Ken Holland Taking Heat from Oilers Fans For Panarin Deal

It has been an interesting last 24 hours for Los Angeles Kings general manager Ken Holland. He pulled off a trade to bring Artemi Panarin into the organization. By most accounts, it was great value. That said, he has also taken a lot of heat from Edmonton fans for not making these kinds of deals while he ran the Oilers and for waiting until he got to LA to make better trades and signings than the ones he made.

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Since the trade was announced, Oilers fans have gone out of their way to point out the price Holland paid for Panarin. Many have referenced past trades from his Edmonton tenure. They highlighted situations where he paid significantly more and got far less in return. To be fair, not all of those players had Edmonton as a preferred destination. This meant Holland had to outbid other teams to get deals done.

Still, that hasn’t stopped the criticism.

Holland Under Fire in Edmonton

As mentioned above, Holland is taking heat because the acquisition cost for Panarin looks incredibly low compared to some of the deals he pulled off while trying to bring a Stanley Cup to Edmonton, only to fail.

Edmonton fans have since taken to social media to voice their frustration, especially over the lack of urgency to land a true star like Panarin when Holland had Connor McDavid in his prime. Some of the reactions have been blunt, to say the least:

Ken Holland when he has prime McDavid: hmm yes Andreas Athanasiou for 2 2nds. Ken Holland when Kopitar and Doughty are hours away from rigor mortis setting in.
– Notorious TIG via X

We had to spend a first on Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick, and a 2nd to take in Duncan Keith’s full contract in a flat cap world but now Ken decides to do the smart thing to take advantage of NYR and then give Panarin low term hahaha dude screw you.
– Shaedon via X

I hate Ken Holland so f**g much why couldn’t he do something like this when he was in Edmonton???
– Ryan Nutzenberger via X

It’s pretty clear that Oilers fans are upset, and honestly, they have a right to be. There’s a feeling that Holland didn’t push hard enough when he was running the organization. Yet he turned around and made a savvy, aggressive move with the Kings, similar to how he operated during his time with the Detroit Red Wings.

This is something fans in Edmonton won’t forget anytime soon. And if the Oilers and Kings meet in the playoffs again, don’t be surprised if Holland and Panarin hear about it. Especially if Panarin struggles.

One thing’s for sure: the Oilers versus Kings rivalry may have just gotten even better.

Next: NHL Trade Grades: Rangers Trade Panarin to the Kings