At the trade deadline, most National Hockey League teams that are in Stanley Cup contention make an attempt to improve their team for the short term and do what is necessary to make a deep playoff run. You could make the argument that the Edmonton Oilers are not better right now than they were to begin the day. That was after separate trades with the Carolina Hurricanes and Nashville Predators on Tuesday.
Trading Jesse Puljujarvi to Carolina
The Oilers traded Jesse Pulujarvi, their first-round pick, fourth overall, in the 2016 National Hockey League Entry Draft, to the Carolina Hurricanes for Finnish prospect Patrik Puistola. Now the reason for this deal came to finances, as it was clear that the Oilers wanted to move Puljujarvi, who was making $3 million in the final year of his contract. But was it worth it for the Oilers to trade a prospect for a player who could add offensive depth for the remainder of the season?
In 58 games, Puljujarvi had five goals and nine assists for 14 points. He was a -11 with 30 penalty minutes, one game-winning goal, 88 shots on goal, 21 blocked shots, 112 hits, 19 takeaways, and 13 giveaways. Puljujarvi’s game-winning goal came on February 11 in a 6-3 Oilers win over the Ottawa Senators.
Trading Tyson Barrie to Nashville for Mattias Ekholm
I know why Oilers General Manager Ken Holland made this deal. They needed to upgrade their defense from a defensive perspective. However, did they need to trade their best offensive-minded defenseman to get a solid defensive-minded defenseman? I say the answer is no and Holland could have acquired Ekholm for another blueliner on the Oilers. In addition to Ekholm, the Oilers acquired a sixth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. In addition to Barrie, the Predators acquired prospect Reid Schaefer, a first-round pick in 2023, and a fourth-round pick in 2024.
This season Barrie was the quarterback of a marvelous Oilers power play that is significantly weaker without their top offensive-minded defenseman. Of Barrie’s 43 points this season, 28 were on the power play. Ekholm meanwhile only has 18 points in 57 games this season.
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