Losing takes a terrible toll on hockey people, you can see it and hear it in the tones of voices as another season slips away. You can also hear the sharpness in the words from Todd McLellan, who has gone from mentioning they need a power-play option to openly questioning if this group is bona fide. It is the weight of losing, mind-numbing losing, and the pressure heightened.
I find it hard to blame the players, they are batting too high in the order. Last night, in New Jersey, Edmonton’s third pair must have been dizzy most of the night—simply not able. That isn’t on those men, that isn’t on the coach—that is on management. You can pay Todd McLellan a lot to take a knife to a gunfight, but you can’t make him happy doing it.
GREETINGS FROM ASBURY PARK, YEAR OVER YEAR
- Oilers in October 2014: 4-5-1
- Oilers in October 2015: 4-8-0
- Oilers in November 2014: 2-9-3
- Oilers in November 2015: 4-7-2
- Oilers in December 2014: 2-8-4
- Oilers in December 2015: 7-6-1
- Oilers in January 2015: 5-7-1
- Oilers in January 2016: 4-5-2
- Oilers in February 2015: 5-6-1
- Oilers in February 2016: 2-3-0
- Oilers after 55 in 2014-15: 15-31-9, 39 points (-57 GD)
- Oilers after 55 in 2015-16: 21-29-5, 47 points (-30 GD)
The Oilers have one .500 month during the entire season (December) and February looked promising until the weekend and another step into one of those damnable elevator shafts. The club has Toronto and Winnipeg to round out the week, and the ‘box of chocolates’ season rolls along.
DEFENSE, LAST NIGHT
- Sekera—Fayne now deliver reliable and dependable play pretty much every period these days. Sekera does some unusual things—he was on his way out of the corner of his zone with clean air before stopping and going back for 40 more seconds of hell—but he battles well and has skills to the sky. I really like him, he should get 30 points on a team that is not a good offensive group.
- Fayne played less at 5×5 than any other defender, and had the best possession numbers. You can bitch about the personnel, but the math has a story to tell as well. There were better options than 14:11 Clendening, and they were on the bench.
- Davidson—Gryba played well again, solid possession numbers and they moved the puck pretty well (Gryba lugged it with some aplomb a time or two).
- Brandon Davidson is one of the very few defensemen this organization, drafted, developed and delivered to the NHL. His story is unusual—including a one-year delay that allowed him to fly under the radar—and maybe there is a lesson there.
- Nurse—Clendening got fed and this cannot go on. Neither man has enough experience to be the strong partner, and frankly Nurse played mostly well to my eye but the pairing was chasing instead of solving. It will be very interesting to see what the Schultz trade (if it comes) fetches—Chiarelli may decide to bring in a veteran mentor. We wait.
CENTERS, LAST NIGHT
- Connor McDavid and his line scored the goal (again) and I thought they had a lot of jump. Early (again) there were some fine and dandy chances, but it was followed by a hard candy Christmas.
- Mark Letestu is playing in more of an offensive role than warranted (at even strength he is not a strong option for that slot in the other) and the result was poor possession against a pretty pedestrian line from the New Jersey side. He did have one golden chance, still have no idea how Schneider made the save.
- Matt Henrdricks and his line skated miles, while neither side could get a thing done. Seriously. EIGHT MINUTES of even strength time and there were three Corsi events. I don’t think it is possible, probably wrote down the wrong numbers.
- Leon Draisaitl and his line had some chances (Hall missed early and then set up Letestu for what should have been a goal) but they did not have the edge in play. A late surge helped the numbers, his only shot came as the game wound down. Leon is hurt, pretty sure.
- Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is badly missed, as we discussed at the time of his injury.
WINGERS, LAST NIGHT
- Pouliot—Eberle were terrific on the goal, and I thought there was good chem there. Lots of comments about frustration over lack of execution late, but NJD are good at clogging the drain when they are up by a goal.
- Hall—Pakarinen was not overly effective, I think Purcell moves the needle far better.
