Not in a million years

Nope... not a chance

I don't think so. Bouchard is really trending up, his value is likely to increase exponentially now that he is playing pro (8 points in 8 AHL playoff games last year in minimal playing time). The oilers will sit on him unless they get a bonafide top line winger in return.

What the add have to be? And don't go nuts and say Marner or Nylander, that is just silly.

Not an oilers fan, but ive seen bouchard being classified as a potential 1st pairing dman. why would the oilers trade what they lack for a 2nd/3rd line forward that might be able to elevate his game to first line but probably isnt likely that he is a first line forward. Tavares/Matthews should ideally be able to drive the line and help the wingers like kapanen and johnsson similarly to mcjesus elevating maroon and chaisson. Just not sure why they make this deal is all.

add Johnsson

The point is, there is no trade for Bouchard, because that trade doesn't happen unless some team is more sold on him than the team that drafted him. So if TO doesn't think Bouchard is worth Nylander, then there is no trade. It's not about current ability to contribute to the NHL, so these trades are not about direct value but how much a team believes in a prospect.

The Oilers have an utter black hole on the wings, should they do things that make their winger depth at least somewhat serviceable. Plus Kap has the speed to keep up with McDavid. Few do.

You aren't going to get both Johnsson and Kapanen for Bouchard. There is no proof he's going to turn out to be a star, he's a top prospect but lets not build him a statue yet.

The black hole isnt with mcdavid, its behind mcdavid. you can put anyone on mcdavids line and they are going to put up at least 40 points and 20 goals. the oilers lack depth outside of rnh leon and mcjesus.

You are going off the deepend here. Bouchard was a 10th overall pick. He's a great prospect but lets not treat him like he's Dahlin here. He's the Oilers best prospect sure, but they also have almost no good prospects, so being the best of a sad bunch isn't exactly something to write home about. That being said, I think he's going to be a good player just not sure how good. Nylander is already proven to be a highly effective NHLer with a skys the limit ceiling. You'd have to offer Bouchard and a 1st round pick for Nylander and I am not sure that would even get it done.

Lets just take a step back and look at the Oilers situation, they have pretty much zero wingers worth much, they need speed, depth and other stuff. I get why you want to keep Bouchard, but how long does McDavid wait for improvement before he wants out? Perhaps moving Bouchard is a move that makes sense as long as they are getting a guy or two that is closer to being an important contributor.

Kapanen would instantly become your 4th best forward, and possibly your 5th best player. I agree that he's a tad overrated but I think in the right situation he can be a 30 goal scorer and 60 point winger. Put him with McDavid and then you might be able to have RNH and Draisaitl create a very good 2nd line. Granted the team still has nothing on the 3rd and 4th line but hey, at least this is an improved top 6 and a formidable one at that. If you can somehow figure out a way to get a couple of other upgrades and this team starts looking like it could have a strong future.

Like I said, each team has their perspective on prospects. If you think TO would not trade Nylander for Bouchard and a 1st, then this discussion doesn't even begin for Ken Holland. Simple as that. Yes, the Oilers have a lot of D prospects, but Bouchard is their only projected top pair RHD prospect and they don't even have a top pair RHD on the team right now. This is simply not the route the oil will take to attempt to add forward depth. NYR, Vegas and other cap strapped teams are way better trading partners if this is how you see a trade between TO and EDM unfolding.

nah bro. Bouchard going to a top pair D in a few years. Kap is a great player, but Oilers need a top pairing Dman in the future more then Kap right now. Dont get me wrong.....the Oilers need pretty much everything tho

Okay a couple of things here.

Edmonton is cap strapped, this is probably the biggest issue facing them. Couple that with a complete lack of depth on the wings and down the middle and on defence and goal and you have a massive problem that is so difficult to fix. Its a disaster and its going to take a long time to fix.

Step 1) They need to totally reconstruct their scouting (Which Holland is doing) and player development departments (perhaps the single biggest issue facing the team)
Step 2) Draft talent and build up a good prospect pool and develop those prospects into pros in a modern sense (Get rid of the old boys club mentality and any old school thinking)
Step 3) Move out all players over 25 who aren't on good contracts or don't fit in to the long term plan for the roster construction

Step 1 is easy enough to do if Holland has control over the team, whether that is the case or the old boys club still has sway is anyones guess.
Step 2 is massively important and takes patience and investment (Read about what Justin Brazeau is doing this summer with the Leafs, he's on an AHL contract but has full access to all the Leafs training facilities and lessons with Barb Underhill, he could be an asset that cost the Leafs essentially nothing to acquire and could be a huge add if his skating improves)
Step 3 is the hardest part of this issue, how do you move Lucic? He has the single worst contract in hockey and moving him will cost you dearly or you sit on him and have a player that hurts you on the ice and takes up way too much cap space that could go to players that have a much greater impact.

Edmonton should absolutely be targetting tweeners all over the league. Guys that are 2nd/3rd liners on good teams who could flourish with more opportunity with a bigger role they won't get in their situations. Kapanen is a great example of this, he will likely not get much time over a 3rd liner in TO unless people get injured and they have a replacement in Bracco so he can be obtained in a fair deal. He also could be a 30+ goal scorer if given the right opportunities and him flying around with McDavid would be a perfect opportunity. I would definitely see what kind of deal it would take to get him if I was Holland

It depends on how long McDavid will wait, if he says I'll give you a year to sort this out, then you can't wait for Bouchard.

I agree with all of that. But as you say, this will take EDM a long time to fix. Bouchard is the best "long term fix" they have for their D which, while perhaps deeper than their forwards, is ultimately STILL the team's weakest aspect and the hardest to fix. So this year, the Oil will look for a short term 2LW and 3C solution with the 4 mil or so they have left in space when Manning is sent down. Next year half the team are RFA's or UFA's so that is when an overhaul can be attempted. This year is just about salvaging an 85-95 point team if luck and the 2LW 3C adds can be achieved.

you said it yourself. EDM needs to target tweeners, you dont trade top projection dman talent regardless of what team they are a prospect on for a tweener that might get you 60 points. Couple that with the cap jail they are already in, trading a young controlled commodity for a tweener that might get a ballooned contract from playing with mcdavid is also bad gming. Any contract is moveable its just how much you want to swallow your pride and sell it for. LASTLY if this team was one piece away maybe you entertain TO and make them add some picks/prospects/ another player. you dont do this deal as a team that is rebuilding/reconstructing.

as a real (not fake) oilers fan: yes.

Bouchard has a higher ceiling but a million years from now that will probably have evened out.
Other than that I agree with you.

yea sure but I personally don't think Kap would make Mcdavid change his mind. Like I said, Kap is good but he isn't so good that McDavid will say "Oh we got Kapenen now, better stick around"

No, but I think Kap would be someone who could be a star next to McDavid and that could allow Draisaitl and RNH to work together on the 2nd line giving Edmonton 2 very good to great lines instead of 1 amazing line and an okay at best second line. The team needs depth so badly. Not sure McDavid will sit around waiting for very long.

true, still don't think Kap costs Bouchard though.
I am sure he could be grabbed for a few picks no?

No, it would have to be a young defenceman or the leafs wouldn't move him. There is a good chance Kap improves this season, he'll be playing on a 3rd line with Kerfoot who is a playmaker and they'll get sheltered minutes which should help Kap improve his numbers from last season. My hope is he has a better year something like 25 goals and 25 assists and then they trade him for a defenceman next year.

They likely wouldn't do Bouchard for Nylander as they can't afford it. Marner, however...