Towering 30-goal scorer acquired by the Edmonton Oilers in major move: that's a big rumor

Alex Tuch is drawing interest from the Edmonton Oilers as he heads toward free agency on July 1, with insider David Pagnotta flagging the Oilers as a potential fit on Thursday.

Pagnotta, writing for Fourth Period, noted that teams closer to winning could enter the picture for Tuch on a shorter-term deal.

He mentioned Edmonton specifically, adding "if they can move some things around" as the key condition.

That caveat matters. The Oilers finished the regular season 41-30-11 and ranked 14th overall, with a cap structure that has very little flex at the top.

McDavid at $12.5 million, Draisaitl at $14 million, and Evan Bouchard at $10.5 million eat up the headroom fast.

Darnell Nurse at $9.25 million remains the other elephant in the room. Moving things around is easier said than done.

Tuch posted no points in his last 5 playoff games

And here is the uncomfortable part for Buffalo. Tuch had a strong regular season, 66 points in 79 games with a +24 rating and 3 shorthanded goals.

But the playoffs told a different story. He went held scoreless over his last 5 games of the postseason, going minus-4 during that stretch.

That is 0 points and a -4 rating when the Sabres needed production the most.

He finished the playoffs with 7 points in 13 games. Decent, not dominant. Certainly not the performance that commands a premium on an open market.

The Sabres finished the regular season 50-23-9, the fourth-best record in the league. Buffalo went 2-0 against Edmonton this season, winning 5-1 at home in November and taking a 4-3 overtime decision on the road in December.

Tuch, 30, carries a $4.75 million cap hit in what was his walk year. He scored 33 goals this season, including 7 on the power play.

For Edmonton, the appeal is obvious. He is a 200-foot winger, wins battles, and brings a shorthanded threat. He is the kind of player Stan Bowman would love to add to McDavid's supporting cast.

But the fit is only clean if the Oilers can shed salary first. That is the actual story here. Not whether Tuch would help, he would, but whether Edmonton can manufacture the cap room to make it work before another team beats them to the table.

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The July 1 market moves fast. Edmonton's offseason may depend on how quickly they solve the math.

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