GDT: Free Agent Frenzy @ 10 am MT.

[PostBradMalone]

Like they have a thread SPECIFICALLY about the Oilers. We don't have a thread about them lol. It's actually pretty hilarious how butt hurt they are about the Oilers and how obsessed they are with us

It's not just online; I remember driving into Calgary one time and my car just happened to pick up one of their awful rock stations. The hosts- an older man and woman- came back from break to continue what had apparently been a long-running segment that afternoon on why Edmonton sucks.

It wasn't even fun/goofy jokes that NOW! might run- it was legitimate hatred, with callers going into painstaking detail about how derelict the city apparently is, how poorly run, how the people are uneducated/unattractive, etc. and the hosts just egged it on and on.

Ever since, I've had an entirely different view of the BoA. It goes well beyond hockey for them, into pure loathing. Meanwhile, as an Oilers fan, this about sums about how much time I devote mentally to Calgary the city:

 

[TheNumber4]

Regarding Dylan Strome, Gregor and Strudwick on today's show were saying how they didn’t think Holland was interested in him because he doesn’t play the style of the team (lots of pace and aggressive)
Then we also had John Shannon saying the other day how there’s no chance on Strome because he doesn’t have the foot speed.

I still think he would do well here. If not, I'd take a chance on Kessel.

Exactly my take as well a couple days ago. Holland is building a speed and pace game. The league is a copycat league and just saw the Avs win with the best speed and pace. Didn’t think Strome was going to be a target for that reason. Should be a philosophy for the entire line up- up and down.

I still like my buy low candidates and his draft pedigree is enticing. But… probably should stick to the blue print.

 

[TheNumber4]

Bullet Dodged:



God damnit Bob.

 

[Ritchie Valens]

Posted this on the mains, just to be immature. But IDGAF.

 

[Nunymare]

I wonder if we can pry someone from Columbus as they'll need to move some $ to re-sign Laine. That might be the cherry on top to Johnny going there, LOL.

 

[VainGretzky]

Hmmm who?

Saddam Hussian

 

[PostBradMalone]

Holland will have an interesting opportunity over the next little bit to acquire two guys he knows well: Tatar and Nyquist. The Devils have no room for Tatar with Palat coming aboard- their fans are not even putting him in mock lineups now- but is a reasonable $4.5M for one more year. Meanwhile, Jackets fans on the trade board are trying to ship Nyquist out @ 50% ($2.75M) for as little as a 2nd coming off a 50-point year.

I'd prefer Nyquist given his consistent production, but both are the kind of value add who could really put our forward group over the top:

Kane-McDavid-Hyman
Tatar/Nyquist-Drai-Yamamoto

Barrie would need to go for cap space and/or the pick needed to make this happen, but if Ken ever thought about a reunion with either guy, this is the time to make that call. Keep in mind neither player has trade protection either so it all comes down to fit and cost.

 

[Cloned]

I think we will sign De Haan.

For forwards, if we manage to clear more cap I think we’ll push for Heinen or even Rodrigues. If not, someone like Janmark is likely.

 

[XXIV97]

I think the best action might be to bring back all the RFAs. Tell Puljujarvi to sign a 1-year contract with the Oilers where he starts on the third line. If he plays well, he can move into the top six. If it doesn't work out well, the Oilers will look to trade him in-season.

We have about 8.02M (1.32M (cap space) + 6.7M (LTIR)) by my calculation

Signings:
1 year at 2M for Puljujarvi
2 years at 2.5M for Yamamoto
1 year 1.25M for McLeod
= $5.75M

Kane-McDavid-Yamamoto
RNH-Draisaitl-Hyman
Foegele-McLeod-Puljujarvi
Holloway-Ryan-X

Nurse-Ceci
Kulak-Bouchard
Broberg-Barrie

Campbell
Skinner

Cap space = $2.27M

To improve the team further, we would have to trade Barrie for $2.5M D. After this, we would have over 5M+ to target another player.

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

Wow didn't realise Panthers were 2+mil over the cap and needing to extend Huberdeau next season. Starting to get the Weegar rumours now. Hornqvist is the only real money coming off the books for them and I cant see them being able to use that money to also extend Weegar.

We gotta pounce on that if possible.

Nurse-Ceci
Kulak-Weegar

Is a top-4 defense.

 

[TheNumber4]

I wonder if we can pry someone from Columbus as they'll need to move some $ to re-sign Laine. That might be the cherry on top to Johnny going there, LOL.

