The Edmonton Oilers went fishing earlier today for help on the blue-line. Most of the time, Edmonton would have come out of this with Cam Barker or Kurtis Foster, but not this year. The Oilers signed D Andrej Sekera to a six-year contract to bolster the blue-line. At the same time, the team signed F Mark Letestu to a three-year contract to replace the departed Boyd Gordon.
Andrej Sekera:
This was arguably the move I wanted to see the most. Edmonton badly needed a top-four defender who could move the puck, and that is exactly what Sekera is. Think of this as Peter Chiarelli replacing Jeff Petry, who Edmonton shipped out back in March. Sekera can move the puck, face tough opposition and handle big minutes.
Sekera isn’t overly big, only six feet and 201 pounds, but he isn’t a push-over. Don’t expect him to be Jason Smith out there, but he won’t fold like a cheap lawn chair when the forecheck comes crashing into the defensive zone.
Here is Sekera’s scouting report, compliments of The Hockey News:
Assets: Has excellent mobility from the back end. Likes to lug the puck up ice when confident. Is an excellent passer and usually displays plenty of cool under pressure. Can log big minutes. Displays a lot of offensive ability.
The Oilers need a mobile defender, and that’s exactly what Sekera is. Edmonton has also lacked a puck-carrier from the back-end for years, so Sekera fills another hole here. Obviously, logging big minutes and being cool under pressure is absolutely massive. Edmonton has lacked a calm defender for years, so Sekera should help here.
Sekera displays good defensive ability, and logged almost 22 minutes a night last year. For all intents and purposes, the Oilers landed the best defender on the UFA market and a real top-four option.
Here is Sekera’s HERO chart from this past season:
Sekera checks out in almost every regard as a top-pairing or top-four option. This is a really good signing. The dollar amount is $5.5 million per, and the term is six seasons.
Zone stars wise? Sekera was about 50%, which sounds about right. In LA, he faced competition comparable to a top-four defender.
Mark Letestu:
Last night, Edmonton traded C Boyd Gordon to Arizona, opening up a slot down the middle. Edmonton filled that hole early this morning when Letestu signed with the team he grew up cheering for. The Oilers get a solid bottom-six center who provides more offense and speed than Boyd Gordon did.
Letestu was above 50% on face-offs this past season, and did play on the penalty-kill for the Jackets. On top of that, he is a right shot center and has multiple NHL seasons under his belt. At 5’10” 199 pounds he isn’t big, but he is willing to engage physically.
Here is his scouting report, compliments of The Hockey News:
Assets: Is a smart offensive pivot with face-off skills and a lot of patience with the puck. Is also an accurate shooter with very good hockey sense. Can play both center and wing, as required.
Decently smart offensively is more than we could say about Boyd Gordon, which is a decent get. He also provides Edmonton with more hockey-IQ and versatility, which is something we know Chiarelli and McLellan like.
From here, it looks like Edmonton signed a solid fourth line center who can play up and down the line-up while providing a little more offense and speed. This player is the perfect fit for Edmonton’s new regime, and reminds me a lot of Greg Campbell when Boston brought him in. For the record, he was really good for them at the start.
Here is Letestu’s HERO chart:
His contract runs three-years, and will pay him $1.8 million per season.
I profiled Sekera back in the spring for off-season targets, which you can read here to get another scouting report.
Personally, I don’t think Edmonton is done this summer. They may be done for today, but certainly not for the off-season. I suspect a defender gets moved, and we may possibly see Scrivens get sent out in favor of a new back-up goalie.
Cody Franson is still a UFA….just saying.
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