OILERS AT SHARKS G7 (12-13) 31.1.13
As we begin today, Taylor Hall is tied for 7th in the entire league in assists and tied for 13th in overall scoring. The Oilers are in 5th place in the conference and with a win tonight could sit alone atop the NW division. What the hell is going on around here?
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Ralph Krueger isn’t going to use his goons unless he has to based on what we’ve seen this season. He mentioned yesterday that teams value those 2 points so much every night in the shortened season, and that could mean some of the career enforcers in the league wind up out of work or in the minors. Darcy Hordichuk could be one of them.
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This Nail Yakupov fellow keeps scoring goals! A huge one last night has the young Russian at 6, 4-0-4 so far this season. This despite some long stretches of ‘rookieness’ and several turnovers in bad areas (all of which is to be expected, learning involves mistakes).
NHL ROOKIE SCORING 2012-13
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Bob McKenzie’s mid-season top 30 is out, worth having a look at if you’re a draft nut. I think its very good that a talent like Pulock is at #15, a clear indicator that this is indeed a deep draft.
Terry Jones has an article out about the Oilers and their draft plans for this year and some nice comments from Stu MacGregor.
- MBS on Eberle in his draft year: “You always hear teams at the draft say ‘We had him projected a lot higher’. That was definitely the case with Eberle. When we went to the draft that June we had him No. 10.”
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I had a coffee with David Staples yesterday (we do that about once a year) and he spent about 5 minutes talking about Lennart Petrell and how much he liked him. Hours later, Petrell went out and had perhaps his best game as an Oiler.
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Oilers looked stifling at times on the forecheck last night, those third and fourth lines are really starting to show well. Ryan Smyth had some wheels last night–well, he was faster–and Hartikainen was effective in his role too. A nice little team here, confidence is rising.
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About tonight: the Sharks are a very good team and everything is firing smoothly. If the Oilers weren’t my team, I’d say they’re going to get killed. They are my team, so I’ll be happy if the final result is close. Would consider it justice if Khabibulin played tonight, doubt it happens.
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Anyone hear anything about Horcoff?
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Tonight won’t be perfect, but I’ll be interested to see if Taylor Hall can push the river against a very good, veteran club like San Jose. I think he’s about to go super nova.
JohnnyRocket,
Nope. That wicked setup for a one-timer that Nail whiffed on was totally an accident.
Crazy boards in that building.
Hemsky looks like he will pass to anyone on the ice but Yakupov. If I were Krueger, I’d watch some tape and have a quiet talk with him.
He doesn’t remember the hit, and claims he has no concussion or has ever had one….
Right.
I think that shift for Fistric demonstrated his shortcomings very well.
I’ve tried, but Petry needs to change his number back.
Win or lose I feel less like stabbing myself in the eye then when the Oilers are not playing Phoenix or Minnesota
My bad. I just tuned in. Missed part of the period. But there does seem to be a disconnect between 83 and 64. Or is it just that 64 is roaming all over and isn’t in areas to take the puck?
Mostly the latter, I think.
Dubnyk thinks Havlat sucks,
If #56 was a dman, he’s be TeeMuni.
Wow, what a pass by Petry to hit Hemsky in full flight
Hemsky just tried to pass to 64, 8pm, Jan 31st.
Gagner was chewing on his mouthguard. Not a good sign.
Gagner has chemistry with Hemsky, and Gagner has chemistry with Yak. But Yak and Hemsky don’t have chemistry.
I’m pretty sure it’s not my imagination, but I’ve seen Yak drift to the right wing in every game on at least one occasion and often several times in a game. All his goals are from the right side. He plays right point. He used to be a right winger. Rarely has he looked dangerous from the left.
The problem is really obvious. =/
Second line is looking good so far. Getting lots of pucks toward the net.
Dubnyk looks like that old couch in your parent’s basement that you use for shooting practise. He’s like Ken Dryden, as long as he stops the puck.
