Jesse Puljujarvi softens stance on possible return to Edmonton

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TJ Tucker
June 12, 2020 (8:10)

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When Jesse Puljujarvi initially left the Edmonton Oilers to return to his home country of Finland to play hockey, he made it very clear he had no interest in returning to the team. The ultimatum was given through his agent: trade me or I'll stay in Finland until you do. However, it appears that stance is softening.

Puljujarvi, drafted fourth overall by Edmonton in 2016, was just interviewed by a media outlet in his home country. During the interview, he was asked about a possible return to the Oilers. His response was "never say never.

Interestingly enough, Puljujarvi initially did say never. Here's what Oilers GM Ken Holland had to say on the matter back in February near the trade deadline.

"...Jesse and his agent have made it very clear to me last summer that he didn't want to play for the Oilers. So, I'm going to proceed along that way. So No. 2 is, do you trade him at the draft in June? That would be hockey trade versus a rental trade."

Puljujarvi seems to be having a change of heart for some reason after spending the last year in Liiga. He managed to put up 53 points, including 24 goals, in 56 games with Karpat.

While Puljujarvi's numbers in Finland were good, there's no question his trade value would be increased by playing and doing well in the NHL. That said, the Oilers seem more than content with letting him stay in Europe until they receive what they consider a fair value in a trade.

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