This year’s Oilers are comfortable playing extended periods tied, the maturation of the roster kicking in and the attention to detail finer. The team did have a stanza of loose play, followed by a quatrain of penalties, but the end rhyme was music and came with a Mike Smith midnight pad stack.
Smith was top drawer (again), the seven defensemen defended, cross-checked, passed and shot their way to success, and the forwards finally figured out Thatcher Demko in the third period (with another power-play goal). It was an entertaining night, and it’s possible to enjoy these games without fear of carnage. The Edmonton Oilers are good. Full stop.
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: Jesse Puljujarvi must be on the Oilers expansion protected list after breakout
- New Jonathan Willis: The Oilers’ 2020 trade deadline splash: What we learned, a year later
- Lowetide: Revisiting our preseason predictions for the Oilers after 20 games
- Lowetide: Oilers begin to separate from prairie teams in Scotia North
- Lowetide: If Dylan Holloway turns pro this spring, will it be with the Oilers?
- Jonathan Willis: Could an Ethan Bear trade improve the Oilers?
- Lowetide: Is Oilers centre Kyle Turris playing himself out of the NHL?
- Lowetide: Tinkering with the Oilers’ top six — what are the best line combinations?
- Lowetide: Philip Broberg and the Oilers’ Leftorium
- Lowetide: Jujhar Khaira, a waiver reset and the Oilers’ future at No. 3 centre
- Lowetide: What to do with the Oilers defence now that the rookies have arrived
- Lowetide: Mike Smith’s return calms the Oilers goalie hysteria — for now
- Lowetide: Bakersfield Condors are back, but true NHL prospects a roster rarity
- Lowetide: Dylan Holloway caps strong NCAA season with Hobey Baker nomination
- Lowetide: Oilers rookie Evan Bouchard’s 2021 NHL debut — a shift-by-shift review
- Lowetide: Edmonton Oilers report card for January
- 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: Oilers Kailer Yamamoto is the real deal.
- Lowetide: Is this peak Connor McDavid?
OILERS AFTER 22
- Oilers in 2015-16: 7-14-1, 15 points; goal differential -12
- Oilers in 2016-17: 12-8-2, 26 points; goal differential +10
- Oilers in 2017-18: 8-12-2, 18 points; goal differential -14
- Oilers in 2018-19: 10-10-2, 22 points; goal differential -9
- Oilers in 2019-20: 13-6-3, 29 points; goal differential +12
- Oilers in 2020-21: 14-8-0, 28 points; goal differential +13
I mentioned this yesterday, but the Holland-Tippett years are good so far. Through the first 22 games in each of the two seasons, Edmonton is 27-14-3, 57 points in 44 games. Not fair to compare this season to others because of the Canadian division, but teams can only play the schedule given.Before the season lots of people were saying Vancouver was just a Brogan Rafferty away from world domination.
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM 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 3-1-0)
- At home to: Winnipeg, Winnipeg (Expected 1-1-0) (Actual 1-1-0)
- On the road to: Calgary (Expected 0-1-0) (Actual 1-0-0)
- At home to: Calgary (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 1-0-0)
- On the road to: Vancouver, Vancouver (Expected 1-1-0) (Actual 2-0-0)
- 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: 9-2-0, 18 points in 11 games
I never saw this coming. No sir. This isn’t the entire NHL and travel is different, but the Oilers defeated some good clubs during this run. Holland has constructed a roster that has fast trains and small skill, plus big men and checkers. Many (including me) remain concerned about the goaltending, but old man Holland must be chuckling about all the consternation expressed over the position. If he never gets more successful than this moment in Edmonton, well, it’s a pretty good moment.
LINES LAST NIGHT
- Kahun-Draisaitl-Yamamoto played 10:37, going 5-7 shots, no goals (the goals were scored on the PP and into an empty net, so no five on five), 3-2 HDSC and 8-13 Corsi five on five. Kahun had one decent look, skated miles, and was at the scene of possible offense but the puck would bounce or his pass would get tipped. It was one of those games for many Oilers. Draisaitl had six shots, an assist, 52 percent on the dot and he worked had on the back check, turning over pucks and turning them into chances the other way. One turnover at the Van blueline when he got double teamed and led to a moment of possible danger, but that’s going to happen when you have the puck so often. Yamamoto got a late assist, rang the crossbar on a breakaway early, had two HDSC and two takeaways. Solid night.
