When I worked in sales, there were entire years of uneasy. There is a weekly nut (budget goal) and there is an end of the week and your entire body feels the ticking of the clock. Go long enough outside your comfort zone and you either succeed out of fear (of failure) or you find another job. We’re creatures of habit, we like the comfort that comes with control, repetition and consistency. Sometimes we create false ceilings and get comfortable with a plateau, and then someone comes along and challenges us to find higher ground. The real fear is finding out there is no higher place for you than the place you’re standing today.
RYAN STROME IN A RECTANGLE
- This is from Puck IQ and is genius. I’ve posted it so many times you might be sick of it, but not me.
- It tells us Strome was most effective against gritensity last season, but was below average relative to other Islanders in all three disciplines.
- This is what he’s up against, this is the points where I write “the problem is you develop a past.”
- Strome has a past. He may have been framed by addled thinking in Brooklyn but he owns it, at least until proving otherwise. His chance to prove otherwise may include time with Connor McDavid as RW.
- Todd McLellan’s comments on Saturday were a challenge, probably backed up in a private conversation.
- Todd McLellan’s comments on Saturday do not mean a roster shuffle. It’s too early to make a decision on way or another.
THE BATTLE AT RW
Edmonton enters the week with some questions on the starboard side and a plethora of possible options. The prospects vying for spots are good to great, but none all come with at least one question mark.
- Ryan Strome is coming off two seasons of disappointment offensively. He needs to shoot the puck while playing with 97, has eight shots in two games (1-1-2).
- Anton Slepyshev hasn’t played yet. He’s at 80 percent now according to reports, you’d like to see him play at least two games this week.
- Jesse Puljujarvi was slowed by an injury last week, played in just his second game of preseason on Saturday. He is now 2gp, 2-1-3 with five shots on goal, courtesy a fantastic 20 minutes with CMD. His touch pass on the McDavid goal was sublime, the young man is a unique set of skills in a fast, rambunctious package.
- Drake Caggiula may have hammered down the RW spot on Leon’s line, he is 2gp, 2-2-4 on the preseason. He has speed, can play in all three disciplines, and has chem with McDavid if it comes to that as an option for 1line.
- Kailer Yamamoto is 3gp, 4-1-5, as seven shots, and appears to be the smartest man on the ice at all times. Cerebral player with ridiculous hands, plus speed, forechecks like a demon. I had him No. 11 in the draft, really liked him. Even I’m surprised at how well he has done up until now. If he has more games like the first three, the Oilers won’t be able to send him back to Spokane.
- Zack Kassian has a spot in the lineup, no question. It’s likely on the fourth unit with Mark Letestu.
- Iiro Pakarinen is likely an extra forward to start the season, but could go higher if others falter.
OUTSIDE SOLUTIONS
I wrote about acquiring Josh Leivo the other day, also wonder if Jarome Iginla is on the Oilers’ radar. Jaromir Jagr isn’t coming here, but he’d be an excellent option if only for the jersey sales. I think Peter Chiarelli has this right, though. Take your Cod Liver Oil by finding internal solutions at RW. If they all don’t work, make a trade in-season.
THE BATTLE ON DEFENSE
The first six look set (Klefbom-Larsson, Russell-Benning, Nurse-Gryba) but we could see an acquisition here. As for the rest, I’d say Yohann Auvitu still has the edge despite some wobble. Ryan Stanton is in there, Dillon Simpson and Mark Fayne, too. Colin Miller would be a helluva get at this point, but we’ll see how everyone performs this week.
PLAYING TIME
If a bubble player gets two games this week, the team is considering that player seriously. The next round of cuts will get us close to 23 men. I’ll guess the next cuts are Mark Fayne, Ryan Stanton, Ty Rattie, Brad Malone.
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
At 10 this morning, TSN1260. Scheduled to appear:
- Pierre Lebrun, TSN & The Athletic. Massive week for NHL teams, Oilers still have some major decisions.
- Andy McNamara, TSN. NFL weekend was nuts.
- Jason Gregor, TSN1260. Oilers getting a good look at RW’s, who has the edge?
- Alex Thomas, The Oilers Rig. Who gets voted off the island next?
10-1260 text, @Lowetide on twitter. See you on the radio!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQW7I62TNOw
my wife tells me the same thing
We all need games vs the Utica Comets
Does this make us Islanders?
I <3 O!
And a game against the Utica Comets 😉
Edit:
I am an island in the Lowetide archipelago.
BustedSoulO,
Too kind.
Thanks.
I am here to increase traffic and support.
Props to LT for repeatedly saying Hunt was a player who desperately needed an expansion draft.
I hope Omark comes back to the NHL too.
Looks like the shot-counters are in preseason form as well, or maybe it has something to do with the 12 hour timezone shift while playing in China?
I resemble that remark.
you never drink whiskey alone here sir.
https://web.cs.dal.ca/~johnston/poetry/island.html
Thanks Hunter.
Makes sense that fans of the team will err to the high side as a group.
Sven Baertschi somehow has a 300 SH%
3 goals, one shot.
Tarasenko has 43 shots in 2 games?
Something smells….
I love this stuff.
If Micah runs it again, I’ll let you know.
Also,
Since I don’t use regression for my stuff, Micah considered my entry “eyeballs” and not “nerd”
I’m not mathy enough for the math people.
I’m too mathy for the non-math people.
I am a rock.
I am an island.