Was that the first bodycheck Hemsky’s thrown, ever?
SK Oiler Fan,
Do you have Sasktel Max I switched over in the summer and can’t find the Oilers game it says it is showing after this flames game this can’t be right. I think I have looked through all the channels.
I’m reversing my prediction: I think this teams makes the playoffs. As a low seed eliminated in the first round, mind you, but not in four or five.
The Hall line is the chance line, the other three aren’t really getting anything going. Sharks are just terrific.
And they’re beating everything the Sharks are throwing at them. Top line, second line, checking line. Times like this, my mind reels from the thought that they still have so much more in the tank. I honestly have no idea how good they’ll get.
Oh good gravy what a move by Hemsky.
Ridiculous call by the ref. If Yak takes that without reacting, he’ll be Sedin-punched the rest of his career in scrums.
Man. It’s going to take a two-handed slash to the head to get a whistle tonight.
No respect for the kid.
oh f off stripes, that’s just cause he’s a Russian rookie – BS
Yakupov has some growing up to do, but that was pretty weak imo.
Crap call.
Yeah that ref sure made a point…
2 minutes for playing hockey.
I mean on Scott Gomez… really?
Nope, Bell Express Vu channel 1437 (SNOLH)
Nice PK.
DAMN!
What are these “Playoffs” of which you speak?
Nice period.
It is nice not to have a feeling of panic every time the other team has a shot on goal. The last few years have conditioned me to expect disaster. This is what it means to have a goalie that calms the waters.
Good start for the good guys
Eberle didn’t score a ridiculous buzzer beater from in close with no room. Regression! Trade the bum!
Oilers to score a shorthanded goal; to keep dolts talking about how they can’t score 5 on 5.
Anyone know the Avs/Flames score? Last time I looked it was 3-2 Avs, lmao.
Nice period except for the 3 or 4 clear breaks in the first 10 min. DD looking big in there – he’s farther out of his net than I remember – Chabot moulding his boy
Oilers have better legs than I thought they’d have. I’m guessing the 3rd will be uphill though
PP looks a bit better than last night – shorter passes, more movement
San Jose is so good at tying up sticks in front of the net. Another team and we might have had one already. Niemi is letting out all sorts of rebounds that the kids usually cash in on.
Czechs have an EXTREMELY deep hatred of Russians. Could be nothing, but I wouldn’t be surprised that Hemsky is going to take some time to warm to the notion of a Russian potentially eating his lunch. Love him or hate him, 83 isn’t historically a “gels with anyone” kind of linemate.
Brad May’s head is massive.
4-2 record; and maybe ahead once in 7 games playing so far wtf lol.
hunter1909,
Tied at 3 – 6min left – destined for Bettman fantasyland
I’m really going to hate that song by the end of the season.
What you all need to understand about Hemsky is that he is a Round Peg…
Just coming on board. Missed the 1st, but from the comments, it looks like it was a good road period.
I’ve noticed a lot of Hall doing the circa-2006-Smytty-Octupus move past defencemen along the boards lately. Seems to come out the other side with the puck more often than not. Great to see it.
I’m getting your Steve Tambellini Fan Club pin polished up and can have it in the mail after tonight’s game.
Anyone know therecent winning % of visiting teams on a B to B road game when the Home team had the previous day off?
I’d guess 25% at best
What’s seriously the most fucked up thing is Hemsky looks like hands down the most creative player out there. Normally he stinks, lol.
Wolfram.
Dennis King scoring chances: First period chances from SJ: 4-7: 1-2 ST
Thanks I phoned them they told me it iss blacked out. I told them I will be looking at going back to Star Choice or Bell tomorrow.
Stastny puts the Avs up by 1 with less than 3 minutes left.
Haven’t seen much of Eberle yet – looks like he’s wearing teal tonight
Sharks D are on him like Antler Spray on Ray Lewis
.???????????.
Where does Dennis post these?