- Nuge-McDavid-Puljujarvi played 9:25, going 6-6 shots, 5-5 HDSC and 12-12 Corsi five on five. Nuge had one HDSC, picked up an assist, played 25:44 that included 8 on the power play and 4 on the PK. McDavid had two HDSC, a goal and an assist, drew two penalties. When the Oilers started playing loose, like Spinal Tap at the Air Force Base, it was the high-end guys who were the culprits (LD and CMD) but it didn’t cost the team. Puljujarvi scored his first power-play goal of the year, he can battle in there and come out the winner (Tyler Myers also in photo). I didn’t like a couple of his distant shots, but that’s nitpicking. A fine performance by this trio.
- Ennis-Khaira-Archibald played 7:42, 5-6 shots, 0-3 HDSC and 10-8 Corsi five on five. Ennis skated miles, had a couple of promising chances. Khaira was the most impressive member of the line, his PK work reminded me of Derek Sanderson (that’s a compliment) with his individual efforts to keep the puck away from Vancouver. Damn near got a breakaway out of it. He also had some nice five on five chances. Josh Archibald took a penalty for being thrown into the turnbuckle by a giant, passed the puck well and had two takeaways. Terrific third line.
- Gaetan Haas played eight minutes, three on the penalty kill. He is a great forechecker, his speed a concern for the defense.
- Alex Chiasson scored the winning goal. He has four on the season. He isn’t wildly popular among fans, because of the cap hit, but he’s a winger with utility and has been productive in 15 games. Four goals in 15 games is a 20+ goal pace over 82 games.
PAIRS AND GOALIE
- Nurse-Bear: 9:51, 4-7 shots, 1-3 HDSC, 7-11 Corsi
- Nurse-Barrie: 7:06, 7-3 shots, 2-2 HDSC, 8-12 Corsi
- Barrie had the assist, Nurse blocked shots and patrolled the net front, and Bear battled and showed his considerable passing ability. I thought all three men played well. Nurse played 27 minutes, the other two around 14. Curious deployment by the coach. I looked for a trend in offensive/defensive zone starts but didn’t see any. Nurse looked legit injured after blocking a shot on the PK, but returned shortly after. Something to monitor going into Saturday. Barrie 7:28 on the power play.
- Russell-Larsson played 12:45, going 4-8 shots, 3-3 HDSC and 12-15 Corsi. I think Tippett likes these two together, I’d prefer Jones. Russell defended well, got flattened by a rookie, got up and completed his shift like a rodeo cowboy should. Larsson was flat out filthy, but only got caught once. Both men blocked shots, played their style of game and helped the goalie secure a shutout.
- Jones-Bouchard played 7:48, going 3-3 shots, 2-2 HDSC and 8-4 Corsi five on five. Jones impressed me with his speed and aggressive play, plus his decisions and some good passing. Got a regular turn on the PK and prevailed. Bouchard made an effective hit behind the net that caught the attention of Louie DeBrusk on the broadcast, I think the young man is going to be fine. Bouchard also made several astute passes, it’s almost expected now.
- Mike Smith is on a searing run, has to be the best of his career. Stopped 32 shots, got the shutout. He is .944 for the season and has had an enormous impact on the Oilers since returning to the roster.
BOB RIDLEY
When you marry a young lady from Medicine Hat, and her family is nine kids deep with a Dad who is obsessed with sports, you find out a few things about Bob Ridley. The legendary voice of the Medicine Hat Tigers will call his 4,000 game tomorrow night.
I’ve had approximately 4,000 people from the city try to impersonate Ridley calling a Steve Tsujiura goal, all ending with a gravel-filled “and the the little guy scores!” He was the first customer my wife served at a restaurant called The Ming Tree when she was just starting out on her own. My father-in-law would talk to him every fall about the new young players coming up, from Stan Weir to Lanny to Trevor Linden and on down the line.
