Steven Stamkos is all the hoopla in the NHL right now. The franchise face of the Tampa Bay Lightning appears at odds with the organization and apparently is going to be leaving, at least that’s what all signs point to. When Bob McKenzie speaks, we listen, and Bob put his take on Stamkos out there on Wednesday.
Bottom line? McKenzie thinks that all signs are pointing to Stamkos having a new home come July 1st. The obvious choice? His hometown Toronto Maple Leafs, but some other teams were named by the TSN insider, notably the Edmonton Oilers.
Edmonton? Not sure how the Oilers could shoe-horn Stamkos money into McDavid/Hall/Draisaitl et al money, to say nothing of what they would do with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or others, but dare to dream of the possibilities.
Why The Oilers?:
We heard Stamkos over the summer when asked about Connor McDavid, he loves the player. In fact, Stamkos made a point of saying that McDavid is currently better than he is. That is high praise from one of the game’s best and most respected players.
There has also been rumblings that Stamkos wants to play with McDavid, and not just at international competition. Some think that Stamkos views this as an opportunity to play with another franchise player and that he sees the young superstar as a perfect compliment to him. An elite playmaker and an elite goal scorer? Yeah, it makes sense.
Stamkos is also good friends, by his own admission, with Oilers forward Teddy Purcell. The two played together in Tampa Bay for a few seasons and even saw time together on the same line. Oh and that beautiful new arena, supposed to be one of the best in the NHL, is opening in October.
Lastly, there is the Hockey Canada connection. Stamkos has represented the country before many times, while a number of current Oiler front office personnel (Chiarelli, Lowe, Nicholson) have run the National Team. There is a level of familiarity here.
Why It Makes Sense:
Stamkos is probably the second best goal scorer in the NHL, behind only Alex Ovechkin. He would be an absolutely perfect fit for the Edmonton Oilers in so many ways. He’d fit right in on the top-line and would give the Oilers arguably the best line in the entire NHL.
His addition would also open up a possible trade. If Stamkos comes in and is willing to play right wing, the Oilers could move a player like Jordan Eberle and his large contract for a top-four defender. The Oilers would be able to fill a major hole via a strength and would actually be improving in both positions.
Forward lines of Pouliot-McDavid-Stamkos, Hall-Draisaitl-Purcell, Khaira – Nugent-Hopkins – Yakupov and Hendricks-Lander-Letestu would certainly give Edmonton a dynamic 12-man group. There are other options too, like keeping Eberle and moving a different skilled player for help on the back-end. The possibilities would be endless with Stamkos in town.
Why It Won’t Happen:
As nice as it would be, I’m not sure that Steven Stamkos will sign with Edmonton. Why? Money is going to be an issue. The Oilers have Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Jordan Eberle all on big money deals. Even if they deal one of those players, they’ll have to find space for Stamkos’ $9 million (at least) deal. Oh, and they need to re-sign Leon Draisaitl after next season and Connor McDavid in two summers. A lot of cash being tossed around.
Secondly, it is not guarantee that Stammer would want to play on McDavid’s wing. Reportedly, a big reason why things are falling apart in Tampa is because coach John Cooper has him on the wing currently. Stamkos views himself as a center. That would be an issue unless Edmonton traded Nugent-Hopkins or moved Draisaitl back to the wing. Both are options.
Lastly, Stamkos wants to be near his family, which is in Toronto. Edmonton isn’t exactly a close by stop the last time I checked. Geography might not work here.
Final Thoughts:
Boy, Stamkos in Edmonton would certainly be nice. That said, I just can’t see it happening. In the salary cap era, adding a player like Stamkos is going to take a lot of moving and I just can’t see the Oilers doing it when they have so many big contracts they’ll need to sign in the near future. I guess you can never say never, but this doesn’t seem like a match to me.
It’s too bad, because it would be a lot of fun to see Stamkos and McDavid play together for a number of years. Oh, and it would be fun to kick back and watch Leafs Nation drink their tears.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
