Edmonton Oilers

Leon Draisaitl Placed On Injured Reserve

October 16, 2017 at 2:31 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The Edmonton Oilers have placed star forward Leon Draisaitl on injured reserve following an evaluation, and will not be available to the team during the upcoming road trip. Draisaitl is dealing with an eye injury and now a concussion, and has no timetable on his return.

For the Oilers, this is just another setback in what has been a tough start to the year. With just one win in their first four games and coming off a blowout loss against the visiting Ottawa Senators, the team hasn’t been able to find their identity early in the year. Though Connor McDavid has five points in four games, the team as a whole has only scored seven even-strength goals and just a single tally on the powerplay. Losing Draisaitl—one of only two other players with at least three points on the year—for any length of time won’t help those numbers improve.

With Draisaitl out, the team went with Kailer Yamamoto on the first line with McDavid at practice today, with Ryan Strome moving from center to the second line wing. While Yamamoto registered his first NHL point against Ottawa, and has generally impressed early in the season, putting a 154-lbs, barely 19-year old player out for nearly 19 minutes a night is a lot to ask. While Yamamoto definitely has the skill to stick in the NHL, it’s hard to rely on him that heavily in the face of the “Stanley Cup Contender” expectations.

Drake Caggiula Placed On IR

October 15, 2017 at 6:15 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

The Oilers announced that they have placed forward Drake Caggiula on injured reserve. The 23-year-old last played on October 7th so assuming they back-dated the placement, he will be eligible to be activated at any time but this frees up a spot on the 23-man roster.

With center Leon Draisaitl now in concussion protocol, some speculated that the Oilers would turn around and sign center Chris Kelly, who has been skating with the team despite being released from his PTO at the end of training camp. However, the team instead opted to recall veteran Brad Malone from Bakersfield of the AHL to take Caggiula’s roster spot. The 28-year-old has three points in three minor league games this season and has 176 career NHL games under his belt between Colorado and Carolina.

Draisaitl Out For Saturday, Potentially Longer

October 13, 2017 at 7:49 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl will miss Saturday’s game against Ottawa and possibly longer with an eye injury and a potential concussion, head coach Todd McLellan told reporters, including Postmedia’s Robert Tychkowski. Draisaitl has missed the last three practices with his eye being swollen to the point where it was impairing his vision but McLellan suggested there could be more to the injury, noting that they are waiting to hear more about his condition and how it might affect his head. Fresh off his eight-year, $68MM contract, the 21-year-old has played a big role once again early on for Edmonton with three points in as many games while averaging over 20 minutes a night of ice time.

Pacific Notes: McDavid, Sutter, Boeser, Kempe

October 8, 2017 at 6:36 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Edmonton Oilers’ Connor McDavid rejected the idea outright. Without blinking, the young superstar made it very clear that scoring 100 goals is impossible. Just days ago, Jaromir Jagr predicted that McDavid could score 100 goals someday, but McDavid would have none of that., according to Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal.

“It’s not possible at all … no one’s ever done it,” said the 20-year-old McDavid, who scored 30 goals a year ago. “Not going to happen.”

The closest anyone has ever come was by Wayne Gretzky, who scored 92 goals in the 1981-82 season. Gretzky also had 87 goals in 1983-84. Alex Ovechkin, who has seven goals in the Capitals first two games might have a better shot at it than McDavid. However, the 32-year-old’s best season was 65 goals in 2007-08.

In the same article, Matheson pointed out that McDavid played his first game without taking a faceoff in Saturday’s game against the Vancouver Canucks. The center yielded to linemate Leon Draisaitl, who is a better faceoff specialist, having won 49 percent of his faceoffs (out of 972 attempts) in the 2016-17 season, while McDavid won just 43 percent (806 attempts). “People know that I’m not that good on faceoffs,” McDavid said. “It’s one of the perks of having Leon on the line.”
Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Sun writes that a lot of the credit that goes towards the Canucks 3-2 victory Saturday was the play of Brandon Sutter. The 28-year-old center and his line of Markus Granlund and Derek Dorsett shutdown McDavid, who didn’t register a point in the game and finished with a plus/minus of -1 in 24:38 of ice time.
In the same article, Botchford writes that the public outcry that top prospect Brock Boeser was scratched due to the team focusing more on shutting down Edmonton’s offense. “I know it’s a hot topic,” Vancouver head coach Travis Green said. “He’s going to play. He’s going to get his chance. We set our lineup against a very strong Edmonton team. He’s not going to sit here for a month.”
Curtis Zupke of the Los Angeles Times writes that Los Angeles Kings’ Adrian Kempe’s role on the forward line is already beginning to diminish. The former 2014 first-round pick only played two shifts in the third period for the second straight game and it looks like Alex Iafallo has taken his place on the second line of the power play. Kempe has struggled to break through as a wing on the professional level. He scored 12 goals in 46 games for the Ontario Reign of the AHL last year and scored just two goals for the Kings in 25 games.

