The Edmonton Oilers and the St. Louis Blues pulled off a trade that sent a prospect both ways. The Oilers got Klim Kostin, while the Blues received Dmitri Samorukov.
The defensive depth on the left side for the Oilers was deep, seeing how Darnell Nurse, Brett Kulak, Philip Broberg, Ryan Murray, and Markus Niemelainen were all ahead of Samorukov. Both general managers Ken Holland and Doug Armstrong gave one of their most NHL-ready prospects a fresh start and a better opportunity on a different team.
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Kostin has played 46 career NHL games while Samorukov has only played one (against the Blues). Samorukov would have had a tough road to play games for the Oilers this season while Kostin could very well be a possibility given the tight cap and injuries to some of the better prospects to kick off the season. It is a low-risk trade that could pay off for the Oilers, so let’s look at his potential as an NHL player and what kind of a role he would play in the American Hockey League (AHL) if he were to spend time there this season.
Kostin’s Potential as an NHL Player
For Kostin, it wasn’t so much a lack of opportunity as he was given a fair chance at being a third liner for the Blues this season and was projected to play in that role. He failed to impress at training camp and got sent down to the AHL. Since he has already cleared waivers, the Oilers are free to move him up and down between the NHL and AHL as they please for the next 30 days.
A possibility is that Kostin could be called up in place of Brad Malone to give the Oilers an extra bit of cap space needed to be cap compliant this season. In that case, he would have a shot at playing under the coaching of Jay Woodcroft. The Oilers’ coach has proven to be very good already and has experience working with younger talent as he was head coach of the Bakersfield Condors for a number of seasons. He was a reason why the Oilers’ roster is filled with players who graduated from that AHL team.
Kostin struggled in training camp this season as well as in the NHL and even the AHL last season. He made the Blues out of training camp last season and recorded four goals and nine points in 40 games before finishing the season in the AHL. He didn’t have much confidence and it showed as he scored just three goals and six points in 17 AHL games. He was a bit more effective in the playoffs by putting up four goals and eight points in 18 games, but the lack of confidence showed this preseason.
He is a former first-round pick (31st) by the Blues in 2017. Kostin has had a tough time translating his game over to North America but won the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) championship in 2021 with Omsk Avangard. Allan Mitchell of The Athletic stated that Kostin was highly rated in his draft year but was rushed to the NHL. The Oilers know something about that as a similar thing happened to Jesse Puljujarvi.
Right now Kostin has average numbers for a bottom-six NHL player, has a very low cap hit, is able to play all forward positions, and is a restricted free agent after the season. He needs to improve his all-around play and improve his 200-foot game. He will first report to Bakersfield, but watch for his name to be called to join the Oilers at some point in the season.
Role Kostin Could Play in Bakersfield this Season
Since Kostin is on a one-way deal and has already cleared waivers, he can be called up and sent back down freely for the next month. He may not start the season on the Oilers, but when Malone is sent down after Day 1 of the regular season, he could be the next call-up.
I expect Kostin to split time in 2022-23 between the NHL and AHL. Right now, the top line of the Condors is in need of some talent with Tyler Benson, Raphael Lavoie, and Carter Savoie all injured. With such a strong forward group in Bakersfield that also includes one of last season’s leading scorers in Seth Griffith, Kostin could regain some confidence by putting up points. The power forward will be inserted into an AHL team that’s young and can definitely score. It may start to get a bit crowded down there as the season progresses, so it will be important that Kostin has a good start to get noticed, get ice time, and potentially stick with the Oilers upon a call-up.
Though it is unfortunate the Oilers moved on from a strong defenceman in the organization, there was no room for Samorukov. Instead, they save some much-needed cap dollars and provide themselves with a young talented forward in Kostin who could do better with a fresh start. He has been a productive AHL player from the year he was drafted and could help out there if not in the NHL one day.
