Roman Josi’s name is starting to surface in Edmonton, and that alone is enough to get Oilers fans thinking about another swing at Nashville.
The last time these two teams hooked up on a major defensive deal, it changed the look of Edmonton’s blue line in a big way. Ken Holland landed Mattias Ekholm from the Predators before the 2023 NHL trade deadline, and now Stan Bowman could be staring at a similar opportunity if the chatter around Josi keeps building.
NHL insider David Pagnotta said on Daily Faceoff that the Predators captain has come up in conversation with a year left on his contract.
“Roman Josi’s name, a little bit, has circulated, a tiny bit, with a year left on his contract,” Pagnotta said.
Bob Stauffer also brought up the possibility on Monday’s edition of OilersNow, though he wasn’t exactly convinced it would be easy to pull off.
“You’re going to hear a lot about Nashville,” Stauffer said while fielding texts from listeners. “I think Nashville, they’re playing really well right now; they’re trying to win. We’ll see what happens with Nashville; they could be an interesting team to watch.
“I’m not quite sure how anybody can make that work, for what it’s worth. Real good player; not sure how it works.”
Stauffer also noted that Josi and Connor McDavid are represented by the same agent, Judd Moldaver with Wasserman.
The big question, of course, is whether Nashville would actually move him. Right now, there’s no trade request hanging over this like there was in some other situations around the league. The talk is coming from the idea that the Predators might eventually decide to cash in before Josi reaches free agency next summer.
That decision may come down to how Nashville handles the next few months. The Predators are 8-4-5 and sitting in the top wildcard spot in the Western Conference, which makes it easy to see why they’d be inclined to keep pushing. Josi has been there for 16 seasons and has worn the captain’s letter since 2017, so there’s plenty of reason for the organization to stay the course if the standings keep cooperating.
But if the season goes off the rails, the calculus changes fast. Nashville could decide it’s better to get something back now than risk losing a 36-year-old defender for nothing later. Josi, for his part, is still chasing his first Stanley Cup, which only adds to the possibility that a contender could come calling.
Edmonton would certainly qualify as a team that could use him, even if the Oilers’ defensive picture has looked decent early on. The top pair of Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard has been excellent, Ryan Shea has settled in well, and Ty Emberson has given the club solid minutes in a depth role.
Still, there are obvious areas where the group could use a jolt. Jake Walman has struggled to stay in the lineup lately, while the results haven’t been kind to Connor Murphy or Shakir Mukhamadullin. Josi would instantly change the conversation on the back end.
A move like that could also reshape the entire defensive structure. If Edmonton somehow landed Josi and moved Walman out, the blue line could take on a look like this:
Shea - Bouchard
Josi - Ekholm
Mukhamadullin-Murphy
That setup would move Ekholm to the right side, something he has done before, including during his time with Josi in Nashville. It would also let Shea step into a bigger role beside Bouchard and give Edmonton a top four that would be hard to match around the league.
It would also likely mean fewer minutes and softer matchups for Murphy, which could help him settle in.
The problem, as always, is the price. Edmonton doesn’t have a deep stash of appealing trade chips, especially if Nashville is looking for a major return on a player of Josi’s stature. The prospect pool is thin, and there aren’t many obvious roster pieces the Oilers can move for that kind of haul.
A deal would likely have to include Isaac Howard or Matt Savoie, plus a mix of high draft picks and additional prospects such as Damian Carfagna, Quinn Hutson, or even Connor Clattenburg.
And then there’s Walman’s contract, which would have to be moved as part of the salary math. That’s no small task. He’s in the first season of a seven-year deal carrying a $7-million cap hit.
So while the idea is floating around, and while Edmonton has already shown it can make a major Nashville trade work, this one would be much harder to stitch together. Stauffer’s point stands: it’s tough to see exactly how the pieces fit right now.
Still, if the Predators and Oilers keep circling each other, Bowman and Nashville GM Chris MacFarland may eventually have to find out.
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