Bob Ridley reached icon status in a city of 45,000 in southern Alberta. He drove the bus, he called the games and knew everyone by name. Those 4,000 games represent a lifetime of work that is clearly a labor of love. It’s an amazing story.
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
A busy morning on the show, we’ll start at 10 on TSN1260 by offering gloves, toques and long underwear on a cold morning. Steve Lansky from Inside the Truck podcast will chat about the Oilers run, the Blue Jays start and junior hockey starting up again. Tom Gazzola from the Don Wheaton Pre and Post will join us at 11 to chat about Edmonton’s series upcoming against the Leafs and a possible run to the top of the division.
Ok you were all right – bear looked great on that play!
https://giphy.com/gifs/producthunt-mind-blown-blow-your-26ufdipQqU2lhNA4g
Damn i suck. Nevermind using stuff lol
test
oooh itsa niice
We have to temper our expectations this weekend.
You can’t win them all and we’re due. At some point soon we’re going to re-familiarize ourselves with that losing feeling…
But damn it has been a great run in the meantime. And if they keep the losses to one or two…
It would’ve been easy for the Oilers to look past the Nyuks to the Division-leading Leaves, but they didn’t and ground out two wins.
So by no means do I think we’ll be an easy out. And you know the boys are looking forward to the matchup now. Confidence is an amazing thing, right down to sleeping better… and a hankerin to yank the top team back down to equal standings. We’ll see; I’m looking forward to the series.
And Leaf Media will be Insufferable, regardless of how it works out.
Counter – it’s time for this squad to announce its presence with authority.
Raise the bar – don’t lower it.
And – it is okay to hate every single loss, then go back to expecting to win every game a minute later.
This is what the best teams in any sport do. They expect wins. In the best possible sense.
Let’s see if this squad has learned yet.
That’s not a counter, lol.
I just rewatched the Khaira vs Bennet fight…Jujhar’s first punch was aimed right for the kidney/floating ribs…love the tactic!
I still can’t figure out how to paste pics or links… kind of annoying me now…
Search DuckDuckGo or your preferred search engine for an image you want.
Once you’ve found a good image, click “View File,” which should take you to a webpage that just has the picture on it. Copy the URL.
Paste URL into a comment box and hit “Post Comment”.
Hope that helps.
Test
Thanks. I think I figured it out now. Been trying to do it on my iPhone. Appears I’ve been copying the pics/gifs using the wrong copy method.
I’m going to try this copy and paste thing…
Wisconsin Hockey
@BadgerMHockey
·
56m
https://abs-0.twimg.com/emoji/v2/svg/1f4fd.svg: Dylan Holloway wins it for the Badgers just 42 seconds into overtime!
https://abs-0.twimg.com/emoji/v2/svg/1f34e.svg: C. Caufield, Weissbach
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EvNAhDKVcAIQmgh?format=jpg&name=small
Holloway is .05 ppg off of the best NCAA ppg rate since Kyle Connor in 15-16
Connor 1.87, Holloway 1.82
Of course Connors was over a full 38 game season, Holloway has played 17 games
and he’s not playing with the best offensive RW (Cole Caufield) or LW (Weissbach)
This is true, essentially no 5 on 5 time with Caufield (Cole – he does play with his brother) but he does play with him on the PP and at 4 on 4.
Holloways is as much the PP QB as anyone else – so many touches.
He seems to get a lot of his points on the power play. I can only find his PP Goals, which is 4 (out of his 10 total). Can you find his PP Points??
found it on collegehockeyinc.com
16 of his 31 points are on the PP
compared to 18 of C. Caufiled’s 31 for example
Carter Savoie btw has 17 points in 21 games (11 goals) .81 p/g
9 of his 17 points are on the PP (6 goals)
-2
3.62 shots/game (3rd in conference)
His wingers are both undrafted Juniors
Where as both Cole Caufield and Weissbach are drafted players
His wingers were definitely the weak links on his line when I watched him against a strong team playing well — Mich.
makes you wonder what his p/g would be if he was with the other Caufield and Weissbach
Holloway nhle is 56 points !!
Holloway finishes with both goals in the 2-1 win, both on the PP. 4 shots on net and 15-8 in the faceoff circle.
