They'll call Holloway up before pissing away riches on Montreal's replacement-level players.

I don't hate the idea of acquiring Nick Paul but I hate the price. I'd prefer to just sign him in the summer.

Replacement level lol

First off, you wont get value at the TDL. Everyone knows Chiarot is going for that return. Byron is a very useful player and Montreal turnaround actually coincides with not just St Louis but Byron coming back from injury, he's a leader on that team. Oilers desperately need players like him that care and play hard with pace. The price will actually be higher than this. Lavoie is a middling prospect with bottom 6 at best upside.

Nick Paul is in HUGE demand. That is the price. If the OIlers dont pay it then another team will thus the term supply and demand.

This is the all in year. Time to copy the LA Rams model and give up picks while you can! Oilers have had picks for15 years and done nada!

I think if there’s a bidding war that could be the price. But his value is probably a 2nd and a 4th right now

Any value Chiarot has comes from seasons past: he's been abysmal this season. If Edmonton is spending a 1st round selection on a defensemen, I'm preferential to either a name that can reliably be pencilled into the top-4 or one with term. Preferably both: this team will improve by miles if they can bring in a player that can reduce the load on Keith. If Chiarot must be the target, I balk at anything over Lavoie and a 2nd. I'm perfectly fine with some other team having to endure buyer's remorse when it comes to Chiarot. Admittedly, I'd prioritize De Haan as a rental over Chiarot.

Byron doesn't have trade value at all. If Edmonton's acquiring him it cannot be without Kassian going the other way. The salary cap must be managed properly: taking back another boat anchor for the bottom six will have consequences unless we can unload the one we already have.

I don't disagree that some team will pay in that realm for Paul, I just think that the Oilers' assets need to be prioritized on the back end before we add another bottom-six forward. If Paul can be pursued in the summer, I'd happily bring him in for what Turris makes today.

Oilers will have to include a pick with Koskinen in order for Dallas to say yes.

Lavoie is turning things around in the minors this year and is now on fire. Koskinen is as good as Holtby at this point. If you’re going to use all those high draft picks you can get better return from a number of teams.

Byron is not a full time C option. It reduces his ability to use his speed, which is his strongest weapon. His size and faceoffs are about his only weaknesses. Putting him at center amplifies both.
Fine in a crunch, not something to do regularly.

No. Holtby value's alone because of the playoffs history is much higher and then there's the salary.

Lavoie by every metric is a marginal prospect. This is the same song and dance i heard about Tyler Benson and Caleb Jones. None move the needle. This isnt Dylan Holloway so slow down your horses talking about what Lavoie is doing vs weak competition.

This is a pinch. RNH hopefully can be back for the playoffs. They just need a placeholder to make the dance! No one is giving up a versatile player like Byron for cheap except scorched earth teams like Zona and Montreal. Holland needs to actually do something, anything t this point. McDavid wont keep putting up with this after the Eichel situation laid the ground work for a disgruntled superstar

Nick Paul is the poster boy of a player who is worth more than his stats line. He's the perfect bottom-6 player with strength, versatility, determination and various skills.

That return would be satisfying but at the same time it would hurt to see him go. Really the type you want ON your team.

If Anaheim isn't in the playoff picture and can't re-sign Hampus Lindholm by the trade deadline, that package looks an awful lot like a package that would get him. I don't think that choice would be close.

On the other hand, if the justification for making this deal is the immediate problem of losing Nugent-Hopkins until the playoffs, there are much better #3C possibilities than Byron from Eastern teams who would probably be available now. Surely the two Pennsylvania teams, for example, would be interested in talking to Edmonton (for different reasons).

After seeing what the Foegele-McLeod-Ryan line has done to the Panthers this morning, I'm not personally worried about needing to find a full-time replacement for RNH. The Oilers' needs remain on the back end.

And you raise a very shrewd point regarding Lindholm - arguably the best defencemen on the market - in contrast to how brutally overvalued Chiarot has been by Habs fans. This package is enough to keep Edmonton on the phone with the Ducks for a far superior player and not needing to take back a bum contract. The value presented above by the original poster is absurd.

It's a pinch when you don't have any better center options. You do. Byron at center exposes his weakness and limits his strengths, the opposite of what you want from a center.

Now if you want to suggest Byron as a complement on the wing to make one of your centers/lines (and PK) more reliable, THAT is a good idea AND makes sense.

Byron 50% retained for a 3rd will improve your bottom 6 and PK, and on more than a temporary basis. You can include Turris for cap. (Practically $0 difference this year only.)