The Edmonton Oilers have made a trade and added journeyman defenceman Troy Stecher for their playoff run. Their trading partner, the Arizona Coyotes, picked up a fourth-round pick, and also sent a seventh-rounder back the Oilers way.
Troy Stetcher Trade Lands Him Back to Alberta
Stecher is on the move again, traded for the third deadline in a row, this time to Edmonton. He joins a surging Oilers team that has dragged itself into the playoffs after a disastrous 5-12-1 start to the season. They are currently on a five-game win streak, adding it to win streaks of eight and sixteen games. Both of those they’ve experienced just this year, which explains how they are currently second in the Pacific Division.
This will be Stecher’s second stay in Alberta and for the exact same reason. Last year, he was traded to the Calgary Flames after signing with the Arizona Coyotes as a free agent. This season, for a change, he was traded to the Oilers after signing with the Arizona Coyotes as a free agent.
Troy Stecher has found his career as a decent, defence-first addition to the right side of any team. He can step in on a moment’s notice on a strong team, or take a bottom-pair role on a weaker one. He provides the Oilers with a different look, as their only sub-6′ defenceman. His mobility makes up for it, and that will help against faster teams.
Back and Forth
That seventh-round pick Edmonton gets originally belonged to the Boston Bruins, so it’s as lottery as lottery tickets get. The fourth-round pick Arizona gets back is Edmonton’s, but not due until 2027. We’re unclear if that’s “planning ahead” or the result of a Mad Libs game among general managers, but there it is.
What Edmonton is getting in this trade is easily seen. What exactly the Coyotes are doing with their half of the deal is somewhat harder to predict. The hope here is they will have an established home, in Arizona, when they use it.
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