Oilers and GM Ken Holland to target familiar face on trade market!

The Edmonton Oilers have all the fire power they need up front, but it’s been said for months and months, the upgrade needs to come on the back end and in between the pipes… The team has already made one bold move in firing head coach Jay Woodcroft and there’s a feeling the Oilers might want to wait and see what new bench boss Kris Knoblauch can do to right the ship before giving up assets in a trade.

However, The Athletic’s Shayna Goldman wonders if general manager Ken Holland could be tempted to look at one of his former goalies in Petr Mrazek of the Chicago Blackhawks in a move that’s not too risky and could bring improvement to the Edmonton’s net.

“Cap constraints may force Edmonton into a more low-key move, whether it’s any of the aforementioned options or someone like Petr Mrazek with whom general manager Ken Holland has some experience. Then again, with the transition of power happening at the top, Holland’s connections may no longer be as much of a priority as Jeff Jackson’s are.”

That’s where Goldman is right. There is a new vibe in Edmonton that sends the message that the club’s president of hockey operations is in charge here and could focus his attention elsewhere in the league if he chooses to trade for goaltending help.

The Oilers have indeed been looking for a goaltender after sending Jack Campbell to the AHL, but there seems to be a huge roadblock when it comes to pulling the trigger on a transaction especially with Edmonton’s hopes to attach Campbell’s contract to a trade. He has a cap hit of $3.85 million on a deal that runs until 2027. To make things worse, Campbell has struggled with the club’s AHL affiliate in Bakersfield with a 1-4-0 mark, 3.22 GAA and a .884 save-percentage. The Oilers would be forced to give up a high draft pick or a pick up a large amount of Campbell’s contract. While the team could eventually agree to it, there is a strong sense that the Oilers will not move their first-round pick next spring.

“That’s the pick everybody is going to want and I don’t think anybody will be throwing them a life a preserver to help them make the playoffs,” a league executive told the Edmonton Sun.

Goldman also believes the Oilers could target other netminders on the market, especially wtih the clock ticking of the team’s superstars’ prime years.

“Considering the pressure to maximize the prime years of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl ’s careers (and their respective contract situations), management could look for a little more security than those options would provide — obviously at a higher cost. That’s why pursuing someone like Sam Montembeault , who has performed well behind a bad defensive team, could be of intrigue. Karel Vejmelka , if the Coyotes were willing to deal him, would be an upgrade, too. Montembeault and Vejmelka are almost certainly out of the Oilers’ price range if management opts to make upgrades on defense as well, and that also has to be a consideration.”

The Edmonton Sun also reminds fans that the Oilers have been linked in the past to St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington, who’s led the Blues to a Stanley Cup in 2018-19 and has posted a 6-5-1 record this season with a 2.89 GAA.

What will the Oilers do?

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