Edmonton Oilers make a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers

This evening the Edmonton Oilers have made a trade to acquire a defenseman from the Philadelphia Flyers.

With their struggles to begin the season on defense the Edmonton Oilers have made a major change. According to multiple reports the Edmonton Oilers have traded away defenseman Ben Gleason in exchange for Ronnie Attard from the Philadephia Flyers.

The Edmonton Oilers will welcome 25-year-old defenseman Ronnie Attard to the organization. To this point in his career, Ronnie Attard has been a fringe NHL defenseman playing both at the NHL and AHL levels over the last 2 seasons. At 6'3 he brings great size and physicality to the lineup which is something the Edmonton Oilers really value having on the back end.

Heading to the Philadelphia Flyers will be Ben Gleason who is a 26-year-old defenseman who has spent his entire career in the AHL to this point. Ben Gleason is only 6'1 but is a puck-moving defenseman who has shown to be capable at the AHL level. In the Philadelphia Flyers system where defensemen are more involved offensively Ben Gleason could see an uptick in his production at the AHL level leading to his first NHL opportunity

What looks like a small trade on the surface could be huge for the depth of the Edmonton Oilers. Bringing in a younger defenseman into the organization who already has NHL experience is crucial. Beyond that, he brings size and physicality which are two traits that could earn Ronnie Attard an NHL opportunity before long. After a tough start to the year from his defensemen Stan Bowman is sending a message that things are not good enough and changes will be made to improve.

Trades like these with fringe NHL players often see at least one of the players go on to have better careers after the move is made. It will be interesting to see if that is the case with this trade and whether it will be the Edmonton Oilers or the Philadelphia Flyers who have made the mistake.

As more details come out regarding this trade and its implications for the Edmonton Oilers roster going forward we will pass along the latest news to you.

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