Rumor: Rumors and Proposals Thread | Spector: Kassian Extension Before Trade Deadline? Anything Else?

[LMFAO]

Acquire Ennis already

Neal - McDavid - Kassian
RNH - Draisailt - Yamamoto
Ennis - Haas - Chiasson
Nygard - Sheahan - Archibald

Lets make a run

 

[ConnorMcNugesaitl]

Khaira and Benning for Johnsson and a contract.

They get cap relief, toughness and defensive depth. Oilers get a wing upgrade and both Benning and Russell likely aren't here next year anyways if Bouchard makes the team like the Oilers reporters keep pushing for.

 

[Todd Parchment]

I don’t think ennis is a plan the parade type player....

we need to get Dustin brown with retention 50%

Jesse+3rd 2021+gagner for brown

Perfect player for us

 

[GOilers88]

The irony of this, as if the Oilers aren't one point away from being out of the playoffs, with still 33 games left to play, and a Klefbom injury away from a bottom 10 finish. The Oilers aren't exactly tearing it up right now. It cuts both ways.

I really dislike when people talk about being in and out of the playoffs on a day to day, game by game basis. They lose their next game and people run around going "they aren't even in a playoff position!"

But they are, and will be, right until the end of the season barring a huge losing streak, because the division is a complete dog fight. Any team that loses one of their top two defensemen who eat the most minutes are always at risk of dropping, so that's just another thing that bugs me when people bring it up, like it's just an Oilers thing. It's not.

It's like no matter what this team does, some people just want to see everything in a completely negative light and assume the worst all the time, even when they're playing well. Which they currently are. The bottom six and goaltending have been good this year minus a cold stretch that I can assure you almost every single team will face every single year. This team isn't being dragged by McD and Drai like it was last season, instead it's a full team effort. Are they built like Tampa or St. Louis? Of course not, but you don't have to be the absolute best team in the league to do some damage in the post season, or to even get there.

People around here have been saying bottom ten finish almost from the onset of this season and yet the team is still extremely in the thick of the playoff hunt. At what point do you flick the switch and actually start positively rooting for this team?

 

[CupofOil]

This is the same logic that leads to the claim that Draisatl is a product of McDavid. Johnsson played most of his minutes with Mathews and Tavares along with defensemen like Rieily and Gardnier on a team that played pond hockey. He scored 17 ES goals with a 15.4% s%. This year he has been playing with even better players and he has not produced at nearly the same rate. Which is the actual player you are getting for $3.4M?? This years version or last year's.

As I said, if he came for free. So be it. But he won't. He will cost you assets and comes with a multi-year $3.4M contract. Should the Oiler be prepared to give him the LW slot with McDavid going forward because if he is not in that role he's likely not worth his contract never mind the assets it would take to get him.

Ok, so they can all up Benson and hope for the best then.

The bottom line is if you want an upgrade at wing, it's going to cost assets and that winger will probably have question marks because no perfect winger is becoming available.
My question is, would you rather Holland stand pat or find an upgrade. If you're looking at an upgrade, who did you have in mind?

 

[GOilers88]

The Oilers should make a treade by the deadline to shore up their chances of making the playoffs. Happy?

I'm happy that the team as it currently stands has come together and turned themselves into what could certainly be a playoff team, and no playoff team doesn't mean cup contender. I'm happy that Yamo and Benson are likely going to be internal solutions which will enable Holland to ride out most all of this season without having to add rentals just to appease a select crowd. Do I hopehe can find a solid, top six addition? Of course. If the team stumbles before the deadline do I hope he actively tries to add that piece? Of course. If they play like they have been since the start of the new year to finish the season do I still think it's imperative that they go out and add people? Not at all.

I've never seen this season as a dire, do or die season for the franchise like some of you have and I guess that's where the difference of opinion comes from.

 

[Fourier]

Ok, so they can all up Benson and hope for the best then.

The bottom line is if you want an upgrade at wing, it's going to cost assets and that winger will probably have question marks because no perfect winger is becoming available.
My question is, would you rather Holland stand pat or find an upgrade. If you're looking at an upgrade, who did you have in mind?

At this point I don't see an modest upgrade like Johnsson making much difference. If there is an opportunity for a long term improvement at a cost that does not have an impact somewhere else then fine. But I think that the time to make a move is in the next off season.