- Purcell—Yakupov played on a weird line, the best chances (Letestu, Purcell) took place when they were not on the line. Perhaps that is the point.
- Korpikoski—Kassian accomplished little and gave up about the same. In some weird, horrible way, Korpikoski was perfect.
INDIVIDUAL HIGH-DANGER SCORING CHANCES
- Connor McDavid 1
- Taylor Hall 1
- Jordan Eberle 1
- Iiro Pakarinen 1
- Mark Letestu 1
POWER PLAY
The Oilers should have a point from last night’s game, but early chances were missed and Schneider was brilliant when required. I also think the power play needs to be mentioned, this team has some terrible vapor-lock moments on entries. I think they need more practice, but they looked so good 5×4 at home I wonder if there is something in the video. Exits and entries seem weird, maybe other teams have scouted them and are offering a different look. Either way, two home games to end the week and one hopes the 5×4 looks better at Rexall.
TRADING SCHULTZ
- Elliotte Friedman: Nothing imminent as far as I can tell, but the clock is ticking on Justin Schultz in Edmonton. Like Cowen with Ottawa, it is time for both the player and organization. A deal will happen, it’s just a question of when. Source
I hope it gets done soon, Edmonton needs some help on defense and I have had enough of the story. One thing people miss (imo): Schultz may be letting you down, but I think the organization failed him miserably. If you go back and see his TOI totals and handling, it is textbook stupid. During his four NHL seasons, Schultz has averaged over 22 minutes a night. His production was best in his rookie season, and it has been downhill from there. I think a team trading for him could have success, if they understand two things: First, he is NOT a good defenseman so playing him heavy minutes hurts the team. Second, he is not a good outlet passer and does not have a great point shot. Inside the offensive zone, with the puck on his stick, Schultz can make things go. It is a narrow, but valuable window. I think a team with massive offensive tools, like Pittsburgh or Dallas or even Washington, would be an ideal fit.
FIRE THEM INTO THE SUN!
Lots of anger online and on this blog last night, completely understandable. Even a few ‘trade Hall!’ volleys, and that is my signal to have our discussion about logic and reason. No player is perfect, but the Oilers and their fans have been blessed with astounding talent since 2010. No fan base is going to feel sorry for you, nor should they, but the anger you feel need not be addressed at the players, but rather at management. For some reason, Oilers management got it into their heads that they could do a timed rebuild, having things figured out when the new arena opens. This gave rise to addled thinking, ridiculous errors in assessment (Petry v Schultz a good example) and the steaming pile of poop we see before us.
When you watch a game in which the second pairing would make a good third pairing, why do you yell at the player? Did the player bid on the opportunity, win the chance, and then fail to deliver? No sir. As was the case with Shawn Horcoff—who was wildly hated because of his (sic) $7.5M cap hit—people have to get over this need to wave lanterns at runaway trains. It is the management. Same as it ever was. Will Peter Chiarelli fix it? That is chapter next.
- Goal: Cam Talbot
- Defense: Andrej Sekera, Mark Fayne, Oscar Klefbom, Brandon Davidson, Darnell Nurse
- Center: Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
- Left Wing: Taylor Hall, Benoit Pouliot
- Right Wing: Jordan Eberle, Nail Yakupov
That my friends, is a mammoth talent base. My suggestion to you: Stop ripping the living crap out of these men and ask why management, with legion Jacks and Kings, remains unable to gather sixes and sevens and nines.
If you read this, and filter it as an assessment of the talent (as well as a lashing out at personnel), Todd McLellan nails it home with a Charlie Watts cymbal smash:
- Todd McLellan: ”There are a number of young players who are trying to break into the league and create careers, are they passing the grade? I don’t know. There is a number of players who are trying to hold on and survive, are they doing what they need to do? It is a critical time in the season. And then there are others who have reputations, whether they are really strong or somewhat weak, you have an opportunity to change it or grow it and they let that go today.” Source
The Oilers have the Jacks and Kings, but they need to find balance—and that arrives on the day they stop chasing ridiculous solutions on the blue line, buckle down and find Todd McLellan some actual NHL defensemen. The rest is a shell game.
