David Savard is not the defenseman the Edmonton Oilers need.
David Savard is not the defenseman the Edmonton Oilers need.
EDMONTON -- An upgrade on the blueline seems to be in order for the Edmonton Oilers at this year's trade deadline. The feeling among fans and management is to bring in the right player, and not just make a trade for the sake of a trade.
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The Oilers were rumored to be in on Chris Tanev - who ultimately went from the Calgary Flames to the Dallas Stars in a three-team trade. Now they must turn their attention elsewhere to acquire help on the blueline.
The writing appears to be on the wall for Cody Ceci. He has been heavily involved in trade rumors - and by assessing the analytics and from the eye test, he's the weakest link.
The Fourth Period is reporting a number of teams have contacted the Montreal Canadiens about veteran right-handed defender David Savard. The teams believed to have checked in on the 33-year-old are the Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Oilers.
As far as the Oilers are concerned Savard is not an upgrade on Ceci. Despite playing similar minutes to Ceci, Savard possess a worse Corsi Against per 60 minutes and expected goals against per 60 minutes (as per Evolving Hockey).
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The two have similar cap hits - Savard with $3.5-million left for this year and next and Ceci with $3.25-million (also for this year and the year after).
Any deal involving the Oilers acquiring Savard would need to involve massive salary retention. Even if that happens, Savard would need to be deployed as a 6th or 7th defenseman for the Oilers. Vincent Desharnais has been splendid in his third pairing role, so Savard as the Oilers 7th defender would be the most likely scenario.
Add it all up and this feels like more of a depth move than an upgrade. Depending on the price, this is the kind of deal that would come in under the wire next Friday. There are more pressing needs for the Oilers before then.
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