The team is playing quite well. Guys like Archibald and Sheehan are starting to pay dividends. Yamamoto has made a big difference.

 

[belair]

3.4m is fine value for a player capable of playing in the top 6.
I'm not saying that I'd give up Larsson for him, I just think that's who the Leafs will want.

The Oilers need a winger for the McDavid line. You seem to think there's a perfect solution out there. Johnsson would be an upgrade on anything the Oilers could plug in there. He can skate, can handle the puck and has soft hands. Good enough for me if he can be had for a reasonable price.

Sure it is. But it's not for a player who's not necessarily playing in the top six, which is my concern. There are only so many roster spots available for these types of players.

If you're assuming that McDavid, Draisaitl, RNH and Kassian are in those slots moving forward, that leaves two spots in the top six available. Are you willing to commit to Johnsson for the next four years assuming that's the best option you can get?

My argument is that his contract is a problem if he's not in that top six. And yes, I do think there are better solutions out there if you're willing to wait until the summer to address that role long term.

I think Johnsson is a fine player. But he doesn't necessarily fit our needs beyond this season. And as a third liner here, he probably regresses significantly.

 

[SwedishFire]

I would look elsewhere rather then at Kapanen, Johnsson and Kerfoot. The asking price looks to be why to high.

This.... but Leaf fans are not Dubas, and their fans wants to hang him. I think some fans have a tad bit to high expections on things..

We should see this year if Benson and Currie can come up, and show signs of improvements. As we know now, signs of improvment from one year to another - doesnt mean a jack squat. The importance here, is to take good care of Benson and Curries developement. Currie is the real joker here, coming from like..nowhere, scoring a lot of goals.

Oilers need one more feisty foreard who is dangerous. As long there isnt someone here, Neal can stay.
But Neals salary is soon a problem.6,5 millions is money also well spent of getting rid of Lucic-situation, but its still a high capnumber.

I Actually think, just one more forward is needed on the lineup to get in. A defence skilled center, who has size and has some hockey sense. Who´s that? Erik Haula if he was avaliable.

It will be intressting if Holland could sell out Manning, Gagner, Khaira, Granlund, maybe P.Russell, clean up a bit for a bunch of 3 - 7th rounders or something. Capspace problem gone - incoming good forward.

 

[Behind Enemy Lines]

Benning is a sheltered #6, he has always gotten torched when playing on a 2nd pairing. The reason why he has played better this season is because Tippett lowered his minutes. I don't see why Dubas would have any interest in trading Johnsson for a #6. Larsson is their target I'd imagine.

I think Benning is serially underrated by some Oiler fans. Without any AHL seasoning he was airlifted directly on to the Oilers blueline and, in losing franchise tradition, played too often too highly on bad NHL rosters. He's still 70 games until he hits the 300 NHL game mark that many experts views as a measuring stick for knowing what one has in NHL defenders. Benning's shown great resiliency to not be broken by the Oilers flawed development and played on third pairing is more than carrying his weight. There's a lot of utility in his game with okay offensive/second PP ability, a tough combatant whose not afraid to fight, and decent defender when played realistic minutes.

Any Larsson deal for a questionable support forward like Johnsson is ridiculous. Starting point for Larsson is Kapanen-level proven player and capacity. I'm not sure I would deal Benning for Johnsson with the salary and term for a forward whose numbers are likely skewed on a high octane one-way team in Toronto.

The Oil - for the first time since forever - finally have real NHL depth on their blueline. It is giving them great flexibility in this winning season. I like Holland's slow, steady approach begun in the summer; in-season look to the system for a spark (Yamamoto); and get to the trade deadline to see how and if this team holds up. Benson is next up to see if he can contribute as a support player adding some secondary scoring without flipping NHL proven assets from a still stabilizing NHL roster capable of winning.

 

[Anarchism]

I wouldn't trade Larsson unless it was involving both johnsson and kapanen.
If you have to add a bit to Larsson, do it.
Leafs are desperate. Take advantage.

This except we need kerfoot more than Kapanen.

 

[Anarchism]

So let's discount anybody who plays with high end talent then. It's such a silly argument Fourier.
Is he not going to play alongside high end talent here?

