TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun joins Gino Reda to discuss what’s next for the Oilers after acquiring blueliner Connor Murphy, Tyler Myers’ options, Elias Pettersson’s future with the Canucks and the asking price for Blues centre Robert Thomas.
GINO REDA: Just about 72 hours to the NHL trade deadline.
What’s next for the Oilers? Who’s on their way out in Vancouver? And a very talented centre is available, but it could cost you big. Details on these stories and more with our Insider, Pierre LeBrun.
Pierre, the Oilers got their right-handed defenceman to bolster their blueline. So, what’s next for Edmonton?
PIERRE LeBRUN: The No. 1 priority is to find a new home for Andrew Mangiapane, who cleared waivers, of course. It’s going to cost the Oilers to find a new home for him, I think.
He’s got another year on his deal at $3.6 million, but they have to move that contract before they can get to, really what’s next, which is wanting to go find a top-nine forward, which looks like in a perfect world, a third-line centre. But first they’ve got to move out Mangiapane.
Now we’ll see if moving out Mangiapane is part of actually going out and getting that third-line centre. One name that’s been out there as a potential fit for the Oilers is that of Nick Roy.
I will just say that while I think that is accurate, it’s really more just the fact that Roy, of the Leafs, is exactly the type of player that would fit what the Oilers are looking for in the sense that there are other players like him too that are on the Oilers’ list, as far as I know.
But whether they get a third-line centre or if it ends up being a winger, the Oilers want someone with physicality, with ruggedness, the playoff type player. That’s what they’re on the lookout for between now and Friday’s 3 p.m. ET deadline. But first, they got to move Mangiapane.
REDA: Okay, the Vancouver Canucks look like they’re willing to take things down to the studs.
Is the deal for Tyler Myers still on the table if he gives it the go ahead, and what are the chances Vancouver finds someone willing to take Elias Pettersson’s huge contract, or at least part of it, before Friday’s deadline?
LeBRUN: So, in terms of Myers, I checked in on this again this morning and what I was told is that he continues to want to be patient, him and his agent, veteran J.P. Barry, to see if the market can further unfold, if there are other teams that are willing to make an offer and whether those teams are of interest to Myers.
I think they want to be patient and use all the time that they have, which they’re allowed to with a no-move clause. I do think that the offer from Detroit is still on the table as well, and I don’t think it’s completely out of the question that that’s where Myers ends up at the end of all this.
Again, I think it’s about not rushing into it if you’re Myers, and this is a big decision. It affects your family.
I will also say that my sense of it is that the Canucks, J.P. Barry, and everyone involved has been pretty amicable in this process. That this isn’t tense. This isn’t about the team putting pressure on them. Everyone involved is being respectful of the fact that Myers, with his no-move, has the right to play this out this way.
I would think we get a decision in the next 48 hours, but I also thought that we were going to get one by the end of the weekend. So, we’ll see where this goes, Gino.
In terms of Pettersson, teams do continue to check in the last few days, I’m told, according to sources on him. I think it’s a stretch to think he will move before Friday’s deadline. I just think the remainder of that contract and his inconsistent play are still a lot for teams to stomach.
But whether it’s the Carolina Hurricanes or Los Angeles Kings, certainly there are teams that have looked at the centre position and looked at him, I think.
But I just think it’s more likely than not that Pettersson stays put here at this deadline. And I think, by the way, the Canucks are fine with that. I mean, this isn’t a situation where the Canucks feel they have got to trade him before Friday. That’s not how they’re approaching it at all.
REDA: Do you have any sense of what percentage of Pettersson’s contract the Canucks are going to have to retain to really generate enough interest to get something back in return for him?
LeBRUN: Gino, I don’t see a world in which they can retain anything. How can you retain for that many years and make that work as you rebuild? I mean, I could be wrong, but I don’t see a world in which retaining salary on that deal makes sense given how many years are left.
REDA: I’ll be curious then – it’s going to be hard to find somebody who’s willing to take that big ticket unless they think they can salvage this guy.
Alright, I want to talk about Robert Thomas. Here’s a guy who’s a terrific, talented centre, still in the prime of his career, just 26, still under contract for this and four more seasons at a reasonable $8.125 million per year.
So Pierre, two questions. Why is he available, and how steep could the asking price be to get this guy?
LeBRUN: He’s available because the St. Louis Blues continue to want to redo their roster, to get younger, and also because they’re incredibly disappointed with their season.
I mean, this is a team that made the playoffs last year and came within a whisker of getting to the second round. So when you have this kind of season, you’ve got to look at your core, and it’s not just Thomas. They’ve been listening on other core players too, but obviously he’s the sexy name because he’s a No. 1 centre.
I will say that in talking to people who have an understanding of what the Blues are asking, I was told that as of last night, the price was still astronomical for Thomas. By the way, as it should be, I mean, 26-year-old No. 1 centres on a decent contract don’t come around very often.
I think St. Louis is well within its rights to be asking for the moon for Thomas. I mean, look at how much Quinn Hughes, a No. 1 defenceman, fetched earlier this year from Minnesota getting him from Vancouver. These prices should be high for these types of players.
I’m not convinced that it’s going to lower that much by Friday’s deadline, because again, the Blues don’t have to move him. As one team executive told me: Is this about the Blues really getting a full sense of the market for him and then circling back in the off-season on a lot of these discussions? It could be, but I will also say this: I also talked to another team executive who was actually convinced that Thomas will move by Friday’s deadline. So we shall see.
REDA: Can you imagine the kind of impact he could have on a team that’s already a contender in this year’s playoffs?
Alright, with the deadline looming, news continues to flow in. For all the latest, follow our Insiders online, then check back in for the full version of Insider Trading with Pierre, C.J., and Dregs on the early edition of SportsCentre.
