The Edmonton Oilers are facing a tough situation with their salary cap this summer.
Last week, the St. Louis Blues made things worse by signing Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway to offer sheets. Broberg’s deal is for two years at $9.16M, while Holloway’s is for two years at $4.58M. Stan Bowman has until Tuesday to decide if he will match these offers or let them go in exchange for draft picks.
PuckPedia explained how Edmonton could get back under the salary cap after trading Vasily Podkolzin to Alberta and Cody Ceci to the San Jose Sharks. They suggest placing Evander Kane on long-term injured reserve (LTIR), sending Troy Stecher and Derek Ryan down, and calling up Matt Savoie to start the 2024-25 season compliant if they match both offer sheets.
Salary Cap Solutions:
This plan seems reasonable for Edmonton. Savoie can fill a top-six role cheaply, giving flexibility with new players Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson on the wing. If they move one of these wingers down, Holloway could play on the fourth line while Mattias Janmark shifts to center.
The team would still have seven defensemen available, even though Stecher might not see much ice time anyway. Josh Brown and Ty Emberson could rotate based on matchups, leaving only a gap at fourth-line center.
Fans might wonder if this strategy will really work out in the end.
Kane’s return from offseason surgery remains uncertain; he’s expected to be placed on LTIR initially, missing the first 10 games and 24 days of the season. Once he returns, more tough choices lie ahead for Edmonton as they navigate this tricky cap situation again.
It’s unclear how aggressive GM Bowman will be in keeping Broberg and Holloway since they’ve had limited opportunities with the team so far. Despite clearing Ceci’s salary and finding a way toward compliance initially — it may take some time before Edmonton fully escapes this challenging scenario.
What do you think about these moves?
