The Edmonton Oilers appear “done”, as the NHL trading deadline looms tomorrow (Friday).
General Manager Stan Bowman met the media Thursday afternoon in Edmonton.
Here are the Coles Notes of his avail:
-On the three players they have acquired: “We’re trying to build a team, we’re not trying to build a collection of players. There’s a difference there. We need some specific players that can fill some rolls. They all have very specific identities that they bring”.
-On Jason Dickinson’s defensive abilities: “We like the fact he takes pride in that role, he has a very clear job to do, he embraces that and does it very well”.
-On whether a right shot center was a target (Dickinson shoots left): “For sure we talk about that and we search for it. (But) there’s more to the game than just faceoffs”.
-On Colton Dach: “A player I am familiar with, I drafted him. His energy, his style of play, he’s a big kid, the thing you notice about him is he’s strong, he’s physical, but he also has the ability to score. He’s got an offensive mindset”’.
-On Dach’s role in Edmonton: “I think he understands his role very well…to bring some energy to group, provide some physical play. He’s got a lot of enthusiasm too. It’s important to have that, to have some excitement, and the fact he’s from here I think is also a great story”.
-Is Bowman done? “I’d say we’re done. We’ll spend the next 24 hours talking through but I imagine we’re done. But part of our job is to see what’s out there, any further addition wouldn’t be a significant one. If it is, then it would be a depth role, something that made sense…we’d certainly look at it”.
-On why Andrew Mangiapane did not work out: “We all thought it would and we wanted it to work and it just didn’t. Our team did not get off to the greatest start and I think in the process of that he kind of got swept up in that. One he moved out of there (the top six), the rest of the group their own game started to play better. It’s kind of independent of Mangiapane. But once he moved out of there he had a hard time finding a role”
-On Mangiapane, the pro: “I gotta say he was a true professional throughout all of this.
-On the Mangiapane signing last Summer: “It’s ultimately on me and I own that”.
-On giving up a First-round pick as opposed to other assets: “We’d probably end up paying more in total with multiple trades”.
-Big picture: “I sure like our team a lot better today than I did a week ago. Now it’s up to the team. I do think we are positioned well now”.
-On what these moves may mean for Josh Samanksi: “He has come a log way. It’s clear that he can play in the league it’s just a matter of if he’s going to be playing every night and if not, we’ll look at other options.
The Oilers play Carolina on Friday.
This article is not AI generated.
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