Minor Transactions: 10/05/17

October 5, 2017 at 8:55 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

We’ll keep track of all the assignments around the league right here, as teams fine tune their rosters.

The Golden Knights assigned Brandon Pirri to the Chicago Wolves after clearing waivers. The 26-year old forward was just signed to a contract yesterday, after failing to earn on in Florida’s training camp. For the Golden Knights, there is no risk to signing a former 20+ goal scorer to see if he can still compete at this level. The team may be weak on offense all year, and could look to Pirri to infuse some scoring touch on the powerplay at some point.
The Boston Bruins sent Emil Johansson back to Providence, and will go with the more veteran Paul Postma as their extra defenseman. Johansson joined the organization last year after his European season was over, and played in six games for the P-Bruins down the stretch. A seventh-round pick, Johansson is highly regarded by the Bruins staff and could get his shot at the NHL at some point this year.
The Calgary Flames made another move, sending Garnet Hathaway to the minor leagues in order to clear room for Jaromir Jagr. Jagr was introduced yesterday at a press conference but likely won’t suit up for the team until he gets a few practices under his belt. The Flames could have used his offense last night as they were shutout by the Edmonton Oilers, in a game where Hathaway played just 11 minutes.
The Washington Capitals have loaned Chandler Stephenson to Hershey after clearing waivers, meaning the 23-year old will have to wait patiently for his next NHL opportunity. Since being drafted in the third round, Stephenson has only been given short chances at a job with the Capitals, playing in 13 games over the past two years. Still looking for his first NHL point, he’ll have to prove it at the AHL level once again.
Grand Rapids will be getting some help, as the Detroit Red Wings have assigned Matt Lorito and Eric Tangradi to the AHL. Tangradi cleared waivers today, and will return to the team he helped take to the Calder Cup championship a year ago. In the playoffs for Grand Rapids, Tangradi scored 19 points in 19 games, and will try to do the same this year. The Griffins have also signed Matt Carey to a professional tryout, and sent Matej Machovsky to the ECHL.
According to Adrian Dater of BSN Denver, the Avalanche have indeed sent Joe Colborne to San Antonio to begin the season. Colborne was among those who cleared waivers today, and will have to work his way up from the minor leagues if he wants to return to the NHL. It’s a far fall for Colborne, who was a 19-goal scorer in the league just two seasons ago with Calgary, but suffered the same fate as many Avalanche players and posted a career-low in points last season. Scoring just eight all year, his $2.5MM salary looks like a dreadful overpay.
The Blue Jackets have assigned defenseman Markus Nutivaara to the AHL (via the Cleveland Monsters website). For the former seventh-round pick appeared in 66 games during his rookie campaign, collecting two goals and five assists. He also made his way into a pair of playoff games, compiling one goal and one assist.

Ben Levine contributed to this post.

