When a player asks for trades, it’s only natural that said players starts popping up in all sorts of rumors. This is just one of many out there:
Now, I’m not saying that the Oilers have no interest in Jake DeBrusk or that the Bruins and Oilers aren’t having a discussion. But if you read that tweet, it comes down to DeBrusk plus another asset to the Oilers and in return the Oilers send Kailer Yamamoto to Boston.
There is nothing to suggest that there is any more to the trade than that. Maybe it is poorly worded and there is, but the only information we have is what is in those tweets.
And here is why it wouldn’t work:
The Oilers have just $920,833 in LTIR space (Thanks to the fine folks at CapFriendly) and that is with just a 20-man roster. There is no room for maneuverability in the event of an injury. Jake DeBrusk has an AAV of $3,675,000 while Yamamoto has an AAV of $1,175,000. That’s a difference of $2,500,000. Simply put, it doesn’t fit into the Oilers cap situation.
And the Bruins are adding? Well, if they are, that add will have to be in the form of a draft pick or someone in the AHL that the Oilers can send to the Bakersfield Condors, their AHL affiliate. But either way, the Oilers still would not be able to fit DeBrusk in under their current cap situation.
In his article https://insidetherink.com/trade-rumors-bruins-in-talks-with-oilers-on-debrusk-yamamoto-trade/, he suggests DeBrusk plus a third round pick for Yamamoto. What’s lacking? How to make that work under the cap.
As for the Bruins, Yamamoto doesn’t fill a need – someone who can put the puck in the net, and at 5’8” and 153 pounds, doesn’t bring some much-needed toughness.
As I said earlier, I am not denying there are talks between Don Sweeney and Ken Holland, but this one doesn’t make sense for either party.
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Dom - Hockey 