Tungsten
You may know it as “tungsten”, but I consider that pejorative.
5-3 Avs over Calgary!
Boom, Avs end it with an empty-netter.
Sweet, tasty Flames tears.
BONVIE,
Yah, where Bell and SC have the advantage over Sasktel and Cable is the many east / west / alternate feed selection.
Fie on thee.
On twitter. If you don’t follow him you should @DKingBH
What a nice pass by Whitney. Unfortunate it went to Belanger.
Belanger looks 3 steps quicker than last year
So far this season, I’d nominate him for most-improved. Which is kind of weird on a team with a median age of 17.
VanOil,
Nope. 6-3. Who would have guessed that final, when it was 3-3 when it was less than 3:00 left in the game?
Jay “we will make the playoffs” Feaster… Can’t help but wonder if he got so fat by eating his own words.
Did Hall just backcheck the puck away from the Shark in front of Dubnyk??
Whitney looking WAY better tonight.
"Steve Smith",
He was one of my most disappointing last year so I was looking for any ray of light. Should have listened to LT – kept saying he’d be better this year
Whoever’s wearing Whitney’s jersey tonight made a nice spin move to avoid a hit there.
Maybe he just needed to get punched in the face.
Ralph has fixed Belanger.
Gotta thank the skate guy for Hordichuk’s problems.
We’re getting some really nice chances out there, but every bounce goes the wrong way.
Pinch me. I’m an Oilers fan. When I wake up from this great dream I’ll be back in 2001 stuck in a universal perpetual loop where MacT and KLowe do their thing, forever and ever, and ever.
I’ll be the first to say it.
Edmonton wins tonight.
Aww.
Wow. Fastest jinx in history. Fuck.
Well, fuck.
I shouldn’t have said something nice.
You’re, like, the fourth person to say that this thread.
First to jinx it, though.
Well this game is already a win in my books. I still don’t expect 2 points, but I’m impressed.
I blame LT – he jinxed Whitney
Jesus what is with this passing.
That was awful.
“Steve Smith”,
Yeah but the other three didn’t count.
Well, at least I don’t have to go to work tired.
Or to bed happy.
Wow. Oilers Smid now. Man. San Jose is a team I’ve always cheered for, wish they’d do this in the playoffs one time.
Crap. 2-0 and Dubnyk’s had a helluva game. Imagine they’ll start Khabibulin Saturday and that’s a mistake.
Time to start gooning it up.
Time out was the right move
First line responds viciously. Hall lead the charge.
Wolfram – Tungsten – Now I remember that I knew that. When you get into your 40s there are things that you know that you forget you know and then when someone tells you those things, you remember hat you used to remember that.
Anyway – given recent developments, I have stopped polishing the pin and am putting it back into the stock room.
I hope they can get Hordichuks skates fixed, we’re going to hell here!
2 big mistakes = 2 goals. They’re good
If I had to bet now I’d bet on a SJ vs St Louis semi
For the life of me, I can’t understand why they don’t give Schremp a chance – have you seen him on Youtube?
At what point does one of those become interference?
The 2nd goal came on a failed Hemsky -> Yakupov pass. Now Hemsky will never try to pass to Yakupov again.
I find it,hard to hear the name Wingels and not feel it is either an innuendo or a put-on of some sort.
Good player though.
hmmm so I see it was 1-0 Oilers, then I refresh and it is 0-2 Sharks…something’s fishy…
Wow
I <3 YAAAAK.
So does Fistric, I bet.
Fistric (Yakupov, Gagner)
FISHSTICK!
Haha! thought Yak made the wrong move there!
I love the patience that Yak had, and the respect the Sharks showed. They knew they couldn’t just rush in and try to check him.
Nice play, Yakupov.
Wow
Looked like 89 tipped that
khildahl,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3u5qkqCTDQ
Fistric scoring at almost a 30 goal pace, over a full season.
Wish Smyth had hands, instead of just the magnificent hockey hair and ass.
like Yakupov’s patience and vision and .. dare i say it .. poise.
