Midway through the third period of last night’s game, it occurred to me that the hockey Gods didn’t come to save Oilers fans, they came to save Oilers prospects. It’s impossible to overlook the handling of Jesse Puljujarvi this year (and to a lesser extent Evan Bouchard) when compared to the push to get them into the NHL as teenagers by the previous administration. I’m just glad it’s over. I think we all died a little in that damned war.
THE ATHLETIC!
I’m proud to be writing for The Athletic, and pleased to be part of a great team with Daniel Nugent-Bowman and Jonathan Willis. Here is our recent work.
- New Lowetide: Edmonton Oilers report card for January
- Lowetide: Oilers’ line chemistry finally coming into view
- Lowetide: Some of the Oilers’ Russian prospects less than a year from the NHL
- Jonathan Willis: Oilers need misfiring elements to come together — and fast
- Lowetide: 3 auditioning Oilers who should be given time to find their groove
- Lowetide: It’s time for the Oilers to play prospect Evan Bouchard in NHL games
- Lowetide: Jesse Puljujarvi is ready for his No. 1 line audition
- Lowetide: Oilers’ scoring wing prospects having an impact.
- Lowetide: Oilers Kailer Yamamoto is the real deal.
- Jonathan Willis: Oilers risers and fallers: Ethan Bear, Caleb Jones among those stumbling early
- Lowetide: Oilers goaltending depth in a state of flux.
- Lowetide: Oilers’ No. 3 line has been a source of anxiety early this season
- Lowetide: Is this peak Connor McDavid?
- Jonathan Willis: Oilers opening night roster: A player-by-player breakdown
- Lowetide: Oilers risers and fallers and how they impact the opening night roster
- Lowetide: Will Ken Holland let it ride in goal for the Oilers this season?
OILERS AFTER 12 GAMES
- Oilers in 2015-16: 4-8-0, eight points; goal differential -7
- Oilers in 2016-17: 8-3-1, 17 points; goal differential +7
- Oilers in 2017-18: 4-7-1, nine points; goal differential -9
- Oilers in 2018-19: 7-4-1, 15 points; goal differential +2
- Oilers in 2019-20: 8-3-1, 17 points, goal differential +5
- Oilers in 2020-21: 6-6-0, 12 points, goal differential 0
The Oilers wake up in a playoff spot this morning, and it’s been an impressive crawl from the wreckage. The Toronto win on Saturday night was important and gives the first half of the year some traction. I believe 62-64 points gets you there, so you’ll want to be over 30 points after 28 games in 2020-21.
WHAT TO EXPECT IN FEBRUARY
- At home to: Ottawa (Expected: 1-0-0) (Actual 1-0-0)
- On the road to: Calgary, Ottawa, Ottawa, Montreal (Expected: 2-1-1) (Actual 0-0-0)
- At home to: Winnipeg, Winnipeg (Expected 1-1-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- On the road to: Calgary (Expected 0-1-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- At home to: Calgary (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- On the road to: Vancouver, Vancouver (Expected 1-1-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- At home to: Toronto (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- Overall expected result: 7-4-1, 15 points in 12 games
- Current results: 1-0-0, 2 points in 1 game
I have the road trip as a pair of wins against Ottawa, a loss versus Montreal and a Bettman versus Calgary on Saturday night. The Flames have better goaltending and a healthy top pairing (Noah Hanifan-Chris Tanev) plus Johnny Gaudreau is looking dynamic again.
LINES, LAST NIGHT
- Kahun-Draisaitl-Yamamoto played 11:55 (all numbers five on five), going 7-7 shots, 1-0 goals, 2-2 HDSC and 11-16 Corsi. Draisaitl scored a goal, Yamamoto picked up an assist and Kahun had a couple of brilliant looks. Yamamoto took a couple of penalties, love his aggressive play but two penalties in the same game will get attention. Draisaitl is in a zone as a passer and shooter now, he made a cross-ice pass to Kahun on the backhand that was stunning, and his goal involved not looking at the net until the puck was basically off his stick. Amazing talent.
- Nuge-McDavid-Puljujarvi played 10:12, 8-2 shots, 1-1 goals, 2-2 HDSC and 16-7 Corsi. Easily Puljujarvi’s best game and that drove the line’s performance. JP had two goals, McDavid two assists and there was a fantastic sequence that went Bouchard area pass-McDavid flick-Puljujarvi in alone that was thwarted by a bouncing puck. Puljujarvi getting rewarded for hard work is manna from heaven. Confident Finnish giant=Paul Bunyan. Nuge was quiet.
- Kassian-Haas-Archibald played 9:34, 2-2 shots, no goals, no HDSC and 7-9 Corsi. I thought they played well, although there wasn’t much of note offensively. Haas and Archibald played big minutes on the PK.
- Alex Chiasson had a takeaway and Kyle Turris took a penalty.
PAIRINGS AND GOALIE, LAST NIGHT
- Nurse-Barrie played 14:18, going 11-4 shots, 2-1 goals, 1-2 HDSC and 17-9 Corsi. Pairing played seven minutes each with Draisaitl and McDavid, it was a fun night for all involved. Nurse scored, four shots and another four shot attempts. Barrie had two assists, five shots and appears to have adapted completely.
- Russell-Bouchard played 15:03, going 7-7 shots, 1-0 goals, 2-1 HDSC and 21-13 Corsi. A splendid night for the rookie, I don’t know that he’ll play against Calgary on the weekend but do believe the Oilers are a more dynamic team with him on the ice. That area pass to McDavid was something else.
- Koekkoek-Larsson played 7:13, 1-3 shots, no goals, 0-2 HDSC and 5-9 Corsi. A quiet pairing on the night, Larsson’s biggest contribution coming on the penalty kill.
- Lagesson-Larsson played 4:13, 1-1 shots, 1-0 goals, 1-0 HDSC and 2-6 Corsi. I have believed all along Lagesson is a player the organization believes in, but when you change out management and coaching staffs there’s always some hesitation. In the case of Lagesson, the coach and GM clearly see his value. What that means for the other young lefties, only time will tell.
- Mikko Koskinen had a good night, stopping 23 of 25, .920. He was rock solid on the evening, probably deserved a better fate as the final goal came on an icing and then a slow shift change.
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
A busy morning on the show, we begin at 10 on TSN 1260. Bruce McCurdy from the Cult of Hockey at the Edmonton Journal will break down last night’s game for us, and Joe Osborne from OddsShark will discuss some of the wild and crazy Super Bowl bets in front of the big game. 10-1260 text, @Lowetide on twitter. Talk soon!
An amusing story on Haas trying to score found on golf digest of all places. https://www.golfdigest.com/story/gaetan-haas-fake-slapshot-goal-edmonton-oilers
d
May be of interest to some:
Listened to Ken Hitchcock on Lebrun and Burnside’s podcast.
He talks to Holland about every second day and gets to provide his ‘musings’. Does a lot with Bakersfield’s coaching staff and also with the Oil Kings.
