It’s getting mighty crowded along the Oilers’ prospect pipeline for defencemen. Ethan Bear and Caleb Jones emerging as NHL defencemen a year ago means less room for other hopefuls as they become ready to graduate. It’s a problem right now for William Lagesson, and soon it could be an issue for several promising blueliners.
Teams that gather defencemen at an increased rate over a five-year period, like the Oilers did from 2015-19, often reach a pressure point when a decision has to be made on who goes and who stays. General managers stack ’em and rack ’em for as long as possible, but sooner or later, trades that send away excess talent have to be made.
History teaches us even the best-run organizations have made baffling decisions when under such pressure, with the errors coming into view only with the advantage of hindsight. At the first universal draft in 1969, Montreal Canadiens director of player personnel Del Wilson said “we got…
