Ready for the Challenge
It probably isn’t very comfortable being on the clock and on the hot seat at the same time, but that’s where Edmonton Oilers general manager Stan Bowman finds himself these days. After an unspectacular draft weekend featuring no first round pick and no trades, and with July 1 fast approaching, Bowman needs to make something happen. A few things, actually.
There are roster holes to be plugged, an epic trade to be fashioned and salary cap gymnastics to be performed if he’s going to calm the nervous masses in Edmonton and transform the regressing Oilers into contenders again.
That isn’t to say Bowman missed the starting gun. Third line centre Jason Dickinson and second pairing defenceman Connor Murphy are a solid haul. Keeping both unrestricted free agents in the fold to address two important needs is a very good start.
And the impact of Edmonton’s most striking move of the off-season so far, head coach Mike Babcock, remains to be seen. But the work is barely half done. There is more to come. How much more is up to Bowman and his ability to swing deals and woo free agents.
No Strength in These Numbers
As has so often been the case in recent summers, the Oilers are not dealing from a position of strength. They don’t have much cap space, they don’t have a first round draft pick to spend, they need a goalie, they have a high-priced defenceman they need to trade with one hand tied behind their back and every single player on the team making more then $3 million a year (all 12 of them) has some form of a no trade clause.
So, yes, it’s going to be a tough challenge. Edmonton will have maybe $6.4 million in cap space after they sign RFA Colton Dach, which puts them at a crippling disadvantage compared to the up-and-coming power teams in California — San Jose and Anaheim have $34 and $26 million to spend and right now both of those places look like sweet destinations.
Tough Day All Around
July 1 hasn’t been good to the Oilers in recent years, with the well-documented blunder of 2024 when the money that could have kept Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway in Edmonton went to Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner instead. And last year Andrew Mangiapane turned out to be a waste of money.
But Bowman can’t go into this playing scared. He needs to reel in a couple of important pieces to keep pace with the rest of the league. You’ve got Florida loaded for bear with the both Tkachuk brothers and Radko Gudas, while the Ducks, who were already better than Edmonton last year, adding rambunctious A.J. Greer (career high 17 goals last year) while having that whopping $26 million in cap space to play with.
The Nurse Situation
Darnell Nurse, as is his right under a no movement clause, can still dictate where he ends up. So things are moving understandably slowly given that he has a short list of teams he’s willing to waive for and the fact he makes $9.25 million as a second pairing defenceman. And, to make matters even more difficult, there is another $9 million defencemen on the market, only he’s a Norris Trophy winner.
Nobody is trading for Nurse unless they take a swing at Zach Werenski first. Time is a factor here. Bowman would love to move Nurse before Wednesday because having an extra few million to spend is more valuable on July 1 than it is on July 6. He doesn’t want to pull out his cheque book after the shelves have already been picked clean.
The Markets
The market isn’t great, but the Oilers don’t need high-priced impact players, they have more than enough of those. What they need is what has been eluding them for the last 11 years — the ability to surround their crown jewels with players who can help win a championship. They came one game away two seasons ago, but they’ve changed 12 players and a head coach since that night in Florida and by everyone’s admission have regressed ever since.
If Babcock’s plan is to give more ice time and responsibility to the third and fourth lines next season, it’s up to management to provide the horses to make it work. Right now the bottom six needs help. Dickinson, Trent Frederic, Mattias Janmark, Josh Samanski and Dach, with Isaac Howard hoping to crack the NHL, doesn’t scream Stanley Cup champion depth.
It doesn’t all have to happen this week, of course. There is nothing wrong with waiting to see exactly what they have in Samanski and Howard, and what Dach can do in a full season and expanded role. Then Bowman can make his adjustments in mid-season and at the deadline. But there is risk in that, as well. That’s a good way to find yourself stranded at the altar.
And given everything surrounding the Babcock hire, a good start is kind of important.
Jeepers Keepers
Tristan Jarry’s contract remains a major issue. Paying $5.3 million for a goaltender who hasn’t yet shown he can be a full-time starter here isn’t anybody’s launching pad to success. Bowman has to find somebody cheap enough to fit under the cap but good enough to be a legitimate 1A on a Stanley Cup contender. That won’t be easy.
Running back both of last year’s goalies isn’t going to go over well, but Connor Ingram is said to be receptive to staying in Edmonton. He hasn’t signed yet, though, and once the market opens anything can happen.
No comments:
Post a Comment