Holloway appears to be a very smart player in addition to his physical skills. Very smart in the face off circle, moves to open spots well, always seems to be where the puck is headed before it gets there. Great to see
Is there any highlight of the game you would like to see that’s unlikely to be posted to Twitter?
Edit: Nevermind, can’t rewind this feed anyways. I’ll see if I can get lucky with another.
The sequence leading up to his first goal – two faceoff wins, a couple of great puck retrievals, etc.
The TSN feeds were all one-directional. Couldn’t go back on any of them, I’ve never seen that before. So we’re SOL… and that would’ve been a good sequence too.
I’m hoping this kid can be the Oilers’ O’Reilly. The missing piece for the third line, that makes it a nightmare to matchup vs the Oilers.
More Jonathan Toews would be a high end comp from my perspective. I’ve heard a lot of chatter that people don’t think he’ll be a C in the NHL but it looks like she’s great in the faceoff circle and a fantastic skater. Very smart two way guy as well. Could be a real steal if this offence is real.
Holloway with the one-timer wins it in OT. 4 on 3 PPG.
@ChrisFaber39
· 5m
“Jack (Rathbone) walks the blue line better than any I’ve seen in this league.”
-Head Coach Trent Cull on Jack Rathbone’s debut
3 points in his AHL debut.
there are probably places on the inter webs that dare
Yes, but he is no Brogan.
No…he’s a 4th round pick who scored more than a PPG while playing D for the defense factory at Harvard.
Think Adam Fox.
Did you coin ‘Harvard defence factory’?
The factory is: Adam Fox and John Marino, no?
Also, my Lord, there is a massive gap between what Adam Fox accomplished at this point in his career and what Jack Rathbone has done.
Not to mention, the shine has come off John Marino a bit – he’s having a major regression season.
Canucks fans are at the bottom of the bottle for things to be excited about
I thought the AHL was watered down this year…….
This player is 6 months over than the “meandering” Evan Bouchard and nowhere near the NHL…..talk about not showing yourself early.
English please.
If the AHL is so watered down…why do the Condors have a .286 winning percentage?
Those were your effing words man….. when you told the forum that we shouldn’t care about the AHL
Prospect discussion on another teams discussion board. Attention whore.
Dys fans are well advised to find something exciting in the AHL. Beats looking forward to Jets and Sens sweeping Dys and Flames to move Sens above Dys with games in hand
Hey look kids! It wants attention again!
Spot on
what ever happened to that Boner Rafferty guy….you know the one HH has a hard on for…..I thought he was supposed to be challenging for a Norris or Calder this year….has he played yet? I guess there is a difference between the AHL and NHL
Not having much interest in prospects I know little about D Holloway but on a quiet lockdown Saturday I thought I would do a bit of research – thanks to Oilers Nation. “He could become a defensively-responsible third-line centre or he could end up a nice complementary, power-forward winger in the top-six.Think something along the lines of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with a bigger body and a more physical game without the same high-end skill.” In other words, nothing like RNH.
Think – A center ice peak Ethan Moreau as a floor a bigger, faster, strong and more defensively conscious Yamamoto as a ceiling – motor, just as good, better.
He reminds me of a hybrid mix of Kyle Connors, PL Dubois and Yamamoto in all honesty with a touch of M.Stone and Toews tossed in. I just see a bit of all these guys in him when i watch him play. Could turn out to be a very special player. Fingers crossed
lol
if you want to watch an 18 minute video of just his shifts vs Michigan from a couple of weeks ago, here is one made by, The Oil Knight:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzLQkZMVJBk&t=113s
*don’t judge him by his first few shifts, he gets better as the game goes on
That was great, Thank you!
You’re welcome
Lol, that’s a helluva description, huh.
He could be Dustin Brown. Maybe as much as Jeff Carter.
Dustin Brown. That’s interesting. He definitely is physical, as Brown was. Brown used to lead the league in hits often iirc. Although that stat is dependent on venue.
All my 65 yrs watching the game I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a 5 min major for interference. Iamoto of badgers sitting. Thoughts?
injury???
Finally get to see this Holloway character you are raving about. Beauty goal. Beauty player.
