This in from Darren Dreger of TSN: “John Klingberg heading to the Oilers.”
He then updated:”Klingberg contract with the Oilers. $1M (pro rated) salary and $350,000 bonus.”
My take
1. At this price, the puck-moving Klingberg could be a win-win, with Klingberg slotting in next to Darnell Nurse on the second pairing, providing a steady puck-mover to complement Nurse’s speed and aggression. This would boost Edmonton’s chances of winning the Cup, not to mention Klingberg’s value as a free agent this summer.
2. Klingberg had hip resurfacing surgery in 2023 and has worked hard to get to this point. The Swedish d-man played just 14 games last year due to his injury and surgery. Toronto had signed him to a one-year $4.15 million contract, but the Leafs got little value from that deal.
Before his season was shut down for good in November 2023, Klingberg sat out games in Toronto. Luke Fox of Sportsnet wrote at the time: “He’s in the mud, the analytics and eye test are his twin enemies, and he has swiftly become the fan base’s whipping boy.”
3. Signing Klingberg at $1.35 million does not limit the Oilers to just one move. They could also bring in a big, physical d-man at the March 7 trade deadline if that was still deemed to be a need. Edmonton can now test drive Klingberg for a month to see how he plays before having to make the call.
4. Before injury slowed him, Klingberg was a top-pairing, puck-moving right shot d-man with great offence and OK defence. He’s still just 32, and d-men who can skate as well as Klingberg has in the past often have solid years from ages 32 to 36 or so. At the same time, Klingberg’s injury history may limit his ability, even with surgery and rehab. Even before this recent procedure, he’d had two surgeries on his hip earlier in his career.
5. Edmonton has become a home to big name signings. The Oilers made such a move in 2022, signing Evander Kane when San Jose had had enough of him, with Kane becoming a key Oilers performer, especially in the playoffs.
Edmonton did it again in 2024, signing up veteran grinder Corey Perry when Chicago was fed up with him, with Perry playing decent two-way hockey for the Oil when healthy. Now there’s Klingberg coming to E-town. It’s an interesting experiment, though still hard to assess, not knowing contract details yet.
6. On X, my Cult colleague Bruce McCurdy notes that Klingberg had played with five Oilers previously: Mattias Janmark, 4 years in Dallas, Adam Henrique, 1 year in Anaheim, Mattias Ekholm, 3 separate World Men’s Hockey Championships, Viktor Arvidsson for Skelleftea in Sweden 2011-13 and with Corey Perry in Dallas in 2020.
6. Former Cult of Hockey writer Jonathan Willis had this to say on X: “The last time John Klingberg played an NHL season and finished above 50% by both GF% and xGF% was 2018-19. He’s now 32 and coming off hip surgery. If you’re counting on him to be a 3rd pair offensive specialist, that seems plausible. Don’t expect more, and be ready for less…One nice thing about the Klingberg/Oilers fit is that Edmonton can start him in the Stecher role – technically on the second pair, but switching out with Kulak in high-leverage defensive situations. If he and Nurse work, you try to build out his minutes.”
P.S. In 2022, Klingberg reportedly turned down a big money offer in Dallas. All water under the bridge now…
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