Chris Kelly To Remain With Oilers As A Practice Player

October 4, 2017 at 8:38 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

The Oilers have asked center Chris Kelly to remain with the team as an unsigned player, notes Paul Gazzola on the Oilers’ team website. While he won’t be able to play in any games, he’ll be able to practice with the team and can continue to battle for a roster spot that way. This is the same approach that Toronto had with Brandon Prust last season while Brooks Laich has a similar arrangement with the Kings this year.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Edmonton Oilers

October 1, 2017 at 6:24 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Edmonton Oilers

Current Cap Hit: $65,647,000 (under the $75MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

D Matt Benning (One year remaining, $925K)
F Drake Caggiula (One year remaining, $925K)
F Connor McDavid (One year remaining, $925K)
F Jesse Puljujarvi (Two years remaining, $925K)
F Anton Slepyshev (One year remaining, $925K)
F Kailer Yamamoto (Three years remaining, $925K)
D Darnell Nurse (One year remaining, $863K)

Potential Bonuses

McDavid: $2.85MM
Puljujarvi: $2.5MM
Nurse: $850K
Slepyshev: $600K
Caggiula: $425K
Benning: $300K
Yamamoto: $230K

Total: $7.755MM

Believe it or not, McDavid is still on the list as the Art Ross Trophy winner, Hart Memorial Trophy winner, and Ted Lindsay Award winner is on the last year of his entry-level deal. McDavid will also be listed later in the story under four year and more as McDavid signed his eight year, $100MM extension this summer and will be locked up long term regardless. More on him later …

The Oilers have high expectations for both Benning and Nurse to take that next step. With injuries mounting, both should be vaulted into bigger roles than they were last year. The 23-year-old Benning played in 62 games last year and played solidly while filling in for injured players. The 22-year-old Nurse also had a solid showing in 44 games this year. Both may be asked to jump onto top-four pairings on defense throughout the year.

Slepyshev, who suffered an ankle injury in the offseason looks close to being ready. He had 10 points in 41 games a year ago, but also scored three goals in the playoffs for Edmonton last year and many feel the 23-year-old is ready to take that next step. Caggiula, a big college player from the University of North Dakota, had seven goals and 18 points in 60 games a year ago in his first year with Edmonton and is also thought to be a player ready to make a jump.

Both Yamamoto and Puljujarvi (Edmonton’s 2017 and 2016 first-round picks, respectively) went head-to-head and battled it out for a final roster spot this training camp with Yamamoto getting the edge and Puljujarvi getting sent to Bakersfield, but don’t be surprised if Puljujarvi is back up at some point during the season.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

D Mark Fayne ($2.6MM, UFA – team saved $1.025MM in cap relief by sending him to AHL)
F Ryan Strome ($2.5MM, RFA)
F Mark Letestu ($1.8MM, UFA)
F Patrick Maroon ($1.5MM, UFA)
F Jussi Jokinen ($1.1MM, UFA)
G Laurent Brossoit ($750K, RFA)
F Iiro Pakarinen ($725K, RFA)

Perhaps the most interesting player the team must focus on will be Maroon, who had a breakout year playing next to McDavid. The 29-year-old wing scored 27 goals and has proven to be one guy who seems to play well next to McDavid. He is a presence in front of the net and a physical force for the team.

Letestu, is another player the team will have to consider. Likely to be the team’s fourth-line center, Letestu put up 16 goals last year, although that was a career high and he’s already 32 years old. Jokinen, who signed a one-year deal this offseason, put up 11 goals last year in Florida, but at 34 years old is likely not a priority to the team.

As for restricted free agents, the team will take a long look at Strome, who the team acquired in the Jordan Eberle deal. The 24-year-old center has had an inconsistent career with the New York Islanders, but put up 13 goals and 30 points last year. The Oilers hope he can keep improving on those numbers. Brossoit will get his first chance to be Talbot’s backup. The 24-year-old looked promising in eight appearances last year.

Two Years Remaining

G Cam Talbot ($4.17MM, UFA)
D Eric Gryba ($900K, UFA)
F Jujhar Khaira ($675K, RFA)

Obviously, the key is to lock up Talbot, who has proven to be a solid goaltender. The team has been thrilled with his performance over the last two years since he’s become a full-time starter. He played in an absurd 73 games last year and finished with a 2.39 GAA and a .919 save percentage. Assuming, his play doesn’t drop off, he could receive a big payday, even at 32. Gryba, a bottom-line veteran defenseman, and Khaira, a 23-year-old draft pick from 2012, just fill out the roster.

