1. Draft Connor McDavid. Duh.
2. Buyout Nikita Nikitin. Did anyone else watch him play last season? Craig MacTavish and Scott Howson are still employed by the Oilers despite this move.
3. Keep the picks. Do I necessarily agree with this one? Not entirely. However, in a draft as deep as this one, the Oilers are very fortunate to have a bounty of picks at their disposal. When Connor McDavid and the rest of the crew need to be re-signed for expensive sums of money, they're going to need the selections they get in this draft to be ready to fill roster spots. It's not ideal, but it's likely the route they'll go in. Bob Green and Stu MacGregor are extremely giddy about what's at their disposal.
4. Sign Michal Neuvirth to a 4 year deal worth 2.4M per season. The early rumor out there is that Peter Chiarelli has inquired on John Gibson, Cam Talbot and Robin Lehner. I already dealt Lehner to Buffalo, so let's focus on the other two. Both would likely take Edmonton's 16th overall pick, a price that seems quite high for two goalies that aren't quite proven. Neither are Cory Schneider at this point (although Talbot is closer). They aren't going to want a goalie who's expensive and older. They know that Scrivens only has a year left on his deal. They are in a bit of a pickle, so this might be a wise move for Chiarelli to pull off. Neuvirth is relatively young and can sign cheap for a shot at a starting role. If he isn't stable enough, he's still a relatively okay priced backup goalie who can provide quality starts, and they can watch to see if either Brossoit can take a swing OR if they need to go for a goalie next summer.
5. Try to deal Teddy Purcell. Good luck though. I think they'll end up having to hold onto him.
6. Sign Christian Ehrhoff to a 2 year deal worth 3.9M per season. Finally, the Oilers get a good D-man. The price seems low, but after a year where Ehrhoff suffered a major concussion, I can see GM's being a bit more cautious on bidding for him. The Oilers have no choice to take the gamble though, and he automatically becomes their best D-man. He also can eventually be on the same team as fellow countryman Leon Draisaitl and mentor the young forward. He's also an advanced stat darling, which the Oilers have trended to in the past.
7. Re-sign the key RFAs. Craig MacTavish loves Justin Schultz. It's why I see them giving him one more chance.
8. Develop on the farm. Start Darnell Nurse and Leon Draisaitl in the AHL, and make them prove their worthy for NHL action. I think Nurse is more likely to dominate early and receive a call-up, but both are going to give it a good run. If Nurse outplays Martin Marincin, then he's likely in. Likewise for Draisaitl if he can outplay Anton Lander.
9. Sign Sean Bergenheim to a 2 year deal worth 2.65M per season. A bigger body with good possession numbers and the ability to hit? This is a Peter Chiarelli signing. Despite his lack of usage with the Wild down the stretch, the Oilers need a bigger body for the 3rd line who can chip in some goals, and Bergenheim has proven he can do just that.
10. Hope, but don't expect immediate success. With all of the excitement of the offseason so far, Oiler fans can't get ahead of themselves quite yet. A lot of the same scouts are still employed. Craig MacTavish is still the assistant GM. It's hard to make a team playoff ready in one summer. As much as I hope the Oilers do MORE than this, this is simply a realistic expectation of what they'll be able to do.
Hall-McDavid-Eberle
Pouliot-RNH-Yakupov
Bergenheim-Lander-Purcell
Hendricks-Gordon-Klinkhammer
Draisaitl/Pitlick
Ehrhoff-Fayne
Klefbom-Schultz
Marincin-Ference
Nurse
Neuvirth
Scrivens
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS - REALISTIC OFFSEASON
1. Well, hmmm.... It's a puzzling offseason for Toronto. Do you want to rebuild? Probably. Then again, with Mike Babcock now the head coach, don't you also want to see what your players can do under a coach that isn't dog poo? Do you sign any free agents? Honestly, I don't really see it. If a team comes up that would be a good suitor for Kessel, Phaneuf, Bozak etc. then I'll update this lineup. For now though, bask in the glory of a veteran and rookie saddled skeleton. They may blow it up, or they may do nothing, it's all realistic.
One more thing....this lineup screams Mitch Marner on line 2, doesn't it?
