The Edmonton Oilers made a minor deal on Thursday, a day before the 2023 National Hockey League trade deadline. They acquired center Nick Bjugstad of Minneapolis, Minnesota and prospect defenseman Cam Dineen of Toms River, New Jersey for prospect defenseman Michael Kesselring of New Hampton, New Hampshire and a third round pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. As part of the deal, the Coyotes will pay for half of Bjugstad’s salary. He initially signed a one year deal worth $900,000 with the Coyotes on July 13, 2022.
Nick Bjugstad
The Oilers become the fifth team Bjugstad has played for in his NHL career. He has previously played for the Florida Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota Wild and Coyotes. He was with the Panthers from 2012 to 2019, the Penguins from 2019 to 2020, the Wild from 2020 to 2022, and one season with the Coyotes in 2022-23.
In one season with the Coyotes in 2022-23, Bjugstad had 13 goals and 10 assists for 23 points. He was a +7 with 26 penalty minutes, one power-play goal, one shorthanded goal, 111 shots on goal, 416 faceoff wins, 29 blocked shots, 119 hits, 24 takeaways, and 25 giveaways.
Cam Dineen
Cam Dineen is no relation whatsoever to former National Hockey League right winger and Canadian Olympic gold medal winning women’s hockey coach Kevin Dineen of Quebec City, Quebec. Cam Dineen was drafted in the third round, 68th overall by the Coyotes in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He played his junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League with the North Bay Batallion, despite being from the United States.
Cam Dineen does have 34 NHL games under his belt, but they were all played in the 2021-22 season, and he had seven assists for seven points. He also had four penalty minutes and was a -16. In 2022-23, Dineen had four goals and 31 assists for 35 points in 50 games with the Tucson Roadrunners of the American Hockey League.
Michael Kesselring
Kesselring was the Oilers’s sixth round pick, 164th overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. He had 13 goals and nine assists for 22 points in 49 games with the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League this season.
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