The Oilers came very close to acquiring a star player from the Pittsburgh Penguins before the Canucks swopped in and stole the show. The Edmonton Oilers were in deep negotiations with the Pittsburgh Penguins in a potential trade, but then the <a href='https://www.hockeylatest.com/nhl/trades/vancouver-canucks-complete-a-trade-with-the-pittsburgh-penguins-to-acquire-a-defenseman' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Vancouver Canucks moved in and acquired their target.</a> The Canucks traded J.T. Miller to <a href='https://www.blueshirtbanter.com/grading-the-j-t-miller-trade-breaking-down-the-rangers-blockbuster-deal/' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>the Rangers a week ago,</a> but in a secondary move, acquired Marcus Pettersson and Drew O'Connor in a move that ruined Edmonton's plans. <h3>Frank Seravalli said the Oilers had deep talks for Drew O'Connor</h3> The Oilers, according to <a href='https://x.com/frank_seravalli' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Frank Seravalli</a> of Daily Faceoff on 'OilersNow', have been in talks with the Penguins for a long time for O'Connor, and with his skillset, possibly a move for Pettersson as well, a sound top-four blue liner, could have been in the works, but both landed in Vancouver. «I think the Edmonton Oilers had gone pretty far down the track with the Pittsburgh Penguins about Drew O'Connor,» Seravalli said. «They're gonna continue to look at a forward with speed in addition to giving John Klingberg the runway that he needs to prove himself.» <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/TheLineBlender/status/1886567594989379631'> </a></blockquote></div> The fact that <a href='https://www.nhl.com/canucks/player/drew-o-connor-8482055' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>O'Connor</a>'s name is mentioned in relation to Edmonton is a sign of what the Oilers are in search of in terms of a target in a move at the trade deadline. The 26-year-old winger posted a career-best 16 markers and 33 points in 79 games a season ago and saw a dip in production, with six markers and 16 points in 53 games, but he is an asset in terms of speed, a weapon that Edmonton's bottom-six sorely lacked. <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/HockeyDaily365/status/1877515646893756731'> </a></blockquote></div> <a href='https://www.hockeylatest.com/nhl-team/edmonton-oilers/oilers-face-tough-goodbye-after-they-do-not-match-holloway-and-broberg-offer-sheets' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>During free agency, the Oilers said goodbye</a> to Ryan McLeod and Dylan Holloway, and therefore have a slower bottom six now, which saw GM Stan Bowman try and plug that by taking Kasperi Kapanen off waivers. The Finnish winger played admirably, but with these reports possibly being correct, the Oilers are in search of an even greater boost in terms of speed in preparation for a deep playoff run.