Perhaps equally of interest to some, I just had a peanut butter and honey sandwich
Smooth or chunky?
lol, smooth
Nice metaphor – Hitch is both smooth and chunky
Wondered if anyone would get that. 🙂
Please keep away. All respect for thé career and the story and the personality but no, no, stay away.
David Pastrnak back with a vengeance.
3GP 5G 2A 7P
Leon Draisaitl never left.
5GP 4G 9A 13P
Larsson, Benson, and a fourth to Arizona for Kuemper and a third.
What do you think?
Why would Arizona do that?
The Coyotes have given up only 26 goals this season while the Oilers have given up 43.
Arizona’s problem is scoring and neither Larsson or Benson is going to help with that.
I think the only reason that Arizona contemplates this is to get rid of Keumper’s $5.5M cash outplay next season.
I think we need Osterle as part of the trade (Khaira to even out the salaries which makes it even more lopsided).
I anticipate the Benson would need to be switched for Lavoie.
And the 4th rounder to a 1st
Was just playing around on NST and looking at some numbers for d-men with min 150 minutes of 5 on 5 ice. Adam Larsson leads the league in shots blocked per 60 with 11.6. 2nd place is at 5.6.
I know, I know, shots blocked is not an indicator of a great defender but that gap is ridiculous.
Just over 1 week left to register for Death March™
Hunter’s 1909’s 2020-21 Death March™ is back for another season
You register here:
https://www.oilersdeathmarch.com
Hurry or you won’t be cool
Lavoie had a goal and an assist in a 4-2 loss. Still producing. Can’t wait to get him to Bakersfield
Benson/McLeod/Lavoie
Maksimov/Marody
Broberg/Samorukov
Lennstrom/Kemp
Konovalov
Skinner
It seems the optimal lineup for many in this community is:
Nurse, Jones, Lagesson (or Koekkoek) on the left
Bear, Barrie, Bouchard on the right.
I don’t think Tip will ever do that as its only go three PK d-men on it (including Lagesson who is raw and Koekkoek who, well, is uneven).
——————-
What I am curious about is, when Bear returns, does he play with Nurse or does Barrie?
Personally, I’m willing to keep Barrie there for now – he has been dynamic at 5 on 5 the last few games and he makes a difference playing that way.
Bear can likely help out one of the other two pairs.
I liked the look of Nurse-Barrie and feel it gives Tip all sorts of options to peel Bear away.
I liked it too (hopefully it’s not just playing vs. Ottawa!).
But I wonder, even if Bear is as good (or a better) partner for Nurse than Barrie is, whether the team still might be better on the whole with Nurse-Barrie and Bear-whoever.
It’s been a tough go for me personally over the last 4-5 weeks, so I decided to quit my job. I had asked for a lay-off, but I was told I was “valued”. It feels the exact opposite based on words and actions leading up to my decision. It is a bitter pill to see 70% of an entire Department get laid off, but I am deemed “too valuable”; makes no sense….
The wife has been out of work for 8 months now, so it looks like her future is outside of Alberta, if not Canada. My plan is to follow her if possible. In our 5th decade, so not the easiest decision, but I am at peace with it. Amongst the possibilities are Northern Ontario and North Africa. Regardless, we will make the best of it.
I hope everyone is doing well, it isn’t an easy go these days and unfortunately I don’t expect normal to return until 2022. Personally, I have been trying to focus on my health, but sadly work was interfering with that. In the past 12 months I have successfully and in a healthy manner dropped 35lbs. I still hope to drop 25 more, but I have been stuck between 195-197 for almost 6 weeks now.
Anyway, this all leads to me sharing my successful afternoon kitchen experiment. I made a paleo pizza dough and wow did I enjoy sampling the 2 pizzas (used real mozza) that I made, and I was really pleased with texture of the crust, but found it slightly salty.
For those interested, recipe is here:
https://40aprons.com/perfect-paleo-pizza/
Please note, I did some substitutions, since I still had some “exotic” leftover food items in house from when I tried following a strict whole plant diet earlier this year (only lasted 3 months). I substituted the arrow root flour with tapioca flour, the almond flour with coconut flour and the 9 eggs (triple batch) with an egg replacement powder.
Sorry to hear about your struggles. Kudo’s to you and your wife for facing them in a positive manner. Wishing you all the best
Stay strong. Things will get better.
Congrats on the weight loss and the fortitude to make a tough decision.
Thanks for sharing. Sorry to hear about the troubles. Man it’s been a rough patch for people, but have to believe it’ll get better. All the best.
Puljujarvi sent Coburn to waivers
I didn’t get around to watching the post game interviews till this afternoon. I think I saw a clue about one reason Bouchard has such a wicked wrister: the guy appears to have popeye like forearms – though he has wrists and biceps to go with them. If the old man is in need of a nickname, ‘Pops’ would have a good double meaning. Does anyone know the significance of the Roman Numeral Tattoo? Appears to translate to 96 – 98 -1.
96-98-1 was his locker combination back when he was in high school twenty years ago.
Nice!
Ha!
Also, weirdly: 15-29-32.
(1st year Grant MacEwan 20 yrs bk)
#TomorrowsNewsToday
Saturday’s 7D
Nurse Barrie
Russell Bouchard
Lagesson Bear
Larsson
RNH’s avg ice time is a career high 22:15, leading the team, almost 2 minutes higher than his previous high.
Back in the day, we found that young Nuge would wear down with too much ice time. He’s a grown man now but still, in a compressed schedule it would probably be prudent to get that ice time down.
If Pool continues his strong play, I personally would LOVE to see Nuge take over that 3C spot with Turris and Ennis as his wingers. That bumps Haas to 4C and now we’re truly Elite down the middle.
Nygard McD Pulju
Kahun Drai Yamo
Ennis Nuge Turris
Archibald Haas Kass
Gave up on unicorns long ago ?
With Nuge I wonder if the goal posts have moved as far as usage (not carrying the line) and experience (more efficient play). He doesn’t at all seem to be suffering, tho I take your point it’s early.
Surely can’t risk playing Turris Saturday
This organization takes forever to admit their mistakes on these types of signings. Cut bait now. He’s cooked.
He looks done. No legs, no wind, no brain. Exhausted. Rest him for a week at least.
I agree he *looks* done but Barrie looked pretty hopeless a week ago.
Barrie certainly has turned a corner. Here is hoping that Turris can. I wouldn’t risk playing him against Calgary. It pretty much means you have to score an extra goal (almost).
I don’t know, how long do you give a guy?
I don’t know either. You signed him for a couple of years, you almost gotta give him some more runway.
And it’s not like the other 4C options have been any better. At least Turris has been on the ice for a GF (unlike Shore or Khaira). At 4C, 6 minutes, they’re all 50/50 to be -1 lol.
Predicted Saturday lineup:
Nuge-McDavid-Puljujarvi
Kahun-Draisaitl-Yamamoto
Archibald-Haas-Kassian
Neal-Turris-Chiasson
Nurse-Barrie
Russell-Bear/Bouchard
Lagesson-Larsson
I think Neal will be back in against his old team.
