Oilers acquire Troy Stecher from Coyotes

The Oilers have added depth defender Troy Stecher and a 2024 seventh-round pick from the Coyotes, per a team release. Edmonton is sending a 2027 fourth-round pick to Arizona in return.

Stecher, 29, has now been dealt at the trade deadline for the third consecutive season. He was picked up by the Kings from the Red Wings in 2021-22 and was sent from the Coyotes to the Flames last season before returning to Arizona on a one-year, $1.1M contract last summer.

Edmonton is absorbing all of Stecher’s cap hit. They now have just over $1M in deadline space with one open roster spot, so, as Derek Van Diest of NHL.com reports, GM Ken Holland is likely done with his pre-deadline moves.

In Stecher, the Oilers pick up a veteran right-shot D-man to stabilize their group of depth defenders. He had one goal, five points and a +5 rating while averaging 18:26 per game in 47 contests with the Coyotes.

With nearly 500 games of NHL experience, Stecher will likely battle Vincent Desharnais for a spot on Edmonton’s second pairing, flanking Darnell Nurse. While Desharnais is less of a household name, he’s been considerably more effective at controlling possession quality this season, posting a 56.7 xGF% compared to Stecher’s 47.3 xGF%, per Hockey Reference. 

In all likelihood, Stecher will factor in as the Oilers’ extra defender when the postseason begins, barring injuries.

Stecher’s departure (and the potential departure of Mathew Dumba) means more ice time for the Coyotes’ less-tested complement of right-shot defenders down the stretch as they face another season without postseason play. 

Sean Durzi is a natural right shot but has been playing his off-side on a pairing with Michael Kesselring, but could shift back to the right on a different pairing down the stretch. 

2019 11th overall pick Victor Söderström, who’s played just once in the NHL this season, is waiting in the wings in the minors and could get called up to shoulder some minutes, too.

Stecher will be a UFA at the season’s end. While the Oilers have just one pick in the first four rounds of the 2024 draft after parting with their first-rounder for Adam Henrique Wednesday, they now have five in the final three rounds after picking up a seventh-rounder from Arizona today, which originally belonged to the Bruins.

Former NHL defenseman Jordan Schmaltz was first to report that Stecher was heading to Edmonton. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic was first to report that the Oilers were parting with a fourth-round pick, while Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was first to report that a seventh-round pick was heading to Edmonton.