(Edmonton) The Edmonton Oilers have put an end to trade rumors sending forward Jesse Puljujarvi to the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday.
The Oilers traded Puljujarvi to the Carolina Hurricanes for Finnish prospect Patrik Puistola.
“Jesse is a good combination of size and skill, and he will add depth to our forward lineup,” Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell said in a statement. He already knows some of our other Finnish players, and we think he will fit perfectly into our team. »
Puljujarvi, 24, has four goals and nine assists in 58 games this season with the Oilers.
The six-foot-four, 201-pound player never lived up to the Oilers’ expectations after they selected him fourth overall in the 2016 NHL Draft. He finished his time in Alberta with 51 goals and 61 assists in 317 regular season games.
After playing his first three career NHL seasons with the Oilers, Puljujarvi decided to return home to play two seasons in the Finnish Elite League. Puljujarvi reunited with his former teammates in October 2020, before accepting a one-season, $3 million contract offer from the Oilers in July.
For his part, Puistola, a 22-year-old prospect, has still not played in the Bettman circuit after being selected by the Hurricanes in the third round of the NHL auction in 2019.