My point is that Johnsson is a proven producer and would be an upgrade on any other winger they would plug on McDavid's line. He's obviously not the most ideal solution but he would be a good addition at the right price. I've watched him enough to see that he's a guy who can play in the top 6 here, he has some skill and the skating to keep up.

Further more this would only be Johnsson's second year....his Shl number are pretty good....there is upside here..
....there is enough ingredients in this chicken that McDavid can make chicken soup out of it....

Yes I would love Toffoli as much as the next guy(even if he has a bit of a lazy streak at times) but i am unwilling to pay the indivision price Blake will want.....
Would you give up a first and a quality prospect...??

 

[SK13]

I really dislike when people talk about being in and out of the playoffs on a day to day, game by game basis. They lose their next game and people run around going "they aren't even in a playoff position!"

But they are, and will be, right until the end of the season barring a huge losing streak, because the division is a complete dog fight. Any team that loses one of their top two defensemen who eat the most minutes are always at risk of dropping, so that's just another thing that bugs me when people bring it up, like it's just an Oilers thing. It's not.

It's like no matter what this team does, some people just want to see everything in a completely negative light and assume the worst all the time, even when they're playing well. Which they currently are. The bottom six and goaltending have been good this year minus a cold stretch that I can assure you almost every single team will face every single year. This team isn't being dragged by McD and Drai like it was last season, instead it's a full team effort. Are they built like Tampa or St. Louis? Of course not, but you don't have to be the absolute best team in the league to do some damage in the post season, or to even get there.

People around here have been saying bottom ten finish almost from the onset of this season and yet the team is still extremely in the thick of the playoff hunt. At what point do you flick the switch and actually start positively rooting for this team?

This is a quality post.

The dogfight between the top-9 and maybe 10 teams in the conference is real, but the other 6-7 are not in contention. The Oilers are battling 8 teams for 7 playoff spots in all likelihood. It's not a coin flip, or even really coin-flip adjacent. It's probably more like a 75-80% bet to be in.

So the conversation here should probably become more about jockying for position in the conference than it is making it at all, and that far exceeds many posters expectations coming into this year.

 

[Cloned]

I think Benning is serially underrated by some Oiler fans. Without any AHL seasoning he was airlifted directly on to the Oilers blueline and, in losing franchise tradition, played too often too highly on bad NHL rosters. He's still 70 games until he hits the 300 NHL game mark that many experts views as a measuring stick for knowing what one has in NHL defenders. Benning's shown great resiliency to not be broken by the Oilers flawed development and played on third pairing is more than carrying his weight. There's a lot of utility in his game with okay offensive/second PP ability, a tough combatant whose not afraid to fight, and decent defender when played realistic minutes.

Any Larsson deal for a questionable support forward like Johnsson is ridiculous. Starting point for Larsson is Kapanen-level proven player and capacity. I'm not sure I would deal Benning for Johnsson with the salary and term for a forward whose numbers are likely skewed on a high octane one-way team in Toronto.

The Oil - for the first time since forever - finally have real NHL depth on their blueline. It is giving them great flexibility in this winning season. I like Holland's slow, steady approach begun in the summer; in-season look to the system for a spark (Yamamoto); and get to the trade deadline to see how and if this team holds up. Benson is next up to see if he can contribute as a support player adding some secondary scoring without flipping NHL proven assets from a still stabilizing NHL roster capable of winning.

Kapanen is no more proven than Johnsson.

Ironically, the most proven one out of the trio is Kerfoot.

 

[SK13]

Kapanen is no more proven than Johnsson.

Ironically, the most proven one out of the trio is Kerfoot.

I would argue that Kapanen having a productive year with lesser linemates does kind of slide him into the "more proven" pile. Even last year I felt that Kapanen was the better get. He's the more explosive and talented player and SH% was less of a red flag.

Kerfoot's definitely the most proven and probably the most useful. He's just a LH shot and that's not super ideal for the Oilers.

 

[Soli]

4 games over the break. Condors get a first pairing with Lagesson - Benning coming down.