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
A fun day (four hours again, so Schultz trade could happen when I am on the air! Shut up! It could happen!) beginning at 10, TSN1260. Scheduled to appear:
- Bruce McCurdy, Cult of Hockey. Oilers slink home a beaten crew.
- Nathan Dempsey, Campus Director at Vimy Hockey. Confidence and what happens when you lose it—plus how to get it back (in a hockey sense).
- Scott Cullen, TSN. Trade deadline, Canada’s sad hockey teams and probably some CFL.
- Moving target for the rest, if the Eskimos snap off a big free-agent signing we will adjust our sights and grab someone to talk about it.
10-1260 text, @Lowetide on twitter. Chin up, you. We have been through worse.
Yes this is the original post I was looking for. Just look at the team New Jersey has iced they look like an expansion team, a bunch of cast offs that have been given a chance and have bought in and work hard ever game and play the right way.
Two Great posts to sum up our situation here in Oilersland.
Oh my god, did you all see this?
Kevin Lowe finds freedom in new management role: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/kevin-lowe-finds-calm-in-new-management-role-221549001.html
““The team is winning hockey games,” Lowe said. “They’ve been in just about every game they’ve played this year. There’s a lot of steps to take. The good thing is (owner) Daryl Katz and I (believed) the team needed to be trending upwards or getting good by the time we go into the new building, and it looks like the master plan is unfolding as we hoped.””
G Money,
Swearing helps me as well G, and it’s far more masculine than screaming into a pillow.
godot10,
Krueger’s D:
Petry, Smid, JSchutlz, NSchultz, one legged Ryan Whitney, Potter, Fistric
McLellan
Sekera, Klefbom, Schultz, Fayne, Gryba, Nurse, Reinhart
Advantage McLellan.
Imma gonna haveta disagree with you here Tim.
Top 6 Dmen via 5v5 TOI:
Kruger:
Petry
Jultz
Smid
Nultz
Whitney
Potter
McLellan:
Sekera
Nurse
Gryba
Schultz
Fayne
Davidson
Advantage: Saint Ralph
When I was doing my research for my upcoming “Taylor Hall has played on a team with a top 4 Dman on the ice 22% of the time” post, I actually concluded that St. Ralph’s Dcorp has been the best of Hall’s career.
Sekera = Petry
Nurse worse than Rookie Jultz
Gryba worse than Smid
Jultz worse than Nultz (as being a NHL DMan)
Fayne better than Whitney
Davidson better than Potter
You have to look at TOI to see the story.
You listed Klefbom 2nd, but he’s 7th in 5v5 TOI due to the injury.
Top of the D roster was better with His Holy Name.
Actual context matters.
Careful, there’s a deadly meme lurking close by…
If McDavid’s breakaway post had bounced the other way, the entire game’s complexion probably would have changed.
But we’re talking about the team being in it to the end against opposition with a record above 0.500 here, so I don’t get this “its so terrible they lost to New Jersey” thing.
frjohnk,
did you just call Toews a 2nd line centre? 😉
flames fans seem to have soured on Monny Toews and bumped up the obsession for JG
How do you really feel about this G?
Racki,
I’m with Racki on this one. For the most part, could give a shit what the players say they’ll do to each other on the ice.
When you consider that the league didn’t even see fit to hand out a suspension for this kind of garbage:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKIKf7PXjnQ
The kind of thing that could actually have ended a career.
The kind of thing that, in my opinion, probably deserves an assault with a deadly weapon charge. If the cross check to the neck doesn’t deserve it, the cross check once Crosby is down and prone on the ice definitely does. You’re outside the rules of the game at that point.
Then you turn around and give Kadri a game for a gesture? Are you kidding?
Fuck the NHL. Fuck them in the stupid dangerous harmful parts of their brains where their humanity should reside but doesn’t. Assholes.
when Stamkos slew footed Kassian, Kassian either said “you f—ing suck” or “you’re f—ing dead” based on my professional lip reading ability
I think the whole ‘re-signing Russell’ thing is a smokescreen. I firmly believe he’s traded by the deadline, along with Hudler, and one of Ramo/Hiller, for picks/prospects.
