers, or why they'd want to make it in the first place.
First of all, Desharnais is basically Emberson on steriods. He's bigger (Height 6.07 -- Weight 226 vs. Height 6.02 -- Weight 193) and more experienced (135 regular season games vs. only 61 for Emberson). More importantly, Desharnais was part of a Stanley Cup finalist team last season in Edmonton, while Emberson played for the rebuilding San Jose Sharks, his rookie NHL season. So he has zero playoff experience, while Desharnais between the last two seasons has 28 games, including last season's trip to the Finals. Always better to go with guys who have been there before, whenever possible.
Most importantly, this is where Desharnais has had his greatest success as an NHLer. I don't think the Oilers really wanted to let him go in the first place, but they had to because the Canucks were overpaying for him in free agency and the Oilers couldn't justify doing that, especially once the offer sheets came in for Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg, squeezing cap space even more.
One other benefit for the Canucks - if Emberson doesn't work out, his contract is up after this season so they just let him walk. Desharnais has another season left on his contract, so he'd still be with the team next season if his struggles continue, likely not an appealing prospect for Canucks GM Patrik Alvin.
Also worth noting - I would've preferred a single third round pick from the Canucks, but they don't have one until 2027. This year's is gone to Montreal in exchange for Casey DeSmith and next year's is gone to Calgary in exchange for Nikita Zadorov.
Surely Desharnais returning back to where he had his biggest successes will only help his confidence. Not to mention the Oilers could still use his PK prowess, as even after some improvement from a horrendous start to the season their PK is still only 26th in the league following Sunday's slate of games, so they could certainly use an upgrade on the roster PK wise.
The fifth round pick going to the Canucks is just a sweetener for the cap space retention, while the two fourth round picks coming to the Oilers are sweeteners for acquiring a struggling player.
Personally I believe Emberson is a better fit for the Canucks, where the pressure is lower than here in Edmonton. Meanwhile, Desharnais is the more polished player who already has a proven track record of success in Edmonton's system and is the better fit here.
The X factor
The major X factor into this trade is the fact that the GM who drafted and developed Desharnais, Ken Holland, is no longer the GM, and since Stan Bowman doesn't have the same attachment to the player there might not be the same appetite for a re-acquisition.