And I think Bouchard will sit if Bear is ready (though if Bear isn’t and Bouchard plays then I’m not sure how they get 12F in the lineup…)
They have 12 forwards on the roster – just insert Neal and remove Koekkoek from the lineup.
Well that was easy.
I was mistakenly thinking ahead to when Smith is activated.
I guess you are more patient than I am here.
It’s true that the other C alternatives aren’t world beaters but given that Calgary has trouble scoring 5 on 5 (23rd) and they have a good PP (11th), perhaps inserting Khaira for his excellent PKing for this one would be a good idea.
Also it would help reduce RNH’s PK minutes so he is fresher for the offense
Or throw Shore in there. At this point I’m anyone but Turris, he needs a reset
Yeah Khaira definitely makes sense vs Calgary. Both for truculence and for the PK. I agree with you based on on ice play so far this season, and it’s been a while since Khaira’s gotten a game.
I just think you’ve invested a fair chunk of change in Turris for 2 years. The Oilers are a far better team if Turris gets back to being a decent NHLer compared to what Khaira or Shore can bring. I don’t think scratching Turris (yet at least) helps him get back to being a contributor, but JMO.
Yeah, I get you, let him play his way out of it. To make the switch, looking at Capfriendly, I think they would have to waive Turris to get another FW besides Neal on the roster. Unless I’m reading that wrongly. They probably are not ready to do that.
Yes I guess they would have to waive Turris to get someone else in. I hadn’t thought of that.
I’m just thinking that they signed this guy 12 games ago to be their 3C for the next 2 years. There were words of caution from LT and others about not getting ahead of ourselves, but I don’t think anyone said “Turris at 2 x $1.65M, that’s a bad signing” (maybe i’m forgetting?).
The 12 games have gone about as bad as they could, but the player has a long track record as a decent to good NHLer. It’s possible he fell completely off a cliff when he turned 31 but I think it’s unlikely.
He definitely needs to show a pulse at some point though.
Nice guy, decent career but it might be time to take that horse out behind the barn
100%. Ready to see Tip make me a fool, but yeah. Totally.
I believe that is the first time its been confirmed that Klef indeed will be having surgery.
Okay- that is news.
I am hoping it is scheduled for tomorrow.
That’s part of the problem – he can’t get it scheduled due to Covid. Its happening in the US (I believe Cleveland) and he’s in Sweden – can’t get the surgery done.
Initial reply was caught up in a silly moderation filter lol
No, as I recall, the Cleveland special-ist connection was mentioned a while ago.
Holland on the Gregor Show.
Asked about Nurse – Holland says it looks like he’s taken a step from last year. Playing more minutes with Klef out – playing a very calm game. He’s picking his spots. Joining the rush when he has to. Playing excellent defensive hockey. References his positive plus metric. Bigger role, bigger responsibility. Playing against top players every night and off to a great start.
Asked about improving more on not gifting goals against – Holland say, without looking at numbers, he feels the scoring is up. With no preseason and new players like Puljujarvi and Kahun and Smith getting hurt on opening night, we are a bit of a work in progress. Neal and Haas didn’t have a training camp. Tip hadn’t seen Bouch play live since training camp 2019. Thought Jesse was going to be part of the 3rd line but now he’s playing up. Got ourselves back to 6-6 and its going to be close for 56 games. Team is a work in progress. Feeling good about 3-game streak.
Impressions of Bouch last night – was really happy with him. Have seen Evan a lot over the years – thought about taking him at 6 for Detroit. Know he is patient with the puck and great on outlet. Loved the decision to head to Sweden to develop even without making money. Was ready for the opportunity last night. Feel great about the right side with the 4 guys – its a strength of ours. Talked to Dave Tippett earlier today about lineup for Saturday and there will be tough decisions – that’s a good thing – good comp on right D. Barrie has really picked his game up. Larsson is a big strong guy that penalty kills and works guys over and Bear had a great year last year. Tough decisions for the coach.
Would he be OK if Bouch is in and out of lineup – Holland looks at it as a 29-man roster as opposed to 23. That’s why Chiasson and Ennis were on waivers, to provide more access to players on taxi squad. Evan is one of 9 D on the roster. He’s 21, he’s played a year of pro and kind of half a year this year – lots of pro experience – looking for his opportunity to grab a spot and last night was a great start.
Do make trades earlier this year (i.e. before the deadline)? That’s the “million dollar question” – if circumstances don’t change then, yes, quarantine, etc. will impact the trade deadline. We play every second night after the deadline for 12 or 13 games. If the player is out for half those games…….. What I’m trying to do is have team compete on every-year basis but have to have internal growth. Got to draft and develop. Spent a lot of futures last year right before the world changed. I’ll see where we are as the deadline approaches. The quarantine will definitely affect decision making.
Puljuarvi is he meeting or exceeding expectations – Hope was to be a legit top 9 guy and make the team deeper. Love the fact he’s getting to the blue point, that he’s getting on the forecheck, that he’s won puck battles, that he’s getting puck on the stick of linemates. He’s worked his way up. First game with McDavid in Winnipeg was a great game, he was relentless. He’s 22, lots of room to grow. He’s made the team deeper and better. Has had lots of scoring chances and was happy to see it going in for him last night. Got to get to paint to score and he’s doing that and protecting the puck.
On Klefbom, any conversations with the league on if they’ll deem Klef career-threatening. No, not yet. Part of what he’s waiting on is Oscar is planning on having surgery but things are getting pushed back due to Covid. Won’t know rehab time, etc. until after he has the surgery. Just don’t know when the surgery will be as it will be happening in the US and he’s coming from Sweden.
Thanks for this….
Thanks!
Raphael Lavoie scored his first in a while tonight and added an assist. He was +2 in 2-4 loss and spent 6 minutes in the sin bin.
The goal was pretty nice https://mobile.twitter.com/antonj85/status/1357064228205649923
Jeremias Lindewall also played for Modo, all zeros in about 7 minutes of ice. A shame the junior leagues are down. He could use a stretch of games with more minutes and lesser comp to up his confidence. When I’ve seen him of late he’s less assertive than early in the year. Skating looks great and he’s more grown up in puck battles but isn’t making enough plays.
That was a nice goal. Thank you for posting that…
Thanks as always!
I have decided to let myself get excited about the future. Obviously we don’t know what’s happening with the Klefbom injury situation, but let’s cross fingers and toes and assume he makes a full recovery.
Sure we might be a bit wobbly sometimes on D this year, but for next season we’re potentially looking at:
Klefbom-Bouch
Nurse-Bear
Broberg-Larsson (could be someone else depending on what Barrie does/doesn’t do, or whether we re-up Larsson)
Lagesson
There’s enough powerplay options, and enough PK options there to keep everyone happy surely?