I also think Wideman is dealt, but most likely at the deadline if his suspension is served, or more likely at the draft.
Chances of Calgary picking a forward early in the draft are very good, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they went after Chychrun – Burke LOVES big mobile DMen.
From MacKenzie’s article today: http://www.tsn.ca/reading-the-trade-market-tea-leaves-1.436138
Hard to see how that gets done at 49 contracts, but we’ll see.
Yah I get you. I personally see it as pretty harmless, but I also see that the NHL has to nip it in the bud immediately so it doesn’t have potential to escalate worse (And also so that they don’t appear accepting of that, as well as potentially look bad if something DOES happen and they didn’t do anything beforehand to try and stop it).
The Devils are pretty famous for what they bring, I don’t think the Oilers forwards were bad last night. One of those early chances go in, or the PP clicks, and we are having a different conversation. I believe it is the defense. Jmo.
I think a game is appropriate for that kind of behaviour.
Guys say stuff all the time that is far worse but we don’t hear it and can’t lip read it on tv. So be it.
But that gesture just speaks to a really low level of behaviour and needs to be addressed.
Not enforcing it means you allow for a certain level of disrespectful animosity that could easily escalate, and I think that is ultimately what the NHL wants to avoid.
How about Sail the f— on, Cleveland Steamer…
LT:
Instead of a ‘sail on’ post for Justin, may I suggest an alternate title:
Badgers? We don’t need no steenking badgers!
I don’t really get why people get all in an uproar about it. I know there’s been some controversy over it in NFL, if not mistaken (i don’t really watch), but maybe because some of those guys might actually kill you one day after football. To me, it’s all just part of intimidating your opponent. Kadri has no intent on really killing the guy he gestured to. I don’t really get the fuss. I think Wisniewski’s gesture (while hilarious) was a lot worse, just because that’s probably not what you want kids seeing at games. Of course, you could argue the same about the throat slash, but I just think it’s really not that bad.
He will likely sit at least a game though.
You cheat for offense, he cheats for D, which is a pretty apt analogy for the Devs and the Drips. If this were a test, I suspect your friend would’ve answered the same way… but in one quick paragraph, lol.
If Kadri plays tomorrow night I’ll be surprised. His throat-slashing gesture to Giordano was pretty blatant as was his mouthing the words “You are F—–g dead!”.
He deserves to sit for a game. Of course, it being the Oilers, he’ll play, score and help the Leafs win before sitting out a suspension the following game.
You post this as if you think your personal assessment of the relative quality of those rosters is obvious and self-evident.
It isn’t.
I find your opinion of the quality of Krueger’s roster rather uncharitable.
frjohnk,
I think what Ashley is getting at with Pouliot comes down to the eyes bias, because I to suffer from it with this player.
Take last nights game for example, great pass to Eberle to setup the 1-1 goal off the McDavid feed but then an “also in the picture” play on the GWG on the PK in the third. He’s a give and take player for fans IMO. He gives you the scoring and he takes your breath away with some of his other plays.
That being said he does constantly put up points and I agree with LT that he does a lot of little things (particular in the d and neutral zones) that don’t show up on the score sheet but helps create a bit of space for his line mates. I like the player and I am for the most part convinced that we got what we paid for with the contract. He has been very consistent over the years and that is worth its weight in gold on a team that has a tendency to sign guys who are on their final legs as NHL players.
The more I’m looking at it, the Pouliot signing could be one of the better UFA signings in the league in the last few years.
