Oilers acquire F Klim Kostin

The Edmonton Oilers have made a rare October trade.

On Sunday morning the club announced that they had acquired RW Klim Kostin from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for D Dmitri Samorukov.

Kostin appeared in 40 games for the Blues during the 2021/22 season, putting up nine points in that span. He is a former first-round draft pick of the Blues.

He has no doubt struggled early on in his NHL career and a lacklustre training camp seemed to be the final straw for the Blues. Yet, could there be something hidden in Kostin’s game that makes him valuable?

A quick tour over to NaturalStatTrick shows a 4.83GF% (goals-for percentage) and a 46.97 CF% (chances for percentage). These aren't sparkling numbers for the 23-year-old Russian but they aren’t exactly terrible—more mediocre than anything else.

A look at his JFresh card seems to confirm these rates, as he carries a 51% WAR rating.

As for Dmitri Samorukov, he had a pretty decent camp with the Oilers. I thought he showed well against the Vancouver Canucks last week and could have been a decent option to play on the third pairing. Though, it is clear that the club values Philip Broberg and Ryan Murray more in the position. A tough loss, but it gives Samorukov a fresh start somewhere else.

From a money standpoint, Kostin carries a $750,000 cap-hit for the following season, which is $25 thousand less than Samorukov’s $775,000. The move will seemingly allow the Oilers to maximize their LTIR and give them the tiniest amount of breathing room cap-wise.

The trade comes a day after each player cleared waivers.