Pretty much have to keep Larsson next season if Barrie is using this as a way to get a big contract elsewhere. But who knows. Either way one of Larsson/Barrie is here next year. Guessing Jones is sacrificed to the Kraken. Russell is veteran press box popcorn eater.
But what do we do with Samurokov?
I wonder what Larsson wants on a new contract?
Third pairing should then be Sammy/Broberg. Broberg mostly plays on right side. No?
Both Samorukov and Broberg have extensive time on the right side.
Our 2 biggest problems are breaking up the down low cycles and power forwards position in front of our net. Larsson and Nurse are the only nasties that can handle this. Samurokov is big and strong he appears to have the skills of the new-age NHL Dmen. I don’t think Barrie, Bear and KRussell can be 3 of your 6 Dmen and have success defensively.
Samorukov has the requisite nasty. Oiler fans will love his compete!
the young man isn’t afraid of much if anything by what I have observed.
Samorukov has the broadest skill-set of all the prospect d-man, including Bouchard and Broberg. He’s not elite at anything (Bouchard – blueline work, vision/passion and Broberg – skating) except for his aggressive defending and natural zone defence of the zone entry).
In any event, I see Sammy very likely impacting the roster out of camp but see Broberg as a Condor for at least the first half of the season.
As far as Broberg and Sammy playing the right side, yes, they both have, very much so, over in Europe but, as we talked about last night, I caution against equating the ability to do so in the SHL or KHL (or AHL) with doing so in the NHL.
The players are faster and the rink is smaller – there is materially less time to make plays in the NHL than any other league – its a massive difference.
Sammy is killing it at a right side top 4 in the KHL – I don’t think that equates to him being able to do so in the NHL.
I don’t understand why Bear gets binned in with guys who can’t defend when, by eye – skewer me with numbers if you got ‘em – he understands defensive positioning better than his full time partner. All the stuff that drives arm-chair coaches nuts with Nurse (who I think has grown into being blue chip), stuff like 2-on-1 reads and puck watching and missing back doors and leaving opponents unchallenged standing in the crease (b/c watching puck), Bear tends not to do at all. Nurse has come a long way, but people give him way too much benefit based on the presumption of physicality and breaking up the cycle.
imho ?
Replace Russel With Lag. He certainly seems capable and strong enough
This is not meant to trash Kris Russell but how often does he have positive possession numbers/shot metrics in a game? We know he can defend and the GA category is often a solid one for him but not the possession and shot metrics. He was solidly plus in those metrics last night. Was he zoomed by Bouch in the 15 minutes they played together or zoomed by the Senators or zoomed by playing almost all of those minutes with either Drai or McDavid on the ice?
I was thinking the same….I mean chemistry is a strange thing sometimes.
Hard to read because Ottawa is so very bad.
But Russell’s weak spot is Bouchard’s strong point. Is it possible the pairing just works?
I thought they looked good together. And I was a bit surprised.
I guess we need more time to see them together.
They work better than Russel Barrie but that may be due Bouchard’s size.
Could they possibly be Yin and Yank. With Bouchard’s tape to tape passing with pace does it give Russell that extra 3/4second of time to make a play.
early days, but I think Bouchard would be an easy guy to play with.
Good positioning, good with the puck, good passer, good mobility, smart
I can see Saturday’s game being a physical and the possibility of a few fisticuffs. JJ in for Turris is a must. I would still go with 7 Dmen with Russell being the 7th Dman since he can play either side/ Sorry Caleb you are sitting for 1 more
If the Flames lose to the Jets tomorrow they’ll be in a foul mood come Saturday so a big yes to inserting J.J into the lineup
MaHave to say that this was a good trial run of the 11-7 arrangement.
I think we have our top 6:
93-97-13
21-29-56
The challenge is how to fill out our bottom lines.
18-xx-44
Strange to bench Neal after a two goal game but the concern is his pace and endurance. Hopefully he can satisfy Tippett that he can keep up because I would keep him in for his hands on the PP. Think that if we let 97 zoom them for a few shifts they could really pop. If 29 goes in the middle, they could soften up a defense for an extended shift or two, force an icing and then follow up with the first line to mop up.
16-91-15
I know we have all had it with JJ but his work on the PK is impressive. Take the responsibility of being the center off his plate and let Haas handle those tasks 5v5. All three work with Nuge and Drai to fill out the PK options.
That leaves 10 & 63 on the left as spares or if the need is more speed.
39 can spot in for 18 if Neal can’t keep up the pace or needs to be spelled off.
52 can inject some energy but not sure he does anything so well that he’s more than an injury replacement at this point.
14 is fine, if needed for injury replacement as a 4C – including some PK option if Haas can’t stick but at the moment think he’s a reserve.
That leaves 8. Turris has been a disappointment. No two ways about it. Want him to be more because I don’t think Haas is well suited for the 3C role but this team needs better intensity and to play with more desperation. Still believe that he can do it, and love that he’s a RHC, but right now I’d put him upstairs.
On the back-end:
25-74/22 – Nurse has been a horse. Think that he works better with Bear but he has really helped Barrie feel more confident so I would be happy with Nurse splitting time with either.
82/84-6 – I get that Larsson is a lightning rod for many here but Tippett likes the physical element that doesn’t exist with any other RHD and add in his work on the PK and he’s a lock. Right now Jones’ reads have not helped him but his ability to move the puck forward is so needed that I hope he gets a chance back in the line-up soon. By contrast there isn’t much dynamism with Lagesson’s game but boring has an appeal.
20-22/75 – Koekoek has been a revelation and is a much better option, IMO, than the cowboy. Only one game but man was Old Man Bouchard smoooth out there.
4 is fine in reserve. He was out there last night to shore up Bouchard’s game but to my eye it was Bouchard that was elevating Russell’s game. KR was even calling for the puck in a few of the offensive situations when he was clearly the 4th or 5th best option but that was how easy, at least to my eye, Bouchard made things for him.
Long rambling post but I would run the 11-7 out with more regularity. If you are not going to put 93 in the middle, and I don’t think there is any desire yet to do that, then they need to find other ways to make that third line sing and rotating 97 and 29 (and maybe 93) through that position is the way to do it.
Really, REALLY liking the Nurse-Barrie pair as I’d often posted about before the beginning of the season.
The early results are encouraging. That said, I’m tempering my expectations as a couple minutes against TOR and games against OTT isn’t the best sample nor the largest.
I recall several posters putting this out there and I did just not see it working. As you said, small sample size but it has worked so far. Could Bear be even more effective on a 2nd pairing against lesser comp? Probably, so hoping Tippet/Playfair try it.
Given his bridge contract I really want to see Bear forced to do the heavy lifting on a pairing so we know what we have come contract extension time.
Thing about the Nurse – Barrie pairing is it frees up both players to focus on the bread and butter portion of their respective games. What’s surprised me so far (again, OTT caveat) is the crisp passing Nurse has displayed of late. Really enjoying the progression in his game this season.