Scores at a very good 2nd line pace at even strength. If using points/60, he scores at a 1st line pace
I think he needs to be in front of the opposing goalie to tip pucks in, not in front of ours
These are the forwards that are paid between 3.8M and 4.5M this year. ( 25)
Kadri, Nazem
Hudler, Jiri
Laich, Brooks
Anisimov, Artem
Henrique, Adam
Nyquist, Gustav
Burrows, Alexandre
Dupuis, Pascal
Pacioretty, Max
Pouliot, Benoit
Kunitz, Chris
Beleskey, Matt
Saad, Brandon
Jokinen, Jussi
Michalek, Milan
Jones, David
Read, Matt
Hemsky, Ales
Simmonds, Wayne
Bickell, Bryan
Perron, David
Kulemin, Nikolai
Stafford, Drew
Hornqvist, Patric
Gionta, Brian
Then if we take out the guys who will be making over $5M next year which is
Saad
Pacioretty
Kadri is RFA, so he probably hits that
Hudler probably does
Id say from that first list that
Simmonds ( in 2 years his contract hits $5M)
Henrique
Anisimov
Nyquist
are better than Pouliot
So that would mean he is better than most ( there are 26 in that list, including Pouliot) in his pay range. And the kicker here, is that at $4m, Pouliot is in the bottom tier of that list.
Yeah, we can replace Pouliot with a better player.
But unless its a player on a ELC or bridge contract, you wont be paying that player $4M. It would be more.
Fixed that for you. The assumption that the Oilers will trade Nuge and not address center depth is understandable given the Oilers’ history, but not how we should expect Chiarelli to roll.
SayItAin’tSo, Gretz, SayItAin’tSo!,
I now reflexively shake my fist at my screen whenever anyone mentions Petry *shakes fist* or Tobias Rieder *shakes fist*, two players who were actually developed properly into solid players and that would have been exceedingly valuable to this team right now … but were given away for basically nothing.
Developing then abandoning useful players is something a team with this shallow a roster and this poor a track record at drafting (those three first round picks in the Gagner draft *shakes fist* are still beyond belief) can afford to do less than almost any other team.
Poor teams are poor for a reason.
BLARGH.
*Shakes fist again for good measure*
ashley,
I think we’ll have to agree to disagree on Poulliot and Fayne. Poulliot is a very effective veteran player and I don’t beleive his offense is easily replaced. And certainly not easily replaced at a cheaper cap hit.
Fayne I think had a tough time with Maclellan’s system. It doesn’t match his skill set. But I still maintain he’s easily one of the 4 best D options on the roster currently and likely even when Klef gets back. I don’t see how you can argue that Fayne has been worse than Schultz, Nurse, Reinhart, Gryba or Clendenning without using words like grittier, fighting and beard.
And that highlights the problem with this team… a guy who cleared waivers is easily one of the best 4 D on the team. A guy who cleared waivers is easily one of the best 4 on the team…. That is inexcusable.
frjohnk,
Its an interesting debate here. I know a couple of Flames fans who love (and I mean love) Russell, thought seems to be he increases their “gritensity” level by a factor of 3. Obviously I don’t buy it and would laugh to the bank if someone signs him at Sekera/Petry money.
On that note I can’t help but think just how alike those players are. Very solid defensemen but prone to the “WTF was that?” play per game. I don’t like to think about Jeff though, it just pisses me off how badly that all turned out.
How much more stability would a dcore of (see below) have?
Sekera-Petry
Klefbom-Fayne
Davidson-Gryba
Nurse (Reinhart)
(Please don’t rip the pairings themselves you can alter them as you wish its just for illustrative purposes)
This is still raw for me and I have yet to actually get over the stupidity of the move. The D would have had borderline depth if that one player could have been retained and our good friend Jultz sent packing. Now imagine adding Hamonic to that mix and man that is a legit looking defense. It would have been a bit more costly but not so much that we would lose sleep at night over it. The absolute fumbling of that asset alone should have cost MacT, Howson and anyone else that thought his sideburns were to long to been fired into orbit eight months ago. Damn that was a stupid play by MacT.
On that note, nobody should be surprised that the Oilers farm system developed a legitimate dman in Davidson, they did the exact same with Petry until the Old Boys rode in and buggered it all up.
They should re-sign Hudler and Ramo, trade Russell and Hiller and then take the best forward available when they select.
