Top defence trade targets for Edmonton Oilers this offseason

First off, the Oilers are in a precarious salary cap situation at the moment. They're $354K over the salary cap, and still need to sign RFAs Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway to a contract. Their options to clear salary would be moving Brett Kulak, Cody Ceci, or Evander Kane.

It's likely the Oilers move only one of these players, likely Cody Ceci, which gives them the cap room to sign their free agents. If they want to pursue a true upgrade, they'll have to move at least one more player - and if they're upgrading defence, they can't lose Kulak too. It will have to be Evander Kane.

Some players reportedly available for trade who would be a fit include Colton Parayko from St. Louis, Dante Fabbro from Nashville, and Timothy Liljegren from Toronto. Some free agent options are likely available for cheap, but none would really be a true upgrade. Free agent defenceman include Tyson Barrie, Johnny Klingberg, Ryan Suter, Marco Scandella, and Justin Schwartz.

Whoever the Oilers decide to target, some significant salary cap work will need to be done. An upgrade to the defence feels like a real requirement to the team too, as it was an obvious weaker point for the team last year when Ekholm and Bouchard weren't playing. Especially when goalie Stuart Skinner hasn't been consistently elite, a defence upgrade will be important for the Oilers to replicate their success.

It's also very possible that President Jeff Jackson goes totally off the board in a potential acquisition. Honestly, hopefully he does, because the reported trade and free agency options are slim pickings. Jackson's shown incredible moves already, hopefully he has one more up his sleeve for the defence - then the Oilers will have a scarily complete roster.

Source: The Fourth Period