The @EdmontonOilers rumored to be among teams trying to get #1 according to @hfialkov http://t.co/zkA9r4uifX"
— Bob Stauffer (@Bob_Stauffer) June 10, 2014That was Bob Stauffer promoting a report on NHL.com that suggests the Oilers are interested in acquiring the 1st Overall pick. The report also notes that Panthers GM Tallon has said on record that at least one offer he received was “fair…. Now it’s the early days of June and there is plenty to be gained for a radio talk show host by feeding into talking points like this, but Stauffer is also the most plugged in Oiler source in Edmonton (because it’s his job) and he’s hinted at many things in the past well before they became public knowledge.
It was not long before the Draft a few years ago that Stauffer started suggesting the Oilers were leaning towards Ryan Murray over Yakupov. Even though the Oil took the Russian in the end it has since been leaked that it was a decision from extremely high above and the Oilers did indeed intend on taking Murray. So maybe this is Stauffer trying to boost some excitement and engagement for his radio program, or maybe it’s a little foreshadowing (or both). All I know for sure is that it wouldn’t be the first time the team’s media branch floated ideas out to the public that were a reflection of what was happening behind the closed door meetings of Oiler management.
Edmonton may well have fallen in love with Ekblad but are concerned that the Panthers would take him with the 1st Overall pick. Certainly the reports coming from Florida are suggesting that would be the case. Are those false flags from the Panthers? Are they floating that idea to the media so it puts pressure on potential trade partners? It is certainly possible. If the Panthers are open to dealing the pick then that is definitely the way to go. That said, there’s nothing wrong with them actually taking him 1st Overall either.
And what should we make of the fact that someone may have actually made a fair offer for the 1st Overall pick? When the Oilers were picking 1st (every year) they always made the claim that they were open to any discussion but nobody ever came close to making them an offer they would take. If there’s any team who understands the value of that pick and what it might take to pry it from an NHL club it should be the Edmonton Oilers.
I will be perfectly happy to watch the Oilers select 3rd Overall and draft whomever is left (Ekblad, Draisaitl, Bennett) after the other two teams take their turns at the podium so a flip of picks doesn’t appeal to me at all. I hear lots of pundits in print and radio suggest that “it shouldn’t take much… to move 2 spots in the Draft, but that doesn’t pass the sniff test. Would Oiler fans have been content to see Edmonton move down 2 spots in the Hall draft for an extra 2nd and 3rd Round pick or a middling prospect? No, absolutely not. It would have been pitchforks and mob justice at Kingsway. It is notoriously difficult to obtain the 1st Overall pick and it should be.
But that report didn’t mention a pick swap. It was just about acquiring the pick, so what would it take for Florida not just to move back, but to give up the pick out-right?
Edmonton shouldn’t waste their breath negotiating a pick swap unless the cost is negligible, but if they’re talking about keeping 1st AND 3rd…Now that would certainly be Bold.
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