The NHL is in a trade freeze for the next 14 days, but that doesn’t mean teams will be sitting on their hands the whole time. Conversations will continue throughout the break as front offices lay the groundwork for what should be a flurry of activity in the week and a half that followsahead of the actual deadline.
For the Edmonton Oilers, that means continuing their search for a top-nine forward—while also trying to find a new home for disgruntled winger Andrew Mangiapane. Both have proven somewhat difficult to pull off so far, but there may be a way to address them in a single move.
Mark Spector was among several Oilers reporters to float the idea of a one-for-one swap that would send Mangiapane to Los Angeles in exchange for a familiar face: Warren Foegele.
“Foegele ($3.5 M AAV thru next season) for Mangiapane ($3.6 M AAV thru next season), straight up?”
The 29-year-old Foegele is in year two of the three-year, $10.5 million deal signed to join the Kings as a UFA in 2024, while Mangiapane, 29, is in year one of the two-year, $7.2 million contract signed to come to Edmonton this past summer as a UFA.
Both players have struggled offensively this season to the tune of eight points (six goals, two assists) in 43 games and 12 points (six goals, six assists) in 49 games, respectively.
The Swap Makes Sense for the Oilers
For Edmonton, swapping out Mangiapane to bring in Foegele could make a lot of sense. The salaries are almost equal, and Foegele is the type of player they want to add to their lineup: speed and effort with a little bit of skill and finishing ability mixed in.
Foegele Mangiapane Trade
That said, the same might not be true for GM Ken Holland and the Kings—or for Mangiapane himself. Los Angeles’ glut of forwards has already resulted in Foegele being a healthy scratch at times this season. Now factor in the recent acquisition of Artemi Panarin, and he gets pushed even further down the depth chart.
As a result, the Kings don’t need—and likely won’t want—another forward like Mangiapane, and that feeling is probably mutual, given that he’s seeking increased opportunity wherever he goes next.
GM Stan Bowman can still look to trade for Foegele and land him at a relatively low cost. However, including Mangiapane in that package may be difficult, meaning Edmonton could be forced to find a suitor in a separate deal to get his $3.6 million cap hit off the books.
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