Three Years Remaining

F Zack Kassian ($1.95MM, UFA)

The fourth-line bruiser scored seven goals and added 17 assists, 201 hits and 101 penalty minutes in a full season last year and should continue aiding the team. The 26-year-old adds a physical presence at 6-foot-3, 209 pounds, which the team desperately needs and is critical to the team’s bottom line.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Connor McDavid ($12.5MM through 2025-26)*
F Leon Draisaitl ($8.5MM through 2024-25)
F Milan Lucic ($6MM through 2022-23)
F Ryan Nugent-Hopkins ($6MM through 2020-21)
D Andrej Sekera ($5.5MM through 2020-21)
D Oscar Klefbom ($4.17MM through 2022-23)
D Adam Larsson ($4.17MM through 2020-21)
D Kris Russell ($4MM through 2020-21)
* McDavid’s extension doesn’t kick in until 2018-19.

As said earlier, McDavid signed a eight-year extension this summer, but that $12.5MM AAV won’t kick in until next year and the team will have to deal with that next offseason. However, when you look at this Edmonton team, they have a lot of young talent that is locked up long-term, meaning that Edmonton should be a really good team for many years. Having both McDavid, 20, and Draisaitl, 21, make for two franchise changing players and they have them together for another eight years. McDavid and Draisaitl combined last year for 59 goals and 118 assists and both should only get better.

Lucic is a solid contributor, who put up 23 goals and 50 points and likely to play next to Draisaitl on the team’s second line. Consistency is his game as he has put up solid numbers over the past six or seven years. The 29-year-old’s productivity is essential after the two centers. Nugent-Hopkins, is a different matter. The former first-overall pick in 2014, Nugent Hopkins inked a seven-year, $42MM deal in 2013 when he was just starting to scratch the surface of his career. Instead his offense had stagnated as he’s never scored more than 56 points in a season. Still just 24 years old, his defense is excellent, but for $6MM a year, that’s a lot of money for little offense.

Despite a knee injury that will keep him out for a few months, Sekera is a key component to the team’s blueline efforts. He will be badly missed, but he is expected to anchor that defense for many years. The team has its top-four defense locked up long term as well. Klefbom played a complete 82-game season last year, putting up solid numbers (12 goals) and solidifying himself as one of the team’s top defensemen. Both Larsson and Russell have settled in as the defense’s second line and should be there for some time as well. Larsson, the former fourth-overall pick they acquired in the Taylor Hall deal, is a key defensive defenseman just like the 30-year-old veteran Russell.

Buyouts

F Lauri Korpikoski ($1MM through 2017-18)
F Benoit Pouliot ($1.33MM through 2020-21)

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Still To Sign

None

Best Value: McDavid
Worst Value: Nugent-Hopkins

Looking Ahead

As said earlier, this team has been very well constructed as the Oilers have made it clear they are building around their youth as they have their top two superstars locked up for eight years together (nine years for McDavid). The defense is locked in for another four years as well and the Oilers have a bright future ahead of them. The team will have to keep an eye on the salary cap once McDavid’s contract kicks in, hence why the team traded Eberle this offseason. However, to go with their young stars, the team has a large amount of young forwards who could also step up and carry this team even further. Their depth looks ready to compete at a high level for a long time.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Puljujarvi’s Demotion Is Not A Bad Sign

October 1, 2017 at 4:56 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

While many on Twitter are criticizing the Oilers for demoting Jesse Puljujarvi to Bakersfield as the team would rather him get first-line minutes in the AHL as opposed to third-line minutes with the team, David Staples of the Edmonton Journal agrees with the move.

The scribe writes that what the fourth-overall pick from 2016 needs is experience and playing time. He writes that 20 minutes of even strength and power play minutes is crucial to the young prospect’s development rather than getting 10 minutes a night or even some time sitting in the press box. What Puljujarvi needs is confidence, writes Staples, and dominating in the AHL for now will give that to him. At 18, he scored 12 goals and 28 points in 39 games for Bakersfield. Most prospects are still with their junior teams. Imagine what he should be able to accomplish one year later.

Staples adds that he is 19 year old and even if he needs more time to develop, that doesn’t mean anything towards his long-term value. He adds that he believes that Puljujarvi will develop into a much better player than Drake Caggiula and Anton Slepyshev (who was hurt), who both made the NHL roster over him. However, they didn’t beat out Puljujarvi. According to Staples, Kailer Yamamoto, the team’s 2017 first-round pick, took his spot.

