Quoting: CD282
Before you trade #8, consider some of the guys that were picked 8-10 between 2011-2015:
8)
Couterier, 2011
Pouliot, 2012
Ristolainen, 2013
W. Nylander, 2014
Werenski, 2015
9)
Hamilton, 2011
Trouba, 2012
Horvat, 2013
Ehlers, 2014
Meier, 2015
10)
Brodin, 2011
Koekkoek, 2012
Nichushkin, 2013
Ritchie, 2014
Rantanen, 2015
Do you really think the return is worthwhile?
If it means dumping Lucic without sacrificing total draft capital or retaining salary, then I think it's absolutely worth considering.
The problem with looking at this through the lens of "here's what you're missing out on at #8 for Lucic" without considering the return is you're ignoring players selected in the 2nd and 3rd Rounds. They aren't as likely to pan out as whoever is available at #8, but to discredit those players and their chance at developing - mind you that not every top-10 pick is a bonafide star - takes away from the argument as a whole.
For every Rantanen and Meier, there's a Derrick Pouliot or Valeri Nichushkin. None of Boldy, Caufield, Krebs, Dach, or Zegras are guaranteed superstardom and it's likely that all four of those players are two years out at minimum. You can sacrifice what they might become 730 days after the moment they're drafted in order to alleviate the cap hell and bare prospect pool Edmonton currently features (there isn't much left after the current wave graduates) or you can continue to be bogged down by a dead cap hit and take one skilled prospect.
I strongly believe in the numbers Afanaseyev put up, and Wheeler vouches for Firstov but preaches patience. I have no more patience for the Oilers continuing to employ Milan Lucic and the half-assed efforts he maintains on a nightly basis. It's absolutely fine to see that price as too much to pay (and I have noted that I probably give up far too much in the Ottawa trade), but the trades themselves are more than dumping Lucic for the #8 pick.