Don’t forget about Klefbom. He may be back.

That's why I left enough cap room in case he returns

You left 3.6M his contract is 4.1M. You are short about 500K. Giving Raanta 3-3.5M would give you the money you need!

I dislike the idea of trading high picks to move Neal for a few reasons: (a) he's a decent player (4th in G/GP and 5th for P/GP among Oilers forwards since he joined the team), (b) he can be bought out with just a $1.9M cap hit (you have $3.6M in cap space, so eminently doable), and (c) the 2022 draft is shaping up to be the best one since probably 2005.

He may not be worth $5.75M today, but he's still an NHL player and a valuable part of the team. And he isn't stopping the Oilers from shopping in the expensive aisles come UFA day.

Exactly. If you dont want him on your team, buy him out. Dont trade valuable picks to get rid of him in a cap era. We are finally starting to build a nest egg and you are really stopping it here with those picks getting traded.

Agreed, and there's no reason not to want him on the team. I'm 99% sure Holland doesn't buyout Neal this summer. He adds value to the team.

He is great in the playoffs too