The Edmonton Oilers added Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick at this season’s NHL Trade Deadline from the Anaheim Ducks. GM Ken Holland gave up a first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, along with a fourth-round pick that went to Tampa Bay so that 75% of Henriques salary would be retained and 50% of Carrick’s would be covered. But, this wasn’t the first trade the Oilers had in the works for Henrique.
According to Dennis King (it is not clear this has been verified), the Oilers were working on a smaller deal too. He notes that Edmonton could have acquired Henrique for a second-rounder and a third. This meant the Oilers could have held onto their first-round pick. Instead, to get Carrick included (and at 50% retained), the trade was upgraded to include the first-round pick.
King also reports that the Oilers were interested in Josh Brown— a right-shot defenseman from the Arizona Coyotes. King doesn’t specify if those two trades were at all linked or were to be separate transactions.
How Might This Other Henrique Trade Have Changed the Deadline?
Carrick, who was a healthy scratch on Sunday as the Oilers took on the Pittsburgh Penguins offers the Oilers depth. That said, it can be argued he was not a key piece in that trade. Some will say losing the first-round pick to add him wasn’t worth it. So too, if the Oilers still had that first-rounder to move, it’s hard to know what else they could have done.
Tyler Toffoli was available, as were other pieces that could have been acquired with that draft selection. There would have been the issue of juggling the salary cap, but it certainly would have been worth trying from an Oilers’ perspective.
Again, no reputable insiders have verified that Edmonton had different deals working with the Ducks for Henrique. It’s logical to assume there was more than one scenario available.
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