This in from NHL insider David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period, his musings with host Jeff Marek on The Sheet podcast about the Edmonton Oilers just maybe possibly targeting a few choice Toronto Maple Leaf players at the trade deadline.
“Edmonton, Toronto having conversations?” Marek asked.
“Yeah, there was some word out of Edmonton that leading up to this freeze that they have been having discussions with the Toronto Maple Leafs. I don’t know the specifics of where they’re going. I’m going to speculate a little bit. And it wasn’t (Toronto winger) Bobby McMann. I know there was a lot of attention and a lot of speculation surrounding Bobby McMann going into the week. I know they hadn’t spoken about McMann, but it sounds like maybe it’s a (Toronto centre) Nic Roy, maybe it’s an (Top 4 d-man) Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Those are two that I would not be shocked if they’ve poked on. But I was told by a couple of people that the Oilers and Leaves had conversations leading up to the deadline, the freeze, Deadline Jr. And that might be something to keep an eye on, going out of the break and closer to actual D-Day.”
There also speculative talk from insider Nick Kypreos on the Real Kyper & Bourne about Edmonton making a move for Habs winger Patrik Laine.
My take
1. We have heard from serious NHL insiders with massive credibility such as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Bob Stauffer of Oilers Now that the Oilers are targeting a winger, likely a third line winger.
Stauffer has talked about adding a winger with some size and speed. It’s been widely reported that after the Oilers pro-scout meetings, Edmonton drew up a list of nine forwards to keep an eye on.
Stauffer and Friedman talked recently on Oilers Now about the possibility of Edmonton trading for Alberta winger Bobby McMann of the Leafs, a big, fast winger with an affordable $1.35 million contract, which expires after this season.
2. I take any and all Edmonton Oilers trade talk just now with a huge grain of salt mainly because the Oilers are in cap hell.
Where are they going to get the cap space to bring in new players, especially some who have big ticket contracts like Laine? Laine makes $8.7 million. There is no way on earth the Oilers will be able to afford him this year, not unless they trade Evan Bouchard or Mattias Ekholm for him, which is never going to happen.
3. There is one clear path for Edmonton to find some cap space, which is to move out struggling winger Andrew Mangiapane, who makes $3.6 million per this year and next year. Mangiapane has been on the trading block for six weeks now with no takers. At this point it’s clearly going to take some kind of sweetener for him to get moved.
4. With Adam Henrique recovering from injury and his $3 million cap hit to be back on the books, the Oilers’ cap hell only gets worse, not better, before the NHL trade deadline.
5. I haven’t done the necessary hard work — hours and hours of video review and live viewing — to have a credible opinion on whether or not it’s a good idea for the Oilers to trade for McMann, Roy or Ekman-Larsson.
I have an idea that McMann is a decent winger with some Warren Foegele-like qualities, and Roy was often a thorn in the side of the Oilers when he was with Vegas, and that Ekman-Larsson played well for Florida when that team won the Cup in 2024. But I have no credible opinion on them — and neither do almost all of you, not having put in the work either.
But I do know Ekman-Larsson has a cap hit of $3.5 million this year and for the next two seasons, and that he’s 34 now. Will he be a solid NHLer for two more years? That’s likely a coin flip.
That’s a lot of money to pay for a 35 and 36 year old bottom pairing d-man, which is what OEL will likely be in the coming two seasons. But if he can help a team win this year, and they have the cap space, maybe that kind of bet makes sense for them.
Seems like a major stretch, though, that Edmonton would acquire him, even if picking up another useful d-man is — as I see it at least — Edmonton’s top priority. It would not be impossible for Edmonton to trade for OEL, if Mangiapane was moved out, but it’s a long shot and it would be expensive.
6. McMann comes cheap, so he’ll be a target for any number of teams looking for depth. McMann is going to come up at a high cost, I suspect, and I predict the Oilers will be outbid.
Roy, who just turned 29, has just five goals in 54 games this year, not exactly great value for a player making $3.0 million this year and next year. But, again, I’m not watching him closely and maybe he’s crushing it on defence.
Would a deal built around Toronto acquiring Mangiapane for Roy make sense? Would such a trade move the needle for the Oilers this year, even if they had to add a sweetener to make it happen?
Perhaps some kind of deal around Roy might well make sense for both teams.
P.S. Kurt Leavins is away, but his regular 9 Things column will be ready for readers Sunday night.
At the Cult of Hockey
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