Oilers Trade Lagesson, 2nd-Round Pick Trade For Canadiens’ Brett Kulak

According to Frank Seravalli, the Edmonton Oilers are acquiring defenseman Brett Kulak from the Montreal Canadiens. The return is apparently mid-round draft pick. William Lagesson has been traded as part of the deal from Edmonton. Kulak is in the final year of a $1.85 million deal and is a pending UFA at the end of the season.

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Hearing #Oilers are acquiring Brett Kulak from #Habs.

Live now on @DailyFaceoff.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 21, 2022

Kulak is considered a defensive defenceman with a strong history of putting up strong results both on a bottom pair or in a higher role with a more offensively skilled partner. Many people see him as an underrated, very good defensive defenseman.

Kulak has been logging over 20 minutes per night on a regular basis for the Canadiens. He’s got three goals and 13 points in 56 games this season. He is 6’1” 197lbs. He isn’t necessarily physical but he uses his IQ and his stick to defend effectively. He can slot into a depth role or into the Oilers’ top four. His contributions defensively are about five percent better than league average.

He’s a guy that will play every night for the Oilers and will step into the spot that is occupied most often by Kris Russell. Russell has been injured much of the season. Kulak will probably slot in alongside Evan Bouchard. The Oilers tackle two things there: they get a guy to insulate Bouchard and they get a regular who is more likely to stay a regular.

The Oilers are playing strong hockey right now with five-straight wins. The belief is that they might be done at the deadline, but they could add a depth forward.

Next: Marc-Andre Fleury Has Deen Traded to the Minnesota Wild