Oilers receiving interest in Cody Ceci and Brett Kulak, but there's a catch

As a result of the St. Louis Blues' double-offer sheets to Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway, the Edmonton Oilers' tenuous salary cap position has become even more perilous. Pending what Stan Bowman and company decide to do with Broberg and Holloway, as per PuckPedia they are currently $7,225,541 over the salary cap for the 2024-25 campaign.

It's been written ad nausem -- here and elsewhere -- about how the Oilers can at least get some temporary help, by putting Evander Kane on Long-Term Injured Reserve to begin the coming season. However, aside from not knowing at this stage how long this will be for, Kane's $5.125 million salary for 2024-25 still doesn't entirely resolve the debt the Oilers currently have on their books.

Oilers likely need to make a trade

With this in mind, and again pending what the Oilers want to do about Broberg and Holloway, someone is going to have to be traded. It is pretty much accepted that the main candidates in this respect, are defencemen Cody Ceci and Brett Kulak.

Ceci has only year remaining on his current contract for $3.25 million, and he is the preference to be moved. Meanwhile, Kulak has two years remaining, at an annual average value of $2.75 million, and makes for a good secondary trade option.

Along these lines, as per Bruce Garroich of the Edmonton Journal, there is some good news - at least in theory. Garrioch reports that there are indeed teams who are showing interest in Ceci and Kulak.

A high asking price

However, there reason we say this is only theoretically good news, is because this interest apparently comes with a caveat. More specifically, that interested teams are also asking for a first or second round draft pick, in addition to taking Ceci or Kulak off the Oilers' plate.

The initial reaction is to say this sounds like a very adventurous -- boarding on audacious -- request. However, it comes down to other teams knowing they have Bowman and company in a tight spot, desperate to find a solution to their current roster/salary cap issues.

It will be intriguing to see how far opposing teams are willing to push their luck. Assuming one or more of the teams out there do have a genuine interest in either Ceci or Kulak, how much are they willing to stand on the hill of also wanting a high draft pick, and risk losing out on their desired defenceman target altogether?

At the same time, how eager are the Oilers to keep Broberg and/or Holloway around? Broberg is particular has tremendous -- albeit still largely unproven -- upside.

Further, there are no such guarantees a first or second round draft pick in 2025, is going to net a player who is on a similar level to Broberg -- or Holloway -- talent-wise. In addition, both players are already in the NHL, whereas even a high 2025 draft pick will not be ready for the big stage anytime soon, i.e. during this window for the Oilers to finally win the Stanley Cup again.

Ultimately, this is an extremely compelling situation with so many potential scenarios and outcomes. At least we'll have some answers soon, with the Oilers needing to decide whether to match either offer sheet for Broberg and Holloway by this coming Tuesday.

Recent Posts