Man, what a shift from Holloway: An offensive zone faceoff win, an offensive zone battle and puck retrieval and followed up with a great skill pass to a player cutting in to the slot for a chance. Later in the shift, a clean zone entry and rush down the outside and a quick release for a dangerous shot.
If Holloway keeps winning face-offs like this -more people in here are going to move him to wing in the NHL.
Holloway will fit in well with the Oilers – just played the full 2 minutes on a PP (and about 30 seconds of offensive zone time after).
ha
Holloway’s first goal:
https://twitter.com/BadgerMHockey/status/1365470840582627328
Dylan Holloway and Wisconsin playing Ohio State on TSN2. Holloway just scored early in the first, now 9-21-30 in Game No. 17 for the Oilers first-round pick.
The Holloway fan club is happy with his development this year
This is one of the outliers re drafting and numbers. I am totally on board with using numbers as the primary tool when making a draft list. For a number of reasons I was on board with him being drafted when he was but the alternative is going to be a very good NHL player it seems as well. I was a believer in his 16 year old year and felt given his size and skating ability he was much more than the numbers indicated.
Holloway slashed in front of the net to draw the games first PP. He’s hobbled but stays out for the PP.
Wins two faceoffs on the PP and on the second play makes two great puck retrievals and then sneaks in front the left point and buries a shot shelf for a 1-0 lead.
Gully doing the media avail:
Neal skated today “he looked good out there”
Turris also skated take and “looked good out there”
So, the question is, who plays with Haas and Chiasson tomorrow night, P. Russell, Turris or Neal.
I don’t see 7D again (and I don’t know what they’ll do on the back-end).
Of those three, Neal is the only correct answer.
I actually like what he brings when he’s on his game, and he and Chiasson have some chemistry.
I don’t disagree – I can see the coach putting in Turris – in particular with both Jesse and Chiasson scoring PP goals last game.
All theses riches! Tippett and the coaching staff with options. Somebody pinch me I have to be dreaming!?
Raphael Lavoie with a goal and an assist tonight in over 25 minutes of ice time, had 8 sog and was even in a 3-7 loss. That’s a pretty decent nights work I’d say.
Phil Kemp’s night wasn’t quite as great, he was -3 and saw his ice time cut to a little over 15 minutes.
I also saw Broberg and Berglund face off tuesday night. Broberg’s Skellefteå team beat Berglund’s struggling Linköping 5-2 and was very clearly the better team. At this point Skellefteå look like one of the favourites to go all the way in the playoffs.
I’ve seen Broberg twice the last two weeks, outside the Linköping game I also saw his team lose to Leksand the week before 3-6. He’s looked pretty good in both games I’d say.
Against Leksand he was even with no GA despite the team letting up six, he had four SOG, all pretty good looks, he’s got an ok shot powerwise and you can tell he’s looking to place them in good spots not just firing away but he still needs to sharpen the accuracy for them to go in more frequently. In both these games I’ve really liked how he moves in the o-zone, he’s finding good spots, moving the puck well, he’s definitely improved that part of his game. Against Leksand I felt he was a bit tentative both with and without the puck, he only had one big rush up ice, imo he should use his skating ability more aggressively, he ofc shouldn’t just rush for the sake of rushing but with such ability you want to see him take charge more. One thing that I’ve noticed is that when he’s not actively involved in a play he gets a bit too straight-legged so he needs to dip down to a deeper stance before he can start moving, with his insane skating ability he usually gets where he needs to in time but I think he’d buy himself some extra time and anticipate more if he had a slightly deeper stance to begin with. I do think in part it has to do with him gaining the core strength needed, he still looks like a guy who hasn’t grown into his body, but it’s something to look at going forward.
Defensively he was doing well, not really getting into too much trouble, as I’ve mentioned he was a bit tentative at times but his gaps are tight, covers a lot of the ice with his skating and long reach, has that Nurse ability where unless he stumbles you just won’t beat him wide, he’s usually in position though can have (junior style) lapses, when I’ve seen him before he has been more pro-active so he has that in him just not in this game. He needs to get stronger in battles, he’s a tall kid with a good frame but again needs a stronger base because as is he’s losing way too many one on ones and isn’t clearing the crease efficiently. He has the physique to win the vast majority of them down the line, very athletic kid, but he isn’t there yet. He didn’t really get into that much trouble due to this against Leksand but he’s had some GAs during tje season where he’s not tied up his guy properly.
