The Edmonton Oilers could complete their top-6 forward group with the addition of Alex Killorn.
As the hunt continues for the Edmonton Oilers to solidify their top-6 forward group, a name has come up that could potentially interest the Oilers. Alex Killorn is a two-time Stanley Cup Champion, who has spent the past 11 years with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Killorn brings with him secondary scoring and a winning pedigree, which could be important ingredients for a team chasing it's first Stanley Cup since 1990. All of these factors could make Killorn a great fit with the Oilers.
20-Goal Scorer
Killorn is no stranger to supplementing secondary scoring for the team he plays on. Playing second fiddle to Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Steven Stamkos while with the Lightning has alleviated pressure off of Killorn and allowed him to focus on his game.
Alex KillornIn his 11-year NHL career Killorn has only scored less than 14 goals in a season once. In his rookie season (2012-13) he scored seven goals in 38 games. In recent history he has upped his goal scoring ante. Three of his last four years he has at least 25 goals. In 2022-23 he set a career high in goals with 27. Outside of Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman, no other Oiler came close to 25 goals this year.
Two-Time Stanley Cup Winner
Having more players on your team who have won a Stanley Cup is never a bad thing. The calming presence that a veteran who has made it all the way is huge. Intangibles are great because it adds a degree of randomness to the game of hockey. They are also terrible for the same reason, the randomness is tough to measure and quantify.
The most recent veteran to bring that presence to the Oilers was Duncan Keith. Keith was paired with Evan Bouchard and they both greatly benefitted being each other's defence partner. Keith also brought something to the dressing room that Killorn can: a calm demeanor when the game you are in doesn't go your way and you need to regroup.
What's He Going to Cost?
Killorn is coming off of a seven-year deal with a $4.45-million cap hit. According to Daily Faceoff's Top 50 Free Agents and their projected cap hits, Killorn will be looking for a four-year deal worth a $5.25-million cap hit. For the Oilers to afford any contract in the $5-million range, they need to move out some salary. If Killorn wanted to take a slight discount to play with McDavid and Draisaitl, a $2.5-$4-million cap hit would be a fantastic outcome.
Alex KillornWith not a lot of salary cap space at their disposal, this type of deal is hard to conceive as a possibility for the Oilers - unless they move out salary. Bouchard is already looking like he will take less than what he's worth, but not every free agent will. If the Oilers can move out salary to add Killorn, that should become a top priority for the team.