One of the characteristics that Peter Chiarelli wanted to add to the Oilers was "Heaviness". The team has long been chastised for having too many smallish players, and worse not enough that play bigger than they are.
There's nothing wrong with being smaller if you're eminently skilled or play like a rabid wolverine. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins isn't going to be confused with a professional wrestler any time soon, but he does things others cannot with the puck. There's a trade off.
I'm not one of those who thinks the top 6 of the Oilers needs a drastic change just because there isn't a Milan Lucic type among them.
RNH: A fantastic player at 22 who has a long and productive career ahead of him. Also had the 2nd highest hit totals among the top 6. Jordan Eberle: One of the most prolific players in the second half of the year. The trade off here is that instead of MOAR SIZE we get actual hockey. Taylor Hall: Gives as much abuse as he takes and he's been suspended by the league because he's shown a penchant for some borderline hits every once in a while. Benoit Pouliot: 6'3" and plays a very North/South game. Lots to like about him and no worries about his physicality. Nail Yakupov: Easily the most physical player in the top 6 for the Oilers. Lead the top 6 in hits and good for at least 1 YAK SMASH per game. Not tall but stocky build with speed and just shy of 200 pounds.
We can add to that top 6 Connor McDavid next fall and we can assume he won't be judged on how "heavy" he plays. 1 player I didn't include is pending UFA Derek Roy. I think Derek Roy brings a lot of good elements to the team but none of them address need for more physicality.
Given the pedigree of the Oilers' top 6 and the sweetheart deal that Yak is on I'd say it behooves Chiarelli to see what he has with that group before getting deal happy and trading them to fill size quotas.
So that leaves the bottom 6 and frankly half of them already play a heavy game.
Boyd Gordon: He's a big body centering the team's shutdown line. His hit totals won't impress anybody, but that's more for his wingers than anything else. Matt Hendricks: Just Captained a young Team USA to a Bronze medal and he lead the entire team in total hits. I don't think there's a player on the Oilers who plays heavier than Matt Hendricks. Rob Klinkhammer: The last piece of the Wagon line and he was tied for 2nd on the team in hits in just 40 games played. He's 6'3", 214lbs, he's fast, and he hits. Heavy is the one thing you can count on him to bring. Anton Lander: Not big by NHL standards but he hasn't shied away from physical play. The heir apparent to Boyd Gordon and brings much more Offense. Matt Fraser: 200+ pounds but slow and not enough talent. Chiarelli put him on waivers once already last year and if he wasn't good enough for the Bruins last year I doubt he's good enough for Edmonton this coming year. Teddy Purcell: Is actually a big player...technically. Plays about 6 inches smaller than he needs to. He's talented enough to be top 6 player somewhere and gets paid like it but shouldn't crack Edmonton's unless injury strikes.
You look down the list of the everyday players and there are just 2 names that strike me as neither bringing something that's difficult to replace nor playing a heavy game: Matt Fraser and Teddy Purcell.
Matt Fraser is easy to lose, he's an RFA the team doesn't need to qualify. It didn't cost the team any assets to acquire him. He was a waiver pickup by the old GM and frankly he wasn't very good down the stretch.
If the Oilers choose to qualify just one of Fraser or Pitlick and heaviness is a criteria then there's no question that the team should take Pitlick (I would walk from both).
Teddy Purcell, on the other hand, would be significantly more difficult to move. He has a 4.5M dollar price tag and is a UFA next summer. He's a rental to whichever team takes him and his last season wasn't good enough to generate a great market for him. I think Chiarelli might have to work some magic to trade Purcell before the deadline when he would cost a fraction of the price to potential buyers.
How much would Peter Chiarelli like to take that money for Purcell and use it on, say, Carl Soderberg? He's a left shooting C who stands 6'3", 216 pounds, and can play anywhere in Edmonton's lineup?
The 3rd line with only Lander looking like a long term Oiler is an easy place for Chiarelli to put his stamp on the forward lines for next season. The team's pressing needs are elsewhere but adding two relatively skilled bodies who can throw their weight around if need be would make Edmonton's bottom 6, in particular, a load.
As Edmonton's top 6 is gifted with high end skill, the bottom 6 can really only count on the Hendricks/Gordon line for physical play. That can change this summer if the Oilers make it a priority. The Fraser spot is begging to filled by a physical player and Purcell is almost certainly not going to finish next year as an Oiler.
Most outsiders would be happy to see the Oilers offload players from their top 6 but it makes very little sense to move Hall or Eberle who played fantastic for Todd McLellan at the IIHF World Championships and NHL teams don't trade away centerman like Nugent-Hopkins without damn good reason. That leaves Pouliot and Yak who are two of the most physical players in the top 6. If someone wanted to argue some bodies needed to be traded for a Defenseman it would at least make sense, just not in the name of heaviness.
We take a look at the Defense next.
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