However, that all looks pretty obvious to us and the word coming out of Calgary is that they are pushing to re-sign Russell and want to move on from Hudler with crickets about Hiller and Ramo. So who the heck knows what Treliving, and by extension Burke, are thinking.
Well, its just something that could possibly happen. Calgary is one of the handful of teams that Hamonic could go to.
But the Flames are lacking up front, so Id see them use their pick on a forward.
The Flames have only 1 1st line player in Gaudreau. And when he plays tough competition or a physical team, he can be neutralized. Not very good without the puck.
Monahan is at best, a good second line center. Imagine how many points Monahan would have put up in the last couple of years with a defense like the Oilers. I know some fans believe Monahan >RNH. But if those two switched teams, and RNH got to play with Brodie and Giordano, Monohan played with the Oilers D, RNH would beat him in points.
Bennett is still quite raw.
Looks like they get picks and/or prospects for Hudler.
Frolik is a decent 2nd line player.
Other than that, their forwards are meh.
Id bet they use their first rounder on a forward.
I recall that analysis, but I’m inclined to disagree. I think ppg is a good measure in above average players, but at the rate guys like Pouliot score, it is a crude measure since that offence can be replaced. We know this since many players who score at the rate Pouliot does bounce around and from team to team. There are many players that can do what Pouliot does, but bring a smarter, more 2 way game to the ice.
At the lower levels of the roster, the player has to bring more than ppg. I don’t think Pouliot is worth 4 million, and I think we can do better. His next contract will be revealing, assuming he gets one.
And as far as Fayne is concerned, skilled NHL men don’t agree with you. Just check his ice time. Who’s right, the math wizards or Chia/McLellan? Fayne is not long for this league and that is a substantial indictment on the weight given to the mathematical analyses of these players. I believe there is a role for advanced stats, but I am now of the mind that it misses a big part of what is going on with these players and their value to the team.
Agree that the money being spent on those other players is much worse. That I left out Ference, Nikitin, Barker, Khabibulin amongst others in my rambling tirade is alarming. The list is so long, I would rather do almost anything else than google search how bad non-draft player procurement has been.
Moving Russell doesn’t count as smart, merely sentient and not brain-dead, but otherwise I agree. 🙂
Wideman isn’t going anywhere until we hear about the suspension, which likely won’t be today because unless Bettman lowers it to 5 games and prepares for an NHL official’s work stoppage, the PA will push it to an arbitrator (whom I’m hoping would enforce the original 20 game suspension per the NHL’s own rulebook).
As for Hamonic, I’d move Giordano for him before that new contract kicks in, then see if Winnipeg wants to part with Trouba or make calls on Brodin. Brodie, Hamilton, Hamonic and Trouba/Brodin is a very nice, young D corps.
My hope is the Flames re-sign Russell to “Engelland+” type money and term.
I have consistently held to low expectations this year, based upon:
1. having far too many rookies in the lineup (learning on the job),
2. new coaches (time to figure players out, implement systems etc.)
3. too many players in their first year in Edmonton (adjusting to new teammates, coaches, systems etc.), and,
4. too many soft players (Gryba, Nurse, Kassian have certainly helped, but fall into the other categories).
This was ALWAYS going to be a transition year, despite tantalizing and hope-inducing moments of offensive brilliance. The injuries have simply cemented it. That hasn’t prevented many, many curse-at-the-TV moments.
The good news is the number of at bats the kids have received WILL pay off big in the future.
McDavid, Draisaitl, Davidson, Klefbom, Nurse, Pak, Talbot and Reinhardt will ALL be even better next year (not sure which team some will be playing for). And more consistent.
Chiarelli WILL make changes: additions and subtractions. McClellan will know his group better.
No more looking in the rear view mirror; that decade is gone. It’s all about the next 5.
Cloudy today, sunny tomorrow. 🙂
frjohnk,
Why must you say things like this? I just threw up in my mouth.
If the Flames were smart, they would trade Russell at the deadline and get whatever for him.
