Rumor: Rumors & Proposals Thread | The Corpse of the '22-23 Season Isn't Even Cold Yet But...

[ujju2]

Not much for UFA RHD… Dumba, Klingberg, Severson, Mayfield… maybe one of those guys is better then Ceci

Don't think a Ceci upgrade is top priority anymore tbh, with Bouchard effectively becoming our 1RD. A goaltending upgrade seems far more critical.

 

[Kanedogg]

Is this the last year of Ken's contract? Can't see him getting extended as things stand right now. This team is mcdavid, drai and now Bouchard. 3 things he had nothing to do with.

 

[FlameChampion]

I think the problems are quite clear and obvious. The hard part is actually making the right decisions to actually fix the problem (if they can even be fixed).

Bouchard contract is probably going to cause cap problems.

Nurse - Ceci pairing didnt work this year. I personally blame Nurse more because hes the guy making 9.25mil but unfortunately we are stuck with him. Ceci doesnt get paid 3.25mil to play on the top pairing. Unfortunately we probably cant play Ceci on the third pairing (which he would probably be good) because we need the cap to upgrade the RD. Team probably needs an Ekholm RD type to play with Nurse. Good luck finding it and then good luck making the cap work.

Top 6 RW. Yamamoto. Not good enough. Does he have any value? Can we move this player for a pick? Can probably find someone FA that will be better than him.

Goaltending. Campbell bet didnt pay off this year. With 4 years left at 5mil. Not sure we can even fix the problem. Hopefully he rebounds. Probably time for a goaltending coach change that Campbell feels comfortable with. Hopefully he has a sports psychologist.

I would probably try and sign as many of the bottom 6 players as possible (dependent on contract). It was the best its been in years. Bottom 6 players tend to be cursed when it comes to Edmonton. I'd rather not overly experiment bringing in new guys. I'd like to see UFA's Bjugstad, Janmark, Ryan come back. Ryan in the shore role. I am guessing Janmark wont be back (even though I like him). Bjugstad is probably dependent on cap number. I assume McLeod and Kostin as RFA will be back. Can they fit Bouchard in and upgrade on Yamamoto without moving Foegele? Team probably needs a spot for Holloway/Lavoie.

What do they do at LD3? Kulak had a great playoffs. Can Broberg play meaningful minutes right side? Interesting decision here. I think they will probably just play it on the slow side (Broberg has one more 1 year ELC), which is probably the correct decision.

 

[FlameChampion]

All of the cap room you get from moving Yamamoto out has to go basically directly to Bouchard's extension.

Cody Ceci ... who A) will want this guy B) be willing to give you back someone way better at around the same salary?

I think they can move Ceci if they want. Big RD are hard to find. Bigger question is, who even replaces him? Not really an easy question to answer which is probably why he has trade value.

With the Jets imploding if Helly wont resign there this summer what picks and prospects do you think it takes for the Jets to do a Soup for Hellebuyck swap? Not often goalies like that are available and with his team and contract status it should be on the table for the right price..

Wonder if either team would consider Campbell + Holloway or Broberg + whatever for Hellebuyck. Hellebuyck would probably regress once he comes here (if I am being cynical lol).

 

[McJadeddog]

I think Broberg likely plays on 3rd pairing right side for most games next year and we run out the same same D for the regular season. Then, depending on other areas of need, go after a right shot D at trade deadline next year. We just don't have the cap room for a bigger splash than that. It honestly isn't a bad move either. We'll make the playoffs again with that D, and maybe we can find a good guy at trade deadline. I think Broberg should be serviceable in that role, and who knows, maybe he even takes a big step. He needs the "at bats" to find out what he is though for certain. VD is likely 7th guy for next year I would think.

Yams get traded for nothing and his money goes to Bouchards contract, and the rest of the team stays the same is my full expectation. Holloway/Bourg/Lavoie likely takes that spot I would think, no idea who sticks and who doesn't from that group.

Probably some merry go round with the bottom 6 to a degree. Ryan back if he is willing to take league min again, Janmark and Kostin back as well as long as they aren't looking for raises.

 

[SwedishFire]

I think the problems are quite clear and obvious. The hard part is actually making the right decisions to actually fix the problem (if they can even be fixed).

Bouchard contract is probably going to cause cap problems.

