Ideal EDM

Team: 2021-22 Edmonton Oilers

Initial Creation Date: May 24, 2021

Published: May 24, 2021

Salary Cap Mode: Basic

Remember this is an ideal situation.

Currently CBA talks have the cap being between $84M and $88.2M, so I did the mean between the two and settled on $86.1M. In any case this Oilers team will be under the cap, but it will mean a difference between $2.78M in cap and $6.79M. So if Laine doesn't agree to a $6.9M/year deal after a sublime season we can still sweeten the deal.

I also considered Hyman, but Bobby Ryan was a far cheaper option for a third-line winger. Because this is an ideal situation, I even considered Ovi to fill the L1 LW, but even in an ideal situation Washington and Ovi aren't parting. Besides, Laine is after-all significantly younger. Hall is also nice to dream about but he seems a too happy in Boston.

For goalies I considered Mrazek and Merzilinkis in that order. I'm honestly not concerned with the Smith-Koskinen duo (though I would be in a few years), but that's no reason to pass up on Ullmark, Mrazek, or some other young and hot Baltic goalie.

I do not care who Stalock or Koskinen get traded to I just needed them gone, though Brett Murray does intrigue me A LOT. Buffalo would be interested in goalie depth (especially if Ullmark leaves).

For the Laine trade Broberg or Holloway may be safer choices, but I know Columbus struggled in their center depth so I figured they'd be fine with two centers on the opposite ends of their career. Normally I wouldn't ask for a top 3 round pick in addition to Laine, but I know Holland would be caught dead before he entered a draft without a top 3 round pick.

Interesting note if the Laine trade happened: much of Gretzky's time in Edmonton consisted of being flanked by two Finnish wingers, and should Laine come to Edmonton that would be true for McDavid too. Also note Laine and Puljujarvi have a history together, playing on the same line for Finland and bonded well.

Right now is the best time to trade for Laine. His future is uncertain and Columbus seems to be in a rebuild phase. What makes Laine especially interesting for Columbus is that he said something no one has ever said: he LIKES playing Columbus (huh???)! I suppose if you grew up in Finland and played in Winnipeg then yeah I guess Columbus is a pretty good comparison. Most other star players have a taste of living in pretty markets -- even Edmonton has a massive river valley that is far greener and larger than Central Park and they have the second largest indoor mall in the world. Anyways that's why this time right now is the best to trade for Laine before he and the Blue Jackets get too comfortable with each other.

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