The Edmonton Oilers kicked off their free agent frenzy not with a signing but with a trade by unloading winger Viktor Arvidsson to the Boston Bruins. According to Boston writer Scott McLaughlin, the compensation going back to the Oilers is a fifth-round pick in 2027. Arvidsson was mostly healthy this season, playing 67 games, which is actually his second highest games-played total in his last six seasons excluding the 2021 Bubble season. He tallied 15 goals and 12 assists in 67 games.
What Boston Gets
Arvidsson is just a couple of years removed from a 26-goal, 59-point season with Los Angeles but he missed most of 2023-24 and then had his lowest TOI/game season since his rookie year during his 2024-25 campaign with Edmonton. He turned 32 years old just before the season ended and is not a big player who has had durability issues for several years. He has just one year left on his contract at $4M, per PuckPedia, so he has one year to recoup any value he can in hopes of getting one last medium-term contract.
Boston struggled to score last year and while Arvidsson should help there, he also is a volume shooter that rarely converts at a meaningful rate. In fact, he has shot under 12% in each of his last six seasons and has averaged 10.6% over the last three years. Morgan Geekie was just extended with Boston and David Pastrnak is still the team's top winger. At best, Arvidsson will be the team's number-3 winger and no higher than the number-4 forward (likely closer to the 5-7 range). If Arvidsson can improve his minutes per game from the 15:00 he played last year, it won't be by much. For a guy that relies on volume and not efficiency, that is a huge problem for his fantasy value.
The key for Arvidsson will be top PP time. If he gets it on a regular basis, he can be viable in medium-sized (or deeper) fantasy leagues. If he can't, he's waiver fodder. For now, it seems unlikely, but things can change fast.
This trade also opens up some cap space for Edmonton which will likely be filled up in the next few days.
Who This Helps
Matthew Savoie
Who This Hurts
Viktor Arvidsson