I fear Jarmo

 

[TheNumber4]

Holland will have an interesting opportunity over the next little bit to acquire two guys he knows well: Tatar and Nyquist. The Devils have no room for Tatar with Palat coming aboard- their fans are not even putting him in mock lineups now- but is a reasonable $4.5M for one more year. Meanwhile, Jackets fans on the trade board are trying to ship Nyquist out @ 50% ($2.75M) for as little as a 2nd coming off a 50-point year.

I'd prefer Nyquist given his consistent production, but both are the kind of value add who could really put our forward group over the top:

Kane-McDavid-Hyman
Tatar/Nyquist-Drai-Yamamoto

Barrie would need to go for cap space and/or the pick needed to make this happen, but if Ken ever thought about a reunion with either guy, this is the time to make that call. Keep in mind neither player has trade protection either so it all comes down to fit and cost.

Even 2.75M is pricey it seems at this point. Not much smoke around moving Barrie, think the Oilers still value his offence and have noticed his defensive game take an uptick.

The former Wings thing is an interesting theory though, but points to an eye test / old school way of identifying players that I’d rather see not happen. We already got burned on AA as well, which had to be a seen-him-good on the Wings type acquisition.

 

[McIce Whole]

I think the best action might be to bring back all the RFAs. Tell Puljujarvi to sign a 1-year contract with the Oilers where he starts on the third line. If he plays well, he can move into the top six. If it doesn't work out well, the Oilers will look to trade him in-season.

We have about 8.02M (1.32M (cap space) + 6.7M (LTIR)) by my calculation

Signings:
1 year at 2M for Puljujarvi
2 years at 2.5M for Yamamoto
1 year 1.25M for McLeod
= $5.75M

Kane-McDavid-Yamamoto
RNH-Draisaitl-Hyman
Foegele-McLeod-Puljujarvi
Holloway-Ryan-X

Nurse-Ceci
Kulak-Bouchard
Broberg-Barrie

Campbell
Skinner

Cap space = $2.27M

To improve the team further, we would have to trade Barrie for $2.5M D. After this, we would have over 5M+ to target another player.

I think the plan is to keep Barrie no matter what happens. It’s Foegele, Puju or both that will get moved from the look of things.

If the plan is to roll with what we have, I think Oilers should be looking at bringing in someone like Ryan Murray or Calvin De Haan.

They both have experience playing top 4 minutes and if Murray could stay healthy, he’s a legit top 4 shutdown dmen IMO.

I also want to see Kulak paired with Barrie. I thought they were a very solid pairing together and would rather see them together over Kulak-Bouch.

Nurse - Ceci
Kulak - Barrie
Murray/De Haan - Bouch

I would be way more comfortable with that. Let broberg or Nemo step in when/if injuries occur.

 

[48g90a138pts]

Not much quality out there for #4C.

Beagle fits the description, but he sucks. Maybe Cody Eakin?

How about Derek Stepan?

 

[TheNumber4]

I think the best action might be to bring back all the RFAs. Tell Puljujarvi to sign a 1-year contract with the Oilers where he starts on the third line. If he plays well, he can move into the top six. If it doesn't work out well, the Oilers will look to trade him in-season.

We have about 8.02M (1.32M (cap space) + 6.7M (LTIR)) by my calculation

Signings:
1 year at 2M for Puljujarvi
2 years at 2.5M for Yamamoto
1 year 1.25M for McLeod
= $5.75M

Kane-McDavid-Yamamoto
RNH-Draisaitl-Hyman
Foegele-McLeod-Puljujarvi
Holloway-Ryan-X

Nurse-Ceci
Kulak-Bouchard
Broberg-Barrie

Campbell
Skinner

Cap space = $2.27M

To improve the team further, we would have to trade Barrie for $2.5M D. After this, we would have over 5M+ to target another player.

It’s an interesting scenario. And I think keeping our RFAs is likely at this point. Barrie or Foegle being the trade chip to change this roster is what’s left as options. Personally I think Barrie stays, but in the situation that we trade him for a 2.5M d-man, curious have you identified any that we should target?

 

[PostBradMalone]

Even 2.75M is pricey it seems at this point. Not much smoke around moving Barrie, think the Oilers still value his offence and have noticed his defensive game take an uptick.

The former Wings thing is an interesting theory though, but points to an eye test / old school way of identifying players that I’d rather see not happen. We already got burned on AA as well, which had to be a seen-him-good on the Wings type acquisition.

I get your concern about Yzerman conning Holland again, but Nyquist in particular is just so damn consistent no matter the team or situation. I think a player with his vision and passing ability would thrive on Drai’s wing, giving us two great lines and a very good third unit.

 

[Louis Cypher]

I think the plan is to keep Barrie no matter what happens. It’s Foegele, Puju or both that will get moved from the look of things.

If the plan is to roll with what we have, I think Oilers should be looking at bringing in someone like Ryan Murray or Calvin De Haan.