The Prototype JDî,
OK, i clicked the link now. Well, well.
Not our boy Schultzy!
I should have said leading in points. My bad.
I freakin’ LUV this place.
5 days in a row I’ve been here to check Pouzar’s response time.
Guess I am hooked again!
Lurked sporadically through the summer; LT IS a magnet for focused thought. But the rest of you… make this place: Home.
WoodGuy? – Please don’t wander away again. If this is Abby Road, you, to me, are Chris Thomas to LT’s Alan Parsons…
Without you around to angle the light, the dark side of the moon is… well, just Dark.
!!!GOOILERS!!!
Jethro Tull,
Got to give you half a point for being oh-so-close, but no. One of Yak’s former team mates though.
Unsustainable shooting percentage.
The Original JDî,
Nail Yakupov?
If you had 30 guesses at who is leading the league in preseason
scoringpoints, I don’t think you’d get it.http://www.foxsports.com/nhl/stats?category=SCORING
Getting fleeced my an islanders GM is an impressive accomplishment. Chia really needs to shop elsewhere
My favourite is, “Arguing here is like playing chess with a pigeon; it has no idea or even concept of what it’s doing, but it’s going to knock down all the pieces, shit all over the board and then strut around like it won.”
Shhhh – we need them to steal a bunch of points from the Sharks.
I can’t. Carriage has a bum hub and my horse has a wonky horseshoe and is pulling to the left.
Or right. Woodguys phone isn’t sure.
I’m always at the bar. Ordering beer.
Later on I’ll drink whisky – alone and contemplative lol
…then there’s the rest of that team lol
88-110 appears to be the range.
TSN HockeyVerified account @TSNHockey 27s27 seconds ago
Canucks Ice Chips: @FarhanLaljiTSN on the Sedins teaming up with young Boeser http://fw.to/iDZumJD #TSNHockey
Bo knows scoring. That could be a pretty scary line.
and reading the thread I see this has been covered already…….
Well that’s 3 guesses.
I’d guess the range on Hunter’s challenge is wider.
some people come in and break chairs, knock over the spittoon, and punch the piano player without even buying a goddam drink.
Interesting tidbit from Gregor re: Puljijarvi:
Thing I didn’t know: Jesse Puljujarvi moved away from home at 13 and he lived in his own apartment while he went to school and played hockey. “It was good. About 15 of us lived in the building. We had parents come every few days and make meals.” Puljujarvi grew up in a small Finnish town and he had to move to play more competitive hockey. Imagine being a parent and having your 13-year-old move away from home and live on his own — that’s just as tough as being the teenager on his own. The difference is most of us as teenagers thought we were mature enough to handle it. Puljujarvi really enjoyed it “I had many good friends. It was a lot of fun.”
Strome is a plug. Not sure who suggested otherwise. He will play 3C to start, and he may lose that spot to be 3R. Letestu is a better player imo.
I think the difference is on both of those moves, we can say it was at least a partial salary dump.
Will probably be the same with nuge.
Not so sure with younger players. Moving than means you’re sacrificing the future for now, so might as well buckle down on it
They make tasty snacks when I get bored of yak meat.
I’m drinking Sarsaparilla. Someone’s gotta drive.
Or the sidekick with a game leg.
Yer durn tootin!
Lowetide is the Sheriff. The rest of us are Saturday afternoon saloon drinkers.
I believe there is a deadline for UFAs to (a) sign contracts and not be subject to waivers and (b) sign contracts and be permitted to play in the playoffs.
I think.
EDIT: Oh, wait, I thought you were talking about coming back to the NHL post-Olympics for a stretch.
As a lawyer, you would think I would read more thoroughly.
I like this point. It is something I hadn’t really thought of. I was simply thinking they would depend on the cap going up by a $6M, and players coming off the books or getting traded (Fayne, Kassian, Letestu, Sekera, etc) to get through the 2020-21 crunch from approx. $5M from Pouliot & Russell’s buyouts.
What possible ways around the cap crunch of Russell’s buyout do you see due to a possible strike/lockout? A shortened season means their full cap hit doesn’t apply? Possible allowance for GMs to clear compliance buyouts form the cap hit? Negotiated allowance to go over cap? Or simply no season at all, so cap hits don’t matter? Other?
EDIT: Just saw your detailed response to jdhardy. Thanks.
Wasn’t aware I was not allowed to use the Straw Man argument line.
It has been noted.
Thank you for your patience.
Doesn’t make any sense to buy out Russell when his contract is extremely tradable at year 3 once the bonus hits.
Unless we see dramatic decline in play, and since he can skate unlike most of the D who crater at 30, I don’t see it.
Seems to me another in a long line of grasping at straws to keep a specific player…
If you’re Iginla, do you hold out and participate in the Olympics? Maybe try to lead Canada to a medal finish and hope that will garner more interest in your services next season? He’s in a unique opportunity to be the leader of the Canadian Olympic team, if he wants that.
Strome had two very distinct periods of play last year.
The first part where he got the Dallas Eakins third line grinder approach under Capuano
The second part under Doug Weight where he got his game back.
These two parts were almost extreme as Schultz in Edmonton vs. Schultz in Pittsburgh.
If you take the season as whole, you’re not getting the whole picture.
I doubt the NHL will let the new CBA allow teams to escape cap recapture on buyouts or retirements. A team will probably be allowed to an escape clause only on the non-recapture parts of the buyout.