Nurse - Ceci pairing didnt work this year. I personally blame Nurse more because hes the guy making 9.25mil but unfortunately we are stuck with him. Ceci doesnt get paid 3.25mil to play on the top pairing. Unfortunately we probably cant play Ceci on the third pairing (which he would probably be good) because we need the cap to upgrade the RD. Team probably needs an Ekholm RD type to play with Nurse. Good luck finding it and then good luck making the cap work.

Top 6 RW. Yamamoto. Not good enough. Does he have any value? Can we move this player for a pick? Can probably find someone FA that will be better than him.

Goaltending. Campbell bet didnt pay off this year. With 4 years left at 5mil. Not sure we can even fix the problem. Hopefully he rebounds. Probably time for a goaltending coach change that Campbell feels comfortable with. Hopefully he has a sports psychologist.

I would probably try and sign as many of the bottom 6 players as possible (dependent on contract). It was the best its been in years. Bottom 6 players tend to be cursed when it comes to Edmonton. I'd rather not overly experiment bringing in new guys. I'd like to see UFA's Bjugstad, Janmark, Ryan come back. Ryan in the shore role. I am guessing Janmark wont be back (even though I like him). Bjugstad is probably dependent on cap number. I assume McLeod and Kostin as RFA will be back. Can they fit Bouchard in and upgrade on Yamamoto without moving Foegele? Team probably needs a spot for Holloway/Lavoie.

What do they do at LD3? Kulak had a great playoffs. Can Broberg play meaningful minutes right side? Interesting decision here. I think they will probably just play it on the slow side (Broberg has one more 1 year ELC), which is probably the correct decision.

Sign Connor Brown or O Reilly, flush Yamamoto.
Broberg Im very unsure of. Is he even a 3rd pair guy?? He has to be.
Ceci, well, he and Nurse seems be a bad fit. He can slide down to Kulak as 3rd pair. Can broberg be a solid 2RD with Nurse?? Maybe try VD with Nurse.
I think Oilers are stuck with Campbell.

 

[Arpeggio]

Karlsson is the one player that would most significantly impact the Oilers' chances of winning a cup. If you can make it work, then fill in the empty forward spots with rookies, I think that's the move to make. Foegele, Yamo, Ceci out, Karlsson, Holloway, Lavoie in. From there you tinker where you have to to make the cap work, and hope that Campbell comes back in improved form.

 

[Ibanez]

The Campbell buyout notion is just not a reasonable option. Dead cap for 8 seasons? I think there needs to be a difficult discussion between the GM, coach and goalie coach regarding what happened this season.

I think there would be a soft trade market for Campbell this off-season -and that he would absolutely waive his trade protection for a change of scenery. Could you trade him with 1.5M/season retained (30% of his contract)? Maybe. The Leafs moved Mrazek. The Sens moved Murray. These things happen.

Personally, I'd just bring him back and hope that the goalie voodoo factor swings the other direction. What they could really use is a good season next year from Campbell and Skinner and then a better trade market next off-season for Campbell.

The easy discussion is “you’re fired” to the goalie coach

 

[McShogun99]

I can't see any major moves because our players with higher contracts all have some form of NMC involved or are simply untradeable (Nurse, Campbell).

I think the players potentially being moved out will be Yamamoto, Foegele and Ceci with a few UFA's not coming back.

We'll ride with Campbell/Skinner next season but with a new goalie coach and if they're not playing well by the deadline then Holland will probably look at adding a rental goalie like Helly.

 

[Ibanez]

If I am Holland, I would consider parting ways with Woodcroft. Here's why:

1) too many times the Oilers effort was a topic. as a top coach you need to have your players ready to perform and play hard especially in the postseason. Also numerous times they committed weak penalties.

2) he kept on Skinner for too long... I know Campbell had a very disappointing season but both times when he stepped in he played much better than Skinner. Last game Skinner should never have played a minute.

3) While he clearly had Skinner's back, his lack of trust in other forwards apart from McDrai was a clear issue. He overloaded the 1st line and rode them hard almost half a game. This completely destroyed the balance, something which is important for EV play in the playoffs. Maybe the injuries of Kane and Hyman played into this decision but anyway, this is not how you win in the postseason.

I’m not woody fan but oiler effort has been a problem with our last 2-3 coaches as well.

