As has already been written many times here and elsewhere, the Edmonton Oilers performed wonders at the beginning of free agency. Interim general manager Jeff Jackson and the rest of the front office deserve the highest praise, for how they were able to get so many team-friendly deals agreed.
As a result, the Oilers' overall roster is now stronger than the one which just came within a whisker of winning the Stanley Cup. However, this doesn't meant there isn't still challenges which need to be resolved.
As things stand, the Oilers have 21 of 23 rosters spots filled. Those two remaining spots will theoretically be taken by Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway, who are both restricted free agents.
However, this is where the challenge comes in. For a start, as per PuckPedia, the Oilers are projected to have a cap space of $-354,167 for next season as things stand.
Ongoing contract negotiations with Broberg and Holloway
This in large part explains why the Oilers have yet to agree terms with Broberg and Holloway, despite both being forwarded qualifying offers. And fans should be warned not to expect a resolution anytime soon, as per Caleb Kerney of The Hockey News.
Kerney makes reference to Oilers Now host Bob Stauffer, who talked about the situation involving the two restricted free agents during Friday's show. Stauffer admitted he didn't see anything imminent happening in respect of either Broberg or Holloway, with deals likely to come sometime during August.
Now as Kerney noted, the time it takes to resolve both issues isn't an issue per se. At the same time however, it still has to be accepted that the longer the contract talks drag on, it will be a natural knock-on effect for fans to become increasingly concerned.
So what will it cost?
There is of course the question of how much it will take, to resolve both contract negotiations? As per AFP Analytics, they project both players to receive one-year deals, but this is based on the basic parameters of initial restricted free agent qualifying offers.
From Stauffer's point of view, what he did say is that the Oilers ideally want to get Broberg and Holloway on respective two-year deals in the low $1 million mark annually. Along these lines, let's assume this would put the Oilers at around -$3 million for next season's salary cap.
This explains why negotations are still ongoing with both, highlighting the Oilers' need to somehow free up some cap space. As we've previously written, the two best options which appear open to Jackson and company involve Cody Ceci and Evander Kane, with their respective cap hits of $3.25 million and $5.125 million.
Ultimately, you want to believe the Oilers will come to terms with Broberg and Holloway; both players have proven themselves and in theory want to remain with a team so close to winning it all. However, until anything official is announced, there's going to be at least an element of doubt in the back of the mind, such is the natural mindset of a lot of fans.