Hot Links: Friday, July 26

Good morning, and happy Friday!

What a time to be alive. We’re a short workday away from the weekend, and the excitement is palpable.

Oil Country is still flying relatively high after the Milan Lucic / James Neal swap, and rightfully so.

That said, the roster as it stands today is not without it’s obvious problems. Check these projected lineups, courtesy DailyFaceoff with ratings by Corsica:

Some things to remember: Jesse Puljujarvi still doesn’t have an NHL deal for next season, so it’s entirely likely someone like Gaetan Haas slots in there instead.

Something to ponder: what the hell happened to Adam Larsson last season, and can he recover to the point they desperately need him to? For me, it looked like he was dealing with a back problem most of last year. He couldn’t move. Hopefully for his sake that clears up, because back problems are the worst. Hopefully for our sake he does, too. The Oilers require it.

Otherwise? Not much happening. Another summer day. It’s gorgeous outside though, so maybe go play a few golfing holes. See you next week.

From Us

Yesterday. (Copper and Blue)

Jeff tries to predict James Neal’s offensive output for 2019-20. (Copper and Blue)

From Elsewhere

Lowetide on measuring draft performance. (Lowetide)

Gregor looks at a trend in the NHL. (Oilersnation)

The best explanation I’ve found as to why the Maple Leafs acquired David Clarkson. Not Oilers related per se, but worth a look if you’re interested in LTIR machinations. (Leafsnation)

For Money

What might the roster look like after Ken Holland’s slow and steady rebuild has time to take? (The Athletic)

Might the stars be aligning for Joel Persson to win an NHL job out of camp this fall? (The Athletic)