I was driving in my car going to Athabasca today while listening to Oilers Now, and I began to daydream. Someone mentioned the name Tyler Pitlick and I got to thinking about where and when he could fit into the future Oilers. The future "good" team that will make the playoffs and challenge for cups, and not the current "bad" team full of kids and potential, but can't seem to win games.

I think it was Host Bob Stauffer who mentioned Magnus Paajarvi, Anton Lander and Tyler Pitlick could all start the season in the AHL. Did he say Teemu Hartikainen could be there too? It's possible, although would he need to clear waivers first? I'm not sure. The point was, the Oilers have too many players at this point. This is not to say they have the right players. They simply have too many guys who have no real future with the team as it moves forward.

If you think about what the Oilers will look like a few seasons from now (let's say three), it's fairly easy to predict based on the prospects and players they have now:

Centers: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Sam Gagner, Anton Lander, player TBD

Left Wingers: Taylor Hall, Magnus Paajarvi, Teemu Hartikainen, player TBD

Right Wingers: Jordan Eberle, Nail Yakupov, Tyler Pitlick, player TBD

Defensemen: Justin Schultz, Ladislav Smid, Oscar Klefbom, Jeff Petry, and two from the following group - Taylor Fedun, Martin Marincin, Colten Teubert, Theo Peckham, Martin Gernat, Brandon Davidson, Alex Plante or Nick Schultz

Goaltenders: Devan Dubnyk and most likely Tyler Bunz

To express this in a roster depth chart...

L1: Paajarvi - Nuge - Eberle
L2: Hall - Gagner - Yakupov
L3: Hartikainen - Lander - Pitlick
L4: To Be Determined

D1: Oscar Klefbom - Justin Schultz
D2: Ladislav Smid - Jeff Petry
D3: To Be Determined

G1: Dubnyk
G2: Bunz

Count the number of current Oilers who won't be part of the future "good" team: Ales Hesmky, Shawn Horcoff, Eric Belanger, Ben Eager, Ryan Smyth, Ryan Jones, Lennart Petrell, Darcy Hordichuk, Ryan Whitney, Linus Omark, Andy Sutton, Corey Potter and Nikolai Khabibulin. 13 players. More than half of the current roster.

Considering all of this, here's a radical suggestion: The Oilers should tank on purpose for one more season.

Why, you ask? First of all, the 2012/2013 season is going to be, once again, about player development. If the Oilers make the playoffs, it's accidental. The idea this time around is to prepare players like Yakupov, Schultz and Paajarvi for NHL greatness. You might be able to add Oscar Klefbom to this list as well, as from what I hear, one of the reasons the Oilers haven't dealt for another D man yet is because they're still trying to find a way to get Klefbom here this season. I heard from someone yesterday who spoke to Klefbom when he was in Edmonton for Development Camp, and Klefbom said to him that he's becoming more and more interested in beginning his NHL journey in 2012, if possible.

Let's just say Klefbom does find a way to play in Edmonton this season. That means three rookies will be in key positions. Translation: The Oilers won't be a playoff team. Too many kids. But that's completely okay. In fact, let's run with that idea.

Why not do the following:

1. Deal Ales Hemsky, the 2nd round pick from Anaheim, and another prospect (one we're less sold on, but not some loser that would add no value in a deal) in a package to obtain a younger, promising defenseman. And please don't say "Tim Erixon." We're trying to have a serious conversation here. Give Hemsky's roster spot to Magnus Paajarvi.

2. Deal Ryan Jones for a draft pick. Give his roster spot to Teemu Hartikainen.

3. Deal Ryan Whitney for a draft pick. I really like Whitney, but I have no faith in his ability to recover from injury. It's time to get kids on the roster and playing, so they can learn how to cope in the NHL.

4. Deal Eric Belanger for a goat. Move Lennart Petrell to center, and give the roster spot on the right wing to Tyler Pitlick.

5. Send Nikolai Khabibulin for ice cream and then move the team while he's gone. Use Yann Danis instead as the Oilers back-up.

These moves would make the Oilers roster in 2012/2013 look something like this:

L1: Paajarvi - Nuge - Eberle
L2: Hall - Gagner - Yakupov
L3: Smyth - Horcoff - Hartikainen
L4: Eager - Petrell - Pitlick

D1: Smid - Petry
D2: New Guy (from Hemsky+ deal) - Justin Schultz
D3: Nick Schultz - Klefbom

G1: Dubnyk
G2: Danis

This team would suck and the Oilers would be drafting high again in 2013. So what? Either make the playoffs, or build for the future. Who cares about finishing 22nd? Finish badly, and then draft defenseman Seth Jones. Adding Jones to the talent and potential in Edmonton? This team will be unstoppable.

In 2015.

Seriously, if Steve Tambellini is done making changes to the team this summer, I'm gonna start punching myself in the face.

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