All is not well in Nashville.

The Predators sit tied for dead last in the NHL, with just 9 points through 13 games. That's prompted GM Barry Trotz to consider a rebuild, just a few months after committing over $170 million to Steven Stamkos, Brady Skjei, Jonathan Marchessault, and Juuse Saros over the offseason. To put it mildly, it's not what you want.

One team's loss can be another's gain, however, and the Edmonton Oilers are in a position to take advantage of a possible Predators fire sale.

#1 on the Oilers' wishlist is a right-handed defenceman to play next to Darnell Nurse on the second pair. A top-four RD is usually one of the hardest positions to acquire in the NHL, but the Predators have two that would fit well in Edmonton.

Alexandre Carrier

The better stylistic and long-term fit is Alexandre Carrier. The 28-year-old signed a three-year contract extension worth $3.75 million annually this past summer, which would offer the Oilers much-needed stability on the back end.

Carrier's best attribute is his puck retrieval, something that Nurse has long struggled with. Despite his small size (listed at 5'11"), Carrier has typically found his best results as the stay-at-home complement to an offensive defenceman, which in Nashville has always been Roman Josi.

Nurse's issues this year have been widely discussed, but they've mostly been on the defensive side of the puck. He's looked quite confident and comfortable with the puck on his stick and jumping up in the play, and might just need a steady stay-at-home partner to let him run wild with the puck.

The problem with Carrier is he just hasn't been a play-driver throughout his career, despite those good numbers with Josi. He's never posted an xG% above 50% in his career, with this year's 36.7% the lowest of his career. He's spent most of this season stapled to the perenially ineffective Jeremy Lauzon, but it's still not ideal.

He might have more name recognition, but how different is he from Troy Stecher, really?

Dante Fabbro

The other intriguing option is Dante Fabbro, who the Oilers have been linked to for what seems like forever. Fabbro has gotten a bit lost in the shuffle this year in Nashville, playing in only six games and having seemingly lost his spot to rookie Marc Del Gaizo.

That outcome doesn't reflect Fabbro's play, however. He's been unlucky this year, with a goals share of 28.6% which doesn't match his xG% of 51.5% (same as Josi!). He was just as good in 56 games last year, and has been generally solid throughout his career.

The 26-year-old is slated to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, which means he's either a rental or will need an extension the Oilers might not be able to afford. But the Oilers are in win-now mode, and Fabbro is a solid defender in his prime who seems to have fallen out of favour on his current team. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, just take him.

Also notable: both Carrier and Fabbro put up solid xG numbers playing with Mattias Ekholm in Nashville, which would come in handy if the Oilers decide to move off of the Ekholm/Bouchard pairing.

Part of the problem for Nashville is that they just don't have that much to sell outside of their defencemen. Pending UFA Gustav Nyquist will be a solid acquisition for someone, but he overlaps too much with Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson to work in Edmonton.

The Oilers could use some help in their bottom six, but it shouldn't come from Nashville. Cole Smith, Colton Sissons, Mark Jankowski, and Michael McCarron are all grinders with term, but they've been uniformly awful this year. Maybe the Oilers take a flyer on one of them in a trade for Carrier or Fabbro, but I wouldn't expect them to move the needle.

View the 3 images of this gallery on the original article

It's been clear for a couple of months now that the Oilers need another defenceman. Carrier and Fabbro have both been repeatedly linked to Edmonton. Now, with the Predators just a loss or two from a rebuild (which the Oilers could help with when they face them on November 14th), the time is coming to pull the trigger. Considering Fabbro's solid advanced numbers and his recent scratches, he should be the Oilers' man.

​​Bookmark The Hockey News Edmonton Oilers team site to never miss news, interviews, or any other updates on the Oilers.

Related: Oilers' Little Mistakes Pile Up In 'Heartbreaking' Loss To Golden Knights

Related: Something Needs To Be Done About The Oilers' Second Pair

Related: What Defender Ronnie Attard Brings To The Oilers

Related: Oilers Send Down Promising Rookie In Surprising Move

Related: Vasily Podkolzin Is Exactly What The Oilers Needed

Related: Oilers' Legend Wayne Gretzky Attends Donald Trump Election Event