Try to get rid of Wideman ( would have to retain)
Then put their 1st round pick and a prospect on the table for Hamonic in the summer.
Brodie, Giordano, Hamilton and Hamonic would be the best top 4 in the league.
This is the part I’m most panicked about. Being at 49 contracts right now is bad for business. I’d love if they could get down to 47. Before the deadline. This is an important February.
MacKenzie is suggesting Russell would use Petry and Sekera contracts as comparables if he goes to free-agency.
Please let the Flames sign him to a 5×5 contract!
Oilers are at 49 contracts with a maximum of 50.
They need to be at 48 by the deadline in order to be able to really wheel and deal.
Ehrhoff is a player I argued for here during the summer, but they need contract flexibility right now more than another reclamation defender.
They need to move Schultz for a pick or perhaps even a good CHL prospect if they can swing it.
Then they can start to move out guys for picks and bad contracts, etc.
G Money,
Once again G you’re a smart guy. I like the simplicity of that sort of analysis.
I’d say Pou adds even more value to the Oilers specifically with regards to him being more rugged and faster and a vet. He scores well and can play up and down the lineup.
I take erhoff if not somehow injured, in a heartbeat.
why not?
http://www.tsn.ca/reading-the-trade-market-tea-leaves-1.436138
Very bottom of this article:
Any other news on Jon Martin?
Squeeze! We must have moar!
(That from The Mystery of Larry Wachowski, suitable for private browsing, in dark-draped private rooms, situated on small private island estates, owned privately. Did I say “privately”? Enter at your own risk.)
Yesterday I learned that ‘orange’, subtype “clockwork”, actually refers to the fleshy programmable fruit and not its colour, and that the Royal Black Institution, a circle within a circle which relates to the Orange Order in Canada, once infamous as the political main spring of Toronto the Good (whose massive karmic debt, accrued over more than a century, continues to rankle the hockey gods), is apparently still a going concern in Upper Fundie (and possibly also explains why Newfoundland hasn’t won a cup in living memory either) and that in this case we are dealing with orange, uptight subtype “William of”.
Back on privacy island, there are two references to “yellow”—three, so far, if you count the Post-It Note twice then immediately leave the room—the other being the yellow legal pads upon which the ur-original script of The Matrix was scribbled longhand. In this case, I think “the curtains were fucking blue” as explained by the image caption double chin at Everyone Is Jesus in Purgatory (what your teacher thinks: “the curtains represent his immense depression and his lack of will to carry on.”) But I’ll keep the file open.
A Brutal Process
As ever going waaay back—"hope for the best" hadn't even been invented yet—the stinging snap is delivered with no shortage of suck and blow:
I believe the author’s long, oral account of his book (Talks at Google) explains the system whereby the slaves were expected to give it the Walmart squeeze, year over year (pray—and I mean pray—for rain; the tiniest down tick of climate would surely be written in your own blood). Actual productivity rose enormously. It was a well-oiled torture machine. The negro slaves were passing efficiency-in-motion tips among themselves with a vengeance, long before Edgar Rice Burroughs purloined the pulp, and waaay long before Frederick Winslow Taylor requisitioned the rind.
(Don’t hunt it down, it sucks even by the not-so-lofty Princess of Mars standard.)
Anyways, it’s high pumpkin time for me IRL. I’ve already made my point well enough, so today I’ll just have to skip my summary send up.
Moral of the story: Yes, there is always MOAR—hang your eyes upon the towering task masters of yore, and [*] despair.
[*] help wanted: must supply your own Poe-tic tick tock
Other than taking a few dumb penalties and sometimes tipping pucks into the wrong net, Pouliot has been a very good UFA signing by the Oilers. Also, this signing was on the right side of 30.
Snowman,
Back in May of 2014, I did an analysis of cap hit vs ppg to see if I could get a baseline for what could reasonably be considered over- or underpaid.
You can see the chart that resulted from this work here:
http://cdn0.vox-cdn.com/imported_assets/2214585/IFenXtZ.png
The r-value on that line was so high that I had to double check it to make sure it wasn’t in error!
