I've heard they are happy with Vermette? Is Belesky a better option than Rakell? Also, had they wanted to sign Belesky to that contract, they probably would have? Or was he asking for more from them?
I thought Beleskey took less to come here than they were offering. They may be happy with Vermette, but this might give them a boost. They know Beleskey did well in that spot, and they know Rakell did well at C last year.
Could Chiarelli want to grab another ex-Bruin/character guy in McQuaid and be willing to part with Letestu for him? Who would be Oilers #3 center after (not criticizing, trying to know their depth). That seems realistic if they have someone that can slot in there.
Oilers seem very deep at C. They've got Caggiula, Lander and Hendricks all playing in the bottom6 (and Draisatl playing RW). Depends on how they see their guys, the trust they have in them, and what they value more.
Maybe SJ wants to beef up their wings like last year and would be interested in swapping their backup for Beleskey? Had to google their back up, and his stats are phenomenal, all things considered for 9 games. Not sure if they'd give that up for a struggling winger? Probably rather give up picks.
You may be right. I just know they like to play a heavy game and they can't really do that right now, and it's hurting them.
Nashville is running out Matt Irwin as their #5d, wouldn't they be interested in replacing him with a McQuaid or Miller? They're also using Mike Ribeiro as a 4th line C. I know folks here don't like him but Julien had him in MTL, and even from the 4th line, he's still on pace for 40 points. That would give our 3rd line a boost. Irwin is better in Nashville than I think McQuaid or Miller are here? I could be wrong. But not sure if swapping out a better version of Irwin than played here, with one of our 2 fairly oft-injured defensemen is an upgrade. Might give us picks for either, but probably don't want to subtract from their roster for either.
I think McQuaid and Miller are MAJOR upgrades on Irwin. If I were them, I'd gladly trade a 4th liner for a guy who could play in my second pair if injuries bite me down the stretch or in the playoffs. Plus, there's this from the main board...
Gonna guess Ribs will be out there considering he's riding the bench right now. Probably could be had for a 6 pack and a bag of pucks tbh.
