With the calendar flipped to April, the end of the NHL's regular season and the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs are fast approaching.
The media rumor mill may be churning slower after the trade deadline, but it is still turning out speculation regarding possible offseason moves. We can expect this chatter to increase in the coming weeks regarding the 16 clubs that failed to qualify for the postseason and those that are eliminated from the playoffs.
Some of the current talk involves possible moves by non-contenders such as the Columbus Blue Jackets. Other speculation involves clubs headed into the playoffs such as the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Which of these trade and free-agent rumors will pass our BS meter?
Will the Buffalo Sabres Shop for a Goaltender?
Playing meaningful hockey in April for the first time in years, the Buffalo Sabres improved considerably this season thanks to a goals-per-game average (3.55) that sits third-best among all NHL clubs. However, they're poised to miss the playoffs for the 12th consecutive season because their 3.62 goals-against per game is the seventh-worst.
Goaltending was the Sabres' Achilles heel. On March 23, The Athletic's Matthew Fairburn suggested they seek a veteran netminder on a short-term contract in the offseason to replace 41-year-old Craig Anderson.
The Sabres have a promising young goalie in Devon Levi, who got the start in two recent games. Assuming Levi's part of their tandem next season, Fairburn believes he'd benefit from having a more experienced partner to mentor him.
Eric Comrie and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen have also shared the goalie duties with Anderson, who could retire following this season. Neither one, however, has shown sufficient consistency to handle the starter's job. Fairburn believes going into next season with those two as the Sabres tandem means a repeat of this season's issues between the pipes.
BS Meter: Not BS
Levi and Luukkonen have potential as starters, while Comrie seems best suited for backup duty. Nevertheless, the Sabres need a more experienced goaltender still in his prime to become serious playoff contenders next season. Expect them to shop for help via trade or free agency this summer, with Comrie or perhaps Luukkonen becoming a trade candidate.
Could the Edmonton Oilers Make Some Cost-Cutting Moves?
Salary-cap space was an issue for the Edmonton Oilers throughout this season, and they sit with a projected cap hit of $90.9 million. If not for placing the combined annual average salaries of Oscar Klefbom, Mike Smith and Ryan Murray on long-term injured reserve, they would've had little cap flexibility.
Oilers general manager Ken Holland still had to ship out Jesse Puljujärvi to the Carolina Hurricanes to make room for their acquisition of Mattias Ekholm from the Nashville Predators before the trade deadline. That deal also involved sending Tyson Barrie to Nashville with the Predators retaining $250,000 of Ekholm's $6.25 million average annual salary.
Oilers defenseman Evan Bouchard and forwards Klim Kostin and Ryan McLeod will be restricted free agents seeking raises this summer. With just $8.5 million in projected cap space for 2023-24 and 15 roster players under contract, Holland could end up shedding more salary in the offseason.
Last week, The Athletic's Allan Mitchell noted the Oilers' need to re-sign those restricted free agents. He speculated they could shuffle out a winger such as Warren Foegele or Kailer Yamamoto. Mitchell also suggested a defenseman such as Cody Ceci or Brett Kulak could be shopped to clear cap space.
BS Meter: It's not BS
Ceci's annual cap hit is $3.25 million through 2024-25, while Kulak's is $2.75 million through 2025-26. Yamamoto will be a restricted free agent after next season and carries a $3.1 million cap hit while Foegele ($2.75 million) will be an unrestricted free agent after next season. At least one of them could be on the move to clear cap space to sign this summer's RFAs.
Could the Edmonton Oilers Make Some Cost-Cutting Moves?