This in from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, news that the Edmonton Oilers are trying to find a “soft landing” for veteran d-man Troy Stecher in a trade.
Said Friedman on Hockey Night in Canada of the Oilers: “They got a lot of players coming back from injury, right? Like there’s (Zach) Hyman can come back and (Mattias) Janmark can come back, (Alec) Regula can come back. And one of the names that’s definitely going around there is Troy Stecher… He’s one of the extra D and they have a couple extra right now. Now it doesn’t necessarily have to be Stecher. Like I think the Oilers have considered a bunch of things, but he is definitely one of the people who is being considered. I’ve heard there is some interest, and I think the Oilers are trying to find him a soft landing.”
Grade A dmen 13 games
My take
1. Stecher has been a solid veteran in a support role for the Oilers, but he’s 31 years old and if there’s a roster crunch, the team would be wise to hold on to younger d-men Ty Emberson and Alec Regula over him. Both Regula and Emberson are 25.
2. Stecher has been solid and low event in the defensive end. He keeps it simple and safe. But his attacking game isn’t strong. Regula looked like a solid puck-mover in two games before he went out with injury. Emberson started out weak this year but has been trending up fast, asserting himself in games on the attack while keeping things looked up tight on defence. He and Kulak have been the Oil’s best pairing for two weeks, though it’s worth stressing they face weaker competition than the other d-men.
3. The real question is what to do with Regula, who looked so promising in his two games. Emberson has been playing so well that it’s difficult to take him out of the line-up. If Walman is still struggling with injury to some extent, perhaps giving him a night off now and then makes sense.
But Regula has got to play if he’s going to develop.
At the Cult of Hockey
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