Oilers send down Brule, call up Skille

Edmonton Oilers News (January 17th 2011) "Oilers demote Brule, promote Skille"

The Edmonton Oilers have sent down forward Gilbert Brule and replaced him by calling up Jack Skille. Brule has not registered a point in over 15 games and despite having producing linemates like Greg Moore and (to a lesser extent) Anton Krysanov to play with he has been underproductive and lacking in confidence. "We hope Gilbert gets a boost from increased minutes with Springfield, and that he can spark his season that way" commented general manager Kowalski on the move. Brule's replacement, Jack Skille, has experienced similar struggles in the NHL this year, but has produced a decent 31 points in 37 games with the Falcons.


Edmonton Oilers rumours

The rumour mills have been grinding with particular vigor lately and several Oilers have been named as prospects for trades. Defenseman Tom Gilbert is allegedly on the short list of a number of NHL teams, among which are the Sabres, Wild and Islanders. No specific returns have been mentioned, but it is suspected that Gilbert, who is having a solid year, might land a top 6 forward and a decent draft pick at least. Then again, little evidence points to him being available at all.

The captain Ethan Moreau is, however, a more expendable commodity. Moreau is apparently targeted by the Panthers, who are looking for some veteran leadership for a potential playoff run.

Edmonton's GM Morgan Kowalski has not commented on the increased media speculation, but did state that he was still considering the Oilers to be rebuilding and would thus look to youth and draft picks as most coveted assets at this point. His statements lead some pundits to believe that solid veterans like Visnovsky, Khabibulin or Moreau are on the way out.