Against Linköping he had one assist, nothing fancy but a smart one touch pass, https://mobile.twitter.com/antonj85/status/1364279038290886664
Was +1, again no GA. He had a strong game, almost scored a highlight reel goal where he went through 3-4 players got angled out a bit last second but almost stuffed it in off the goalie from below the goal line, set up three golden chances for teammates, two of them hit posts, defended well.
He had another primary assist yesterday, another smart little pass this time after a faceoff
https://mobile.twitter.com/cmoresport/status/1365018529314054151
Didn’t see this one though. Outside the assist he had three SOG and again no GA. I saw the highlights and he had a nice looking rush in this one as well where he saw a gap between four players as he was coming down the neutral zone and just went straight through for a grade A chance(tbh the defending was pretty damn terrible, they opened up like the red sea to Broberg’s Moses but he he recognized it and hit that gap with a crazy burst of speed).
Overall he’s looking good. There are a few things that needs work, a lot should resolve itself as he matures physically, I don’t think he’s caught up with his latest growth spurt just yet. He also needs to figure out how to best use his edge quailties, his elite skating and ability to stickhandle while bursting up the ice, as is he’s more grabbing opportunities rather than taking charge and creating them. Technically he needs to improve his finishing, he gets a lot of shots off from good positions, he skates through seams and finds himself in alone with the goalie but it’s almost always just close. If he can get just a little bit sharper we’ll see him scoring a lot more. His first pass was a bit inconsistent in these two games, sometimes he just completely misses his mark inexplicably and next time it’s right on the tape, that’s something he has to clean up.
One thing he has improved a lot is his decision making and movement in the o-zone. He’s getting really good at finding good ice and openings during set play.
Berglund hasn’t had the season one would have hoped for, his team is a major disappointment sitting last in the league, he himself hasn’t really found his rythm and getting injured for a couple of months didn’t help so he hasn’t looked as good as I or anyone else was expecting. To be fair it’s tough to look good as a D on a struggling team, just ask Jeff Petry, but he’s not played as well as he can. The game against Skellefteå he looked good though, he’s a great passer, both long and short, he played well defensively, mostly good positioning, was on for one GA and was partly to blame as he along with the rest of his teammates lost their structure after a Ho-Sang giveaway, strong one on one, good stick defensively. His skating doesn’t really look like an issue anymore, he’s still a bit slow from a standstill but if he keeps his feet moving his mobility looks fine, we’ll see how that translates to the smaller ice but it’s obvious that skating has been a major focus the last few years.
He’s a pretty well rounded player, no real major weakness technically or physically. Problem is that he has these mental glitches in games and he’s too inconsistent not just from one game to another but within games. He had a major giveaway last night leading directly to a goal(by Joel Persson btw), didn’t see the whole game just the highlights but from reports he played well overall but then he makes a major gaffe passing the puck uncontested right to an opposing player and instead of the team getting a regulation win they lose in OT. And this is a guy who I’d argue is one of the better passers in the SHL when he’s on.
Him making this type of major mistake isn’t really typical but he has moments and stretches where he’s just on autopilot. It’s gotten better over the years but it’s still a problem that needs fixing. I hope the tighter space of the smaller ice and some different coaching can help him stay sharper because I don’t think it’s laziness at all just for some reason he has a difficulty staying fully focused.
I do think there could be a player here, will be very interesting to see him in the AHL.
Great write-up – thank you.
I look forward to both these player in the AHL for the 2021/22 season – add that to Samorukov, Lennstrom, Niemelainen and its quite the European blue…….
I’ve noticed that Broberg has had his ice reduced in the 2nd half of the season – is he still playing top 4 5 on 5 minutes against good comp or more of a 3rd pairing role?
Many thanks for taking the time to keep us in the loop!
Nurse’s maturity growth comes through in his interviews this year. There has definitely been an increase in confidence there.