The equation for that I came up with was ppg = 0.1014 * caphit + 0.172.
If your players career ppg was above that calculated ppg, you have a bargain. If it’s below, you have a below average contract.
Using that equation, Poo’s cap hit of $4M should buy you 0.5776 pts/game. Poo is at a career 0.468, but in his time in Edmonton he is at 0.596 ppg.
So I gotta say that Poo, on a league wide comparison, is producing about as many points as he should be given his cap hit. It’s a fair contract, not a bargain and not a rip off.
Of course, the cap has gone up since then, so this equation is now overly conservative i.e. the actual ppg value per $ is higher. So if Pouliot was signing a contract now, he could probably demand more than that given his recent production. So in that sense he is something of a bargain.
If you want to read the whole article, it was from before I started my blog, so I wrote it as a C&B FanPost: http://www.coppernblue.com/2014/5/26/5752148/whats-a-ufa-worth
Well I can only partially agree with you Mr. Mitchell. Lack of quality NHL players is certainly on the management side, but lack of character, lack of effort, lack of consistency is all on the players. Too many nights we have seen multiple players with zero give a shit. Even the coach has commented on the number of passengers repeatedly.
Just got to have to those two solid top four pairings and I think everything is better. Sekera and Klefbom are 50% of that. Davidson is probably 10% of that maybe 25% this time next year. Nurse won’t be a solution till next season, at the earliest.
Eberle for Hamonic fills one of those. Just do it before WPG or whoever gives up a good D who they’re having trouble signing. You can replace Eberle through the draft even if it takes a year. Or move the pick for a D that someone can’t afford, like we should have done with the Reinhart picks. Then find another Eberle-lite for RW, much easier to find than hoping dumb luck and spare parts lands you a top 4 RH defensemen.
I’ll agree ln the forwards KT, but not the D .
Actual pairings yesterday:
Sekera-Fayne vs. Greene-Larrson : NJD in a walk. Neither Oiler Dman would replace either of those if they were on the same roster.
Davidson-Gryba vs Moore-Severson: NJD again. Severson is a fine young RHD and Moore is a 25 year old former 1st rounder who can skate
Nurse-Clendenning vs Shlemko-Hegleson : wash. Schlemko has 278gp which probably trumps the rest, but it’s a wash.
The top 2 pairs, who play the most important minutes are NJD and it’s not close.
I agree that the forwards need to play better and stop flying by the slot and actually stop, screen, fight for a rebound and create chaos.
Actually Poulliot’s contract is a very reasonable one. He probably outperforms it.
http://edmontonjournal.com/sports/hockey/nhl/cult-of-hockey/cult-of-hockey-benoit-pouliots-contract-looks-like-a-big-win-for-the-edmonton-oilers-so-far
Fayne is a top 4 D. Is he worth 3.5M? I’m not sure he is but I’m also not sure he isn’t. He’s had some rough patches but pointing the finger at Fayne is probably not the starting place. He’s easily one of the best 4D on the team. Sekera and Petry are probably pretty comparable and they have pretty comparable contracts. Doesn’t seem very inefficient there.
The problem is that you can’t have Schultz making $4M and playing 20 minutes a night, Ference making $3.5M, Purcell making $4.5M, and then 4 rookies on D and expect to compete. Add Scrivens to that. Add trading Petry to that.
The Oilers are inefficient but not where you say they are. They’re incredibly bad at assembling a competitive D corps. Everything else… like you said.. should be replaceable with guys in the minors.
The makeup of the Forwards needs to change and the D needs to actually have some people who are in fact bona fide NHL Dmen.
Pou, Sekera and Fayne are not the problem. I would suggest they are in fact part of the solution.
kinger_OIL,
True.
But for the purposes of daydreaming (hey, it’s no less realistic than trading for a 1D), imagine if we had Hall, RNH, Shattenkirk, Subban, and Ellis. And Petry.
Maybe not as exciting as having McDavid, but when it comes to actually winning hockey games …