The Edmonton Oilers have spent plenty of time leaning on Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, and Saturday’s 7-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs was a blunt reminder of how thin that margin can get when the rest of the lineup doesn’t chip in.
That’s why Vladimir Tarasenko suddenly looks like a name worth circling. He’s still sitting in free agency, and if Edmonton wants a boost in secondary scoring, this is the kind of move that doesn’t require giving up draft picks or prospects in a trade.
Against Toronto, the Oilers’ stars did their part. Draisaitl scored both Edmonton goals, McDavid set up each one, and nobody else on the roster registered a point. The loss came after Edmonton had won three straight, but the game also showed what happens when opponents take away the team’s usual breathing room.
Through 11 games, McDavid had piled up 33 points, with eight goals and 25 assists. Draisaitl kept rolling too, extending his scoring streak to six games with nine goals during that stretch.
That kind of production is elite. The problem is everything behind it.
After the game, head coach Mike Babcock put it plainly: “We need more, for sure.” And that’s the heart of the issue for Edmonton. Asking McDavid and Draisaitl to drag the offense every night is a dangerous way to live, especially when the opposition can match up against the top line in the playoffs.
The early five-on-five numbers back up the eye test. In nine games from the available line-combination sample, the McDavid-Draisaitl-Vasily Podkolzin unit controlled about 59% of expected goals and outscored opponents 14-6. That’s the good part.
The bad part is what’s happening elsewhere. The Alex Formenton-Owen Michaels-Mathieu Joseph line has posted just a 36% expected-goals share, with 2.1 expected goals for and 3.8 against. That’s a big gap in both chance creation and territorial play, and it points to a deeper problem than just poor finishing.
Tarasenko, meanwhile, brings a more direct answer. The 34-year-old is still unsigned after putting up 23 goals and 47 points in 75 games with the Minnesota Wild last season.
Over a full 82-game schedule, that works out to a 25-goal, 51-point pace. He also has 132 games of playoff experience and two Stanley Cup rings, so this isn’t just a scorer - it’s a veteran who has been through the grind.
There are reasons for caution, too. His defense and foot speed are not strengths you can ignore.
And his previous $4.75 million cap hit means Edmonton would need to find a much cheaper deal and make room under the cap. But if the Oilers are looking for another real offensive threat on the third line or next to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Tarasenko fits that description better than most available options.
At 8-2-1, Edmonton is hardly in crisis mode. But the dependence on McDavid and Draisaitl is already easy to see, and that kind of imbalance can become a real problem over time. Tarasenko wouldn’t fix everything, but his recent production suggests there’s still scoring left in the stick.
For a team trying to squeeze every last bit out of its championship window, that makes him a sensible name to explore before the Oilers commit real assets to a bigger swing.
In Other News...
Oilers Suddenly Face A Goaltending Question They Cant Ignore
A quiet stretch around the Oilers crease turned into a more serious personnel issue after Edmonton placed Devon Levi on injured reserve and brought up Matt Tomkins on emergency depth. Levis injury has not been disclosed, and the move means the Oilers will have to manage at least the next week without him while sorting out the ripple effect behind the scenes.
For a team that already has enough to monitor on the injury front around the league, this is the kind of goaltending twist that demands attention immediately. Edmonton now has to lean on its current options while Levi recovers, and the timing adds another layer of uncertainty as other clubs continue to get healthier or reshuffle their own lineups. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Just Sent Trent Frederic A Message He Cant Ignore
Trent Frederic found himself on the outside looking in against the Carolina Hurricanes, a reminder that the Oilers are not interested in simply carrying passengers through the bottom six. Coach Mike Babcock said he wants more from that group in terms of hard work and consistent physical engagement, with a premium on puck battles and pressure below the topsix level.
Frederic has already been told the message is bigger than one night, and he said he understands what is being asked of him as he tries to win his way back into the lineup. The balancing act for Edmonton is familiar at this point: the team needs energy and edge from its depth forwards, but it also needs those shifts to turn into something more than isolated moments of toughness. [Read more 🡒]
Hurricanes Just Missed On A Goalie Move Fans Will Feel
The goalie market has already turned into one of the more fascinating subplots around the league, and the Carolina Hurricanes were right in the middle of it. They made multiple attempts to pry Connor Hellebuyck out of Winnipeg, working through complicated trade proposals in hopes of landing a difference-maker in net, but the Jets asking price never came down enough to get a deal done. The New Jersey Devils were the club that ultimately finished the job, leaving Carolina to watch a move they clearly wanted slip away.
For Edmonton fans, it is the kind of near-miss that only sharpens the discussion about how aggressively contenders have to chase impact talent. The Oilers know the ripple effect these goalie decisions can have, especially when rivals are willing to keep pushing until a deal breaks their way. In this case, Carolina kept pressing, but the path to Hellebuyck ended with another team taking advantage of the opening. [Read more 🡒]