I am looking forward to Puljujarvi’s continued growth in confidence
The day in hell!!
?
On goalie deployment;
Paul Stastny after the 3-2 Oiler win where Smith stopped 33/35 (.943) said that Smith really hindered the Jets forecheck. Smith was even stopping dump-ins off the glass, he said.
Smith’s abilities to stop pucks behind the net and get the puck moving, (I know, I know, it’s a bone of contention, but if he doesn’t try to do TOO much, he can help) could be of most benefit against teams that dump and chase more vs the more carry in type teams.
I think that this is a key part of the Oilers’ success when he’s in net. When he occasionally messes up it looks really bad, but I think of it as being like a tennis player going to the net:
you’re going to get burned once in a while but that doesn’t mean you should do it.
Derek Sanderson was a piece of work. The Burt Reynolds of hockey. Sinden must’ve found him at central casting.
Ouch…look away HH
https://twitter.com/danriccio_/status/1365170331896324096
I wouldn’t disagree with that.
BTW…it’s easier to copy the whole Tweet by highlighting the whole thing and then pasting it here.
xGF%
Dead Last.
https://www.naturalstattrick.com/playerteams.php?fromseason=20202021&thruseason=20202021&stype=2&sit=5v5&score=all&stdoi=oi&rate=n&team=EDM&pos=D&loc=B&toi=0&gpfilt=none&fd=&td=&tgp=410&lines=single&draftteam=ALL
Bear/Caleb anyone?
The #5 D man on that list has thru trial and error by the coaches effectively replaced Oscar on the roster. You may take your cherry picked stat and put it where the sun don’t shine, the same place the coaches have filed it.
Cherry picked? It’s xGF% for the season. WTF are you talkin bout?
And replaced Oscar? Crack is a helluva drug. I’ll stick my stats when you put down the pipe.
This blog used to be about numbers.
Jezzuz H
If nobody scores when your #3LD is on the ice, and that #3LD is physical and can PK, and is young and cheap, that is a good thing.
Lagesson was staking out his territory.
Hey look, Jones was watching, and decided maybe I should start blocking shots.
I have no idea what you are on about.
Open that link and sort by xGF%.
If yer okay with the last place guy playin 2nd pairing then God Bless.
Hi Pouzar. I’m new to the stats stuff so can you explain something for me? When you refer to XGF is that expected goals for?
Yes sir.
Thanks. So looking at that list there are a few things I’m not sure about. Nurse has an XGA higher than Barrie? How is that possible? The other thing is that doesn’t this list show that your dead last XGF is also first in XGA? I also don’t know how XGF is calculated but I did notice that Lags has 5 GF which is equal to or higher than half the defence core. Do you know how these things equate? Thanks a lot
np,
My original post was referencing xGF%…that is a percentage. If you want to compare the individual components(xGA and xGF) you have to do it on a per 60 min basis to compare apples to apples. In the following link, sort by xGA/60 and let me know what you find. 😉
https://www.naturalstattrick.com/playerteams.php?fromseason=20202021&thruseason=20202021&stype=2&sit=5v5&score=all&stdoi=oi&rate=y&team=EDM&pos=D&loc=B&toi=0&gpfilt=none&fd=&td=&tgp=410&lines=single&draftteam=ALL
oh btw, I am far from a stats guru. There are people here (or used to be here) who are more well-versed in that subject than I am.
Tread lightly though, I brought up some xGF stats on twitter and was accused of being an Idiot Fancy stat Leafs fan.
haha
Wow. Folks really missed the point of this post.
I agree pouzar, Jones/Bouchard/bear >>>>>>> Russell and Larsson.
Thank you.
There was a time on this blog where opinions were backed up with the occasional bit of statistical analysis. I see those times are few and far between now. It’s more narrative central now and heaven forbid you criticize a winning team.
I am still learning and thank you for your explanations. Some of us are overly sensitive given a troll poster that cherry picks numbers of small sample size to denigrate all things Oiler solely to irritate Oiler fans.
I am not responsible for your appalling lack of knowledge.
Really, there is no need for this.
but you are for being a dick most of the time no ?
