In today’s NHL rumours rundown, the Edmonton Oilers were quick to get an Evan Bouchard contract done because the Carolina Hurricanes were threatening to offer sheet him, but pivoted to K’Andre Miller after Bouchard was extended. Elsewhere, the Detroit Red Wings had some pretty big plans, but were unable to materialize them, like signing Nikolaj Ehlers or acquiring Victor Arvidsson. Finally, the New Jersey Devils could look at moving Dougie Hamilton, and there have been some conversations about that.
Hurricanes Threaten Oilers with Bouchard Offer Sheet
On the final episode of 32 Thoughts before the offseason break, Elliotte Friedman reported that the Hurricanes were threatening the Oilers with an offer sheet for Evan Bouchard, and it even got serious enough that the Hurricanes were looking to the Utah Mammoth to get their 2026 third-round pick back.
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Friedman noted that before acquiring Mikko Rantanen ahead of the trade deadline, they were talking to the Oilers about a player, who he believes was Bouchard. Moving into the offseason, there was a lot of talk about offer sheets all over the place, but Friedman had this to say about Bouchard:
“Carolina has a lot of cap room. Carolina has a lot of draft assets, draft capital. And I think that the Oilers were worried that the Hurricanes were going to offer sheet Bouchard. So they signed him to that extension. Didn’t even let him get to July 1.”
Elliotte Friedman, 32 Thoughts
When it came to Miller, the Hurricanes seemed set on acquiring him after Bouchard signed. The deal that came to fruition, with a first and second-round pick as well as Scott Morrow, the value was similar to an offer sheet, and the two teams were both able to get what they wanted out of a deal, as Miller signed his big extension with the Hurricanes.
Red Wings Swing and Miss on Multiple Players
When entering free agency, a player is given the luxury of deciding where they can go. Of course, there has to be team interest, too, but for the right price, any team could be interested. For Ehlers, the Red Wings were supposedly going to make a real push for him, but according…
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