If the Edmonton Oilers don’t exit and purchase one other top-four defender, newly acquired defenseman Ty Emberson might play a key function for the workforce this season. Acquired from the San Jose Sharks within the commerce that despatched Cody Ceci the opposite means, Emberson comes at a fraction of Ceci’s price and brings stable defensive metrics, even when his NHL expertise is proscribed to only 30 video games.
The query some analysts are asking is, can he play an elevated function and produce what Ceci introduced? The Oilers don’t want him to do far more, and if he does, it’s nothing however a constructive.
Assuming issues keep as is out of camp and pre-season, Emberson is slated to play alongside Darnell Nurse on the highest defensive pairing. He shall be beneath stress to deal with a bump in minutes for one of many league’s prime offensive groups, however it’s too quickly to say he can’t tackle the duty.
Whereas expectations are excessive, a lot of his success will rely on Nurse’s skill to raise his sport and supply stability to his new associate. If Nurse performs on the degree anticipated of a $9.25 million defenseman, Emberson ought to profit from that assist. All Emberson has to do is keep away from making Nurse’s job tougher, which some followers imagine is why the Ceci and Nurse pairing struggled because it did.
Oilers Simply Want Emberson to Restrict Errors
Emberson’s focus received’t be on level manufacturing—he’s unlikely to see energy play time and received’t be requested to hold an offensive load. As an alternative, the Oilers want him to be regular, bodily, and dependable, particularly on the penalty kill and in five-on-five conditions. No person shall be good, however the much less he’s seen, the higher.
“I believe I simply wish to contribute within the ways in which perhaps received’t go as seen,” Emberson shared as he started his first coaching camp with the Oilers. If he can ship on that private purpose, he might show to be a useful addition because the workforce goals for a deep playoff run this season.
In a really perfect state of affairs, he would function a stable third-pairing stay-at-home defenseman, however Edmonton could also be asking extra from him by slotting him into the highest 4. That’s the draw back of operating with a good wage cap and shedding some key items on the again finish. For Emberson, deal with one job and it’ll seemingly be his to lose.
Subsequent: Edmonton Oilers Proceed to Trim Roster With 12 Extra Cuts