from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,

Edmonton’s roster right now holds only Ryan Nugent-Hopkins at first-line centre, and Boyd Gordon on the fourth-line.

Is general manager Craig MacTavish counting on newly minted draft pick Leon Draisaitl to play No. 2 centre in the NHL as an 18-year-old this fall? Or does the timing of this trade suggest that MacTavish has already landed a No. 2 centre during the interview period prior to the opening up of free agency at noon Eastern on July 1?

It’s not often you can trade, ostensibly, a 5-foot-10 winger for a 6-foot-3 one like Purcell, but this appears to be a classic case of two guys whose organizations felt it was time to move on.

Purcell comes billed as a Top 6 right-winger, but at times late in the season Tampa coach Jon Cooper had him toiling on the fourth line. He’s a pass-first player — even though Purcell is reputed to have a wicked wrist shot — who surely does not play as big as his frame might have you hoping he will.

more

added 7:55am, Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal on Sam Gagner,