The Edmonton Oilers will widen their Dman search
TSN: Pierre LeBrun thinks that despite the Edmonton Oilers blue line playing well, they’ll look to upgrade, add more depth to the position in case of injuries. They’d had their pro scouting meetings and will broaden their search for a Dman, and GM Stan Bowman is already making calls. Most assume they’ll be looking for a right-handed, shut-down defenseman that kills penalties.
Montreal Canadiens David Savard would be one option on their list. This season the Oilers defensive pairings have shown some flexibility and Brett Kulak for example has played both sides, so a left-handed defenseman that can move the puck could also be an option.
NHL Injury updates for January 10th
TSN: Pierre LeBrun said that the Oilers are early in the process of calling teams about potential defensemen and that one of the issues is how many teams are still in the playoff race in the Eastern Conference.
That can come in a lot of different ways, obviously in a perfect world, you add a top-four D. That would be the optimum. But it depends on the market, the asking price, who’s available. At the very least they would add a depth piece.”
Their options will remain open for a right-handed shut-down defenseman or a puck-moving left-handed defenseman.
NHL Rumors: Boston Bruins, and the Montreal Canadiens
The Boston Bruins have holes to fill and decisions to make
TSN: The struggling Boston Bruins are open for business. They will start mapping out a plan leading up to the trade deadline strategy soon, according to Darren Dreger.
“Now, they’ve got some free-agent players and pieces that definitely could and likely will be in play. Look at (forward) Trent Frederic, who’s a pending unrestricted free agent, and look at (forward) Justin Brazeau, who’s had a wonderful year for the Boston Bruins. Again, contractually, he needs some attention.”
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