It’s that time of year again: Draft time!
Through twitter and some well-placed rumor mills, it’s becoming more apparent that the Edmonton Oilers may be more active in the coming days than what we thought earlier in the week.
Here is the latest Oiler Rumor Roundup:
1. Yakupov is at the top of their draft board. However, this morning, Stu MacGregor said they narrowed it down to two people, presumably Yakupov and Murray. I’m going to throw out there that either would be great, but my vote is for Yakupov.
2. Edmonton made a call into Columbus about the #2 pick. While not unusual, the price tag could be steep. GM Scott Howson, and the management team in Columbus need to determine whether they’re like the Oilers were two years ago, or whether they still think they need to make a push. The current offer I’ve heard is Paarvi, Omark, and a pick. Some speculation includes Gagner. I wouldn’t read into this too much, as it seems like standard protocol the day before the draft.
3. The rights to Justin Schultz will be sent to Edmonton for either Martin Marincin or Martin Gernat with likely a conditional pick attached. Seems like a high price to pay for someone who could walk in a couple days. Maybe Marincin/Gernat are the conditionals, but that just seems irresponsible.
4. Speculation surrounds Sam Gagner and the Carolina Hurricanes, and their #8 selection. In a twittersation with @THNRyanKennedy, the asking price would be Gagner + pick for #8, which I believe is steep. This is also likely a second option for Carolina, who have their sights set on Jordan Staal.
5. Smyth will be returning, but nothing will be signed today or tomorrow.
6. Ralph Krueger is atop the list for the Head Coaching position, with Todd Nelson coming up to be an Assistant. My vote was for Jon Cooper, but Kruger seems to be a capable and intelligent coach. My concern is when he stepped in for Renney, I didn’t see what I wanted to see (winning).
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