Welcome to another edition of NHL Rumours! A lot has happened around the league. Between the injuries, a team giving up 20 goals in two nights, and also teams finally suffering their first loss. All is good in the hockey world. Today we focus on the rumours that concern the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames.
NHL Rumours
Edmonton Oilers
Rumour: Elliote Friedman on the 32 Thoughts Podcast discusses the goalie situation in Edmonton
The wheels are spiraling off the track in Edmonton. Despite the firepower up front and the skill they possess, the Oilers have the second worst record in the league. One area that has played a factor in their demise is the goaltending. It is a position they need to address but they have already made changes.
The Oilers have placed Jack Campbell on waivers in just his second year into the big five year contract he signed. He has been underwhelming to say the least. Campbell finished this season with a 4.50 goals against average, a .871 save percentage, and -3.8 goals saved above expected. With a $5 million cap hit that is not good enough. But where does the team go from here and is a goalie enough to get them back on the tracks?
There are teams that could be willing to part ways with a goalie. Does Edmonton call Craig Conroy and the Calgary Flames for Jacob Markstrom? Is John Gibson still available? Or do they take a gamble and entice the Boston Bruins for Linus Ullmark? Regardless, teams are licking their lips when they see the Oilers on the schedule and for a good reason. In all situations, the Oilers have let in the second most goals (47) and are only ahead of the San Jose Sharks. It is not great company to be in if you are a team with playoff aspirations. Stay tuned for the Oilers goalie dilemma as changes are likely to follow.
Calgary Flames
Rumour: Elliote Friedman discusses the defensemen that could be available for the Calgary Flames
The second of our NHL Rumours remains with another Canadian hockey team. Much like the fellow team from Alberta above, things are off the rails in Calgary. After managing to lure in Jonathan Huberdeau and Mackenzie Weegar from the Panthers in the Matthew Tkachuk trade, things were supposed to remain the same. Add in Nazem Kadri and this team is deep and has enough talent to make a run.
However, things are off the rails and the Flames have a record of 3-7-1 on the year. To make matters worse, a lot of key players are on expiring contracts and there could be a fire sale come trade deadline. Elliote Friedman has mentioned that Chris Tanev, Noah Hanifin, and Nikita Zadorov are the big names on the back end that are pending free agents. Furthermore, he has linked two teams that are searching for defense help.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers could use shutdown players on the back end. Toronto is not shy to adding former Flames players, as they already employ TJ Brodie and Mark Giordano. The Leafs are a dynamic team with a plethora of offense even from the blue line. However, they lack a true shutdown defensemen especially after Jake Muzzin went down with injury. They could use a big physical player such as Zadorov.
As for Edmonton, adding another body to the back end is huge. All three players excel defensively as well as offensively. Calgary being able to potentially help there fellow Canadians would be comedy but also intriguing. Stay tuned to see how everything plays out with the state of the team.
Main Photo: Walter Tychnowicz-USA TODAY Sports
