I have been a fan of Silfverberg's game for a few years now, and since the Oilers traded Jordan Eberle, I have always felt he could be a solid replacement. As always Sean Tierney does an excellent job of making stats palatable, so take a look at this graph below:
Now two spots are going to jump out immediately at people; his goals/60 at 5 on 5 as well as his Rel CF%. This season Silfverberg has not had a positive impact on his teammates, and their production increases when he is not on the ice. However, the prior two seasons paint a different picture. Silfverberg has never been a brilliant scorer, but he is a responsible defensive player and over his career when he is on the ice, the scoring chances against the Ducks goes down. Something is rotten in the state of Anaheim and production is down across the board for the team; that is something I would not pin on Jakob.
One area that Silfverberg would assist in, is an area Edmonton desperately needs help in; shots on goal. Last year Silfverberg's 187 shots would have ranked 5th on the team, ahead of Ryan Nugent Hopkins. The year before that, his 227 shots would have been second only to Connor McDavid. This season, despite all of Anaheim's scoring deficiencies, Silfverberg is still on pace for 180 shots, which would likely put him fifth in Edmonton.
Silfverberg is a top 6 forward that regularly plays against other teams top players, while still managing to produce points at a solid pace. Does that sound like any player on the Oilers we know? If you guessed Ryan Nugent Hopkins, you would be correct.
The Calgary Flames have had their 3M line causing the opposition grief for a couple of years now, controlling the game defensively while producing their fair share of chances. A duo of RNH and Silfverberg could help put the Oilers well on their way to having a shutdown, scoring line of their own. Next season the top 6 could look something like this:
Draisaitl-McDavid-Chiasson
Khaira-RNH-Silfverberg
Whether or not Chiasson or Khaira should be in those spots can be a conversation for another day. With Draisaitl and McDavid patrolling the top line as an elite offensive duo, and RNH and Silfverberg shouldering the defensive duties while still scoring at a top 6 pace, the Oilers would have two lines with unique identities producing at a top 6 level.
What would Silfverberg cost? He is currently on the last year of a deal which pays him 3.75 million and will be a UFA at the end of this season. This season because of the Ducks worse than usual scoring issues, Silfverberg has 19 points in 42 games. For the Oilers, timing will be everything. The Ducks will not trade Silfverberg for only picks if they still believe themselves to be in the hunt, but as their playoff chances become slimmer they will become more inclined to gain something of value.
Here is what I will propose, Joseph Gambardella, a 25 year old forward who is an RFA at the end of this season and is 12-9-21 in 29GP with the Condors this season, plus a third round pick which becomes a second if Silfverberg resigns in exchange for the Ducks winger.
What do the rest of you think? Is Silfverberg a good fit for this team, and if so what would you offer for him?
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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