Insider confirms the Edmonton Oilers almost traded Leon Draisaitl for Nikita Kucherov
Photo credit: Oilers Nation
Breaking news in Oil Country as NHL insider Jeff Marek just sent shockwaves down the NHL, reporting that the Edmonton Oilers and Tampa nearly completed a transaction regarding Leon Draisaitl and Nikita Kucherov.
It's no secret that superstar Leon Draisaitl is one of the cornerstones of the Edmonton Oilers organization, and the thought of him not being part of the team is unthinkable.
Well, Jeff Marek reported today that back in 2019, the Edmonton Oilers almost made trade that rivalled the Wayne Gretzky transaction back in 1988.
«I've had this confirmed - there were conversations between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Edmonton Oilers and the two primaries changing were Nikita Kucherov for Leon Draisatil. That was the conversation I'm not sure how close they got.»
-Jeff Marek
-Jeff Marek
As per the Hockey News, Kucherov was coming off a monster season: 41 goals and 128 points, the first 120-point season since Sidney Crosby in 2006-07. Kucherov obviously won the Hart and Art Ross Trophies, leading the Lightning to one of the greatest regular seasons of all time.
Draisaitl was coming off his own breakout season, topping 50 goals and 100 points for the first time on an Oilers team that finished with the league's seventh-worst record. Draisaitl would of course go on to win the Hart and Art Ross the very next year.
The Oilers pushed a hard bargain, though, as Marek also shared that they wanted 21-year-old Anthony Cirelli in the deal. Cirelli had just finished his first full NHL season and already looked like a potential star in the making as a talented young two-way centre.
-Finn Marceau
-Finn Marceau
According to Jeff Marek, having Anthony Cirelli thrown into the mix was enough to kill any chances of a deal getting done.
Personally i'm glad the trade never went down, and Leon Draisaitl is exactly where he belongs -- in the City of Champions.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 17 | 376 ANSWERS Insider confirms the Edmonton Oilers almost traded Leon Draisaitl for Nikita Kucherov Are you glad the Edmonton Oilers didn't trade Leon Draisaitl? | ||
| Yes | 358 | 95.2 % |
| No | 18 | 4.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
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