This just in...
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has been named the NHL's Rookie of the Month. Two Oilers being recognized in October? When's the last time that happened. For those of you who missed it, Nikolai Khabibulin was named one of the NHL's Players of the Month a couple of days ago. The Edmonton Oilers: Everyone loves us.
Some interesting stories regarding the Edmonton Oilers right now:
I am hearing Ales Hemsky should be ready to return to action when the Oilers return from their six-game road trip (approximately two weeks from now). Once Hemsky is ready to go, he'll play on the Geezer line with Shawn Horcoff and Ryan Smyth. Provided Hemsky can stay healthy, the Oilers will have a quality 1-2 line punch with Hemsky added to the mix.
Hemsky's inclusion to the line-up will result in a line demotion for Ryan Jones. He'll get a spot on the third line, and Lennart Petrell will remain in the fourth-line spot. Jones and Petrell both bring grit, some size, work ethic and two-way skill to the Bottom 6...which is exactly what you want in that group.
So where to Sam Gagner and Linus Omark fit? They don't. A trade or two is coming to an Oilers team near you over the next two weeks.
Omark has been sent down to the Oilers farm team, the Oklahoma City Barons. It's a good move for both the player and the team, as Omark has too much talent going to waste sitting in the press box. It will be easier for the Oilers to demonstrate Omark's talent to scouts if he's playing somewhere. I'm pretty sure Omark is aware that the Oilers are trying to deal him, as an option does exist that he could return to Sweden, but I have yet to hear it could happen.
It's no secret that the Oilers have been shopping Gagner for the last four months. Now that he's healthy and it looks like his game is coming around, they should have an easier time moving him. I know some of you are thinking to yourself, "why not send Anton Lander down, play Gags on the 2nd line, move Horcs to 3rd and Belanger to 4th." Not going to happen. Lander is a tremendous penalty killer, and the Oilers defensive play is how they're winning games right now. Horcs is a fit on Line 2 with Smyth and Hemsky. Belanger still doesn't look like he has the right linemates to me, but at least he's brilliant in a two-way and face-off taking role. He fits on Line 3 just fine.
Eklund is pretty close to the mark with the teams he listed. I'm going to add some fuel to the fire by suggesting a couple of things. First being, if the Oilers are making noises that Hemsky is the right-winger they're going to cho cho choose, that means the goal absolutely is to try and win now. Which means, the Oil aren't necessarily going to deal Gags and Omark for prospect D or draft picks. Instead, they're going to aim for a 20-something veteran who can contribute in a Top 4 role immediately.
Teams with potential for deals include:
Carolina - They desperately need wingers for Eric Staal. They have a defenseman or two they can give up to make it happen.
Buffalo - Oilers would love Andrej Sekera, but I sense the Sabres would rather move Jordan Leopold. A deal between the Oil and Sabres is completely possible here because the Sabres so far are performing a bit under expectations. Not by much. Just a bit.
Columbus - This team is brutal and management are pushing the panic button. I've also heard they are wanting to move some salary because this is not a playoff team and they know it. Could the Oilers acquire big Marc Methot?
Detroit - Big losing skid happening. I could see Omark fitting well on this team, and perhaps Jakub Kindl could be acquired.
New Jersey - Henrik Tallinder is off to a rough start. He'd bring veteran experience to the Oilers blueline. Certainly has the resume of someone who could play Top 4 minutes for the next few seasons.
Tampa Bay - I'll go off the board a bit with this one and input the name of Steve Downie. I can't see which defensemen the Oilers could possibly get and/or want from Tampa. Downie is sort-of the anti-Omark, and would be a fit for the Bottom 6...although the entire concept of the Oilers acquiring another forward makes zero sense to me.
Toronto - The question here is the opposite of the Tampa situation. The Leafs have numerous defensemen the Oilers would interested in. The bigger question is, why would the Leafs, who are scoring plenty of goals, need to add Omark and/or Gagner to the mix?
Phoenix - Might be looking for a Kyle Turris replacement, because he ain't coming back. I can't see the Oilers wanting Turris, because the boy is obviously a goof. How would Oil fans feel about acquiring David Schlemko? Or could the Oilers be miracle workers and find a way to pry Brandon Gormley away?
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