Several smaller pieces of Oilers related news have dropped over the past few days so I'm busting out the ol' MacT Blender and talking about all of them in one blog.
PULJUJARVI: "NEVER SAY NEVER"
There may have been a positive development in the Jesse Puljujarvi saga. A recent interview (translated to English) stated that when asked about if he would resign with the Oilers, Puljujarvi responded "never say never."
While that may be a far cry from a concrete statement, it does show a transition from his agent's previous statement that the young Jesse would never play for the Edmonton Oilers again.
Puljuajrvi finished 4th in scoring last season in the Finish League and top on his own team and though it's tough to compare that and the NHL, it was great to see the 22 year old show off the skills that made him a top draft pick in 2016. Despite a strong season overseas, reports from North America were that teams had little to no interest in the player and were not prepared to offer Ken Holland much in return.
Hopefully the narrative is clear to Puljujarvi; if he wants to play in the National Hockey League, he needs to suck up his pride and come to an agreement with the Oilers, play well here and then decide what he wants his future to be.
Sometimes the best move a GM can make is to not make a move, and if Holland is able to bring Puljujarvi back into the fold and have him be an impactful player, it could very well be one of the best moves of his tenure here in Edmonton.
PROSPECTS HEADING (NOT BOLTING) TO RUSSIA
Dmitri Samorukov and very soon Filip Berglund will have announced their signing in the KHL for the 2020/2021 season. The two defensive prospects for Edmonton were expected to both play in the AHL next season, with Samorukov already making that transition this past season.
Unlike prior examples like Teemu Hartikainen and Anton Slepyshev, these are not players looking for a bigger paycheck without having to fight for NHL playing time. Right now the KHL season is still on schedule to begin in the fall, while the AHL still has no concrete timeline on when it will begin.
Simply put, these are young players who need to be playing and putting in as many game minutes as possible so they can hopefully develop into NHL players in the future. Ken Holland himself signed off on these deals so you know there is an understanding between the players and organization.
AN RNH EXTENSION?!
Ryan Nugent Hopkins has been a core member of this team since the day he was drafted 1st overall. Nuge was there during the bad times in 2011, 2012, 2013... you get it and though he has never been a player to blow the barn doors off in scoring, RNH is absolutely an elite player. His vision, defensive abilities, quick release and tenacity are all elite and he can transition between centre and the wing. This season we saw how good he can be playing with other high end players and not being forced to drag anchors along with him.
I'm talking about Ryan because he is set to be a free agent at the end of next season and things have been quiet on all fronts on an extension for the 27 year old player. That is until this little tidbit dropped from Brian Lawton.
Lawton, former agent and current NHL Network Analyst stated that it was his belief that Ryan Nugent Hopkins had no intention on signing anywhere other than Edmonton and that he would expect the AAV to begin with a 6.
First off, the Edmonton Oilers should absolutely extend RNH and keep him an Oiler for the remainder of his career and if they are able to do so with a cap hit that starts with a 6 than that is a steal of a deal. That part I do not put too much value in, especially if RNH is able to continue scoring at the rate he did from December onwards with Draisaitl and Yamamoto.
Regardless, RNH is a core member of this team and a top 6 winger and centre. Edmonton has the best centre depth in the league in their top six and his versatility makes him a vital cog on this roster.
Thanks for reading!