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Will song remain the same for Oilers on July 1st? |
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Two sleeps ‘til the bell rings and gates open on the NHL’s 2009 Free Agency.
By the time the four millionth version of O‘Canada has been sung on July 1st, Canada Day, Edmonton Oilers GM Steve Tambellini will either be singing the praises of the team’s newest offensive weapon, or singing the blues for, once again, failing to land a big UFA fish to bolster his club’s anaemic offence.
Speaking on an Edmonton radio station earlier tonight, Tambellini acknowledged he has also since tabled an offer to last season’s team MVP, goaltender Dwayne Roloson.
“He’s earned a right to be a free agent as of July 1, and I respect that.”
The Oilers made a strong, one-year offer to Roli, noted Tambellini. Given the team’s cap space and available UFA netminders, Roloson, for my money, is the player Edmonton should be targeting, especially given their need to free up some cash to potentially attract a top-six forward.
And if Roloson resolves to test free agency, there’s always “B-E-L-F-O-U-R!” I kid you not Oilers faithful. Apparently, “The Eagle”, who spent the 2007-08 season playing in the Swedish league, is ready to fly again. Belfour has been working out feverishly at his Dallas-area home, and is anxious to find a new home in the NHL. Without question, he would certainly be a solid mentor for the Oilers young netminders, JD and Dubnyk. Whether he still has any magic left in the tank remains to be seen.
Tambo also stated young D-man Denis Grebeshkov is still in the team’s plans, but remains unsigned as of Monday night. Sheldon Souray’s name is also surfacing once again in alleged trade talk, with L.A. supposedly being one of the club’s dance partners.
Though Souray might welcome a trade to California to be closer to his young daughter who resides in California with his ex-partner, it’s somewhat confusing given that the Oilers just completed a deal with LA last off-season to acquire stud D-man Visnovsky.
Nonetheless, a swap including RFA Jack Johnson and a gritty forward (see Sportsnet’s Mark Spector) could save the Oilers some scratch (earned $2.1M in 2008-09), which could create enough additional cap room for the team to acquire a top-end UFA forward.
Other talk still has Edmonton in the mix for the Senators’ disgruntled top gun, Dany Heatley, along with the NY Rangers and San Jose.
Whether Tambellini is able to hit the high note on Wednesday, landing the likes of Hossa, Cammalleri, Gaborik or Heater, remains to be seen.
For fans, it’s certainly music to their ears just knowing their team is committed to improving its on-ice fortunes, as evidenced by the decision to turf MacT and two assistants earlier this off-season.
The status quo is seemingly no longer acceptable. We’ll see whether Tambellini’s performance is Wednesday.
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