BLOG: Holland talks "difficult decisions" at NHL Draft

NASHVILLE, TN - At the NHL Draft, where the focus is all on the future, the Edmonton Oilers had to make a move that was all about the present.

Before Edmonton even made a selection, forwards Kailer Yamamoto and Klim Kostin were dealt to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for future considerations. While the Oilers liked both players, a salary cap crunch led to General Manager and President of Hockey Operations Ken Holland making a difficult decision for the betterment of his club's roster.

Yamamoto was a former first-round pick by the Oilers back in 2017 and was a year removed from a 20-goal, 40-point season. However, a 2022-23 campaign plagued with injuries made the 24-year-old a pricey piece on an Oilers squad pushed up against the salary cap threshold.

Kostin's acquisition last year was a stroke of genius by Holland, who picked up the physical presence at the end of Training Camp for depth defenceman Dmitri Samorukov. The former first-round pick emerged as a full-time NHL player and joined Yamamoto as a fan favourite in the city of Edmonton with to his bruising style and off-ice personality.

The cruel reality of a salary cap world, and a team like Edmonton that is loaded with stars, meant that sacrifices needed to be made this offseason. On Thursday, it was deemed Yamamoto was one of those sacrifices.

"I think if the cap was $86 or $87 million, it would work out. It's just that the cap never moved," Holland said. "Skinner's due a raise. Bouchard's due a raise. McLeod's due a raise. We made a deal for Ekholm at the deadline.

"It's just the evolution of the way the system works, so the money gets moved around. I like Yamo. When we did [his contract] it last year, I had no idea what the cap was going to be this year. I was hoping that maybe we could catch up and get the cap moving. The cap doesn't move, it goes from $82.5 million to $83.5 million, so we've got to make difficult decisions."

In the case of Kostin, the forward was a restricted free agent looking for a significant raise over the $750,000 he made last season after a solid breakout campaign that saw the Russian winger notch 21 points (11G, 10A) in 57 games with the Blue & Orange. Due to Kostin's excellent performance and Russian roots, the Oilers also had to deal with the looming threat of the KHL (Kontinental Hockey League), where the forward was reportedly receiving overtures from teams within his home country to add another wrench into an already difficult negotiation.

"I talked to Klim Kostin's agent multiple times. Really, I was negotiating against the KHL, so I knew we weren't going to be able to find a way to keep him. So, I had to trade the player," Holland said about the negotiations. "[Detroit Red Wings Executive Vice President & General Manager] Steve Yzerman was really interested in Klim Kostin, and obviously the $3 million for Yamo, I had to get some money off the cap."

The deal opens up a few possibilities for the Oilers on Canada Day, when NHL Free Agency begins, but it also allows for space to negotiate with a pair of key upcoming restricted free agents in Evan Bouchard and Ryan McLeod.

McLeod has established himself as a legitimate third-line centre in the NHL, bouncing back from an early-season injury to set career highs in goals (11) and points (23) in just 57 games. When it comes to Bouchard, the 23-year-old defenceman took his game to new heights after the acquisition of Mattias Ekholm, culminating in a playoff performance that saw him lead all blueliners in points with 17 (4G, 13A) in only 12 games.

"Obviously, I want to get Bouchard signed. I want to get McLeod signed," Holland said after the Draft. "You guys [the media] know who the top-five forwards are. Our defence is pretty well in place, so obviously I've got to get two or three forwards."

When it comes to Saturday's NHL Free Agency, don't expect much of a frenzy for the Oilers. Edmonton will have a bit of space to augment the bottom half of their roster, but Holland believes the Oilers will be patient when it comes to adding, much like how they waited a few days to lock up Mattias Janmark in 2022.

"It's all cap related, right? So if we go to July 1 and teams are spending, we're sitting on the sidelines," he said. "If the market's tight and you get to July 2 and money comes down, then we'll look."