The Case For Keeping 83

The rumor mill is buzzing with talk right now, from players like Vanek, Kesler, St. Louis, and MacDonald to guys like Hemsky Moulson, Meszaros and Myers. It’s supposed to be a seller’s market this year, and teams like Florida, Calgary, Edmonton, Buffalo and the Islanders are supposed to get good returns on veteran players as rentals.

There’s one problem, there might not be a good return to be had for Oilers forward Ales Hemsky, who has been a main stay in Edmonton since the early 2000’s. Hemsky was tremendous during that magical 2005-06 season, and was by a mile Edmonton’s bright spot during these current dark ages that started in July of 2006 (Yes, it’s been that long).

Hemsky, up until the arrivals of Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle in the fall of 2010, was the Oilers go-to-guy, the cog that made Edmonton’s offense run. He had some marvelous seasons, but injuries slowed him down. Since the arrival of the “young guns”, Hemsky has been a consistent player in the rumor mill. Edmonton, against all odds, re-signed Hemsky in February of 2011 to a two-year deal, which expires after, yes, this season.

Hemsky is a good player. He’s been placed in a third line role this season, and has handled it very well. Sure, his offensive numbers are down, but his overall game is really good. He’s a legit top-nine player, and is becoming someone more defensively responsible without the puck. Hemsky as the third line RW is a great position for the Oilers.

Here’s the issue, while Hemsky has played good this season, many people around the league think his value is down due to the lack of offensive output. Our friend Lowetide thinks the Oilers can get a 2nd and a 4th round pick for him, while TSN’s Bob McKenzie suggests Edmonton will likely get a 3rd round pick for Hemsky.

A third round pick for Hemsky?!?! Are you kidding me??? Let me say this first, this is not a shot at Bobby Mac, he’s a legend and I beleive everything he says. I believe him here too actually. My disbelief is that this is really how people value Hemsky. Ales Hemsky is worth much, much more than a 3rd round pick, the definition of a maybe. Hemsky is a legit NHL player, the 3rd round pick likely will NEVER be.

Hemsky still has his skill set, and is now a more complete player than he has arguably ever been. He’s a veteran guy who is a great solider, and even though he isn’t a physical player, he is certainly a tough player more than willing to go to the dirty areas. Ales Hemsky on line three simply strengthens the Oilers top-nine. Moving him, especially for nothing, dramatically hurts Edmonton’s lineup.

Trading Hemsky for a 3rd, or even a 2nd and a 4th, is bad asset management in my eyes. This is a good NHL player, this is a guy that can help your team, and has helped your team for a very long time. We’ve seen it plastered on countless Oilers blogs before, get good players and keep them. The Oilers don’t do that enough, and it’s why they are in the spot they are in.

Trading Hemsky is the exact opposite of what good NHL teams do. You might say there is 0.00% chance Hemsky re-signs here, and that you might as well get something for him. To be honest, I’d rather take a few months to beg him to re-sign on a two year deal in the range of $3.5-$4 M a season. I think the chance to re-sign Hemsky is more valuable than a middle round pick.

Ales Hemsky is a talented NHL hockey player. The guy has stayed in Edmonton through the toughest days in franchise history, and I believe should be here for when (errrr if) things turn around. The Oilers, at this stage of the rebuild, need to find good NHL players, not give them away for lottery tickets.

Is it the exciting option, for most fans no, but the smart option is to keep Ales Hemsky and try and re-sign the guy. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Remember Tambellini’s mistakes my friends.