A star defenseman might be on the market and the Edmonton Oilers will be calling fast

If Zach Werenski follows Dylan Larkin and asks out of Columbus, the Oilers are the kind of contender that should pick up the phone.

Start with the essence. Pierre LeBrun, in The Athletic, tied Werenski's future to Larkin's trade request, with the two close friends watching each other's situations.

Werenski hasn't demanded anything yet. But with his buddy pushing for an exit, the smoke around Columbus is real.

His patience has reason to fray. The Blue Jackets faded late, going 2-7-1 over their final 10 games while finishing 18th overall. Near-misses wear on players who want to win.

And Werenski is worth coveting. He put up 81 points this season, 22 goals and 59 assists, with a plus-7 and 21 power-play points. That's a top-pairing franchise defenseman.

Here's where Edmonton separates from a rebuild. A frustrated win-now star wants a win-now team, and the Oilers offer exactly that.

Move Nurse, and the Werenski math suddenly works

Look at the window. Edmonton has Connor McDavid coming off a 138-point season and a roster that won 93 points before getting bounced in the first round. The blue line is the soft spot.

That's the need Werenski fills. The catch is always the cap, and his $9.58 million hit is steep.

But the Oilers have a contract they've been trying to move anyway. Darnell Nurse carries $9.25 million, and Edmonton has spent the summer shopping him.

Subtract Nurse, add Werenski, and the deal is nearly cap-neutral. Same money, wildly different player.

The upgrade is staggering on paper. Werenski's 81 points and plus-7 against Nurse's 24 points and minus-12. You'd make that swap before the question finished.

Slot Werenski next to Evan Bouchard, who posted 95 points, and Mattias Ekholm, a plus-32 anchor, and Edmonton suddenly owns a frightening top four.

Now the honest catches. Werenski hasn't asked out, Columbus wouldn't hand a star to a fellow contender cheaply, and the asset cost would be heavy on top of the salary.

Here's my read: this fit is logical in a way the rebuild talk never was. A win-now defenseman belongs on a win-now team, and clearing Nurse is the move that makes it possible.

Werenski isn't going anywhere yet. But if he follows Larkin out the door, Edmonton is exactly the kind of home that makes sense, and the Nurse domino is the first one to fall.

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