With just over four weeks remaining until the NHL’s March 3 Trade Deadline, we’ve got you covered every day at Daily Faceoff with at least one trade-focused story leading up to Deadline Day.

Today we’re going to focus on Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Puljujarvi, who is ranked No. 16 on our most recent Trade Targets board.

 

JESSE PULJUJARVI
Right Wing, Edmonton Oilers
Shoots: Right
Age: 24
Height: 6’4″ | Weight: 201 lbs.
Cap Hit: $3 million
Term: Pending RFA, due $3 million qualifying offer
Trade Clauses: No restrictions
Stats: 49 GP, 4 goals, 6 assists, 10 points, 12:35 avg TOI
Career: 6th season (all with Edmonton), 308 GP, 50 goals, 108 points, 13:45 avg TOI

NHL

Oilers Should Trade Cody Ceci Rather Than Tyson Barrie

 

Archetype and Ideal Role

Forechecker. Third line.

When his confidence is intact, Puljujarvi can provide secondary scoring, be an effective forechecker and add to a team’s overall speed. But the 2016 No. 4 overall pick is a reclamation project, his confidence appears shattered, and it will require time, teaching and patience to rehabilitate him into a useful player again.

Scouting Report

Something clicked at the beginning of last season. Puljujarvi built on a productive pandemic-shortened season in 2020-21 and was shot out of a cannon in 2021-22. He notched 23 points in 28 games, including 10 goals, and was a positive contributor to an Edmonton team that could desperately use a secondary scoring punch. He was playing 17 minutes a night, sometimes with the best players in the world, and Ken Holland’s work to convince him to return to Edmonton after a full season back in Finland seemed to be paying off.