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For a team hoping to win the Stanley Cup, Teddy Purcell is a better bet this year than David Perron was last year.

With 29 points in 49 games, Purcell is tied for 87th in NHL scoring, at the same level as more heralded players such as Corey Perry, Sean Monahan, Phil Kessel, James Neal and Thomas Vanek.

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On Oilers Now today, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said Purcell should be a target for other NHL teams at the trade deadline.

“Teams are going to be looking for guys who can score,” Friedman said. “I think a guy like Purcell, absolutely. You’re looking for guys who can score and Ted Purcell has shown, when he plays with offensive players, he can score.”

Perron vs Purcell

Photo by JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESS

As for my comparison to Perron, Perron had scored a career high 28 goals in 2013-14 for the Oilers and he had a nasty streak. All that won him no shortage of fans in Edmonton. At the same time, however, his game was plagued with weak backchecking and poor board work on defence. As a two-way winger, he was marginal, and he was just OK even in 2013-14, even with his strong goal scoring.His even strength scoring chances plus-minus — his rate of contributions to scoring chances compared to his rate of mistakes on chances against — was +1.6 per game(with a game defined as 15 min. even strength), an OK number for a winger, but nothing special.