We now have a lengthy break with the 4 Nations before getting back to our regularly scheduled regular season run. There is no trade freeze during the 4 Nations meaning we could still see a ton of movement over the next couple weeks. With that in mind I wanted to discuss a few names that have been making the rounds.

DONATO

One name being tied to the Oilers by Elliotte Friedman is forward Ryan Donato. The left shot winger has played both sides this season as well as taken a decent amount of draws but being 46% in the dot he is best suited as a winger. Averaging roughly 15 minutes a game, Donato has 19 goals and 37 points in 53 games for the Blackhawks. He is third on that team in points and leads the team in goals. That would rank him 4th in points on the Oilers (RNH having 35 points).

Most impressive with Donato is 17 of his 19 goals have come at even strength, that would rank him second on the Oilers. Draisaitl is a monster this year with 29 EV goals. McDavid in a down year with 71 points in 49 games has only 14 EV goals. The Oilers need at least one more player who can log minutes in their top six who produces and Donato has shown he can play with talented players (Bedard) and produce.

Another notable stat; Donato isn't a big guy (6' 190lbs) but he has 89 hits on the season. The most hits among Oilers forwards is Kapanen with 45 in 32 games followed by Hyman with 37 in 50. There is something to be said that the Hawks are a team that typically doesn't have the puck as much and are going to hit more but there still is a lack of physicality among the Oilers forwards.

As I wrote in my last blog, there aren't a ton of great options that exist in the UFA market. Donato is a solid depth piece that could slot in anywhere in the Oilers top nine and could be a solid complimentary piece next to McDavid or Draisaitl. I think it'd be worth taking a flyer on him.

GIBSON

Most of the Oilers already looked like they were in vacation mode against the Avalanche on Friday but that doesn't change the fact that Stuart Skinner had another brutal first period against a good team that left the Oilers trying to fight their way back for the rest of the game.

I like Skinner. He is a young, drafted and developed goalie that I don't think the Oilers should be giving up on. That being said, if they want to be competing for a Cup this season - they need far more insurance in net than Calvin Pickard. We've talked about Vejmelka if available as an option but Gibson's name continues to be out there.

The 31 year old netminder has had a bit of a resurgence on a still pretty bad Ducks team and has a 0.914SV% That alone makes him worthy of a look.... the issue is that Gibson has two more years on his contract after this season at 6.4 million. If the Ducks are willing to retain half, then his contract looks a bit more doable.

Friedman noted in his last 32 Thoughts podcast that Gibson is looking for a team where he is the defacto starter... something that isn't necessarily the case in Edmonton. If the Oilers can convince him to come and try and win the starter job and if the Oilers can make the cap work, I could see this as a great move for the Oilers to consider.

DOBSON

This is a wild one to me. There have been rumors that the Islanders are considering trading pending RFA defenseman Noah Dobson. The 25 year old defender finished 8th in Norris voting last season with 70 points in 79 games but is having a down year with only 26 points in 46 games. The mobile defender, drafted a few spots beneath Bouchard doesn't have the same offensive instincts but is arguably a better defensive option (though Dobson is a -8 this season).

The only reason I even mention this is because if the Oilers found a way to make this work, a Ekholm-Bouch, Nurse-Dobson, Kulak-Emberson, Klingberg defense core might be the best in the NHL, with a right side in particular that is young with room to improve. I am not going to even discuss a cost right now because I think the Islanders and Lou Lamoriello would be insane to consider moving him... but if they did, this is exactly the type of player that Edmonton should be pursuing and willing to move futures for.

Thanks for reading.

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