Oilers 'trying to win now' after trade for Henrique, Carrick

Ken Holland is going all in with the hope bringing the Stanley Cup back to Edmonton this season.

The Oilers acquired forwards Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick from the Anaheim Ducks in a trade also involving the Tampa Bay Lightning.

“We’re trying to win now, we’re trying to get deeper,” Holland said Wednesday. “I think the time is now, that’s why we’re doing these things.”

He may not be done. In fact, his phone rang while addressing the media in a Columbus, Ohio, hotel after the trades. Edmonton continues its road trip at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; BSOH, SNW). The NHL Trade Deadline is Friday at 3 p.m. ET.

“I going to continue to talk to teams about another defenseman, a veteran defenseman,” Holland said. “We’ll see. It depends on what’s available, it depends on what the cost is. Obviously, we’ve spent some draft capital over the last two or three years and again today, costs factor in.

“We like the six (defensemen) that we've got. I think that if we do something, it’ll be something to bring in a No. 7. How aggressive are we with draft capital for someone to come in here and be a No. 7, we’ll see. I don’t know, we’ll see what the next 48 hours brings.”

Edmonton gave up a first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft to Anaheim, which retained 50 percent of Henrique's contract. The Oilers also gave the Lightning a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft to retain 25 percent of Henrique’s contract. If the Oilers fail to win the Stanley Cup this season, the pick will be in the fourth round of the 2025 draft.

“I know the first-round pick was really important to (Ducks general manager) Pat Verbeek,” Holland said. “We’ve gone back and forth here a lot in the last 10 days and ultimately, the way the deal came down, was to get both players, to get both players’ [salaries] cut in half. He gets what he wants, and we added two players, and we got a little more [NHL salary\ cap space to spend a little more flexibility.”

Edmonton (38-20-2) is second in the Pacific Division, nine points behind the first-place Vancouver Canucks. The Oilers extended their winning streak to five games with a 2-1 overtime victory at the Boston Bruins on Tuesday.

“What I like about the deals is that we’re adding two players, both are versatile, one shoots right and can play right wing and center,” Holland said. “Both penalty-kill, Adam shoots left and can play left wing or center. Maybe he tries right wing.

“So, we think we have some versatility, we have some depth. Both guys kill penalties, both guys can play center, so I felt we got deeper. The importance of penalty-killing come playoff time, the importance of centers come playoff time, the importance of depth come playoff time, were all factors in the decision to make the deal.”

The Oilers were eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and in the Western Conference Final by the Colorado Avalanche in 2022. The Golden Knights and Avalanche each went on to win the Stanley Cup in those seasons.

Edmonton is hoping to go on an extended playoff run this season. The Oilers have not won the Stanley Cup since 1990, their fifth in seven seasons at the time.

Holland, who is in the last of a five-year contract, hopes Henrique and Carrick can be two of the final pieces of a championship puzzle. They give Edmonton seven forwards capable of playing center.

Carrick (2:40 per game) and Henrique (2:34) were first and second among Ducks forwards in short-handed time on ice per game.

“Somebody said you can never have enough centermen,” Holland said. “Absolutely you like the depth down the middle and it's two more guys that can kill penalties.”

Since becoming Oilers general manager May 7, 2019, Holland has revamped Edmonton’s roster around cornerstone forwards Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and defenseman Darnell Nurse.

Among Holland’s more successful moves have been signing free agent forwards Zach Hyman, Evander Kane and Corey Perry, and acquiring defenseman Mattias Ekholm from the Nashville Predators prior to the trade deadline last season.

Henrique has 42 points (18 goals, 24 assists) in 60 games this season. The 34-year-old forward is in the final season of a five-year contract he signed with the Ducks on July 16, 2018, and can become an unrestricted free agent July 1. Carrick has 11 points (eight goals, three assists) in 61 games this season. The 32-year-old forward is in the final season of a two-year contract he signed April 26, 2022, and is also a pending unrestricted free agent.

“I think this time of the year teams are making the moves that they’re making because we’re all planning to be playing into June,” Holland said. “And if you’re going to be playing into May and June, you need depth, you’re probably going to have some injuries and you need people to step in, so having seven center-ice men obviously gives us good depth down the middle.”