The 2015-16 Edmonton Oilers fell well short of expectations and were, quite frankly, a disappointment. In order to avoid that same fate in 2016-17, GM Peter Chiarelli will need to shop until he drops to fix some key holes, mainly on defense and in the bottom six.
The Oilers surrendered far too many goals and scoring chances this past season, and until that is fixed the team will continue to lose.
One thing I would not rule out? The addition of more players like Patrick Maroon, who can play with skill but still change the mix, making Edmonton bigger/tougher/more physical.
Peter Chiarelli’s Off-Season List:
1.) A top pairing RHD to play with Oscar Klefbom/Andrej Sekera – The Oil currently only have two top-four defenders (Klefbom and Sekera) and both of them are left handed. While Sekera can play the right side, Edmonton would be much better off by acquiring an actual top pairing RHD.
The ideal target? Travis Hamonic, who is a shut-down RHD for the Islanders who has proven himself as a top pairing option during the course of his NHL career. His trade request to Western Canada makes him a legit option for the Oilers. Jason Demers would also fill this role, although to a lesser degree.
2.) A second pairing D who can play on the PP – Ideally, this is also a right shot D. Sami Vatanen, who has been linked to the Oilers, would be the perfect fit here because he’s a clear second pairing guy and is also a power play weapon. Kevin Shattenkirk may be moved by St. Louis and fits the bill, while UFA’s Alex Goligoski and Brian Campbell also make sense.
3.) A third line center – I have a feeling that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will be heading out of town this summer. Even if that doesn’t happen, the Oilers should be looking at adding a veteran 3C this off-season. Mark Letestu is a fourth line player based on his 5-on-5 production and he can’t handle big minutes. Adding a guy to handle that role and the defensive responsibility that comes with it is huge.
UFA’s David Backes, Frans Nielsen and Darren Helm fit this role very, very well.
4.) An NHL level goaltender – Laurent Brossoit has not appeared ready during his post-deadline tryout with the Oilers. I still think highly of him as a prospect, but I believe another year in the AHL is the best case for this youngster. Adding someone who can fill the role of backup or AHL starter should Brossoit be ready is key.
Anton Khudobin, Chad Johnson and Anders Lindback will all be UFA’s this summer and make some sense.
5.) A top nine winger – Ideally, another Patrick Maroon-like addition for Edmonton in this spot. Bottom line is the Oilers are not deep enough up front and still need another winger that can play. I suspect at least one (Yakupov) will be moved this summer and will need to be replaced.
Anton Slepyshev could be an internal option, but a player like Lee Stempniak, Jamie McGinn or Shawn Matthias also could fit.
Final Thoughts:
Interestingly, this list is NOT as long as it has been in previous years. When making this, I also only looked at NHL level issues. Prospect issues weren’t really touched on, but it goes without saying that Edmonton has some work to do with it’s system. They have a lot of picks this summer, so I would expect them to address that with this draft.
Adding two top four defenders, two top nine forwards and a backup goaltender should give the Oilers enough to show some serious improvement for next season. As you can clearly see, while the list is shorter, the items needed are much more prevalent.
Peter Chiarelli will be in tough to complete this list by the time training camp opens in September.
I’ll leave you with the following, if Chiarelli completed all the tasks above, this would be the Oilers roster next season, is it enough?
Taylor Hall – Leon Draisaitl – Patrick Laine
Patrick Maroon – Connor McDavid – Jordan Eberle
Benoit Pouliot – David Backes – Jamie McGinn
Matt Hendricks – Mark Letestu – Zack Kassian
Oscar Klefbom – Travis Hamonic
Andrej Sekera – Sami Vatanen
Darnell Nurse – Brandon Davidson
Cam Talbot
Scratches/backup: Iiro Pakarinen, Anton Lander, Eric Gryba and Chad Johnson
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