Edmonton Oilers linked to this Montreal Canadiens defenceman

The Edmonton Oilers have been linked to Montreal Canadiens blue liner David Savard. NHL insiderDavid Pagnotta of The Fourth Period recently reported the potential of Habs’ defenceman David Savard being high on the Oilers' radar.

It’s a poorly kept secret that the Oilers are in the market for a top-four defenceman. However, the market seems a tad dry at the moment.

But that’s about to change. We’re in mid-November and the wheat is beginning to separate from the chaff. There’s a good sense of which teams are headed to the playoffs and which ones are not. The Canadiens are among those who’ll get an early jump on the summer.

As such, it’s a fair assessment that the Canadiens will look to sell off valuable pieces in order to further their rebuild. The Habs seem set on Mike Matheson as their number-one blue liner, with Kaiden Guhle being a key piece for the future. Also Lane Hutson looks set to play a prominent role for the Habs down the road.

That leaves Savard as a potential trade chip the Habs could use to recoup more assets, either to bolster their prospect pipeline or use them in other trades to acquire missing pieces such as a decent starting goaltender.

With that in mind, Pagnotta’s comments make sense. Pagnotta stated that the Canadiens are prepared to shop Savard at some point down the road this season, with the Oilers being the primary suitor.

The price to land David Savard with the Edmonton Oilers

According to Pagnotta, getting Savard wouldn’t cost the Oilers a first-round pick. That’s not a bad proposition. However, the Oilers don’t have draft picks to shoot around.

So, it seems that a combination of picks and roster players could get the deal done. Again, the Oilers don’t have very many prospects to go around. If there is no salary retention involved in the deal, the asking price could be far lower than anticipated.

It’s worth pointing out that Savard is in the final season of a four-year deal with a $3.5 AAV. The 34-year-old is sent to become a UFA at the end of this season. As such, Savard could be nothing more than a rental. That means the Oilers must be wary of overpaying.

Still, Savard, like Mattias Ekholm, could become a fixture on the Oilers' blue line next season. With the prospect of the salary going up substantially next season, the Oilers might just be able to slide Connor McDavid’s new deal along with Savard for good measure.

Meanwhile, we’ll be keeping tabs on the defence market. The Oilers will be looking to get involved sooner rather than later.

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