It was a quiet Sunday evening in the NHL when Peter Chiarelli and Edmonton Oilers pulled the trigger on a deal that has since been met with lots of backlash.
In an effort to shore up the Oilers’ defence, Chiarelli made two deals to bring in defenceman. It’s the 2nd deal that has hockey fans questioning the decision.
The Oilers trade Drake Caggiula in a package in return for Brandon Manning in a package, effectively sending away a player that has been noted as close to Oilers superstar Connor McDavid. On top of this, the player coming back is likely the player that McDavid has shown the most ire for in his entire career. Manning and McDavid feuded after a Manning trip caused McDavid to break his collarbone, effectively ending the Oilers’ prodigy’s rookie season and his shot at the Calder Trophy.
If you’re an Oilers fan, all you want is for McDavid to be happy while the organization continues to try and work itself out. On paper, this seems like a step in the wrong direction for a player McDavid once called “classless”. According to Manning and Chiarelli, however, the feud has been put to bed.
On Monday, Chiarelli met with the media and responded to the criticism, and also clarifies that he did speak to McDavid about bringing in Manning once before – a decision McDavid was fine with.
Apparently McDavid reached out to Manning, and the relationship mending is underway. It will be interesting to see how they develop as teammates. Who knows? Maybe they’ll hit it off.
