The Edmonton Oilers traded Spencer Stastney to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, bringing back forward Filip Hallander in a deal built around the salary cap.
Small trade. Big relief.
In Edmonton, cap space gets guarded like the last parking spot outside Rogers Place on a Saturday night, and this move frees up a little of it.
The Oilers opened the season with eight defencemen on the roster. Something had to give, and the 26-year-old from Woodridge, Illinois, became the odd man out.
His first year with the club was a grind. He dressed for 36 games, scored once and finished minus-10.
Camp didn't change the story. Newer faces on the blue line outplayed him, and the depth chart moved on without him.
Then there's the money. Stastney carries a $1,525,000 cap hit, so waiving and burying him in the minors would still have stuck Edmonton with a $300,000 charge.
Mike Babcock lands a two-way centre on an $850,000 deal
Hallander comes in hot. The Swedish centre had three points in two games with the Penguins and posted a plus-4 rating.
One of those points came shorthanded. Special teams versatility has followed him since his days with Lulea in Sweden, where he saw time on both the power play and the penalty kill.
The catch is the health record. Blood clots wiped out most of his last season, and he's logged just 18 NHL games across four campaigns.
Stan Bowman isn't worried. The Oilers GM said Edmonton tracked the left-shot centre back in Sweden and has "been interested in his game for a while."
Bowman also said the forward plays at a high pace and should fit in "with the way that Mike (Babcock) wants our players to play."
And the contract is about as low-risk as it gets. Hallander's deal runs two more years, and a trip to the minors after clearing waivers costs Edmonton nothing against the cap.
Bowman said injuries up front pushed the timeline. Zach Hyman sits on injured reserve until at least Oct. 17, and Colton Dach isn't expected back before Oct. 13.
Edmonton is dealing from strength right now. The Oilers sit 3-0-1 after a 5-2 win in Anaheim on Wednesday night.
Next up is Saturday in San Jose, where the new centre joins a bench that has already piled up 22 goals in four games.
Pittsburgh's end of this is harder to love.
Kyle Dubas moved a forward who was producing for a defenceman Edmonton simply had no room for. That's a bad trade for the Penguins, plain and simple.
Yes, the Penguins had a crowded forward group. Elmer Soderblom has dressed just once this season, and younger forwards are knocking on the door for minutes.
And the blue line in Pittsburgh is thin. But is a depth defender who couldn't stick in Edmonton really the fix?
Dan Muse's group has dropped two straight, including a 5-3 loss in Washington on Wednesday, and sits at 2-2-0 heading to Columbus on Friday.
The two clubs don't meet until Jan. 3 in Pittsburgh. By then, everyone will know whether Dubas bought depth or just took a problem Edmonton was happy to hand over.
-
Did Kyle Dubas lose the Spencer Stastney for Filip Hallander trade?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Auston Matthews destroys golf course property and gets caught in embarrassing scene