They both have experience playing top 4 minutes and if Murray could stay healthy, he’s a legit top 4 shutdown dmen IMO.

I also want to see Kulak paired with Barrie. I thought they were a very solid pairing together and would rather see them together over Kulak-Bouch.

Nurse - Ceci
Kulak - Barrie
Murray/De Haan - Bouch

I would be way more comfortable with that. Let broberg or Nemo step in when/if injuries occur.

Thats not how you groom a top prospect Dman by having him sit in the pressbox or toil in the minors. Time to graduate Broberg.

 

[McCombo]

Best signings

Gaudreau [CBJ] 7x9.8mil. One of the best offensive players in the league. Though this isn't enough to make CBJ competitive, but once they did get a good player, rather than those wanting out. Weird decision from Gaudreau. New Jersey would have been a great place for him. They are team to look for in the next couple of years. With Gaudreau they could have made playoffs already next year.

Kane [EDM] 4x5.125mil. If Kane behaves like an adult this has the potential to be the best signing this off-season. Hope he has matured.

Perron [DET] 2x4.75. Good player. Nice term, good price. Not your typical FA deal, so thats good.

I think those really stand out. Honorable mention to Kulak deal. Exactly the skill set what Oilers need. Excellent defensive defensemen. Makes decisions that increases the time Oilers have the puck. Great price if you compare what more physical Dmen got that actually don't defend well. Also like Lehkonen deal for COL, great support player for their stars. Can play up and down the line-up. At nice price and decent term.

Worst signings

Gudbranson [CBJ] 4x4mil. What. Why. Baffling decision. I guess he was decent in CGY in a good system, now he doesn't have that good team around him. Opposite of a player like Kulak. Physicality doesn't mean good defense. Third pairing guy who needs sheltered minutes to keep his head above water.

Chiarot [DET] 4x4.75mil. Worse defensive player than Kulak, but more physical/punishing so gets overvalued. Really glad that Oilers choose Kulak over Chiarot with these contracts.

A lot of deals that probably are bad in a couple of years, but just how FA works. These two clearly are bad at the moment already.

Sergachev got too much, but at least he is young. Has played sheltered minutes and now got #1 money. Heiskanen has similar contract, I would take Heiskanen every time over Sergachev.

 

[Garbo Man]

Best signings

Gaudreau [CBJ] 7x9.8mil. One of the best offensive players in the league. Though this isn't enough to make CBJ competitive, but once they did get a good player, rather than those wanting out. Weird decision from Gaudreau. New Jersey would have been a great place for him. They are team to look for in the next couple of years. With Gaudreau they could have made playoffs already next year.

Kane [EDM] 4x5.125mil. If Kane behaves like an adult this has the potential to be the best signing this off-season. Hope he has matured.

Perron [DET] 2x4.75. Good player. Nice term, good price. Not your typical FA deal, so thats good.

I think those really stand out. Honorable mention to Kulak deal. Exactly the skill set what Oilers need. Excellent defensive defensemen. Makes decisions that increases the time Oilers have the puck. Great price if you compare what more physical Dmen got that actually don't defend well. Also like Lehkonen deal for COL, great support player for their stars. Can play up and down the line-up. At nice price and decent term.

Worst signings

Gudbranson [CBJ] 4x4mil. What. Why. Baffling decision. I guess he was decent in CGY in a good system, now he doesn't have that good team around him. Opposite of a player like Kulak. Physicality doesn't mean good defense. Third pairing guy who needs sheltered minutes to keep his head above water.

Chiarot [DET] 4x4.75mil. Worse defensive player than Kulak, but more physical/punishing so gets overvalued. Really glad that Oilers choose Kulak over Chiarot with these contracts.

A lot of deals that probably are bad in a couple of years, but just how FA works. These two clearly are bad at the moment already.

Sergachev got too much, but at least he is young. Has played sheltered minutes and now got #1 money. Heiskanen has similar contract, I would take Heiskanen every time over Sergachev.

That Trochek contract is gonna be one of the worst in the league within the next 3 years

 

[McIce Whole]

Thats not how you groom a top prospect Dman by having him sit in the pressbox or toil in the minors. Time to graduate Broberg.

If he’s ready, he steals the spot and proves it in training camp. If he isn’t you send him back and let him work on his game and actually develop.

He has 31 games of experience in the AHL and is only 21. I would much rather have him force his way and steal a spot rather than just pencilling him in as a top 6 dmen.

We are also trying to win a cup, ice the best roster and let Broberg develop if he shows he isn’t one of the best 6 dmen on the club.