I question woody a lot. But effort is a continuous problem. So I put that on the leaders and players in the room

 

[Little Fury]

I don't get why people are moving Foegele out. I thought he was good this year and in the playoffs.

 

[Soundwave]

I don't get why people are moving Foegele out. I thought he was good this year and in the playoffs.

It's a cap thing, either him or Kulak have to go just to get under the cap room I think. Yamamoto is 100% gone.

 

[Oilers88]

Don't think a Ceci upgrade is top priority anymore tbh, with Bouchard effectively becoming our 1RD. A goaltending upgrade seems far more critical.

Ceci was -7 at even strength in this series, the worst of any Oiler. In game 6, they only played him 12 minutes (the least of any Oilers defenceman including Desharnais) and somehow he was still out there for 2 goals against.

I still see the defence, and the right side in particular, as a top priority. Vegas and LA's second lines consistently exploited that matchup and killed us throughout both series. Similar to the Ekholm addition, I think upgrading on Ceci would make other people's jobs either, and would have an impact across the lineup.

I don't get why people are moving Foegele out. I thought he was good this year and in the playoffs.

Just a cap casualty. I like Foegele quite a bit, but I can't justify $2.75 million for him with Hollway waiting in the wings. I think you give Holloway the 3rd line LW spot and spend the money elsewhere- if Holloway struggles, a solid 3rd line winger is pretty easy to find at the deadline.

 

[Emotive]

I don't get why people are moving Foegele out. I thought he was good this year and in the playoffs.

Me neither. I guess because of his contract? But he was one of the only useful forwards this team had outside of McDavid and Draisaitl in the playoffs. Bjugstad as well. These guys weren't the problem it was rnh, Yamamoto, Kane, and to a lesser extent hyman doing pretty much nothing. It was back to McDavid and Draisaitl vs the world again

 

[Little Fury]

It's a cap thing, either him or Kulak have to go just to get under the cap room I think. Yamamoto is 100% gone.

Letting Janmark walk and moving Ceci and Yamo gives you $7.6M, giving us a total of $13.57M in space next year with Bouchard being the only big money deal to worry about. Unless you're looking at adding a massive contract like EK, I don't see the cap being a big barrier.

Honestly, the one player I look at walking away from is Kane. He looks washed.

 

[aspin3]

Holloway is approaching bust level if he can't be a 2nd line guy. He hasn't had any production and cant stay healthy

Holloway is approaching bust level if he can't be a 2nd line guy. He hasn't had any production and cant stay healthy.

Real interesting comment. would be interesting how much you will admit you said this in fall. You did see what he did when he went back down to Bako after coming back from his injury right?

 

[aspin3]

Letting Janmark walk and moving Ceci and Yamo gives you $7.6M, giving us a total of $13.57M in space next year with Bouchard being the only big money deal to worry about. Unless you're looking at adding a massive contract like EK, I don't see the cap being a big barrier.

Don't forget that they will have just over $2M or so as Lucic and Sekera buyout caphit is now over.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Nurse - Ceci pairing didnt work this year. I personally blame Nurse more because hes the guy making 9.25mil but unfortunately we are stuck with him. Ceci doesnt get paid 3.25mil to play on the top pairing. Unfortunately we probably cant play Ceci on the third pairing (which he would probably be good) because we need the cap to upgrade the RD. Team probably needs an Ekholm RD type to play with Nurse. Good luck finding it and then good luck making the cap work.

I think this is the wrong direction. Yes, Nurse is the higher paid one, but you're asking him to go out with a defenceman who shouldn't be facing elites, and then tossing them into the deepest part of the pool to play against nothing but high end competition and take near all the key defensive situations.

It's a pairing that was set up to fail, the only hope was on how much they could limit the damage. The fact Woody almost never broke it up this year is one of the bigger strikes against him in my book,

 

[Oilception]

I think your base is

Nuge McDavid Hyman
Kane Drai
Holloway Mcloud

Ekholm Bouchard
Nurse
Kulak (1 of Broberg or desharnais)

Skinner


For D:
I think Ceci has to go, need an upgrade to RD badly. I think desharnais is probably find cause he is cheap. I’d look to offload Broberg but if the team decided they want Broberg then he can play the right and desharnais goes. Tough thing is I don’t know who that Guy is. No one really in the UFA market. GMs gonna have to show their worth identifying and getting a legit Top 4 RD.

