Reporter identifies two veteran UFA forwards who could be Oilers next season

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Mike Armenti
July 25, 2023 (1:59 PM)

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With just $5.6M in available cap space and two RFAs left to sign, the Edmonton Oilers may be forced to go bargain shopping to complete their roster this summer.

The flat cap has created problems for many teams around the league, but the Oilers have been hit especially hard. Now, with RFA defenseman Evan Bouchard and RFA center Ryan McLeod in need of new deals, there's a good chance that the Oilers will spend most or all of their remaining cap space on their contracts. There's also the near $2M in dead cap space from James Neal's buyout to contend with.

With all of this in mind, there's a good chance that the Oilers look to make some changes this summer and could look to replace a player or two on their roster with a cheaper veteran UFA signing. Allan Mitchell of The Athletic has suggested two depth options that the Oilers could add to their forward group - Paul Stastny and Tomas Tatar.

Stastny, 37, finished last season with 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 73 games. His best days may be long behind him, but as a former top six guy with a lot of experience against top competition over the years, his veteran leadership could be very useful in the Oilers' bottom six.

Tomas Tatar, 32, put up 20 goals last season for the sixth time in his NHL career, tallying 48 points in 82 games. Tatar's options seemed to be pretty limited at the moment and as the summer drags on, it's possibly that he's willing to accept less to join a contending team. He's a player who can play in either the top six or the bottom six and is just a few seasons removed from a 61-point campaign. For the Oilers to be interested, though, Tatar would have to be willing to take a lot less than the $4.5M he earned last season in New Jersey.