Looking Further Ahead For Edmonton
Allan Mitchell of The Athletic: So, the NHL Trade Deadline has come and gone. Looking ahead in the crystal ball is always interesting. Going bold with several predictions ranging from short to longer term makes total sense. Anyway, other than predicting fortunes of Cup aspirations, one of the boldest was this.
Connor McDavid signing a $20 million AAV with the Edmonton Oilers.
For what it is worth, McDavid expects to trim several million just because he can. The all-world talent understands salary cap mechanics, etc. Simply, it is up to McDavid. Then there is Evan Bouchard. Organizational tactics cost Edmonton Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg. Arguably, Holloway stung far more and could be a 30-goal scorer for years to come in St. Louis.
NHL Rumors: NHL Trade Deadline lived up to the hype!
Matt Savoie remains set up for rookie success next season. This depends on how Edmonton utilizes the talent. It might be one of the best moves made by the Oilers if they play their cards right. If there is one free agent home run, that might be Sam Bennett. If Stan Bowman ships out a few bigger contracts, anything is possible to take a shot. Bennett is that scoring complement that could keep Edmonton well into contention status.
Then, there are always other options. However, going bold might avoid Edmonton getting old.
Toronto And What If Marner Goes Elsewhere?
Matt Larkin of Daily Faceoff: While anything is possible. It has to be asked. What if Mitch Marner goes elsewhere this summer? Simply, what does Toronto spend its cap space on at that point? With the cap jumping around $7.5 million, that only adds the ability to sign players for Toronto. The problem is who would they sign or trade for.
Anyhow, Marner is by far the biggest catch in free agency. Everything appears trending toward that inevitability. The flop or let walk decision depends likely on the fortunes of Toronto in these playoffs. Given how close the Atlantic Division is, anything can happen.
NHL Rumors: Is Marner primed to test the market?
The problem with letting Marner go elsewhere is all those regular season points gone. How does Toronto adequately replace that? No amount of spending may bridge that gap. Some would argue it is quite the gargantuan hole. Toronto management seemed content to consider pushing Marner out the door. It is that “push” that may lead to Marner walking in July.
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