For goalies:
Obviously if they could get out of Campbell and find a better upgrade threat would be great but may not be possible. Maybe he’s better next year and that may be a bet they have to go with.

For forwards:
No real issue with any of our bottom year guys and I would bring back any of Ryan, Kostin, Bjustad, Janmark that wanted to sign for league minimum or a hair over. If they want more then cut bait and find others, not an area to spend money. I also think some Bako guys can probably come up (Lavoie/Bourgault?)

I think other than RD the biggest need is to upgrade RW gotta find an upgrade on Yamamoto (Nick Schmaltz?)

 

[Little Fury]

Don't forget that they will have just over $2M or so as Lucic and Sekera buyout caphit is now over.

I counted that space.

 

[DrDrai]

I’ve been on the Holloway train for awhile, but he hasn't put it together. Then you have Dawson Mercer looking the part draft 4 spots after Holloway.

Don't forget that they will have just over $2M or so as Lucic and Sekera buyout caphit is now over.

That space gets ate up by Skinner's new cap hit.

 

[Soundwave]

Letting Janmark walk and moving Ceci and Yamo gives you $7.6M, giving us a total of $13.57M in space next year with Bouchard being the only big money deal to worry about. Unless you're looking at adding a massive contract like EK, I don't see the cap being a big barrier.

Honestly, the one player I look at walking away from is Kane. He looks washed.

I mean you are moving Ceci out for what? Thin air?

A replacement for Ceci is probably ... about $3 million dollars so no real savings there.

Kane (5.125) McDavid (12.5) Hyman (5.5)
RNH (5.125) Drai (8.5) Holloway (0.89)
Foegele (2.7) McLeod (1.4) Cheap RW (1)
Kostin (1.4) Ryan (1.15) Lavoie? (0.89)
13th Forward (0.8)
= 46.98 million

Ekholm (6) Bouchard (4.35)
Nurse (9.25) Right D (3)
Kulak (2.7) Broberg (0.9)
Desharnais (0.762)


Campbell (5)
Skinner (2.6)
= 34.56

Neal Buy out (1.9)
Bouchard bonuses (0.8)

= 84.242

So just slightly over the cap. Either you need to go cheaper with that Ceci replacement or Foegele probably has to go too.

 

[Lay Z Boy GM]

Is there any chance of trading Nurse? He’s not the guy. Probably making 2x what he should be, guy is a dman who can’t defend. Absolutely holding this team back.

If we could magically remove Nurse and Campbell we’d have a chance.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Letting Janmark walk and moving Ceci and Yamo gives you $7.6M, giving us a total of $13.57M in space next year with Bouchard being the only big money deal to worry about. Unless you're looking at adding a massive contract like EK, I don't see the cap being a big barrier.

Honestly, the one player I look at walking away from is Kane. He looks washed.

I think the time to judge Kane is next season. He looked fine to start the year, and it was a hell of injury he suffered vs. TB. The fact his puck handling and hands looked off wasn't much of a surprise.

Also if the price is right (so at or under 1.5 mil), I'd have a lot of time for Janmark if he's up to come back. He's the type of budget bottom 6er the Oil need to target more off, and I wouldn't toss him in the discard pile without a similar replacement lined up. Same goes for Ryan.
Moving out Yams and Foegele is where you save money in the bottom 6.

 

[Little Fury]

I think the time to judge Kane is next season. He looked fine to start the season, and it was a hell of injury he suffered vs. TB. The fact his puck handling and hands looked off wasn't much of a surprise.

Also if the price is right (so at or under 1.5 mil), I'd have a lot of time for Janmark if he's up to come back. He's the type of budget bottom 6er the Oil need to target more off, and I wouldn't toss him in the discard pile without a similar replacement lined up. Same goes for Ryan.
Moving out Yams and Foegele is where you save money in the bottom 6.

Janmark is replacement level, you can get a guy making league minimum to do what he does. My concern with moving Foegele is he's one of the reasons the bottom six is finally pulling its own weight, downgrading him to save a million bucks is a big risk.

As for Kane, the concern is the injury and age are going to continue to limit his effectiveness. I don't know if he'll ever be the same.