Who is a realistic trade target?
A trade is almost a certainty at the deadline all things considered, but the Oilers have very little in assets to provide a team with, to get any blue chip player. At this stage of the season, it's unlikely that many teams -- if any -- would be willing to make a splashy move and much like we said last year when Edmonton was struggling, they'll once again be dealing from a position of weakness.
Unlike last season however, there is one weapon they have at their disposal this time around and that is cap flexibility. Today they have 5.125 million in LTIR pool and just over $1 million in actual space, which will become just under $5 million total at the deadline. Fitting someone under that right now is actually pretty doable. Here's some names I think make sense.
1. Zach Bogosian (RHD) Minnesota Wild
He currently plays on Minnesota's second pairing with Jonas Brodin and they make a formidable pairing. The Wild are however struggling a bit out of the gate (1-0-2) and more importantly, next season they are finally alleviated by the buyout penalties of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, and will finally have some cap flexibility.
The reason why Bogosian is added here is because I don't figure him to be a major focal point of Bill Guerin's long-term plan. He is a solid defender, but at 34 years old it seems as though they could benefit from a draft pick to make room for some of their younger prospects and giving themselves even more wiggle room financially.
He is much like the rest of the team, not so hot out of the gate, but his underlying numbers were very good last season and at a $1.25 million AAV for two years he would fill a very specific role that the Oilers desperately need. And this dollar figure would be only slightly higher than what it would cost you to bring in Schultz or Shattenkirk, who both did not have a training camp.