Insider: Oilers Looking To Add In One Specific Area on Trade Market

The Tristan Jarry/Stuart Skinner trade will not be the last deal the Edmonton Oilers make this season. Not by a long shot. Insider Bob Stauffer (h/t David Staples in the Edmonton Journal) said on the Oilers Now podcast that they'll be adding a Top-9 forward.

Currently, the team is without injured forwards Jack Roslovic and Kasperi Kapanen. When they're back, it'll be a nearly complete top three lines. But not quite.

I do think that the Edmonton Oilers are still going to add another forward in their Top 9... It doesn't have to be a center, but it does have to be a guy that can skate.

In addition, Stauffer noted that they can always turn to Ryan Nugent Hopkins as a 3C, if they add on the wing. The insider also noted that it won't necessarily be a huge splashy name, either.

“It may not be a super sexy guy. Vasily Podkolzin wasn’t, but (that's) looking like a pretty good bet."

Looking at the overall forward group, after the top two lines (i.e. when Connor McDavid and/or Leon Draisaitl aren't on the ice), the offense has been hurting big time.

"As many folks have mentioned," wrote Staples, "this bottom line play is so wretched it will doom any Stanley Cup hopes the team has. These bottom two lines have simply got to saw it off, which means scoring more and giving up less".

Currently, the Oilers are +14 at 5-on-5 when one (or both) of their superstars is on the ice, but are -25 when they're not. Their current third-line alignment features Adam Henrique centering Andrew Mangiapane and Mattias Janmark. That threesome has a total of 7 goals and 25 points in 86 man-games.

As both Stauffer and Staples note, expect Edmonton to make a legit addition to the third line on the trade market.