It’s time for another round of NHL rumours. We’re just a few days away from the March 7 trade deadline later this week. General managers across the league have some tough choices to make when it comes to their rosters. Teams are tinkering and hoping to find the winning formula. We’ve already seen some big deals, but we could see some more. One team that’s hoping to make a deep Stanley Cup Playoff run is the Edmonton Oilers. This edition of NHL rumours deals with one player that could be moved.
All NHL rumours come from the original source and are subject to change.
NHL Rumours
Edmonton Oilers Might Move Veteran Forward
Rumour: Sportsnet’s Mark Spector speculated on the future of forward Evander Kane with the team. Kane’s full no-trade clause has expired and he has a 16-team no-trade list.
With Evander Kane having submitted his 16-team no trade list, Bowman is canvassing the other 15 GMs – as he does his Deadline diligence- to see if a fit exists.
Moving Kane’s $5.125 M gets EDM out of LTIR and frees that cap space.— Mark Spector
(@SportsnetSpec) March 2, 2025
Analysis: Kane is currently on long-term injured reserve at has a $5.125 million cap hit. According to Spector, Oilers General Manager Stan Bowman has been canvasing the other 15 general managers across the league. Bowman is trying to look for a fit for Kane as he does his due diligence at the trade deadline.
Kane has been out for a while and his cap hit has been on LITR. However, moving Kane’s contract would get him out from that cap hit for this season and next. The veteran does have some control on where he wants to go. However, Bowman does have some latitude on where to move the veteran forward.
Edmonton would like to shore up some parts of their lineup as it tries to finally get over the hump. The Oilers would like to move Kane’s cap hit so they can be aggressive in the trade market. Plans of what the Oilers may do at the deadline have been discussed in previous editions of NHL rumours. Edmonton has been seeking some depth on both the offensive and defensive end. Moving Kane’s salary out would give Bowman some runway.
What It Means
Kane is trying to rehab from a pair of surgeries and there’s still uncertainty on if he’ll play during the regular season. However, Bowman and the Oilers are trying to get some clarity regarding his situation. He hasn’t played since last year’s Stanley Cup Final and it’s a tall order to ask him to jump onto a contender and contribute right away.
If Kane does play before the end of the regular season, they’ll have to find a way to fit his cap hit onto the roster. The plan could be to see how he feels come post-season time and go from there. However, players that do this usually get scorn across the league.
All of this chatter could be smoke and Kane ends up staying put. However, it doesn’t hurt that the Oilers are doing their homework. It seems like a number of players are having trouble living up to last season’s performances. Only Leon Draisaitl and Darnell Nurse have seemingly stepped up this season.
Moving Kane at the deadline could allow the Oilers to inject some freshness into the lineup. However, making a move could be a tough task.
Main photo by: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images
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