A quartet of Edmonton Oilers can breathe easy.
General manager Craig MacTavish will not be trading the club's core young forwards, Elliotte Friedman reported on Hockey Night in Canada's "Headlines" segment Saturday night:
(MacTavish) has informed Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins not to worry about listening to rumors, because those players won't be traded. He said you can add Nail Yakupov to that list as well.
He believes very strongly that these are players, and the types of player that they are, other teams have given up on too early. He doesn't want to make the same mistakes, and he wants to give them the chance to grow together.
The vote of confidence comes at the end of yet another down year for the Oilers, with a 28th-place finish and a top draft pick on deck.
With these four players ranging in age from 21 to 24, MacTavish and co. appear prepared to hold the line, hoping these onetime blue-chip prospects turn into gold.
