Insider Suggests Flames Could Bail Out Oilers In Stunning Trade

In the wake of yet another disappointing loss for the Edmonton Oilers (it feels like we’re saying this an awful lot to start these articles…), it has become increasingly evident that the team is in dire need of external help to address their goaltending and defensive woes. With a dismal 2-7-1 start to the season and glaring issues in net and on the blue line, the Oilers find themselves at a crossroads, desperately seeking solutions.

It started on Tuesday as the Oilers placed goaltender Jack Campbell on waivers for the purposes of assignment. The plan appears to be to call upon Calvin Pickard, but long-term, the team might need to find a more permanent solution.

In a recent episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast, analysts Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman delved into the Oilers’ predicament. They highlighted two major concerns plaguing the team: the lack of key saves at crucial moments and the opposing players exploiting Edmonton’s vulnerable defense. They also discussed a stunning option that the Oilers might consider if things get really, really bad.

Where Can the Oilers Get Help to Solve Both Issues?

Friedman raised the question of whether the Oilers might turn to their provincial rivals, the Calgary Flames, for assistance in shoring up their roster. Marek, shocked that Friedman might believe the Flames would contemplate such a move to bail out a division rival, said he didn’t see it happening. Friedman agreed it was a long shot, but the Flames aren’t exactly winning hockey games either and they could be in a position where they have to move pending UFAs.

Friedman pointed out that the Flames have three defensemen—Nikita Zadorov, Noah Hanifin, and Chris Tanev—who could potentially be on the move before the season concludes. Friedman wondered if there was a scenario where the Flames could simultaneously aid both the Oilers and themselves by moving one of these players to a team in Edmonton that badly needs workhorses and defenders who won’t give up on plays. Marek did concede it might be time for the Oilers to make the necessary changes during the prime years of their star players, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and that if they have to lose a trade to help themselves out now, they might consider it.

Any Trade With Flames Would Include Oilers Paying an Absorbent Premium

Not only is the defense a huge concern for Edmonton, but Friedman quoted an anonymous NHL general manager who suggested that the Oilers should be prepared to go to great lengths to address their goaltending struggles. Other GMs looking at this Oilers team can see that something is broken and it was clear that Edmonton needed to make substantial changes to their roster. That puts Calgary (and other teams) in a position to take advantage of a garbage situation in Edmonton and with a GM on the final year of his contract.

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While other teams might be open to landing a sweetener in a deal with Holland, specifically, Marek and Friedman acknowledged that for the Flames to assist the Oilers, Edmonton would need to go above and beyond a fair offer considerably. Friedman emphasized that the Oilers would have to provide a return so enticing that it would be a landmark trade, one that he joked might even warrant hanging a banner in Calgary. He emphasized that Craig Conroy, the Flames’ general manager, would have to orchestrate a trade so lopsidedly in favor of Calgary that the immediate benefit to the Oilers would be overshadowed by the long-term gain for the Flames.

Related: Oilers’ 3 Options to Find a Save & Salvage Season

As a new GM, Marek suggested that Conroy can’t have his first big trade be one that sees him help the Oilers, especially if that move turns the ship around for Edmonton and they go on a big winning streak and contend.

Not So Easy for Oilers, Even If Flames Were Willing

While a deal between the Flames and Oilers seems far-fetched to begin with, the math on a trade makes it even more complex. Any potential deal with the Flames would require subsequent moves by the Oilers, as they currently lack the salary cap space to acquire any of the aforementioned defensemen outright. To assume that Calgary would take on someone like Jack Campbell and move Daniel Vladar in exchange is silly. Or, to suggest they would trade Zadorov for a player like Warren Foegele and Mattias Janmark to swap out the salaries is a pipe dream.

Edmonton would first have to move money via a buyout or a demotion, then probably find a trade partner to clear cap space. Only then could they make a trade with the Flames, moving prospects and picks. General trades in the NHL are tricky these days. These kinds of successive moves for the Oilers would be next to impossible.

The situation in Edmonton remains fluid, as something has to give. Counting on the Flames to help out seems like a fools’ errand, even if it is, somehow, being discussed. And, if the Oilers went there, fans will be shocked by what it’s going to take to convince Calgary to play ball.