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Lazy Links: Thursday, August 13

Looking at 2020 Draft approaches, 31 Thoughts, Puljujarvi deal not so close? PLUS: Edmonton bubble updates, Athanasiou’s future, more from Holland’s media avail, and MORE!

By flarwick

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Edmonton Oilers v New York Islanders Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

Morning, folks!

Well, for those of you in my timezone at least. Afternoon to the rest! Sorry for the delay this morning. I’m trying to ease myself back into off-season form after a very, very, too brief ramp up into something resembling mid-season shape.

My body can’t handle that kind of back and forth. I’m not Christian Bale. Luckily, it’ll be at least a few months before the Oilers play another meaningful game of hockey, so I should be able to recover in time.

Word on the street is that Jesse Puljujarvi and the Oilers aren’t as close to getting a deal done as perhaps we thought last week. Elliotte Friedman suggested that the Oilers might have even offered him a deal already that they felt was real close, but that Puljujarvi isn’t there yet. I suppose this was always going to be a waiting game, but I’d hoped for a bit more encouraging news on this front.

A bit of a debate sparked in the comments yesterday pertaining to next year’s Oilers and the salary cap. Both CapFriendly and PuckPedia put the Oilers at ~$10MM in space for next season with just over $71MM in commitments. As some have noted, there are ways to be creative with cap space and compliancy, but it will take some research — on my part at least — to really understand the ins and outs. It’s not like we have any examples of cap creativity to pull from here in Edmonton. This has been a foreign concept for Oilers management for going on 15 years.

Now, whether I actually do that research?

Wednesday Morning Gambling Preview (Copper and Blue)

Hot Links: Wednesday, August 12 (Copper and Blue)

Reviewing the Oilers performance against Chicago (Copper and Blue)

Are Oilers, Jesse Puljujarvi Further Away Than We Think? (Oilers Rig)

Left Wing Unlocked (Lowetide)

9 Biggest Playoff Upsets...In 90 Seconds (CBC)

31 Thoughts Podcast: Where Do The Maple Leafs Go From Here? (Sportsnet)

The Blame Game (Oilersnation)

Edmonton NHL Bubble Remains COVID Free (Oilersnation)

Is Andreas Athanasiou In Ken Holland’s Future Plans? (Oilers Rig)

Ken Holland Opens Up About Oilers Bitter Defeat (Oilers Rig)

So What? (Lowetide)

Lowetide: A Rational Approach For The Oilers At The 2020 Draft (Athletic)

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