We are now into the third month of the NHL season, and rumours and speculations have never stopped. These rumours are the ones we’ve heard about from the last week and from the weeks before. I’ve added some tidbits in there that may hint to future trades.
Oilers and goaltending
What will now happen with the Edmonton Oilers and their goaltending situation? It is now December 18 and the Oilers are about to start a really long stretch where they will be getting back-to-backs for the first time in the season. They need two goaltenders badly. Unfortunately, the Oilers goaltending has not been great in the last few days. Stuart Skinner was not great in the loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Calvin Pickard struggled in the 5–1 loss to Florida, and Jack Campbell has been a disaster in the AHL (3.46 GAA and a .888 save percentage) as he got pulled in the last game for the Bakersfield Condors after allowing four goals on a measly 21 shots.
So now, the Oilers really are hanging in limbo and, after the eight-game winning streak they had, they are in a two-game slump where their x factor has, yet again, come out in full force: Goaltending problems. According to Ken Holland in an interview he did last week with Edmonton reporter Tony Brar, he is taking the goaltending situation week by week. But, after what he has seen in the last three games in the NHL and AHL, maybe we will see a move coming soon?
- On the Oilers Radio Show, Oilers Now, Bob Stauffer and Frank Seravalli discussed that the Oilers need to find a resolution to the goalie situation fast because of the situation coming up. Seravalli said it is very likely that the Oilers can do this because how struggling goalie, who had very bad value, Cal Petersen was able to get traded. But, according to Stauffer, the cost will be very high including a first-round pick. In my opinion, the Oilers need to do this fast and they need to get a new goalie. If the Oilers are talking about Cup or Bust 24/7, they need to take risks. Ken Holland and Jeff Jackson cannot stand pat
- Stauffer has also been talking about the Oilers needing a top-six forward with size and a good ability at puck retrievals. Whenever Stauffer talks very specifically about players, it usually means the Oilers are digging deep into other teams. The Oilers assistant general manager, Brad Holland, has been scouting teams such as Nashville, Columbus, and Montreal over the last month so it may be for a forward too. Some players that come to mind are Colton Sissons, Tommy Novak from Nashville, Josh Anderson from Montreal, and Alexandre Texier, Kent Johnson from Columbus
- According to Kevin Weekes, it seems the goaltending carousel is about to turn:
- Weekes states that Karel Vejmelka may be on the move soon as his name has popped up extensively in the last 48 hours. The Carolina Hurricanes waived Antti Raanta so they are definitely looking to make a splash. He reported that they are in on Vejmelka and it is reasonable to assume the Oilers are in on him as well
- The Elvis Merzlikins to Edmonton rumours had died down the last two weeks, but after more Oiler scouts were seen at the recent Columbus games, they have picked back up. Also, I believe they may be interested in Alexandre Texier as well
Other NHL tidbits
The Red Wings are believe to be in the works to move young forward Jonatan Berggren. This is a surprise to me because he had a very good season with Detroit last year (15 goals, 12 assists). It seems he has fallen down the depth chart after a poor opening camp and the they do have a lot more depth this season. He is someone the Oilers may have an eye on as he has top six potential and Ken Holland has obvious ties with Detroit.
According to Elliotte Friedman on the THE GAME 102.5 radio station, he believes the Nashville Predators to have at least two defencemen off their roster before the deadline. Tyson Barrie is an obvious one since he has requested a trade and, as for the second one, he believes it was Dante Fabbro. This is very interesting as well since the Oilers may need another top six defencemen but it’s a situation to keep an eye on.
What is coming?
In terms of what will happen next, I believe we will see a resolution soon with the Oilers goaltending woes before the New Year. It is a critical juncture of the season and they can’t afford to wait for Campbell to find his game. He hasn’t found it in his two years with Edmonton and his AHL play has been just as horrible. In terms of the goalies, I believe they will either be Merzlikins, Karel Vejmelka, and (random guess by me) Petr Mrazek out of the Chicago Blackhawks because of his ties to Holland.
I do find the Nashville scouting by Edmonton interesting as well so perhaps a top six forward will come out of there. Let us see what happens as this part of the year will tell us if the Oilers are a playoff team or not.
