** Update: Oilers color analyst Bob Stauffer tweeted just minutes prior to the Oilers game against the Winnipeg Jets on Monday night: “Andrew Mangiapane is out of the picture. @EdmontonOilers tonight in Winnipeg. He is a healthy scratch.”
When news broke on Monday that the Edmonton Oilers and forward Andrew Mangiapane were both open to the idea of a trade, “in the right situation,” the conversation in some quarters quickly turned to what happened. How, after just 39 games, did a player suddenly become someone the Oilers believe they can live without, and why is Mangiapane happy enough to leave when a better opportunity exists?
Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos called it “looked bad,” but Oilers 880 CHED analyst Rob Brown provided some context behind what may have been going on.
Brown suggests this is too early to determine how bad the relationship between Mangiapane and the Oilers has gone, but did admit that there is some of that going on. Mangiapane has not been productive. However, things aren’t as dire as Justin Bourne suggests when he joked that the two should seek “marriage counseling.” Instead, Brown suggested that this may have been down to other factors, as well as the fact that Mangiapane was not suitable.
The Oilers have other options and would love the cap space
First, Brown explained that when Mangiapane was signed, Jack Roslovic was a thought, but he would not join the Oilers as a free agent. It is now common knowledge that the two teams spoke, but it wasn’t until the first game of the regular season, and after things went sideways for Roslovic, that he returned to Edmonton and signed a one-year contract.
The fact that Roslovic has been so good has limited Mangiapane’s chances.
Second, the emergence of Quinn Hutson and Ike Howard in the AHL gives the Oilers reason to believe Mangiapane is a cost they don’t need. Brown argued, “…they’re saying, okay, what if we could get rid of that 3.6 million? There’s still more holes we need to fill.” The Oilers don’t need such an expensive third- or fourth-line winger. That’s 3.6 million players on the fourth line. “I’m sure the Oilers would love that cap space” if Mangiapane ends up there. He adds, “If for some reason they were able to move away from the 3.6 million… Wow, that opens up a little bit more cap space to potentially fill a hole at the trade deadline and whatever needs the others may have at that point.”
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