Oilers may look to add a defenseman with recent Sekera injury
Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal: Edmonton Oilers defenseman Andrej Sekera underwent surgery yesterday in Edmonton on a torn Achilles tendon that he injured during offseason training back in Slovakia.
Recovery often takes four to six months, but it may depend on the severity of the tear.
The Oilers will have to consider finding a replacement for Sekera.
“We’ll have to see how Sekera comes along, but at some point, we’re going to have to look at replacing him,” said Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli.
“How we replace him, as to the magnitude of the player … we’ll have to see how he’s recovering.”
Adam Larsson and Oscar Klefbom will likely be the top pair, with Darnell Nurse likely moving up to the second pair with Kris Russell or Matt Benning.
The odds of 2018 first-round pick and right-handed defenseman Evan Bouchard making the team have increased. Bouchard will still need to have a good training camp.
Free agent options for the Oilers include Brandon Davidson, Toby Enstrom, Luca Sbisa, Paul Martin, Jason Garrison, Alexei Emelin, Kevin Bieksa, Kyle Quincey, Cody Franson and Johnny Oduya.
“We’ll look at it (replacing Sekera) as camp progresses … I have a pretty good idea of the severity of the injury. We’ll see what’s out there, and lots of times, stuff surfaces with other clubs at camp (waivers),” said Chiarelli, who said he had thought of inviting some defencemen on pro tryouts before the Sekera news.”
The Oilers currently have just under $5 million in salary cap space and are able to put Sekera on the LTIR if need be.
Jim Matheson: Would bet that the Oilers bring in ex-Oiler Brandon Davidson in on a PTO. Left-handed Luca Sbisa may be the best bet, and it would mean Darnell Nurse moves into their top-four.