After talking to people for pretty much 24 hours now (with an about 5 1/2 hour nap last night) here are some key points regarding how the Oilers firing of Chiarelli, a month before the deadline, has affected the landscape...the Oilers Ripple Effect....
* Starting with hope for Oilers fans...Hitchcock and Nicholson work VERY well together and know what they are doing....and the rift between Chiarelli and management was growing very familiar to what went down in Boston...Not completely fair to Chiarelli but at least partially true...In Boston I felt he did a great job, but Sweeney and company wanted another direction that he wasn't willing to take...
* Yamamoto was sent down to the AHL yesterday, but don't take that as a demotion. Hitchcock believes he is NHL ready and needs to play during the break..That way after the break expect him to be back up and playing a regular shift..does that mean he is safe from trade? No.
* The rumor is Hitch wanted to make a move for Parayko, and Puljujarvi would be the key piece. Does that get done now? Quite possibly.
*The Oilers WILL make a play for Stone now. And go hard after him. The Senators want to extend Stone still, but if they can’t do so having the Oilers involved in the bidding will help drive the price up.
*Talbot enters the market...big time. The Oilers will be talking to the Flyers hare with hopes of perhaps prying away another young D away...And there is good chance they can.
*People have been telling me that Chiarelli wasn’t too into trading for Zuccarello...Hitch and Nicholson love him...Good for the Rangers…
*The Oilers could also make a strong play for Nylander I am told. Essentially, the hunt for McDavid’s “serious linemate” has just kicked it up a few notches...
On Duchene
It is sounding more and more like the Sens and Duchene will get a deal done...This is vital for Ottawa, and could go a long way to convincing Stone to stick around.
More to come...Gonna be a fun one...this deadline already had plenty of intrigue...now it's looking like the best one we’ve seen in years...