The Edmonton Oilers have done most of their heavy lifting this offseason, but the team could still make some more moves.
Edmonton has a surplus of defensemen, and the Oilers could look to trade one for a depth forward. Oilers insider David Staples of The Edmonton Journal wrote that he expects Edmonton to trade 26-year-old defenseman Spencer Stastney for a fourth-line forward.
“If I was betting, I’d say the Oilers trade Spencer Stastney for a fourth-liner. Stastney struggled last year and is a left shot, where Edmonton has the most depth. Emberson played well last year. He’s also a tough and gritty player, a quality the Oilers can use,” Staples wrote.
The Oilers trading Stastney for a fourth-line forward would be a lackluster return, especially given that Edmonton acquired him in December from the Nashville Predators for a third-round pick in 2027.
Yet, Stastney doesn’t have a clear path to playing time, so if Edmonton values a depth forward more, they should be able to move the 26-year-old. He recorded 1 goal in 36 regular-season games with Edmonton after the trade and is a solid third-pairing defenseman.
Stastney signed a one-year, $1.525 million extension with Edmonton this offseason and will be a UFA at the end of the year.
Another Oilers Insider Hints at Move
Along with Staples, Oilers insider Bob Stauffer also expects the team to trade a defenseman for a depth forward.
Stauffer said he expects Edmonton to be mostly done this offseason, but could see a trade of a defenseman for a forward.
“I could foresee a scenario where Edmonton moves a defenceman in the $1.5 million range — possibly for a bottom six forward — to another team and then has accruing cap space and looks at addressing a Top 6 (forward) need during the course of the season. I think Edmonton is only looking for like a million or a $2 million player,” Stauffer said on Oilers Now.
Stauffer believes Edmonton will have a competition between Ty Emberson and newly acquired Shakir Mukhamadullin for the third-pair spot. So, perhaps one of them gets moved, but Staples believes it will be Stastney that does get dealt.
Oilers GM Reveals Remaining Priority
Edmonton has been active this offseason in bolstering its roster, including in goal, which was the biggest need.
Yet, Oilers general manager Stan Bowman said the team’s remaining priority is finding a penalty-killing center.
“Yeah, we’ve talked a lot about this actually. If you were in our meetings, you’d know that whole topic is something we go over all the time,” Bowman said on July 1. “You’d love to find that guy. You’d love to find a right-shot centre who’s great at faceoffs, and he’s big, he can skate, he’s physical, and he can match up against the best players. That’s sort of the prototype everyone talks about. That player doesn’t really exist on the market.”
Perhaps the Oilers can land that in a trade for Stastney or another defenseman. But Edmonton is looking to add a penalty-killing center to make its team that much deeper.
The Oilers have just under $6 million in cap space.
Oilers Predicted to Trade Impact Defenseman for Surprising Return