EDMONTON – Who doesn’t love hockey trading?

Some Edmonton Oilers fans are clamoring for a trade to bolster the team’s defense and speed, especially given the losses of Dylan Holloway, Ryan McLeod and Philip Broberg.

While these fans continue to cheer, other fan bases are being treated to early season deals. First, the Detroit Red Wings did the Utah Hockey Club a favor and sent Olli Maatta to Salt Lake City for a third-rounder.

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But then the San Jose Sharks and Toronto Maple Leafs made a deal yesterday.

Timothy Liljegren was sent to California in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick, a 2026 sixth-round pick and Matt Benning.

This is a huge boost for the Sharks and their defensive group, which now features the promising young Liljegren to provide a boost to Jake Walman, Mario Ferraro and Cody Ceci.

This will be Benning’s fourth team in the NHL. He started with the Oilers, then went to the Nashville Predators before signing with the Sharks. Given the significant 5-minute reduction in ice time this year compared to last, it appears he has fallen out of favor.

Two years ago was a career year for the 30-year-old right-hander. He scored a career-best 24 points in 77 games for the Sharks. He achieved this not least because of another career high, namely an average ice time of 19:47 per game.

In Edmonton, Benning was a reliable third-team defenseman who could be promoted to the second team. His most common defensive partners were Kris Russell, Oscar Klefbom, Andrej Sekera and Darnell Nurse.

Benning’s most productive year with the team was 2017-18. He averaged 17:17 a night and played 47.5 percent of his ice time with Klefbom and 18.8 percent with Sekera.

For the rest of the year, whenever he is in the lineup, he will give the Maple Leafs depth on their blueline and strengthen the third pairing.

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