Edmonton Oilers were reportedly in the running for Tyler Toffoli

Depending on who you ask, the Oilers either had a solid or underwhelming trade deadline. We'd lean towards the former, given the acquisitions of Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick in particular added experience, depth and versatility.

However, we can also certainly understand why some would term the trades -- which also include Troy Stecher -- as underwhelming. More specifically, when you compare the moves to those made by the likes of the Vegas Golden Knights, Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars.

In this respect, another Western Conference contender which should be mentioned, are the Winnipeg Jets. In fact, there is also some particular relevance and connection to the Oilers, which could well prove frustrating for fans in Edmonton.

Toffoli was on the radar

It relates to Tyler Toffoli, who ended up being traded to the Jets from the New Jersey Devils. It turns out that the Oilers were also in the running to acquire the winger.

This information comes from no less an authority than Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, on Monday's edition of his 32 Thoughts podcast with Jeff Marek. Friedman advised that the Oilers were in contention for Toffoli, along with the likes of the Vancouver Canucks, Los Angeles Kings and of course the Jets.

We had previously written about the Oilers' apparent interest in Toffoli, via TSN's Darren Dreger. At the time, we were of the opinion he would make for an intriguing addition as a quality scorer.

Contract an issue ... or not as it turned out

Consider that the 31-year-old had set a new career-high of 73 points during the 2022-23 campaign, and this season was on course for the second-most points of his 12 seasons in the NHL. Our main reason for concern, related to his contract.

In this respect, Toffoli is in the final year of his current deal and we wondered if it was worth giving up valuable assets for a player who would essentially be a rental. In addition, the Oilers might struggle to account for his cap hit of $4.25 million given their tenuous salary cap position.

However, as we now know from the Jets' trade with the Devils, the Oilers could have easily matched if not beaten the offer. Consider that all Toffoli cost was second and third round draft picks, with the real kicker being that, as per TSN's Pierre LeBrun, the Devils retained 50 percent of his cap hit.

The players general manager Ken Holland brought in have almost certainly put the Oilers in a better position to contend for the Stanley Cup come playoff time. (Assuming they do of course qualify.) However, it's tough to look past the reality he dropped the ball (puck), when it comes to what could have been with a trade for Toffoli.

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