EDMONTON, AB – JANUARY 29: Ben Scrivens #30 of the Edmonton Oilers eyes the loose puck and stops it against the San Jose Sharks during an NHL game at Rexall Place on January 29, 2014 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Derek Leung/Getty Images)

Oilers trade Ben Scrivens to Canadiens for Zack Kassian

The trade freeze has been lifted and almost immediately we have ourselves a trade. Ben Scrivens was traded to the Canadiens to assume the backup role while Carey Price is out and Zack Kassian was traded to the Oilers, where he will report to their AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.

The trade makes sense on both levels for the teams involved as they both had issues they needed to address. The Canadiens need a stand in while Carey Price is injured and have found that with the likes of Scrivens. After a solid 2013-14 campaign, many in the Oilers organization believed that he would take the next step and take over the net for the worrisome Oilers. Unfortunately for Scrivens and the team, he has a posted a sub .900 sv% since the beginning of the 14-15′ season. A change of scenery will be nice for the Ivy league educated netminder. It also should be noted that the Oilers retained 24% of Scrivens salary in the deal as well.

Kassian at this point in his career is starting to see his playing days flash before his very eyes. Coming out of junior hockey, he was touted as the next great power forward similar to the likes of Milan Lucic but it has yet to pan out for him. Most recently he has gone to rehab after a single car accident earlier this year which left him with a broken left foot and broken nose. The Canadiens were obviously looking to get out from underneath this risk they took on him and luckily for them the Oilers were there for them.

It is fascinating to look at Kassian’s HERO chart and see what he has brought in minimal minutes over the course of the past three years.

Dashboard 1 (5)

He has played to the level of many first liners and may be a worthy investment to an Oilers team always looking to make a deal.

It is one of the rare moves in the league where it helps out both teams and no team is really found a loser in the deal. Looks like they both got a late gift for Christmas.

About Sam Blazer

Sam is a self proclaimed chess prodigy. He once placed seventh in the state of Ohio in Chess when he was in kindergarten. He will rarely if ever mention though that only eight people were entered in this tournament. Contact him at sblaze17@gmail.com

Quantcast