BLOG: Henrique & Carrick valued for versatility & veteran presence

COLUMBUS, OH – Two birds, one stone.

Veteran presence and versatility are two things you need plenty of to go far in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and with the trade by the Oilers on Wednesday to acquire forwards Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick from the Anaheim Ducks, they receive two key additions who can help bring those intangibles to what they hope will be a long playoff run.

“What I like about the deal is we're adding two players,” Oilers General Manager & President of Hockey Operations Ken Holland said.

“Both are versatile. (Carrick) shoots right and could play right wing or centre. Both penalty kill. Adam shoots left and can play left wing or centre. Maybe he tries right wing, so we think we’ve got some versatility and some depth. Both guys kill penalties and both guys can play centre, so we feel like we’ve gotten deeper.

“And the importance of penalty-killing, the importance of centres, and the importance of depth come playoff time were all factors in ultimately our decision to make the deal.”

The Oilers were able to add the two versatile centres to their forward group and recoup a seventh-round selection at the expense of only further draft capital, forfeiting a 2024 first-round pick and a conditional 2025 fifth-round selection to Anaheim while giving Tampa Bay a conditional fourth-rounder in 2024 to retain part of Henrique’s cap hit (25 percent). Anaheim is also retaining half of Carrick’s contract as part of the deal.

Henrique and Carrick are both centre-eligible who are strong in the face-off dot and capable of playing on the wing, providing the Oilers with valuable added depth down the middle and two successful special-teams contributors who also bring added lineup flexibility.

“It's two more guys that can kill penalties,” Holland said. “I believe they were number one and number two in terms of time on ice for penalty-killing with Anaheim. Special teams are critical come playoff time, and I think this time of the year, teams are making the moves that they're making because we're all planning on playing into June.

“And if you're going to be playing into May and June, you need depth. You're probably going to have some injuries and you need people to step in, so having seven centres obviously gives us real good depth down the middle.”

For Henrique, who could play on the wing alongside Draisaitl on the second line or potentially as a third-line centre, adding to the depth of the Oilers roster in whatever role that may be required is how he best sees himself fitting into his new scenario on a contending team like Edmonton.

"Clearly they're a highly-offensive, explosive team with a lot of skill, so I don't expect to go in there and play in the first line," Henrique said. "Just come in and try to add to the depth and bring a veteran presence to the group and a calming influence on the ice wherever that may be.

"I feel like I can kind of just plug in and play anywhere in the lineup, and as far as just trying to add to this team's depth, I just think it adds another exciting element to the team."

Carrick carries an 'agitator' label with his game and hopes to bring that energy to Edmonton's playoff push from a bottom-six position, where his 51.0 percent faceoff percentage as a right-shot centre this year could also play a factor.

"Just excited for the opportunity and very grateful that they believe in me enough to make a move, and I'm looking forward to helping the team out any way I can," Carrick said.

"Whatever they need me to do – whether it's on the PK, winning battles, winning face-offs, or just bringing energy on a nightly basis – I'll do anything I can to help the team win. I'm excited to get going."