With Puljujarvi, he can go down to Bakersfield and play as much as he wants until the team needs him. They can recall him whenever they want. However, with Yamamoto on the team, the team doesn’t have that luxury. If they had sent him down instead of Puljujarvi, they wouldn’t have the option of recalling him as he would return to his junior team and could not be recalled until their season is over. So, Edmonton is taking a long, nine-game look at the young, speedy wing. They can send him down at that point and bring back Puljujarvi if they want. Yamamoto had a good camp, but he wasn’t perfect and his size (5-foot-8, 153 pounds) might be too much for a 19-year-old to handle.

One other fact, both Yamamoto and Puljujarvi are 19 years old. Yamamoto is only five months younger, so the age difference is not significant. On top of that, Puljujarvi has only been in the U.S. for a little more than a year, so he has much more to transition to. However, it wouldn’t be a big surprise if Puljujarvi got called up if he can show success again in the AHL.

Training Camp Cuts And Recalls: 10/1/17

October 1, 2017 at 10:29 am CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

Today marks the end of the preseason for all those NHL teams who haven’t yet wrapped up their exhibition schedules. With games coming to an end, expect lots of action throughout the day and keep track of it all right here:

Arizona Coyotes

D Dakota Mermis – Tucson (AHL)

Colorado Avalanche

D David Warsofsky – waivers for purpose of assignment

Dallas Stars

D Chris Martenet – Texas (AHL)

Detroit Red Wings

F Colin Campbell – released from PTO
G Jared Coreau – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Matthew Ford – released from PTO
D Joe Hicketts – Grand Rapids (AHL)
F Axel Holmstrom – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Filip Hronek – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Brian Lashoff – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Matt Lorito – waivers for purpose of assignment
G Thomas McCollum – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Dylan McIlrath – waivers for purpose of assignment
F P.A. Parenteau – released from PTO
F Michael Rasmussen – Tri-City (WHL)
D Dan Renouf – Grand Rapids (AHL)
D Vili Saarijarvi – Grand Rapids (AHL)
F Dylan Sadowy – Grand Rapids (AHL)
F Dominik Shine – released from PTO
F Ben Street – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Dominic Turgeon – Grand Rapids (AHL)

Edmonton Oilers

D Mark Fayne – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Jesse Puljujarvi – Bakersfield (AHL)

Florida Panthers

F Brandon Pirri – released from PTO
F Harry Zolnierczyk – released from PTO
D Josh Brown – Springfield (AHL)

Los Angeles Kings

G Jack Campbell – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Justin Auger – waivers for purpose of assignment

New York Rangers

F Robin Kovacs – waivers for purpose of assignment

Ottawa Senators

D Thomas Chabot – Belleville (AHL)
D Ben Harpur – Belleville (AHL)
F Max McCormick – waivers for purpose of assignment

Philadelphia Flyers

F Oskar Lindblom – Lehigh Valley (AHL)

Tampa Bay Lightning

F Stefan Fournier – Brampton (ECHL)

Vancouver Canucks

G Richard Bachman – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Michael Chaput – waivers for purpose of assignment
F Jayson Megna – waivers for purpose of assignment

Recalls:

San Jose Sharks

D Nick DeSimone
D Cavan Fitzgerald
F Adam Helewka
F John McCarthy

Pacific Notes: Virtanen, Neal, Slepyshev, Sekera

September 30, 2017 at 2:52 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

One preseason game remaining and Jake Virtanen remains with his team. The former sixth overall pick in 2014, has failed to crack the Canucks roster, but a solid training camp has many believing he has a good chance to become a regular in Vancouver this year, according to NBC Sports Cam Tucker.

After getting into 55 games two years ago with Vancouver in an underwhelming season, he managed to make just 10 appearances last year and even struggled with the AHL’s Utica Comets, scoring just 19 points in 65 games. However, his skills are obvious. Canucks GM Jim Benning has stated that his size and speed just need developing. At 6-foot-1 and 229 pounds and only 21 years old, Virtanen is trying to establish himself now, but is also trying not to think about whether he makes the roster this season. He has focused on his play instead and has already notched three preseason goals.

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