I agreed with you on wanting a Nurse-Barrie pairing. Now that Barrie seems to be settling in a little more, and the PP is coming around, it’s a good time to run it for some games. Both tied for 6th in dman scoring. Barrie with 7 points in a 4 game streak is nice to see.
Nurse has learned to play smarter. He was accustomed to his natural ability to bail him out of mistakes. With the extra minutes he has simply learned to play a smarter game. This happens to a number of the more gifted athletes in all sports. Just my observation!
His spike in defensive zone coverage, awareness and decision making is marvelous – if it stick, its takes him to another tier. The fact that, so far, he’s been fairly consistent despite the heavy minutes (too many minutes often leads to bad decisions) is encouraging.
Jesse’s first goal was so damn encouraging and really exemplified what made him a top-5 pick. The speed to create the chance, the power to get the rebound and the poise and skill to deke the rebound chance around the goalie rather than just shovel a backhand. I know it’s Ottawa and the d-man he beat is on waivers, but damn it, I’m getting my hopes up.
Hell, let’s sign Yakupov and make an NHL player out of him too.
All the old-timey posters know I would be thrilled if my adopted son (in the same way that MAP was our host’s adopted son) would come home to us, but he’s had a very rough season. Twice traded and can’t stay off the IR. Hurt for the 3rd time since joining his new team. That said he’s produced in limited minutes between injuries, but the constant bouncing around has made bringing back the weekly Yak report into more of a fool’s errand than my stubborn belief that he could still become an NHL player one day.
Flashscore is a great site to look up KHL player stats, transactions & injury status for those interested. Here’s Yak’s player card: https://www.flashscore.ca/player/yakupov-nail/Mmw1jvSs/
Sheps I’ve been waiting for The Weekly Yak report! What kind of injuries has he been dealing with?
And how’s Belov doing??
I too, really, really miss the Yak report.
As I don’t actually speak or read Russian, I can’t seem to find out anything specific about Yak’s injuries this year. He’s really had a tough time though. 4 trades in calendar year and was asked to take a pay-cut to remain on his latest team’s roster. I really feel for the kid.
Belov Bonus:
33GP, 2G, 5A, 7Pts, mostly on the 3rd pair. Not a regular starter for SKA but he also missed the first 7 weeks of the season.
And my other brother Anton (Lander)
48GP, 14G, 17A 31P for Lokomotiv, playing as 2C as well as PK1 minutes. He’s averaging more than 16 minutes a game and is at 54.5% on the dot, taking more than 700 draws this season to date. Useful player. At this point even with his lack of NHL speed, would he be worse than Turris?
конец передачи
Count me on the Bring Back Lander Bus.
I always though one day Paajarvi would come back to patrol the bottom 6, being fast and occasionally scoring, like a Nordic Dean McAmmond
Dads, man. 🙂
If Bouchard develops a solid defensive game he’ll be one of the best D in the league.
So much talent, size, and he seemed to skate pretty well, at least against the Sens.
There aren’t many D that have the full package.
Bouchard has been ready since the play-ins why has it taken this long to insert him into 5-6 role to begin with. It’s only been 15 years since we’ve had a D that can headman the puck up ice. I would definitely start him against the Flames as their D likes to pinch l can foresee Bouchard hitting the tape for a breakaway pass to Connor or Leon.
Of note, Bouchard played 7:20 with McDavid last night and 6:30 with Drai.
There was only about 2-3 minutes of ice where he wasn’t with one of those two.
What does this mean?
It means the coach gave him a easy start to see what would happen. The questions were always how his defensive game would translate and his passing is supreme so why not put him in a place to succeed and see if it works. These smart D that can be positionally sound and move the puck quick and efficient is such a different look, its great to see and many people do not appreciate positional hockey versus hard skating hockey.
Yes, you are right, and I get that.
I guess my vague question was, well, vague – I really meant, what does this mean vis-a-vis Saturday night’s lineup?
It means the coach has made his mind up about Bouchard and is pumping up his value for a trade.
Or so I’ve heard.
It means that you play your best puck mover with the players that take most advantage of your puck moving skills?
As the dad of a Major Bantam defenseman you get a different perspective on what is “sexy” in hockey. I absolutely adore defensemen footwark, because, as a decent-at-best forward I can’t fathom the way the truly elite move in every direction but forward.
One play that had me drooling was Bouchard’s backward, angled skate from the right point to the high-slot before unloading a bomb of a slap shot all while keeping the puck on his forehand. He was absolutely flying and actually opened up a gap on the forward defending him.
I did not expect that type of mobility.
IIRC he was top-3 in backwards skating at the top prospects trials in his draft year. Talk of immobility comes from his “lazy” style of play rather than lack of ability, much like the narrative that Leon is slow.
That was thrilling
They need more than a game to look at Bouchard, the way he played deserves another long look. Bear can heal up and play Bouchard another game against tougher comp and lets have a see.
My guess is Bouchard is the death blow for Larsson.
Not yet. Bouchard has to show against the toughest competition on the PK to put Larsson out of a job.
Has there been any word on Klef? Shoulder surgery ?
I still think it’s a 60-40 chance he rides off in the LTIR sunset. When a professional athlete starts talking about the quality of life it’s a tell. It’s not as easy nowadays to legally pop the strong pain killers as it was in the past.
Klefbom has been a good Oiler and while it would be great to have him back I would be totally okay if he decides to hang up the blades. Your health and your family should always take precedence. I wish him the best what ever he decides!
It’s only February of 2021 – he is still deciding.
Half a year seems like a long time to rehabs something where no surgery was done.
How much resting, then muscle building, then stretching can one do?
He’s not still deciding – he’s decided to get surgery – Holland mentioned he’s getting surgery on Gregor’s show today.
The issue is he can’t get the surgery as it happens in the States and he’s in Sweden – Covid is the issue right now.
I didn’t listen to the interview, but the trip to Cincinnati has already been mentioned before today. Prior to the start of the season, I believe.
And if memory serves, the idea was to get a consult with the world renowned expert and then decide.
EDIT:
Found a link to it having been previously mentioned:
https://lowetide.ca/2021/01/11/waive-babies-4/#comment-968626
I believe its Cleveland, not Cinci but that doesn’t really matter.
All I know is that Holland said straight up today that he’s getting surgery, just trying to figure out when due to logistics with it being in the US and him being in Sweden and Covid.
7 D, and 5v5 TOI was split like this:
Nurse: 17:25
Bouchard: 16:40
Russell: 15:43
Barrie: 15:15
Larsson: 14:25
Koekkoek: 7:13
Lagesson: 4:48
It doesn’t LOOK like Bouchard will be the one sitting on Saturday, but you never know.
You never know – Leftie/Rightie is a thing and the PK is a thing (and Larsson played 5 minutes on the PK that didn’t give up a goal – Lagesson 4 minutes).
I imagine Koekkoek sits for Neal (and Jones continues to sit). The question is what is done if Bear is ready to play.
Can anybody explain to me the point of waiving Chiasson, then dressing him? To allow Grosenick to be activated?
