The Edmonton Oilers continue to drown in a pool of self-inflicted NHL failure.
They're 10-25-9 and boast only 29 points, the two worst marks in the league. They've lost 16 out of their last 20 games and they're now at the bottom of the NHL standings both in record and when it comes to advanced stats metrics.
The season, already at its halfway point, is all but lost – so if Oilers GM Craig MacTavish hasn't already turned his eye toward the future of the franchise, he should.
The trade of forward David Perron to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a character player and a first-round draft pick should be just the beginning.
Formerly untouchable players like Taylor Hall need to enter and stay in the discussion if the Oilers are to complete a true and necessary rebuild.
Luckily, MacTavish may have gotten the memo, though the team is rumored only to be listening at the moment.
"I don't think the Edmonton Oilers are committed to trading Taylor Hall. They're certainly not shopping Taylor Hall. But because of the season the Edmonton Oilers have had, they, right to the top, the hierarchy there, they've gone through a real extensive decision-making process. 'Who do we want to keep? Who do we want to move? Do we want to move a core player like Taylor Hall?," said TSN Insider Bob McKenzie on an episode of NBCSN's NHL Live Wednesday night, as transcribed by NicholsOnHockey.com.
"So at this point in time, they're not fully committed to trading a core player like Taylor Hall, but I think they're at least entertaining the notion of it. My guess is, if it were to happen, it'd be much more likely to happen in the summer than the deadline. But again, not guaranteed that it will happen at all."
Of course, McKenzie is correct that there's no guarantee that Hall will be traded, but the possibility should be discussed and the Oilers should be open to it, just as they should be open to any deal.
For the perennially moribund and frustratingly stubborn Oilers, at this point, listening may be enough.
It won't fix things, but it's a start.