Wow. Just wow.
That is beautiful people. That sequence was as good as it gets. Holy man!
I was busy yelling at Yakupov for slowing down the rush when they had the numbers…then he feeds Fistric for goal.
And now we are buzzing. I can get used to the 2013 version of the Oilers
That is fucking weak.
Now they’re saying Gagner (Fistric, Yakupov)
i wonder if Schultz WD-40s his blades in order to slide in all silent as he does.
Gags gets the goal, tied for point lead, 7 game point streak.
God, when are we going to get a real second line centre. We need size, someone who can get in front of the net.
That’s not a hold FFS, that’s a nice play
BlacqueJacque,
One of my favourite episodes.
Saw the break… for some reason thought it was Eberle. Started thinking goal. Then found out it was Smyth. The hard way.
Fistric scoring at a zero goal pace, over a full season.
Schultz the Younger as that 6th sense on when to sneak down to the slot. I’d just like to know where he got the invisibility cloak. No one ever sees him move down.
What do you call that PK? A trapezoid? Amorphous blob?
That tennis player from the commercial looks like Hartikainen!
Gagner on the other hand is on pace for a pro-rated 82pt season.
With turculence! Maybe Hortichuck can play there when his skate is fixed
That’s 4 min worth of weak calls now – man that pisses me off. Good hockey game and they have to give one of the best PP’s in the league 2 free plays
~Glad we never traded Gagner for Wellwood~
pboy,
teams will learn to shoulder check while the puck is on the boards.
or get a verbal warning from the goaltender.
basically, Schultz is exploiting the other team being overly puck focused.
Lazy Russian getting his points on second assists.
Jumbo picked Eberle’s pocket clean.
I think J Schultz is due for some pointage.
Anyone else see Smid get slashed as he skated into the frame?
About damn time.
Ryan Whitney seems to be reverting to early season form.
I haven’t checked, but I sort of hope that Gagner has a terrible Corsi, just to see what He Who Must Not has to say about it.
Oh goodness, I didn’t realize wrist shots could be fired so hard. Damn Yak.
Anyone have a tip for trying to ignore what Drew Remenda has to say?
Five bad passes by Eberle in 5 periods. Manages to come back for the successful breakaway stop.
edit – Make it 6.
Biggest homer in all of sports – he’s obsessed with Thornton and Marleau
Probably bite his lip completely off.
I am going to try a large Whiskey
And then I hope Dale Tallon trades for him, paying a hefty price.
SK Oiler Fan,
Continuously calling #19 “Joe” is getting to me. And not every puck possession by the Sharks deserves an increased pitch of his voice.
I miss Gene.
Dennis King scoring chances after 2 12-10; 2-3 ST.
So, if the Oilers can continue this, no matter the score this is a victory.
By my eye, Fistric is playing a really strong game tonight. Hopefully, Ralph sees it the same way.
Official stats have San Jose at 18 shots total. Feels like more. That’s a credit to Oilers defense this game though. I don’t know that there’s such a thing as a “moral victory” anymore with the short season and this stage of the rebuild, but they’re looking much better than I think most of us feared they would. And this game is still winnable.
Shawn Horcoff’s out of the lineup, according to the faceoff stats.
The Sharks aren’t having a bad game, so IMO it’s impressive to stay with them through two periods.
Flames 15th in the conference, 29th in the league.
“Steve Smith”,
Did he play more than one shift? I really don’t remember him after noticing he seemed out of it.
“Ralph Krueger called a timeout to calm things down. It’s almost like when a basketball coach calls a timeout to calm things down.”
That might actually be the worst analogy I’ve ever heard in sports journalism (and, by extension, anywhere).
Hmmm. I kind of want to bring up something about deserts and wandering in the the vicinity of Jay Feaster.
Um, he’s played zero shifts. On account of not being in the lineup.
