NHL Rumors: 2 Options to Help Fix the Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers are sliding at the moment and there's been some talks of big changes on the way. Whether it's a new coach, a big trade, or a change of direction in goal, something needs to give as the team is barely holding onto a wild card position. Let's take a look at a couple of options for general manager Ken Holland.

Trade Tyson Barrie for an Impact Forward

Barrie signed a three-year deal worth $4.5 million per season in Edmonton before the season started and if the team wants to become more balanced up front, they should move Barrie to make it happen. The mobile defenseman does not have a no-trade clause and there's going to be interest across the league. 

One of the main reasons the Oilers can move Barrie is young defenseman Evan Bouchard. The 22-year-old is eight years younger than Barrie, making only $863,333 on the cap and has just as many points as Barrie despite not getting a lock on the power play. His 16 even strength points is fourth on the team and first of all the defenseman in Edmonton. It's time to give the youngster the keys and capitalize on your team depth to make the roster more balanced. A proven third-line center who can help shut some top players down or a power forward for the top-six would help immensely. 

New Year, New Goalie

The Oilers are 2-6-2 in their past 10 games and a big reason is because they can't find a save. Mike Smith came back from injury just to go down once again. The veteran is showing signs he's slowing down and has only appeared in five games in 2021-22, posting a .897 save percentage. Mikko Koskinen is not a true #1 netminder but he's led the Oil this season with a 12-6-0 record. His numbers haven't been great however as he's posted a 3.14 GAA and a .902 sv %.  

It's time for the Oilers to move a top prospect and their first-round pick and find themselves a proven goalie who can do some damage in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Marc-Andre Fleury is probably at the top of their wish list but you can't blame Holland for preferring to not deal his top pick for a rental. Joonas Korpisalo and Alexandar Georgiev are two other options who are a bit younger and could be signed to some term. Another option is veteran Anton Khudobin out of Dallas. Whoever it is, the Oilers need a new netminder and soon, they are wasting so much talent.

Photo credit: Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports