Edmonton unloading top defensemen?
David Staples of the Cult Of Hockey: A series of rumors persisted over the internet that Edmonton has a surplus of defensemen. If they traded one or two of them, Edmonton could acquire the offensive depth or goaltending needed. Evan Bouchard and Philip Broberg could easily make a couple defensemen expendable.
Brian Lawton remarks on the following:
“When you look at what they have in the cupboard, a position that hasn’t been a strong point for them soon will be. So they’re going to do a little bit of what Toronto is doing and that’s projecting out and saying, ‘Could a (Evan) Bouchard or a (Philip) Broberg replace maybe somebody we’ve already got on the roster that is at full value in terms of what they’re being paid? So can we drop down from a guy that is maybe making four million and replace him with more of an entry level guy that we think has the ability to step in and give us a close, maybe not the same, but a close effectiveness?’ That will be very interesting.”
Again, coming down a peg in salary in one place to spend on another is prudent. So, it is possible that one or two of Darnell Nurse, Ethan Bear, Oscar Klefbom, or Adam Larsson gets traded.
David Staples: The gut of the reporter suggests either Oscar Klefbom or Adam Larsson could be moved during the offseason. His lean is on Klefbom.
Allan Mitchell of The Athletic: Going up and down the Edmonton roster defensively reveals a lot. It creates an image which makes it clear that at least one defender will be moved (likely a top-four defender). The question becomes who. Klefbom feels like the ideal target that could fetch some value. His offensive ability enticing several teams is plausible.
After that, Edmonton feels they have defensemen that can fill roles at lower prices. They can squeeze a player like Ethan Bear and Caleb Jones is on his way up — way up. Players like Nurse and Klefbom need to play less and that is expected next season. Ken Holland decides the future this offseason by who he moves and who he does not.