Oilers Rumors: Cap Clearing Moves Coming Shortly

The Edmonton Oilers seem to be in great hands with general manager Stan Bowman as he has made almost all solid moves since joining the team. Nobody can bat 1000, but he also doesn't sit still and let things play out when there are obvious issues.

The Oilers don't have much cap space to work with this season, but will have plenty to utilize in the offseason. But that is a long way away and Edmonton is a Stanley Cup contender again, even if they don't look like it quite yet. To get there, some moves will have to be made and the roster figure it out on the ice.

According to the 2 Mutts Hockey Podcast, "We are hearing that the Oilers are working on some moves to clear out cap space, possibly a trade is coming soon and we are expecting an announcement in the next 24-36 hours, according to sources."

It's tough to imagine any big money moves will be made, but there are at least a few depth players that can be traded to free up roster space and cap space. The players I have identified as potential candidates that Bowman might move include Mattias Janmark, Ty Emberson, and Calvin Pickard, even though the confidence level in Connor Ingram just dropped after a tough second start to the season in the AHL.

The Oilers need scoring, their players to find their games after the majority have played a lot of games over the past two seasons, and better goaltending. Stuart Skinner has been better, but Pickard is struggling. Once Zach Hyman and Janmark get back, decisions will have to be made. It's better to trade someone to free up cap space ahead of time than to lose a player on waivers for nothing.