JVR-Kadri-Kessel
Lupul-Bozak-Panik
Komarov-Nylander-C.Brown
Leipsic-Holland-Kozun
Johnson/Leivo
Phaneuf-Rielly
Polak-Robidas
Gardiner-Erixon
Percy
Bernier
Reimer
CAROLINA HURRICANES REALISTIC OFFSEASON
1. Trade J-M Liles to Coyotes for 81st overall (3rd rounder). Liles only has a year left, so it frees some salary up. Carolina can't afford to take too many hits to their D, but this allows Ryan Murphy to have a true shot at being a top 4 D-man.
2. Sign Matt Irwin to a 3 year deal worth 2M per year. Not a super ideal price, but Irwin can provide offense and Carolina's style is a match for him. They like to keep their D mobile and Irwin can move the puck with ease, although he has defensive faults that need correcting. A cheap addition to immediately replace Liles with.
3. Sign Scottie Upshall to a 2 year deal worth 3.5M per year. Overpay? Oh yes. The Canes desperately need a fast winger like him to shake up the bottom six though, and if it's short term, it's not as bad. When healthy, Upshall can chip in 30 points and change the dynamic.
4. Pray. The Hurricanes aren't in a great position to attract free agents and they don't have a great stable of prospects to draw from at the moment. Their 5th overall pick will be huge, but they may not want to rush that player into the league. They need big rebounds from Jeff Skinner and Alex Semin, and a healthy year from Jordan Staal, and then they have to make a huge call on whether they should keep Eric Staal or trade him. Probably not this summer. Yes, I'm not buying Semin out, it'd be too much dead money for a smaller budget team like Carolina. If it happens again, then maybe they bite the bullet later. Cam Ward is a UFA next summer, but with the goalie market fluctuating with younger and cheaper options, the chances Ward gets dealt are quite slim.
Staal-Staal-Lindholm
Skinner-Rask-Semin
Gerbe-Nash-Upshall
Terry-McClement-Nestrasil
Boychuk/Malone
Hainsey-Faulk
Murphy-Irwin
Jordan-Lowe
Rissanen
Khudobin
Ward
2. Buyout Nikita Nikitin. Did anyone else watch him play last season? Craig MacTavish and Scott Howson are still employed by the Oilers despite this move.
3. Keep the picks. Do I necessarily agree with this one? Not entirely. However, in a draft as deep as this one, the Oilers are very fortunate to have a bounty of picks at their disposal. When Connor McDavid and the rest of the crew need to be re-signed for expensive sums of money, they're going to need the selections they get in this draft to be ready to fill roster spots. It's not ideal, but it's likely the route they'll go in. Bob Green and Stu MacGregor are extremely giddy about what's at their disposal.
4. Sign Michal Neuvirth to a 4 year deal worth 2.4M per season. The early rumor out there is that Peter Chiarelli has inquired on John Gibson, Cam Talbot and Robin Lehner. I already dealt Lehner to Buffalo, so let's focus on the other two. Both would likely take Edmonton's 16th overall pick, a price that seems quite high for two goalies that aren't quite proven. Neither are Cory Schneider at this point (although Talbot is closer). They aren't going to want a goalie who's expensive and older. They know that Scrivens only has a year left on his deal. They are in a bit of a pickle, so this might be a wise move for Chiarelli to pull off. Neuvirth is relatively young and can sign cheap for a shot at a starting role. If he isn't stable enough, he's still a relatively okay priced backup goalie who can provide quality starts, and they can watch to see if either Brossoit can take a swing OR if they need to go for a goalie next summer.
5. Try to deal Teddy Purcell. Good luck though. I think they'll end up having to hold onto him.
6. Sign Christian Ehrhoff to a 2 year deal worth 3.9M per season. Finally, the Oilers get a good D-man. The price seems low, but after a year where Ehrhoff suffered a major concussion, I can see GM's being a bit more cautious on bidding for him. The Oilers have no choice to take the gamble though, and he automatically becomes their best D-man. He also can eventually be on the same team as fellow countryman Leon Draisaitl and mentor the young forward. He's also an advanced stat darling, which the Oilers have trended to in the past.
7. Re-sign the key RFAs. Craig MacTavish loves Justin Schultz. It's why I see them giving him one more chance.
8. Develop on the farm. Start Darnell Nurse and Leon Draisaitl in the AHL, and make them prove their worthy for NHL action. I think Nurse is more likely to dominate early and receive a call-up, but both are going to give it a good run. If Nurse outplays Martin Marincin, then he's likely in. Likewise for Draisaitl if he can outplay Anton Lander.
9. Sign Sean Bergenheim to a 2 year deal worth 2.65M per season. A bigger body with good possession numbers and the ability to hit? This is a Peter Chiarelli signing. Despite his lack of usage with the Wild down the stretch, the Oilers need a bigger body for the 3rd line who can chip in some goals, and Bergenheim has proven he can do just that.
10. Hope, but don't expect immediate success. With all of the excitement of the offseason so far, Oiler fans can't get ahead of themselves quite yet. A lot of the same scouts are still employed. Craig MacTavish is still the assistant GM. It's hard to make a team playoff ready in one summer. As much as I hope the Oilers do MORE than this, this is simply a realistic expectation of what they'll be able to do.
Hall-McDavid-Eberle
Pouliot-RNH-Yakupov
Bergenheim-Lander-Purcell
Hendricks-Gordon-Klinkhammer
Draisaitl/Pitlick
Ehrhoff-Fayne
Klefbom-Schultz
Marincin-Ference
Nurse
Neuvirth
Scrivens
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS - REALISTIC OFFSEASON
1. Well, hmmm.... It's a puzzling offseason for Toronto. Do you want to rebuild? Probably. Then again, with Mike Babcock now the head coach, don't you also want to see what your players can do under a coach that isn't dog poo? Do you sign any free agents? Honestly, I don't really see it. If a team comes up that would be a good suitor for Kessel, Phaneuf, Bozak etc. then I'll update this lineup. For now though, bask in the glory of a veteran and rookie saddled skeleton. They may blow it up, or they may do nothing, it's all realistic.
One more thing....this lineup screams Mitch Marner on line 2, doesn't it?
JVR-Kadri-Kessel
Lupul-Bozak-Panik
Komarov-Nylander-C.Brown
Leipsic-Holland-Kozun
Johnson/Leivo
Phaneuf-Rielly
Polak-Robidas
Gardiner-Erixon
Percy
Bernier
Reimer
CAROLINA HURRICANES REALISTIC OFFSEASON
1. Trade J-M Liles to Coyotes for 81st overall (3rd rounder). Liles only has a year left, so it frees some salary up. Carolina can't afford to take too many hits to their D, but this allows Ryan Murphy to have a true shot at being a top 4 D-man.
2. Sign Matt Irwin to a 3 year deal worth 2M per year. Not a super ideal price, but Irwin can provide offense and Carolina's style is a match for him. They like to keep their D mobile and Irwin can move the puck with ease, although he has defensive faults that need correcting. A cheap addition to immediately replace Liles with.
3. Sign Scottie Upshall to a 2 year deal worth 3.5M per year. Overpay? Oh yes. The Canes desperately need a fast winger like him to shake up the bottom six though, and if it's short term, it's not as bad. When healthy, Upshall can chip in 30 points and change the dynamic.
4. Pray. The Hurricanes aren't in a great position to attract free agents and they don't have a great stable of prospects to draw from at the moment. Their 5th overall pick will be huge, but they may not want to rush that player into the league. They need big rebounds from Jeff Skinner and Alex Semin, and a healthy year from Jordan Staal, and then they have to make a huge call on whether they should keep Eric Staal or trade him. Probably not this summer. Yes, I'm not buying Semin out, it'd be too much dead money for a smaller budget team like Carolina. If it happens again, then maybe they bite the bullet later. Cam Ward is a UFA next summer, but with the goalie market fluctuating with younger and cheaper options, the chances Ward gets dealt are quite slim.
Staal-Staal-Lindholm
Skinner-Rask-Semin
Gerbe-Nash-Upshall
Terry-McClement-Nestrasil
Boychuk/Malone
Hainsey-Faulk
Murphy-Irwin
Jordan-Lowe
Rissanen
Khudobin
Ward