More flexibility for shuffling players up and down to the taxi squad.
Roster transaction to get Bouchard into the lineup.
No, waiving Chiasson wasn’t to activate Bouchard.
They moved Skinner to the taxi squad in order to activate Bouchard.
Waiving Chiasson is to provide more flexibility in moving forwards on and off the taxi squad. For now, any of Nygard, Shore, Khaira, Chiasson, Ennis, P. Russell can freely go between.
They only have 12 forwards on the roster and 9D. Something is going to have to give when Smith is activated as they will carry 3 goalies on the active roster (won’t waive Grosenick) and, in order to have 12 forwards, they will need to be assign one to the taxi squad (the only one that can be assigned now without waivers is Bouchard).
I could hear the troll grinding his teeth last night from here
bouchard skated well and defended well and looks to be the best passer we’ve had since Whitney’s short tenure here
And Juolevi and Rafferty continue to be healthy scratched
Brogan still has time to win both the Calder and Norris as he is a point-per-game player this year. Just needs to crack the vaunted Canucks dcorps.
Bouchard 1 game 1 apple
Brocade Rastafarian 1 game 1 apple.
How ever are we to separate Bouch from a guy who can’t crack Team Troll which is tied for last place in goals against at 48?
I think we need to coin the term team troll well done good sir!
Thank you for the beautiful image. Karma is alive and well!?
Surely you should be comparing Bouchard with the Canucks player who was drafted just three spots ahead of him…you know the one that is currently tied for 4th place in the NHL scoring.
Bouchard 8GP 2P
Hughes 86Gp 70P
It will likely take almost two seasons for Bouchard to hit that level.
Begone troll! Back to fantasy island be you!
You like to dish it out but you sure can’t take it!
Your insecurity and desperation is showing.
You mean the guy who gives up two points for each one he creates?
You mean that a 43% goal differential (which actually over-shoots the xGF%) with a rel GF% of -15 isn’t good?
Perhaps it wasn’t quite time for increased responsibility and loss of safety blanket to a rival.
I wonder what the numbers would look like with 3 Ottawa games excluded.
The guy that Montreal make look like a pylon?
I came here today purely to look for Brogan chat. I am not disappointed.
Although I am. I was promised that Rafferty would win the Calder. I WAS DECEIVED.
Who else wasted a draft pick on him in fantasy?
Great to see the kids rolling!
Looking into the crystal ball a bit, it is a little blurry for me…
When Smith comes off IR, the Oilers will need to keep a goalie on the taxi squad (Grosenick), in case Smith hurts himself again, high probability. Skinner and others go to Bake. How do they manage the others on taxi/waivers to Bake?
They need to keep Grosenick on the active roster and not taxi squad.
I don’t have any faith in Smith staying healthy or being any good
If grosenick plays decently when he gets a start I would much rather see the Oilers waive Smith when he’s recovered. Let him practice for a few weeks until Grosenick falters. Surely nobody would claim a 39 yr old goalie who just tore a muscle before even playing a game and makes $1.5 m.
I think this is a good idea, but I am skeptical that Tipsy and the gang will do this to their bud.
If they keep 3 goalies and 8 dmen on the active roster they will have to go with 11 forwards everytime they dress Bouchard.
At some point they are going to have to waive a dman or goalie if they want to play Bouchard.
In my opinion, they will almost assuredly keep three goalies on the active roster. I don’t see them waiving Smith (at least not unless/until Smith falters for a significant period of time) nor risk losing Grosenick.
You are correct regarding the need to be able to place a d-man on the taxi squad in order to run 3 goalies on the active roster and still be able to deploy 12 forwards.
Is there any chance that Russell would agree to waive – I think he knows he wouldn’t get claimed. Would they even ask?
At some point soon, I would like to try an RHD as:
Bear
Barrie
Bouchard
I would like to see a lineup without Larsson. Just for a few games.
Ottawa next week?
Might not be a bad idea….actually, really, can’t see the harm.
Ottawa is so bad – I actually feel bad. There really is no hope for them
confined to the North division.
I don’t feel bad for them at all – remember the decade-of-darkness.
‘Kick’em when their down’ – Don Henley
The hope is another lottery pick. Not all bad given the short season and no fans in the building. They have some nice pieces.
Yep. I’d like to know what Pitt would give up for Larsson right now. His value has been declining for a while now.
Too bad Rutherford is gone
he loves these player types
In a perfect world I would also like Barrie and Bouchard to legally change their names to Beets and Battlestar Galactica
Now known as the B-Train (trucking reference). Once Broberg arrives, they will be the Super-B’s. (Very appropriate in oil country as a Super-B is a large double trailer oil tanker!)
The Oilers can’t really take the risk of trading Larsson as it leaves zero injury or struggle cover on the right side.
There would be zero right shot d-men available and the only 3 would have totals of 100 (apx), 70 (apx) and 8 games.
One of them is currently hurt – not serious but he has a history of injuries.
I don’t want to see Jones, Russell or Koekkoek playing the right side.
The team would be one injury away from the following on the right side:
Barrie
Bouchard
Jones (Russell)
I tried to coin the killer Bees. I think I like your idea better,?
How long until we acquire a RHD named Bear-est?
Does anyone have Todd McLellan’s address? I feel like we need to DoorDash him one of those edible fruit arrangements or at least a cup of coffee and some doughnuts for refusing to play Bouchard 2 years ago and forcing Chia to send him back to junior. Could you imagine if he was waiver eligible this year?
He wouldn’t have been waiver eligible this year but would be eligible for the expansion draft….
I love Bouchard’s long-bomb pass. I can’t remember the last Oiler D with the confidence or ability to attempt it. I’m not a big fan of Russell on most nights, but last night I was impressed. He made some great passes (usually to Bouchard) and even carried the puck up ice once or twice. They had good chemistry, by my novice eye.
In hindsight, Larsson could’ve used the rest last night. I think both Lags and Koekkoek (is that Dutch?) can play the right side. Regardless, Larsson’s gritensity will be valued against the Flames. Maybe Bear needs a few more days and sits until the following game?
I think that’s the right answer on Larsson. They need him, but a nights rest here and there is a good idea.
Bouchard help KRusty as Bear helps Nurse. Less ‘off-the-glass-and-out’ is a good thing – keep possession of the puck.
Of course Ottawa’s last goal was a result of a Russell flip to center ice clearance from the Oiler end. Perhaps an actual pass to a forward would have worked better…
Yup – that goal was not on Larsson it was on not getting the puck deep enough to allow for the line change to finish – great transition by the Sens though.
Yeah, about Evan Bouchard vs some of our other defensemen…..
Finally, on February 2nd, 2021 Bouchard was able to ‘crack’ our Oilers D lineup.
Yes, there will be rookie moments.
But Bouchard has this nasty habit of hitting our forwards in stride with the puck.
No way to know for sure, but I think McDavid complimented Bouch for that insane area pass.
