Why a classic Glen Sather-style fleecing is necessary for the Edmonton Oilers at the trade deadline

General manager Glen Sather won a number of transactions by a significant margin during the Edmonton Oilers’ Golden Decade (the 1980s, with the 1990 Stanley Cup acting as a spectacular conclusion).

The outcomes contributed to Stanley Cup victories and made a formidable team historic.

Sather brought in productive players for very little return during the five Stanley Cup winning seasons for Edmonton: Kevin McClelland scored the lone goal in a 1-0 victory over the New York Islanders in the 1984 final; Mark Napier was a valuable forward (5-5-10 in 18 playoff games) during the 1985 run; in 1987, a second-round pick brought in Kent Nilsson, who was outstanding with Mark Messier and Glenn Anderson on the way to Stanley; and in 1990, Reijo Ruotsalainen returned to help the Oilers win another Stanley (he was a member of the 1987 squad).

Under the leadership of defenseman Mattias Ekholm (who was acquired in February 2023), this generation of Oilers managers has produced some outstanding deadline riches. Another successful deadline deal was with Brett Kulak, but in both instances, the team had to pay in full or more to complete the transaction.

On the day of the trade to Edmonton, the Sather magic was in finding a perfect-fit solution at a low cost, which required taking a chance on a guy who wasn’t thought to be a foundation piece.

Over the years, it worked repeatedly with Sather in Edmonton; however, after Slats left for Manhattan, it hasn’t worked as well.

The early years of Bowman
Stan Bowman, the current general manager, has only been there a few months, but he already seems to know how to purchase low and place wise wagers.

His main acquisitions this season—Vasily Podkolzin and Ty Emberson—have done well in supporting roles, and Kasperi Kapanen, a waiver acquisition, has contributed some productive second-line right-wing minutes. Alec Regula, a waiver addition, has not yet made an appearance for the Oilers.

Bowman may not have enough trade assets to acquire another player of Ekholm’s caliber this year, and the deadline is approaching.

Only Savoie is on a level where Bowman can be sure he’ll outbid his rivals. Key assets (AHL winger Matt Savoie, OHL center Sam O’Reilly, the 2026 first-round pick, OHL defenseman Beau Akey, and KHL winger Maxim Berezkin) are in short supply.

For Bowman, what does it mean?

Purchase cheap, sell high.
The NHL’s rival general managers’ seats throughout the Sather years ranged widely in quality. Sather was unquestionably the greatest general manager of the 1980s, demonstrating keen assessment abilities and sufficient communication skills to win numerous projects.

Edmonton had a significant edge back then since a deadline acquisition could be quickly converted into a plug-and-play with Wayne Gretzky or Messier on a dynamic trio. Because the stats were there for whoever played wing on those lines, winning a trade with the Oilers from the 1980s was a little simpler.

Bowman also has that edge. Everyone scores while playing with Connor McDavid, and one of his early acquisitions, Podkolzin, is assisting the Leon Draisaitl line in outscoring opponents five-on-five (63 percent goal share).

The Oilers scouting team’s ability to spot talent and opportunities will be beneficial.

A lost opportunity
Following his arrival in Edmonton, Bowman has been quite active. Oilers supporters are still debating his responsibility for the St. Louis Blues’ twin offer sheet strategy, which cost them Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg. In what looks to be a tragically awful transaction, Edmonton did manage to get a mid-level prospect (Paul Fischer) and an additional future draft pick in the final tally of the deal with St. Louis.

The recent agreement between the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets is one that the Oilers might have investigated.

David Jiricek, a 21-year-old defenseman, was selected sixth overall in the 2022 draft. The Blue Jackets management finally had enough of the monster (6-foot-4, 204 pounds) and sold him to the Wild for a package of assets, including Colorado’s first-round pick.

Bowman might not have had the resources to finalize the deal with Columbus because Edmonton’s 2025 first-round pick was traded for a 2024 pick (O’Reilly).

Despite the fact that Jiricek and Broberg have different playing styles, acquiring Jiricek would have been comparable to regaining an asset of Broberg’s value.

Perhaps a comparable opportunity is just around the corner.

What might occur
Bowman most likely needs a defenseman who can play on the right side, ideally one who is left-handed or right-handed. It would be advantageous if the defender could go up the depth chart to the top pair when needed, but he should be able to play both PK and second pairing.

Chris Johnston of The Athletic updated his trade board in December to provide fans the most recent preview of what this year’s deadline might hold.

The Pittsburgh Penguins’ left-handed defenseman Marcus Petterson is one of the names that might be appealing to Bowman. If the Oilers continue to accumulate cap dollars over the coming months, his cap hit ($4.025 million) should be reasonable.

According to Puck IQ (35.8%), Pettersson plays significant minutes against elite competition and has a Dangerous Fenwick (similar to predicted goals) of 49.8%. Compared to his other Penguins defenders, that is excellent. A limited no-trade agreement he has could affect a trade.

The Penguins are searching for youthful talent and a player like Akey, whose skill set is similar to Evan Bouchard’s, or Berezkin, who is NHL-ready and will be a KHL player, but defensemen are extremely expensive at the deadline.

If needed, Bowman can use additional picks from the offer sheets.

How would Sather respond?
I identified Henri Jokiharju, a right-handed defenseman for the Buffalo Sabres, as the Oilers’ top target at the beginning of December.

He is a 25-year-old who is well priced at $3.1 million on a deal that is about to expire and a UFA in the summer. As the Sabres’ yearly distance from any postseason hopes grows, he is likewise losing playing time. With a Dangerous Fenwick of 51 percent on a losing team, his Puck IQ numbers against elites are impressive.

Sather was going to leap.

Risk exists (why is he being faded by a losing team?) However, the benefits (speed, size, and skill) are too great to ignore.

Given that Edmonton and Buffalo had recently traded (Ryan McLeod for Matt Savoie), it is reasonable to assume that the two teams will agree to a transaction.