 

[SnipeShowJB11]

It's not just online; I remember driving into Calgary one time and my car just happened to pick up one of their awful rock stations. The hosts- an older man and woman- came back from break to continue what had apparently been a long-running segment that afternoon on why Edmonton sucks.

It wasn't even fun/goofy jokes that NOW! might run- it was legitimate hatred, with callers going into painstaking detail about how derelict the city apparently is, how poorly run, how the people are uneducated/unattractive, etc. and the hosts just egged it on and on.

Ever since, I've had an entirely different view of the BoA. It goes well beyond hockey for them, into pure loathing. Meanwhile, as an Oilers fan, this about sums about how much time I devote mentally to Calgary the city:

View attachment 569068

I love listening to their post game shows when they lose on 960. Fans constantly bring up Edmonton for no reason lol. It is so weird. I am sure that Edmonton is no good thread has been up there at least 10+ years. It's always close to the top of the page. Hilarious. They are a very insecure fanbase.

 

[TheNumber4]

I get your concern about Yzerman conning Holland again, but Nyquist in particular is just so damn consistent no matter the team or situation. I think a player with his vision and passing ability would thrive on Drai’s wing, giving us two great lines and a very good third unit.

4.5M is a pretty big chunk of change though. But can’t argue with his consistency. I’m sure he’s a good player. He’s a 1 year rental at a high cap… we just passed on a cheaper 1 year rental in Brown seemingly due to cap issues.

I think if we are going to fill out this roster, we’ll need to identify the new Brown or the next Nyquist. Get em dirt cheap and hope for a huge uptick. Once the League knows these guys are good they are paid as such.. not so much in Browns case as he’s still a bargainish contract. But we really need someone cheaper to pop to get the value we need to take this roster to another level.

 

[TheNumber4]

Best signings

Gaudreau [CBJ] 7x9.8mil. One of the best offensive players in the league. Though this isn't enough to make CBJ competitive, but once they did get a good player, rather than those wanting out. Weird decision from Gaudreau. New Jersey would have been a great place for him. They are team to look for in the next couple of years. With Gaudreau they could have made playoffs already next year.

Kane [EDM] 4x5.125mil. If Kane behaves like an adult this has the potential to be the best signing this off-season. Hope he has matured.

Perron [DET] 2x4.75. Good player. Nice term, good price. Not your typical FA deal, so thats good.

I think those really stand out. Honorable mention to Kulak deal. Exactly the skill set what Oilers need. Excellent defensive defensemen. Makes decisions that increases the time Oilers have the puck. Great price if you compare what more physical Dmen got that actually don't defend well. Also like Lehkonen deal for COL, great support player for their stars. Can play up and down the line-up. At nice price and decent term.

Worst signings

Gudbranson [CBJ] 4x4mil. What. Why. Baffling decision. I guess he was decent in CGY in a good system, now he doesn't have that good team around him. Opposite of a player like Kulak. Physicality doesn't mean good defense. Third pairing guy who needs sheltered minutes to keep his head above water.

Chiarot [DET] 4x4.75mil. Worse defensive player than Kulak, but more physical/punishing so gets overvalued. Really glad that Oilers choose Kulak over Chiarot with these contracts.

A lot of deals that probably are bad in a couple of years, but just how FA works. These two clearly are bad at the moment already.

Sergachev got too much, but at least he is young. Has played sheltered minutes and now got #1 money. Heiskanen has similar contract, I would take Heiskanen every time over Sergachev.

Agree with pretty much all your takes. On the defence, I’m Very happy the Oilers went with the D-man that could skate and defend with good sticks over d-men that defended most of their NHL lives with ignored cross checks that became mostly obsolete last year. For once the Oilers made a move that trends well with where the League is heading.

 

[Gordy Elbows]

Wonder if there’s a way to pry Garland out of Vancouver. Talented forward that could add to our top 9….makes a shade under $5m per yr and has 4 or 5 yrs remaining on the contract.
Canucks signed Michayev from the Leafs today and will likely need to move out a forward for cap reasons. Their needs are cap space and defence. 3rd round pick and Samurov?
Would it be worth a shot?

 

[TheNumber4]

Wonder if there’s a way to pry Garland out of Vancouver. Talented forward that could add to our top 9….makes a shade under $5m per yr and has 4 or 5 yrs remaining on the contract.
Canucks signed Michayev from the Leafs today and will likely need to move out a forward for cap reasons. Their needs are cap space and defence. 3rd round pick and Samurov?
Would it be worth a shot?

Always liked his game. But at that price… it’s a lot of cap to commit. We’d have to move other players out to accommodate. Don’t think it’s worth the squeeze. Also, at his size there’s always a risk he gets completely erased come playoffs time and that’s a risk we can’t take.