That was but an appetizer for what Bouchard has to offer.
FINAL WEEK FINAL WEEK (ALMOST)
Hunter’s 1909’s 2020-21 Death March™ is back for another season
You can register and vote here:
https://www.oilersdeathmarch.com
Hurry!
On Saturday, (based on performance and toi)
Russell should play,
This is the way.
He has spoken….
Here’s the Bettman .500 leaderboard with an alternative par scoring for the Sens games W=0, OTL=-1, L=-2. All other games -1 to +1 as usual:
Montréal +6
Toronto +3
Calgary/Winnipeg 0
Edmonton -2
Vancouver -4
This alternate take discounts those 3 free bingo squares to date for the Jets/Dys and the 2 for the Leafs/Oil and gives a clearer look at the competitive balance.
Yeah, that Battle of Alberta game on Saturday is huge.
The Hart discussion this year is going to be very interesting. Do the voters punish Canadian-division teams because of the Senators?
20% of the Oilers schedule completed (12 games) and McDavid is running away with the scoring race 10 points clear of everyone other than Draisaitl. However, only 55% of the teams have played 10 or more games (80% have played at least 9 games).
If McDavid can keep up the 2 pts / game pace AND the Oilers make the playoffs it should be a no-brainer. We wait.
Joe Pavelski also 2.0 PPG…playing tougher competition.
About half the sample size. Wonder which one of those players is more likely to keep pace?
My guess would be neither.
If 36YO Pavelski is a top 3 Hart Finalist I will eat a straw hat on camera & upload it for you, DSF
So far been enjoying our not-so-original 6 NHL team schedule and the exhibition games against the Ottawa Generals.
Unless Draisaitl also keeps his current scoring pace AND continues to be +1 per game (currently leading all forwards in +/-).
Should be a fun race 🙂
Worth noting…the Flames have yet to play the Senators but play them 5 out of 6 games the last week of February and early March.
That was the whole point above of showing par performance without the Sens games. It’s already discounted for Oil and Flames sweeping the Sens. A win Saturday puts the Oil and Flames very close. Sorry Dys.
If only strength of schedule was that easy.
The Oilers have had a relatively easy schedule thus far and the Canucks and Flames among the toughest.
That’s about to flip.
http://powerrankingsguru.com/nhl/strength-of-schedule.php
Did you just copy and paste your strength of schedule posts from the years where the Oilers made the playoffs?
Way to cite an expert website that has the Flames Power ranking ahead of the Leafs. Pretty much makes their SOS worthless.
Poor troll
just grasping at straws this morning
Presumably Ottawa will be playing better by then. They just called Brannstrom up and the goalies can’t continue to be this abysmal.
Ottawa will get better and win a few games here and there. If any fan thinks their team is going to sweep a opponent 9 times they may be in for a surprise.
The Sens will get better. You have to figure they do something to address goaltending issues. Any random AHL goalie would help at this point. They will be bad even with a good goalie, but they can win one out of three games. Even the worst teams are capable of that.
Unless Ottawa is just tanking again… you know, the Oiler model 😉
I don’t think they will be doing any addressing of their tending issues – they just signed Murray to that 4 X $6.25M contract – the most mind-boggling contract of the off-season.
I didn’t want to acquire Murray because I didn’t want to pay him near his QO $4M (I believe it was) – that contract was insane the date it was signed – in my opinion.
The Bouchard area pass and McDavid flick to Jesse.
Closest I’ve seen to tiki-taka in hockey. Brilliant.
Utterly Brilliant.
Does anyone have a clip of this? I must have missed this play during the broadcast.
Did Bouchard ever PK in Bakersfield?
Larsson’s PK numbers are poor. Russell’s PK numbers are poor; he did not look like the veteran on his pairing last night.
You wonder if most efficient D lineup would be:
Nurse-Bear (when healthy)
Jones-Bouchard
Lagesson-Barrie
I swear no one handles the puck like a hot potato more than the 2 most veteran D. I miss Klefbom 🙁
Any combination of these players does not have a lot of NHL experience. Nurse + Barrie = 928 games. The other four = 184 games.
Against the Senators may be the time to get the 4 some games in, but against teams like Montreal maybe vet time.
I miss Klefbom as well – hope he plays for the Oilers next year!
Yes, I believe Bouchard was playing all situations for Bakersfield last season.
Jones is a place holder only! Samorukov will steal his lunch money as soon as given an opportunity. Jones doesn’t have sufficient D to his game to be a defensive asset and not enough offensive creativity o warrant second pairing due his defensive shortcomings. As a young D he still has time to improve but he is definitely not there yet.
While I do believe the Samorukov will force himself on to the roster in September/October, I’m not quite ready to cast Caleb Jones aside.
While he hasn’t quite taken the step that many of us had hoped for, he has played almost solely top 4 minutes when he’s been in and with the fans shiny new d-man goat (Larsson).
We’ll see where we are in 44 more games plus playoffs but there is a chance that Jones could be expansion fodder. A month ago I presumed he would pop to become a “must protect”. That may not be the case.
More information on the path forward will be gleaned when Samorukov and Broberg cross the Atlantic and play games for the Condors in the spring. Those games will be important information for Holland as he goes in to the off-season.
I am not saying that Jones doesn’t have value. What I am saying is that Jones at this point in time is not in my opinion a top four D. Moving forward the second and third pairing D spots will be occupied by Samorukov and Broberg. Bigger, faster, stronger and more skilled. For the Oilers it’s a great problem to have.
I don’t disagree with you. My response is really that, nope, he hasn’t run with that 2LD spot so far this year but he still may develop in to a top 4 D. The door isn’t closed.
At the same time, while I fully expect each of them to be develop in to top 4 D, at this time neither of Samorukov nor Broberg are top 4 D either.
I’ve been on record that I think Sammy makes the team out of camp in October but, at this point, he’s not an NHL player.
Put me in the camp that hopes we carry the extra D and use them sparingly as a 4th line winger when needed.
You mean play a d-man as a forward?
I cringe at the thought of going back to those days….
Quite the game
Utility players showed themselves
I never doubted the Oilers
Never doubted Bouchard
Never doubted Jesse
Huge win
Under the roof of Rogers Place
Gotta keep piling up these wins
Have to keep up the tempo
Especially against the Flames
So we can pull ahead of the rest
Super important to win these games
Ugly games no more
Can’t stress this enough
Keep it up Oilers!
Success awaits
I see what you did there.. It wouldn’t have worked as well with elite number one defenseman.
Bolognese Repertoire would be hard to do, for sure.
NEW for The Athletic: Oilers rookie Evan Bouchard’s 2021 NHL debut — a shift-by-shift review
https://theathletic.com/2363543/2021/02/03/edmonton-oilers-evan-bouchard-2021-debut/
Hass played 16 min to Turris 9
wonder if Holland is trying to move Turris yet?
The only place he is moving to is the press box. And it cannot come soon enough. I cannot believe I am saying this but, is JJ at 5 minutes of 5v5 and then PK worse than Turris at 9 minutes total TOI?
