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Oilers @ The Deadline: Preparing for 2013/2014

March 22, 2013, 3:03 PM ET [167 Comments]
Richard Cloutier
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Those of you who listened to Bob Stauffer's show today heard plenty about Ladislav Smid. For those of you who missed the broadcast, allow me to reiterate some of what was said:

Ladislav Smid is a solid defensive defenseman. He's a good team guy, and someone who provides the Oilers with solid 3/4 minutes. There are some limitations, if you will, to his game. He doesn't really bring some of the offensive production they thought he'd have when he came into the league. Still, Smid certainly has value and can play on any team in the NHL.

If the Oilers have a weakness, it's with respect to their ability to move the puck from the defensive to the offensive zone (transition game). On the right side, Justin Schultz and Jeff Petry are solid in this capacity. Left-handed puck movers on the Oilers are in short supply. It is believed by many people including me, that Oscar Klefbom is going to play in the Oilers Top 4 as soon as next season. He's not 100% puck-mover; he's more of an all-around guy. These three are part of the long-term defensive solution in Edmonton.

With Smid staying or going, much could come down to his contract amount. Puck-movers are in higher demand than stay-at-home types. I picture a long-term deal with Smid to be in the Marc Methot or Barret Jackman range. Methot is $3mil per, and Jackman is a hair under $3.2mil. It is believed Smid and his agent are seeking closer to $4mil per on a long-term deal. This could absolutely lead to Smid being dealt.

The concern could be around what happens to Smid when the Oilers find better options via trade or free agency. If your Top 4 contains J.Schultz, Klefbom and Petry, what happens to Smid if the Oilers were to bring it, let's say, Jay Bouwmeester or Mark Streit? Smid suddenly becomes a 5/6 guy and $3.5mil is expensive for a 5/6 guy. That's why I mentioned in earlier blogs that Nick Schultz could eventually be dealt as well. $3.5mil per is more 3/4 in size.

The Oilers D might look extremely different by the start of next season:

1. Add Klefbom to the Top 4. He's good enough to do it.

2. Subtract Ryan Whitney after this season...keep him for the rest of 2013 season, because dealing Smid will leave a hole that the Oilers might not be able to immediately fill. Whitney's value at the deadline is fairly debatable, where Smid's would be solid.

3. Subtract Ladislav Smid at the deadline, because this is when the market will be at peak for him. I believe he's worth a decent prospect + a 2nd, or a higher-end prospect, or a 1st round pick from a team that believes they are in the playoff mix (pick #15th overall or lower).

4. Acquire a legit puck-moving left handed defenseman either at the draft or during the summer. If it's a UFA signing, the Oilers don't need to move anyone to make it happen. If it's a deal, Ales Hemsky will likely be the guy who goes (or possibly Gagner).

5. Mark Fistric gets re-signed; Nick Schultz is kept for now until the Oilers develop a prospect who is less expensive and can play solid 5/6 minutes (Marincin or Fedun perhaps).


One thing to keep in mind with all of this: The Oilers are likely not a playoff team and will have a decent pick this season at the NHL draft. Depending on how badly they do, the pick could play in the NHL right away. For example, drafting Sasha Barkov could make it feasible to deal Sam Gagner, who's value keeps going up up up. Or, maybe adding Barkov leads to the buyout of Shawn Horcoff. If Hemsky hasn't been moved yet, maybe he's sent to, let's say, Columbus as part of a package for Jack Johnson.

My suggestion yesterday of Bishop and a conditional pick is not impossible. Khabby will be gone next year and the jury is still not in on Dubnyk. Bishop would push/challenge Dubnyk for that #1 job. I still believe Smid for Bishop and a conditional 1st in 2013 or 2014 (with a contract extension) is a fair ask...although most in my blog comments section disagree. Maybe to even it up, you have Smid and an Oilers 2nd for Bishop and the Sens 1st?

As for the Oilers up front, the goal next season will be to get bigger. I'm still not understanding why we're seeing so little ice time for Nail Yakupov and Magnus Paajarvi in the third period of games. Head Coach Ralph Krueger will be back (because the Oilers love him), so I'm hoping he's just holding the kids back a bit to give them time to adjust in the NHL. We need more Yaks and more Maggy next season.

Potential 2013/2014 Lines
L1: Hall - Nugent-Hopkins - Eberle
L2: Paajarvi - Gagner - Yakupov
L3: Hartikainen - Horcoff - Two-Way forward with size who can hit
L4: Brown - Lander - Petrell
exs: Smyth + Eager

D1: Defenseman picked up through trade or UFA/Jeff Petry
D2: Klefbom/J.Schultz
D3: N.Schultz/Fistric
ex: Corey Potter

G1: Dubnyk
G2: Someone random

Oilers players who could be dealt at the deadline (from most-likely to least)
1. Ladislav Smid
2. Ryan Whitney
3. Ales Hemsky
4. Ryan Jones
5. Eric Belanger
6. Nikolai Khabibulin
7. Linus Omark
8. Theo Peckham
9. Nick Schultz
10. Ben Eager
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