The Edmonton Oilers NHL club picked up Oswego native Erik Cole in a trade with Cole’s former team, the Carolina Hurricanes.

ESPN reports Cole was traded to Edmonton because the Oilers are getting rid of high-salaried talent in order to be an active player on the free agent market.  This was one of the first deals made on Tuesday, the opening of the free agent season.

Cole was traded for Joni Pitkanen, a talented scorer who was something of a liability on defense.

Cole won a Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes.  Last year, he scored 22 goals and had 29 assists.  He’s in the final year of a contract that will pay him $4 million this year.

Blogging for Sportsnet.ca, Chris Nichols writes:

“Edmonton is a stronger team today than they were just a few days ago, no doubt.

Is Cole’s health a worry for poolies? Perhaps. Any physical forward is at a higher than normal injury risk level and Cole in particular has had some bad ones, but obviously [management] feels he’s worth the risk.”

The Hurricanes issued a statement thanking Cole for his six years with the team:

“We thank Erik for his years of service to the Hurricanes organization and the Triangle community. We wish Erik, his wife Emily, and their family the best of luck in the future.”

In Edmonton, Cole could team up with the other Oswego County native playing high-level professional hockey, Robbie Schremp.  Schremp played in two games for the Oilers after being called up from Edmonton’s AHL affiliate, the Springfield Falcons.  Schremp is training with Edmonton now.