Oilers' gamble a bust

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — It seems Oilers coach Craig MacTavish is finally asking what was clear to the rest of us in the summer of ‘07: What was Kevin Lowe thinking?

Lowe, the Oilers’ general manager, acquired forward Dustin Penner from the Ducks by signing the then-restricted free agent to a ludicrous five-year, $21.25 million offer sheet Anaheim smartly didn’t match.

He was banking on the gamble that Penner, who had just finished his entry-level contract that paid him the minimum salary of $450,000, would turn one good season into the career of a superstar. Eighteen games into this season, Penner had five points.

“When we signed Dustin we thought he’d be a top-two line player,” MacTavish told the Edmonton Journal. “We thought the contract was the starting point, but he views it as the finish line. I can’t watch it, certainly not for another (three) and a half years.”

He might have to, because unless Penner’s performance improves drastically, no one will be interested in trading for him. Before the Oilers signed Penner to an offer sheet that summer, they signed the Sabres’ Thomas Vanek to a seven-year, $50 million deal.

The Sabres matched. Vanek has 15 goals in 18 games this season. To be fair to Penner, it’s mostly not his fault — he did no one any favors by showing up to training camp before the start of last season 10 pounds overweight. The 24-year-old didn’t demand $4.25 million a season. The Oilers offered.

Hopefully, Penner’s disappointing story will assure that other GMs don’t make a mistake like this in the future. It’s admirable to have the conviction to take the chance on someone. It’s something else to take a stupid risk — especially in a sport with guaranteed contracts.