The Edmonton Oilers have traded rugged forward Zack Kassian to the Arizona Coyotes in a deal that will give Edmonton some salary cap savings.
The Oilers also sent pick No. 29 in Thursday’s NHL Draft to the Coyotes, along with a second-round pick in 2024 and third-round pick in 2025. In exchange, the Oilers acquired pick No. 32 — the final first-round pick — in Thursday’s draft.
The Coyotes selected Drummondville Voltigeurs defenceman Maveric Lamoureux with pick No. 29. The Oilers selected Seattle Thunderbirds forward and Alberta native Reid Schaefer with pick No. 32.
Kassian, 31, has two years remaining on his contract with a $3.2 million cap hit. Last season in 58 games he had six goals, 19 points and 63 penalty minutes. For his career, Kassian has 90 goals, 201 points and 863 penalty minutes in 610 games.
The Oilers, coming off an appearance in the Western Conference Final, will look to use the cap space to upgrade their goaltending and add some more depth in other areas on the ice.
The Coyotes had a busy draft, selecting centre Logan Cooley third overall and centre Connor Geekie 11th overall.
