Connor Hellebuyck wants out of Winnipeg, and Stan Bowman should be doing everything possible to get him to Edmonton.
Hellebuyck, the 2025 Hart Trophy winner, has made his intentions clear this summer.
Plenty of people assume he'll simply follow Quinn Hughes and Brady Tkachuk south of the border, but winning could matter more to him than geography.
He did re-sign with Winnipeg back in 2023, a year before he could have tested free agency, which says something about how he weighs his options.
The Oilers could offer him a real shot at the Stanley Cup he's still chasing, but the roadblocks are real too.
Edmonton is tight on cap space, reportedly sitting at just $1.93 million according to PuckPedia.
Tristan Jarry is the obvious salary to move first, carrying $5,375,000 against the cap over two more years after a rough stretch in Edmonton.
Connor Hellebuyck could be one move away from the Oilers
Jarry posted a .882 save percentage across 33 games last season, numbers that make moving him even at a cost feel worthwhile for Bowman.
Clearing Jarry's deal would push Edmonton to roughly $7,300,000 in space, still just short of fitting Hellebuyck's full salary.
Trent Frederic, locked in for seven more years at $3,850,000, isn't realistically going anywhere given that term.
Kasperi Kapanen, who carries a $2,600,000 cap hit and has no trade protection, is a more logical piece to include after a productive 2025 postseason run.
Beyond that, Edmonton has five depth players making between $1,200,000 and $1,750,000, including Shakir Mukhamadullin, Spencer Stastney, Ty Emberson and Colton Dach.
Moving even one or two of them for late picks would help close the remaining cap gap Bowman is staring at.
On the return side, the CBA lets teams trade picks up to seven years out, which gives Edmonton more draft capital to offer than it looks like on paper.
A package built around two first-round picks and a prospect like Matthew Savoie, who posted 37 points in 82 games last season, is the kind of price a goalie like Hellebuyck commands.
It's a steep ask for a team already thin on prospects, but Edmonton didn't get this close to the Stanley Cup by playing it safe with its assets.
Source : How the Oilers could actually pull off a Connor Hellebuyck trade
Should the Oilers give up two first-round picks and Matthew Savoie for Connor Hellebuyck?
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