NHL Rumors: An Important Stretch Coming Up for the Edmonton Oilers

Sportsnet: Rob Brown on the Kyper and Bourne Show talking about the Edmonton Oilers and their next 10 games or so will determine if they may have to make a move for a defenseman sooner rather than later.

** NHLRumors.com transcription

Nick Kypreos: “Outside of missing a star player, we look at this roster and it looks a lot different than the one that ended disappointing Game 7. And at what point does it come off of waiting for a good bounce or a good break to, okay, (Jeff) Skinner, not the biggest guy in the world. (Viktor) Arvidsson, not the biggest guy in the world. The blue line got smaller with Travis Dermott and (Troy) Stecher.

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And when do you start looking at the roster and saying, we’re not, we’re not exactly the same as before?

Brown: “Well, I agree. I don’t think the Oilers today are as good as Game 7 Edmonton Oilers. They, they lost some key players. They lost three guys on their back end who are probably right now, all stronger than the three they brought in.

I think this next 10-game segment, the Oilers will have a good idea of where they are as a team, with or with Connor in the lineup, because they’re playing good hockey clubs. Teams that they’re going to have to challenge for playoff spots. Teams that are going to be first or second-round or third-round opponents in the playoffs.

So I think they’ll start to see what warts they have. What problems they have that may have been bad balances, or maybe we’re not as big, maybe we’re not as fast.

And then you see some of the players that left the Oilers having success. I think Warren Foegele up to four goals. McLeod’s up to five. Broberg has been a stud in St Louis.

So it’s the Oilers, I think in the next 10 games, will start to realize where they are as a team. The GM will look at it and say, okay, 20 games in, what do we have to do to improve our team, to get back to where we want to be?

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And having Connor out and having to call players up, that takes away from the money that they’re trying to save in cap space for a move later in the season. I always thought that a move for a defenseman or top-four defenseman would come in February, early March. But if the Oilers struggle over the next 10 games. Maybe that move has to be made earlier.