Just not sure what the ask from other teams would be to actually take Turris….I don’t want to give up draft picks.
Hass at 5:42 on the PK and Lagesson at 4:04 on the PK – a PK that had a step-up night – is material.
I guess that doesn’t mean much as far as Hass vs. Turris for 3C but Haas did have 3 more minutes at 5 on 5 than Turris (10-7). Its clear that, for now, Haas is being trusted more by the coach. The question is if this will continue on merit or if the coach is also sending a message to Turris?
Only Nurse and Larsson played more on the PK than Lagesson (who had more TOI on the PK than Russell). Of course, Russell played much more at evens than Laggeson.
I’m not sure what that means for Saturday.
Nurse – Barrie
Lagesson – Larsson
Jones – Bear
Or
Nurse – Barrie
Lagesson – Larsson
Krusty – Bouchard
Or
Nurse – Bear
KK – Barrie
Lagesson – Larsson
I’m glad I don’t have to make the decision! Moving dart board as far as I can see. I think you could argue justifiably for all of the above or none of the above.?
If ice time is any indicator, Bouchard will be playing against the Flames. He doubled up both of Lagesson and Koekkoek.
The factor that I am considering is that f Bear slots in, he is going to be coming off of a minor injury. I’m sure it wasn’t anything too concerning, but I don’t love that going up against Tkachuk who will probably look to target that.
I think I would run with 7 D to shelter that risk a bit, plus I like the idea of feeding McDavid + Drai a little extra ice after 3 full days of rest. So maybe:
Nurse – Barrie
Russell – Bear
Lagesson – Larsson
Bouchard
Same thing as last night, distribute the minutes based on game flow and who is clicking.
I would not sit Bouchard against the Flames. That is a big game, and he is going to be a big part of this team. Get him the experience.
I don’t believe Russell-Bear are a good fit. One small defenseman and another on the smaller side plus Bear is not quick either and still short on experience. They have only played 20 minutes together last year and this year, but it was not pretty spending almost that whole time in their end with possession metrics <25% and giving up two goals. That would likely be a worse pairing than Russell-Barrie.
So this Spitening Rod™ stuff might be actual science.
Sens @ Oil, 2021-02-02, 24 downvotes at final whistle:
Predicted results:
+02.00 Oilers goal differential
Actual results:
Ibid.
Like it or not, guess I’m stuck posting these until you-know-what.
Good game by Jesse. Something to build on. But the refs need to make the call on white. That was a bad sucker punch he put on Jesse. These need to be called. It was a good thing he didn’t get hurt from it. Hats off to Jesse for not retaliating
The look on Jesse’s face was priceless. ‘Why is this person mad at me?’
The refs were terrible last night. That was actually a 5-min major – you drop your gloves and hit someone in the face is a fighting major by the rule book. Without a doubt that should have been at the very least a 2-min penalty.
Especially since the only thing Jesse was guilty of was… avoiding a hit.
Should have been a penalty to the Sen just to help him avoid further embarassment.
It was truly bizarre. They even blew the play dead. I’m not sure how a ref sees someone drop their gloves and punch a guy in the face and think “meh that doesn’t quite fit the description of roughing”
It is difficult to consolidate:
Grabbing an arm or stick = penalty (the hockey equivalent of jail time)
Punch to face = stop play, but nothing to see here (the real world equivalent of jail time; the hockey equivalent of a puck deflected over glass).
If Bear is ready to play on Saturday, i don’t know what they do with the defence.
I know many think that Larsson should be scratched but I don’t see that happening (in general and not against the flames).
Tip gave a very very glowing review of Bouch after the game last night and I can’t imagine Bouch not playing. Tip was asked about one of the rightorium playing the left side and he said none of the have done it before and we’ll see (paraphrasing).
Who would come out from the left side – I think Koekkoek would sit but they’d want 12 forwards – one of the reason they went with only 11 last night is the knowledge of 3 full days off so not a big deal if a couple forwards got extra ice.
Who comes out, Willie or Krusty? I know most would say Krusty but he played 20 minutes last night.
They need to do what I said they should do at the start of the season.
rotate the 4d pairs.
Other than Nurse I don’t think anyone has been consistently better than the other guys.
the schedule is tight this season and injuries will happen.
Sounds good in theory but difficult to do in practice. It is better for the team to tailor the D according to the opponent in my opinion. Even this requires finding out exactly what you have in the individuals and how they mesh as pairings. This takes time and it would seem the coach has started to get a pretty good feel for his team. Making sure you use all the right people in the right spots takes some time and patience. Patience is not something we as fans have a lot of!?
Barrie is an each and every day play in my opinion.
A rookie (Bouchard) coming in cold and playing as well, some would say better, than a couple of the regulars is a tell. The Oilers have too many 3rd pairing players.
What does Tippet do? Going to be a tough call. Is Bouchard better than the version of Larsson we are seeing now? It sure appears so in 5v5, but PK work is hard and needs to be done so there is that.
Against the Flames:
Nurse – Barrie
Jones – Bear
Lagesson – Larsson
Bouchard in for Larsson against Ottawa next week (both games), Larsson back in for the Montreal game.
7D again but with an extra RD makes the most sense to me.
Nurse-Barrie
Jones-Larsson
Willy Legs-Bear
Bouchard
w/ Bouchard cycling in at RD and taking shifts after special teams play. Not sure how disruptive that could be to the general flow of the D corps, though.
I think allowing each of the RD to play fewer minutes would really benefit each of them in different ways and lead to them being less tired. Larsson can hopefully make fewer mistakes, Barrie can go more balls-out during his minutes, and Bear can continue being his composed self.
Game-to-game, then cycle in different LD to counter the opponent, reflect performance, or just give players rest.
So, judging by the responses, we have absolutely no idea as everyone has a different thought.
For me, i don’t think they will go back to 7D on Saturday. I think a reason Tip went that was was because of the 3 day rest and knowing he could give forwards extra minutes if required. Knowing that Saturday is likely a more highly contested game, I think he’ll want 12 forwards.
I don’t see Jones coming back in after the solid team defensive performance last night (Sens barely had any shots until the 3rd period when score effects took over).
Given Rusty had 20 minutes, he’s likely not coming out.
Given the praise for Bouchard from Tip post-game, I would hope he doesn’t come out.
Given the plus PK performance with Lagesson spending over 4 minutes on the PK, I’d like him to stay in.
Nurse/Barrie
Russell/Larsson
Lagesson/Bouchard
If Bear is ready to go, unless he does go with 7D, maybe Bouch does come out unless a right D can shift over to the left (and Tippett was asked about that last night and knows that none of them have done that but said “well see”).
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Other question, going forward, does Barrie stick with Nurse or does Bear go back there.
Personally, I wouldn’t mind Barrie spending more time there – that line gets tough comp, yes, but they also get lots of McDavid minutes and Barrie is looking DYNAMIC at 5 on 5!