Kris Versteeg

Edmonton Oilers Close to Signing Kris Versteeg to PTO: Report

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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The Edmonton Oilers are close to signing right winger Kris Versteeg to a PTO contract, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported Friday.

Versteeg, 30, was going to sign overseas with the Swiss league, but after contract talks fell through, he has been considering a return to the National Hockey League. This past season split between the Carolina Hurricanes and Los Angeles Kings, he put up 38 points (15 G, 23 A) in 77 games.

Though he is older, and lacks size, the 5-foot-11, 170-pound forward has a lot of upside, and can definitely pull through and be a successful signing for Edmonton in the end.

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Versteeg has nine 30-point campaigns under his belt, two of those being 40+ point years. He is an incredible skilled winger who can not only bring a veteran presence to the ice, but knows the game and how to generate offensive opportunities.

Considering the Oilers current situation on the right wing, another winger couldn’t hurt, especially on a PTO. We can see how he plays out, and if he can cut the opening night roster, he can provide some extra security.

This is a low-risk signing for the Oilers. Yes, no risk, meaning there is nothing that could hurt this team by picking up this player. We’re not fully committing to him, and could wait it out and see how he does in camp. If he impresses; great, we’ll draw him into the lineup, and have depth that includes more than the up-and-coming Jesse Puljujarvi, recovering Zack Kassian and still-developing Iiro Pakarinen.

He is a veteran who knows how to play the game, continuously puts up strong numbers and can generate offense on the bottom-six. He provides extra depth, scoring capabilities and more.

Versteeg currently produces 2.06 points per 60 for his career, and also takes around 7.7 shots per 60. He shies away from physicality, but can play a strong two-way game. His relative Corsi was well over 6 for this past season.

In the end, this is going to be a strong signing for Edmonton, and I think it could work out to the point where we see him in an NHL sweater. If not, it’s easy to let go.