“Steve Smith”,
The beer I just drank was almost like beer!
I could have sworn I saw him skate?! Am I that drunk already? :/
Is Brent Burns wearing a Trogdor hat?
Yeah, that’s one issue with Gagner, 5 years in and still stinks at face-offs. RNH sucks hard too, but I’ll give him some slack considering he’s a sophomore.
Brent Burns, the beard is Epic. The touque on the other hand…not so much.
Notwithstanding the handful but costly brutal turnovers and some of the defensive zone chaos, this is the best I’ve seen the Oilers play in a long time – and against the league’s current best, to boot. I would have thrown in the towel at the end of the second had the Sharks kept their 2-0 lead (eastern time zone), but now I won’t miss that tying goal live.
oh yah, drives me nuts. Don’t forget about “Little Joe” and “Patti Marleau”
Mr Burns is an odd dude.
icecastles,
Nice. To channel Gino for a second… Would he Burnsinate the peasants?
khildahl,
Whatever happened to Homestar Runner? It was huge among people who posted things that annoyed me, as I recall.
I commonly refer to those people as “the whole damn internet”. I imagine the site is still around. I’m not going to check.
That’s still no fucking excuse. Comrade Horcov hasnt helped at all tonight.
Gagner – 41.5%
RNH – 45.1%
Cogliano – 0%
Hah. Fine, Cogs only took two so far. Still.
I blame Patrick O’Sullivan.
Work of art.
oh wow
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the lord
HALL EBS-HAAAAAALLLLLLL!
Woo.
Someone get me a paper bag so I can breathe again.
I’d like a threesome with that pair of flourescent chicks behind the Sharks bench.
Hall!!
Beautiful.
Yeah, two periods in a row the boys start hot
garbage goal¡
“Tic-tac-toe…with only two players!”
He must be familiar with a different version of the game than I am.
These kids are starting to get boring, can’t they throw a spinerama into their goals?
Now Flames fans can console themselves, watching Calgary’s own Taylor Hall on his NHL career path.
Hall (Eberle, RNH)
I was just about to swear at Eberle for not shooting. The game must happen in slow motion for him.
Dam – its past my bedtime now I have to stay up
Lowetide,
LMFAO !
The supernova is building…
Ha! The Oilers are starting to fill in the massive deficit of absolutely magic plays over the past 20 years.
RMGS,
I agree this is a very strong showing against a very good team
Down 2-0 and I think most of us would agree, you don’t change the channel with this Oiler lineup.
We are hanging in with the best record in the NHL, on the road, on the 2nd game of a back-to-back
I predict Yakupov bats in the winning goal from the right side of the net near the end of the game or in overtime.
Did Nuge murder kittens over Christmas to anger the hockeys gods or something?
Down 2-0 to the most dominant team in the league, that blew the Oilers out at the home opener a week prior.
Better not be any talk about disrespect from the Sharks after that.
Good call.
EDIT: Or not. Payback though.
Two minutes for being in close proximity to a guy falling over.
My dad just texted me that he hates this newfangled goalies style where they all drop down and don’t stay standing. Also hates these new composite sticks.
I pointed out that he switched from his iPod to his laptop (dead battery) while texting to another country about the game he’s watching via satellite on his flatscreen TV. It’s hard to be a luddite AND a sports fan.
Fuck, that’s a dumb penalty.
Too many men. Lordy.
Your Dad wouldn’t happen to own a belt with an onion on it, would he?
LOL Smytty. So incredibly slow but with the deft hands.
That must have been Smytty’s impression of Ebs
BlacqueJacque,
He needs to try the go to wrap around move.
pboy,
You have no idea how big a fan he was of Pat Quinn. (though in fairness, a lot of us were until he stared, you know, “coaching” the Oilers).
Still have no idea where the whole onion belt thing actually originated….
Lander’s had 2 shorthanded shots tonight. I think that’s more than we had the whole first 6 games.
icecastles,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRUj8dma0oo