When it was announced that Ken Holland would speak with the media after practice on Thursday, fans collectively held their breath expecting the worst. Was this going to be an update on Connor McDavid, telling us he would be out another month?

Luckily this was not the case and the whole press conference was a team update prior to the trade deadline. No bombshells were dropped but there were a few details of note. Here's what we learned.

Connor McDavid Is Back.... Soon

As the press conference began, Connor McDavid was out on the ice and took part in the full practice with his teammates. #97 was looking like his regular self during drills and didn't seem to look any worse for wear. Many were worried that "quad injury" was code for knee but it does look like the two are completely unrelated.

Holland stated that McDavid would join the team on the California road-trip that sees Edmonton play against the Kings, Ducks, and Golden Knights but didn't guarantee that he would play. If I were a betting man, I would guess if McDavid does play, it will be the last game against the Golden Knights.

That would mean Connor misses a total of 8 games because of this injury. So far the team has gone 3-1-1 without their captain, playing against the best that the East has to offer. Meanwhile the next three games sees Edmonton playing against three of the worst the West has to offer, with the Wild, Ducks, and Kings all well below Edmonton in the standings. Should the Oilers win two of those three games and go 5-2-1 with McDavid in the lineup; that would reflect well upon this team.

UPDATE

As I was writing this, Tippett did say that McDavid wasn't ruled out yet for tomorrow's home game against the Wild.

Holland Is Going To Make A Deal....Probably....Maybe

Of course the main question on every reporters lips was whether or not we should expect any sort of moves going into the Deadline on Monday. In point form here are the main bits:

- Holland has already spoken to 15-20 teams regarding certain players
- The first round pick is off the table for a rental
- The cap is a major issue to navigate right now for the team
- Holland isn't focusing specifically on a winger or centre and is looking at availability and price

None of these things should come as a surprise to anyone. Trading the first round pick for a player that will be gone in a few months makes no sense for the Oilers at this point. Edmonton has done well this season but there isn't a single player available right now that it makes sense to drop a pick like that on.

Cap space is the biggest handcuff for Edmonton right now. Prior to the recent string of injuries the Oilers were close to the cap. Because none of Edmonton's currently injured players are on LTIR, the Oilers receive no cap relief. Combine that with the players like Benson, Lagesson, and Bouchard who have been called up and now count towards the cap and Holland is in a tough spot.

I don't see any players on the current roster traded at the deadline either. Sam Gagner has been a name that has been mentioned but Tippett likes what he brings and unless he is packaged in a deal that brings a forward like Tatar or Palmieri over I don't see that happening. As much as I would love to see Kris Russell moved, I don't see many teams lining up at the deadline to take on a 4 million dollar third pairing defender currently dealing with concussion issues.

Guys like Tyler Ennis, or Ilya Kovalchuk make the most sense for Edmonton to add. Both are wingers that can slot anywhere in your top 9, have produced this season and cost less than $1,000,000 in cap space. Neither will break the bank to add.

No One Cares about Jesse Puljujarvi

Holland was asked whether or not he had been looking at moving Jesse Puljujarvi at the deadline and he responded that he hadn't specifically done so, nor had any teams inquired about him.

At face value, Puljujarvi's season in the Finnish Elite League looks great, going 19-26-45 through 47 games. Despite that, it appears that NHL scouts and GM's around the league aren't in a rush to add the 21 year old right winger. I applaud Holland for how he has handled Puljujarvi thus far and hasn't solid him for peanuts. This summer, Holland should regroup with Puljujarvi and his agent, explain the situation and convince them both that the best thing for everyone involved is for Puljujarvi to start the 2020/2021 season with the Oilers.

This And That

- Holland updated the status of James Neal to likely 2-3 weeks away. How great would it be for Neal to score 20 goals and the Oilers avoid giving up an extra third round pick to the Flames?

- No update on Kris Russell as he is still dealing with his concussion related symptoms.

- If Holland makes a move it could come right down to the wire on Monday. Holland did elaborate and say he would be disappointed if he couldn't add anything to this team.

Overall it wasn't information that we already knew or could interpolate. Regardless, the Oilers currently sit 1st in the Pacific and third in the Western Conference. It feels great to be discussing potential adds rather than the 2020 Draft.

Thanks for reading.

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