Top NHL insider suggests former Oiler could head back to Edmonton in Mangiapane trade

Top NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reported earlier this week that the Anaheim Ducks are one of the most interested teams in trading for Mangiapane. The Oilers also need centre depth at the moment, laying the groundwork for a potential swap for Strome.

Speaking on the 32 Thoughts Podcast today, Friedman confirmed that Strome is being discussed as a potential return for Mangiapane in trade.

Strome has also been scratched multiple times this season, and has an inflated contract of $5M for this season and next.

He's a fine defensive center, but Strome has produced next to nothing offensively this season - which is already a major problem for the Oilers. Last season Strome scored 41 points, but this year he's on pace to score just 23.

The Edmonton Oilers are also right up against the salary cap, which would require the Ducks to retain at least $1.4M on Strome. That would make the Mangiapane and Strome contract swap a wash, but the Oilers also need to clear more cap space to activate Kapanen and Walman from LTIR.

For the Edmonton Oilers, it may just be preferable to dump the entirety of Mangiapane's $3.6M. They don't need another veteran player on a multi-year contract who can't score.

Even in his first stint with the Oilers, Strome frankly just wasn't that good. It stung that the Oilers gave up Jordan Eberle for him, and Strome only lasted 100 games with the team before being traded again.

Hopefully the Oilers see the situation the same, and can find a way to dump Mangiapane's contract and free up valuable cap flexibility for the rest of this season.

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