NHL free agency rumors: Insiders opines Oilers may join hunt for Brock Boeser

The Edmonton Oilers traded Evander Kane to the Vancouver Canucks, freeing up $5.125 million cap space. They have been reported to deal away Viktor Arvidsson, emptying a further $4 million.

They are also looking to extend D-man Evan Bouchard and captain and icon Connor McDavid and have pending free agents like Trent Frederic and Corey Perry left to be signed.

Meanwhile, The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta reported that the team might be interested in Brock Boeser. The winger was one of the key pieces in the Canucks core, which led them to contention during the 2023-24 season.

He scored 73 points that season. However, he had a major dip in production, with just 50 points and a team-worst -25 plus-minus rating in the last regular season.

"If the Edmonton Oilers clear more cap space, I wouldn’t be shocked if they entered the Brock Boeser race come July 1," Pagnotta wrote.

The Canucks and Boeser's camp had negotiations throughout the season, with the team making it one of their priorities to go ahead and sign him. That didn't materialize, though, and Vancouver had to let him head to free agency. Boeser's camp had asked for a eight-year $8 million annual average value contract, which was rejected by the Canucks management.

Oilers signing Boeser would increase their depth, which suffered greatly during the Stanley Cup Finals against the Florida Panthers. Production was low behind Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, so Boeser could be a solid replacement for Evander Kane in the top six.

Canucks analyst reasons team going for Connor Garland instead of Brock Boeser

Both term and money were issues between the Canucks and Boeser during their negotiations, as reported.

However, the Canucks are reportedly looking to sign young forward Connor Garland to a six-year $36 million contract, increasing his annual average slightly from $4.9 million to $6 million.

That seems to be within the team's reach, while the ask by Boeser was a bit too much for them to act on, as per Rick Dhaliwal, Canucks insider.

"Because Brock’s not looking for six times six. Brock is looking for eight times eight. That’s the massive difference. The Canucks don’t want to do that. Brock is looking for eight times eight, and they’re not going to do that. I’m sorry. They’re just not going to do it," Dhaliwal said (1:10).

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It remains to be seen how Boeser's free agency unfolds. In 554 games, the 28-year-old has 434 points - 204 goals and 230 assits.

About the author

Nikhil Parshy is a baseball and ice hockey journalist at Sportskeeda, and after starting out as a cricket reporter, he has been an analyst with SK since November 2022. His interest in the sports were piqued a few years back after watching highlights on YouTube and he has followed the game ever since.

The Chicago Cubs breaking the 108-year curse in 2016 to lift the World Series remains Nikhil's favorite baseball moment. Two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani has been his favorite player ever since he started following the game, while the LA Dodgers are his favorite team.

As a writer, Nikhil maintains a strong attention to detail and rigorously cross-checks information. He seeks to strike a balance in his writing such that the regular reader gains an insight into player profiles, while also keeping in mind that the non-regular reader is not put off by jargon and shallow analysis.

Nikhil is an avid public speaker, and when not writing about baseball, he regularly participates in debates and quizzes.

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Edited by Bhargav