Matty's Update

A day after Jason Gregor gave us some mid-summer info, the Edmonton Journal's Jim Matheson chimed in. Matty is the gold standard amongst the men who cover the Oilers although we're uncertain whether he gets his info from Quinn/Tambellini, Kevin Lowe, Glen Sather or the ghost of Bill Hunter. Either way it's usually correct. His article is here. Among the points of interest are:About $2.5 million will likely be going to Smid and Brule when they sign shortly. This seems a little steep. Smid made $952,000 a year ago (cap hit was $886,000) and Brule's NHL-level salary was (I believe) $850,000. Brule will be given a shot at the fourth-line centre spot. We know this, but what would be helpful is a list of players in line for the 3line slot. One suspects the C depth chart goes Horcoff, Gagner and then a free-for-all that includes Cogliano, Pouliot, Brule and some others. The Oilers could certainly use (Blair) Betts, a 29-year-old Edmonton product who was played a huge role o...