Could Edmonton Oilers actually pull off a Nikita Kucherov trade?
Nikita Kucherov wants a trade away from the Tampa Bay Lightning, and it sounds like he could be open to playing for the Edmonton Oilers.
The Russian superstar made waves last week after his trade request was made public, prompting mass speculation about where Kucherov could be headed. The issue at hand for Tampa Bay is an apparent breakdown in contract negotiations with the two-time Hart Trophy winner.
While the Lightning have publicly stated that they have no intention of trading Kucherov, a decision will need to be made to either keep the 33-year-old or to walk him into free agency next summer and lose him for nothing.
Kucherov carries a 10-team trade list in his current contract, meaning that he will have some control over where he could be traded. The Toronto Maple Leafs have been tabbed as a possibility early on, but new reports indicate that Kucherov is interested in playing with some star power wherever he goes next.
According to RG’s Daria Tuboltseva, Kucherov seems particularly interested in playing alongside fellow superstars like Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, and David Pastrnak.
“The source said the 33-year-old forward wants to lead the league in scoring every year,” Tuboltseva reported. “He also wants to do it on a team with Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews or David Pastrnak, in a market large enough to keep him in the conversation.”
Edmonton may not be the biggest NHL market there is, but the city tends to punch above its weight when it comes to media attention. They are a Stanley Cup-contending team and have more than enough star power with all of McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Evan Bouchard.
From the sound of it, that would make the Alberta capital an ideal fit for Kucherov, but is a trade to Edmonton realistic?
Do Oilers have the assets?
The obvious hurdle getting in the way of a potential Kucherov-to-Oilers trade is whether or not GM Stan Bowman has the assets to pull it off.
Any deal involving Kucherov has the potential to be the blockbuster of the decade, and it will require a lot of value going back to Tampa Bay. His status as a pending UFA may bring the price down a tad, but the Lightning won’t be giving him away for nothing.
That could be an issue for the Oilers, who aren’t exactly brimming with elite prospects to offer up in a trade of this magnitude. So, what could Edmonton offer to entice Tampa Bay GM Julien BriseBois?
At the top of the list has to be 22-year-old Matt Savoie, a first-round draft pick from 2022 who is coming off an 18-goal rookie season. Edmonton would likely want to keep Savoie, but you have to give to get in a trade like this, and he’s likely the best trade chip Edmonton has.
The Oilers would also need to clear salary to take on Kucherov’s $9.5-million cap hit. The most obvious cap dump, who may still have some value, is defenceman Jake Walman, who just started a seven-year deal with a $7-million cap hit. He has trade protection, but a spot like Tampa Bay could be appealing enough for him to waive.
From there, Edmonton would have to sweeten the pot even further. Isaac Howard is likely off the table considering his history with the Lightning, which means prospects like Damian Carfagna, Samuel Jonsson, David Lewandowski, and Tommy Lafreniere could be thrown in alongside multiple first-round picks.
That would work out to a trade that looks like:
Edmonton receives: Nikita Kucherov
Tampa Bay receives: Matt Savoie, Jake Walman, Damian Carfagna, a 2028 first-round pick, and a 2029 first-round pick
Is that enough to land Kucherov? Perhaps not, but it may be the best package that the Oilers could offer up.
Can Oilers afford Kucherov’s next contract?
Any trade involving Kucherov also comes with the question of whether or not he will re-sign or walk into free agency.
If the Oilers were to acquire Kucherov, they would need to take a decent run at signing him to an extension to make the trade more worthwhile. Reports since the trade request indicate that he turned down Tampa Bay’s offer of a six-year deal that carried a $15-million cap hit.
He could have his eye on being the highest-paid player in the NHL, which would mean that he would need to eclipse Cale Makar’s $20.4-million cap hit. That is an expensive price tag that could complicate things for the Oilers.
Edmonton is hoping to eventually re-sign McDavid to an extension as early as next summer on a contract that could very easily surpass the $20-million threshold as well. Do the Oilers have enough cap space to fit two players in that range?
As it stands, Edmonton is projected to have $24 million in cap space next summer and a whopping $66 million in 2028-29 when the NHL cap limit is set to explode to $127.5 million.
That sounds like a lot on the surface, but the Oilers only have 10 players under contract through the 2028-29 season and will need to use large portions of that space to fill out the roster. Having $40 million tied up in two players may hinder the team’s ability to get better in other areas.
Bringing Kucherov to Edmonton sounds like a dream come true for Oilers fans, but there are a lot of large hurdles standing in Bowman’s way to make it happen.