Also allows Toronto to scout him for the 1-for-1 forward trade

 

[Cloned]

I would argue that Kapanen having a productive year with lesser linemates does kind of slide him into the "more proven" pile. Even last year I felt that Kapanen was the better get. He's the more explosive and talented player and SH% was less of a red flag.

Kerfoot's definitely the most proven and probably the most useful. He's just a LH shot and that's not super ideal for the Oilers.

Not making any judgments on talent level or skill, just based on production at the NHL level I think Johnsson and Kapanen are fairly equal.

Kerfoot is LH but he also has versatility as he can play all three forward positions.

I’d honestly target Palmieri though.

 

[Anarchism]

This is the same logic that leads to the claim that Draisatl is a product of McDavid. Johnsson played most of his minutes with Mathews and Tavares along with defensemen like Rieily and Gardnier on a team that played pond hockey. He scored 17 ES goals with a 15.4% s%. This year he has been playing with even better players and he has not produced at nearly the same rate. Which is the actual player you are getting for $3.4M?? This years version or last year's.

As I said, if he came for free. So be it. But he won't. He will cost you assets and comes with a multi-year $3.4M contract. Should the Oiler be prepared to give him the LW slot with McDavid going forward because if he is not in that role he's likely not worth his contract never mind the assets it would take to get him.

What is your solution to McDavids LW??

 

[Anarchism]

4 games over the break. Condors get a first pairing with Lagesson - Benning coming down.

Also allows Toronto to scout him for the 1-for-1 forward trade

LOL

 

[Anarchism]

Not making any judgments on talent level or skill, just based on production at the NHL level I think Johnsson and Kapanen are fairly equal.

Kerfoot is LH but he also has versatility as he can play all three forward positions.

I’d honestly target Palmieri though.

Palmieri is a pipe dream....he is a Jersey boy and they love him there. Besides no GM there to deal with only a Harris PUPPET. And Harris has said we are trading no mo assets....we are building with what we have.

 

[Cloned]

Palmieri is a pipe dream....he is a Jersey boy and they love him there. Besides no GM there to deal with only a Harris PUPPET. And Harris has said we are trading no mo assets....we are building with what we have.

Honestly I think we should have just signed Kovalchuk.

 

[SK13]

Palmieri is definitely a "shoot high" target with questionable availability.

If Nashville does not gain ground, Mikael Granlund and Craig Smith are both the kind of rental options that might be available. Neither has trade protection and they both could be in range of the Oilers trade assets (2nd + prospect stuff. maybe even less where Mikael is concerned).

 

[belair]

Palmieri is definitely a "shoot high" target with questionable availability.

If Nashville does not gain ground, Mikael Granlund and Craig Smith are both the kind of rental options that might be available. Neither has trade protection and they both could be in range of the Oilers trade assets (2nd + prospect stuff. maybe even less where Mikael is concerned).

Granlund would be at the absolute top of my list of potential deadline acquisitions. He's the guy I have the Oilers targeting in the off-season and he's a mid twenties guy who can play all three F positions and can contribute at all situations, if needed. He's essentially another RNH.

If we're talking with Jersey, it's pretty well known that Zacha is the guy I'm targeting. The Zacha for JP deal happens soon. We've been hyping it for a couple years.

 

[oldtimehocky]

Kassian extension: As much as I like Kass and what he brings to the table on McD's line... please do not overpay and, if so, do not go 4 years with "no move" clauses.
We all know Nurse is probably going to ask for the "moon" in his next contract.

 

[Anarchism]

Granlund would be at the absolute top of my list of potential deadline acquisitions. He's the guy I have the Oilers targeting in the off-season and he's a mid twenties guy who can play all three F positions and can contribute at all situations, if needed. He's essentially another RNH.

If we're talking with Jersey, it's pretty well known that Zacha is the guy I'm targeting. The Zacha for JP deal happens soon. We've been hyping it for a couple years.

Zacha would be good for the 3rd line centre....Jersey's tried him multiple times top 6 LW and it didnt take ....but Zacha is surprisingly good defensively and would work well if there was another playmaker and sniper on his line.....

If Benson wins a job out of camp....

Benson Zacha Neal would be quite a line....bet you with less checkers on him Neal's 5 on 5 would improve too...
Sadly New Jersey doesnt get to rebuild their team....Harris has shut that down....
They are playing Jesper again...