Canadian Team Reportedly Targeting Chicago Blackhawks Defenseman
have reportedly made one of their defensemen available on the trade market, and a Canadian team has been linked to him.
This Canadian team's trade deadline need is the same as it was on opening night: a dependable right-shot defenseman to pair with Darnell Nurse.
The Oilers need more depth on defence
Though Troy Stecher and John Klingberg have been good in that spot, if the Oilers are going to make another deep playoff push, they require a more established solution.
Connor Murphy is an Oilers target
The Chicago Blackhawks aren't filled with perfect candidates, but several names do jump out, none more so than Connor Murphy.
Freshly ranked No. 14 on Frank Seravalli's Trade Targets list, the 31-year-old Blackhawks defenseman has played more than 700 NHL games.
He was initially picked up by current Oilers GM Stan Bowman in the deal that dispatched Niklas Hjalmarsson to Arizona.
Murphy has 13 points in 40 games this season while playing an important role on Chicago's 10th-ranked penalty kill and logging 20+ minutes per night.
His bargain contract with term value would be appealing for Edmonton, but the trade would likely include other depth assets, much like last year's Adam Henrique trade.
If the Oilers trade a first-round pick for Murphy, they might try to get additional depth in the deal.
Chicago does not have a lot of perfect pending UFAs to fill Edmonton's bottom-six requirements, but Ryan Donato, who has matched his career high with 16 goals, might work.
Edmonton for the time being might give Klingberg more time or wait for the market to evolve, but Murphy is a priority target.
| POLL | ||
FÉVRIER 7 | 225 ANSWERS Canadian Team Reportedly Targeting Chicago Blackhawks Defenseman Should the Oilers trade for Connor Murphy? | ||
| Yes | 116 | 51.6 % |
| No | 109 | 48.4 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Rasmus Dahlin | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Pontus Holmberg | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Robert Thomas | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Tage Thompson | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Pavel Buchnevich | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Sean Couturier | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Drew Doughty | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Matvei Michkov | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Zachary Werenski | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Jason Zucker | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Jakob Chychrun | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Barrett Hayton | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Jack Hughes | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Kent Johnson | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Ryan McLeod | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Owen Tippett | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Gabriel Vilardi | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Matthew Boldy | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Leo Carlsson | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 56 | 39 | 14 | 3 | 81 | |
Capitals | 55 | 36 | 11 | 8 | 80 | |
Oilers | 55 | 34 | 17 | 4 | 72 | |
Stars | 55 | 35 | 18 | 2 | 72 | |
Golden Knights | 56 | 33 | 17 | 6 | 72 | |
Panthers | 57 | 34 | 20 | 3 | 71 | |
Hurricanes | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Wild | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Maple Leafs | 55 | 33 | 20 | 2 | 68 | |
Avalanche | 57 | 33 | 22 | 2 | 68 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||