We previously covered how Mike Smith told the media that he was undecided on playing next season, and we also don’t have full confirmation on whether defenseman Duncan Keith will return next season. What we do now know, though, is that the Edmonton Oilers front office would prefer to have both players’ decisions on their respective futures confirmed by July 1st. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Oilers “have asked Mike Smith and Duncan Keith to let them know by around July 1st if they do plan on returning next year.”
It’s understandable that the Oilers would want confirmation on the two players’ futures before the offseason market begins in earnest. With Smith, if the team has uncertainty over whether he will be available next season, the Oilers’ entire goaltending situation becomes uncertain, and the team’s ability to pursue other starting goaltenders could be compromised. Additionally, as teams potentially scramble to make trades similar to the recent Ben Bishop deal in order to get out of LTIR, a potential Smith retirement via LTIR could complicate the Oilers’ search for additional cap room. With Keith, the team would prefer certainty about his overall future due to the immense cap implications of whatever decision he chooses to make. Per Puckpedia, if Keith retires this summer, not only is Keith’s full $5.5MM cap hit taken off their books but the Oilers are also actually given a $3.4MM cap recapture credit to facilitate even more moves. That sort of major cap space clearance could be exactly what the Oilers need to re-sign Evander Kane, for example. So the potential ramifications of his choice are huge.
Any way you look at it, without certainty on the futures of those two players, the Oilers would be entering a crucial offseason with one hand tied behind their back. With Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Darnell Nurse, and other core pieces locked up and in the primes of their careers, using this offseason to build off of the momentum of this year’s playoff run is essential if the Oilers want to go even further next year. So while being pushed for a decision on a particular time frame might not be ideal for Smith and Keith as they weigh important, life-altering decisions, the Oilers will need certainty on those two players’ futures in order to conduct their offseason at maximum efficiency.
They need a #1 Goalie. If they both retire, they might be able to sign or trade for one and make other moves. Husso or Hellebuyck could be had with the right deal.
Husso is no number one to me. Hellebuyck depends on which direction the Jets choose.
If Katz cares about winning, he offers Duncan Keith $15 million a year to be the special assistant to the associate GM.
Both players have zero value, It’s time to go!!!
Keith is owed $1,500,000 for another year. He’s 38 and has played 17 yrs. Buyout would cost EDM $1,000,000. If he’s done, he should force their hand and get the buyout cash.
Plus he will be a UFA at the end of the 2022-23 season when he is 39 years old.
You’ve got that exactly the wrong way around. Buying out Keith SAVES a million, this coming season, and hits them with half a million cap hit in 2024. The actual cap hit would be $4.5 MM AAV.
The Nurse contract – that one is questionable. Wonder if they could find a buyer for his contract.
Georgiev can be had on the market if the dollars are freed up – he’s young and needs playing time. He’s had flashes of excellence and has looked horrible as well, but much ado to the lack of consistent playing time. When Igor was out for a few weeks, Georgiev looked pretty damn solid on the backend. He’s a starter, just needs somewhere to play 60.
Yeah, that was a terrible contract: Nurse is a solid, consistent player who isn’t an embarrassment as your #1 defenseman, but they handed him Norris Trophy-money for max term.
Who’d be stupid enough to trade for it? Edmonton would want a huge package to save face, and Nurse just isn’t the superstar to justify it. It’s also a cap killer at a time when most teams are in cap hell.
What happened to klefbom? Will he play again?
Klefbom himself has said no, he’s done. He’s just going to sit next season and collect that last year’s worth of paychecks, so Edmonton isn’t off the hook there. He can go on LTIR, but the Oilers have to be cap compliant before they do that.
That is false Nha. Klefbom has not said he is done. Last comments from him was that his injury was not healing as hoped but that he still wants to pursue his NHL career. If you have a link to otherwise please post it.