Breaking: Oiler pulled out of the line up after taking warm ups with the team.

We may have a trade on our hands.... or this may be a whole lot of nothing.

According to a breaking news report from TSN's Jason Gregor it appears that the Edmonton Oilers have pulled a player out of their line up at the very last minute, and when you consider the circumstances around this move you will immediately understand why there is so much speculation that this could be a trade deal.

First, according to Gregor former first round draft pick Jeese Puljujarvi will not be playing tonight when the Edmonton Oilers face off against the New York Islanders. The move is the latest in a series of disappointments for young Puljujarvi who has never truly lived up to the potential the Oilers organization saw in him when they selected him 4th overall in the 2016 National Hockey League Entry Draft. What makes this particular let down for Puljujarvi so interesting however is another story that broke earlier. 

According to a report from Sportsnet's Mark Spector earlier today it now sounds an awful lot like one of the top draft picks of the Chiarelli era has all but had it with being a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Spector reported comments made by Markus Lehto, the agent of note who represents Puljujarvi, earlier this week that appear to strongly indicate that Puljujarvi intends to force the Oilers hand by making a trade demand. Now to be clear Lehto did not officially demand a trade but if you read his comments you'll be hard pressed to argue that that is not exactly the kind of message that Lehto was trying to send the Oilers.

"I think it's hard to reset," said Lehto. "It's like, when the player is not trusting anymore.... 'Do these guys really want me herE? Do they really trust me to become a Top 6 guy? A top 9 guy? An offensive player?' The player is uncertain."

"Are we reaching the point that for the team and for the player, it might be actually beneficial for going different paths, different routes?"

The move tonight from the Oilers in the context of what very much appears to be a trade demand from Puljujarvi's agent could indicate that his journey in Edmonton is almost at an end. 

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