I have seen this kind of post pop up for years now and don’t think it has ever been true. I always see stats on this blog to support opinion. Your posts tonight also seem to give a vibe of “all of the unbiased stats people are gone and now its just narratives and homers” which may be true to an extent, but I don’t think it’s because the gurus were driven away from the blog by homers but probably more because of COVID hitting people in variety of ways which prevents people from enjoying hobbies like.. digging up stats for a hockey team they follow. I know I have seen a bunch of frequent posters cite COVID for not being on the blog as much.
And your timing of these posts is odd? Oilers are going on a win streak they haven’t experienced in how many years and you seem to want to highlight the bad stuff and seem to be getting a bit defensive about it. Oilers fans have been reading and witnessing the bad for many, many years now? And this win streak won’t last the whole season – the bottom will fall out eventually so there will be plenty of opportunity to point out that Russell may be a contributing factor to the loss based on his gf%.
This isn’t to say you can’t say anything negative about the team, but to me this is a time to celebrate for a lot of fans and to enjoy the tear the players individually and collectively are going on.
It’s like going to a wedding and bringing up all of the problems a newly wed couple has before the dance has even started. No one says you can’t, but why?
“I always see stats on this blog to support opinion”
IMO, not nearly as much as before. Agree to disagree.
“Your posts tonight also seem to give a vibe of “all of the unbiased stats people are gone and now its just narratives and homers” which may be true to an extent, but I don’t think it’s because the gurus were driven away from the blog by homers but probably more because of COVID hitting people in variety of ways which prevents people from enjoying hobbies like.. digging up stats for a hockey team they follow. I know I have seen a bunch of frequent posters cite COVID for not being on the blog as much.”
I can’t speak for others reasons for leaving. I get COVID changes everyone’s priorities.
The reason I left for a period of time was I think the conversation has been more focused on the “seen him good” type convos and less with the numbers. I learned a lot form those guys who no longer post.
“And your timing of these posts is odd? .”
Why is it odd? I should only criticize the team when they lose? You let me know when it’s ok to point out that our promising young LD has been benched for a month for an inferior player.
“Oilers are going on a win streak they haven’t experienced in how many years and you seem to want to highlight the bad stuff and seem to be getting a bit defensive about it”
Defensive…ok…I should just take my stats and just stick them. Sorry, I don’t take kindly to that BS.
“ the bottom will fall out eventually so there will be plenty of opportunity to point out that Russell may be a contributing factor to the loss based on his gf%”
Thanks for not reading my post. #gf%
“This isn’t to say you can’t say anything negative about the team”
Ok which is it? I can or I can’t???
“No one says you can’t, but why?”
Why? Because the Oilers are my favorite hockey team. They are really shitty defending right now 5v5. I’d like to ice the best team 5v5 where the bulk of the game is played.
I’m sorry if that offends people.
“There was a time on this blog where opinions were backed up with the occasional bit of statistical analysis. I see those times are few and far between now. It’s more narrative central now and heaven forbid you criticize a winning team.”
This is a defensive stance.
“Crack is a helluva drug. I’ll stick my stats when you put down the pipe.”
This is a defensive response.
“I brought up some xGF stats on twitter and was accused of being an Idiot Fancy stat Leafs fan.”
Also a bit defensive.
i can’t tell you what you can or cannot do, I am not LT. Just not sure what you were expecting when you tell people on this blog they have narratives they want to spin and don’t want to open their eyes during a massive winning streak.
I guess I know a thing or two about Defence. 🙂
I am defensiveAF…you will get no argument there.
“ Just not sure what you were expecting “
Not what I expected.
Then we agree! If the Oilers were as defensive as you, they would be a better team!
😛
“This blog used to be about numbers”
Does that mean that the blog has to be about numbers and only numbers?
This blog is still largely about the numbers but, even if it wasn’t, the blog can evolve.
When the numbers are posted does it mean they can’t be discussed.
Is there no room for the potential that the numbers don’t tell the entire story.
I didn’t click the link so I’m not even in the know about the substantive issue here but I do know that numbers are valuable and can also not tell the entire story and/or even misrepresent the story.
Last night, the numbers show Nurse/Barrie >>>> Nurse/Bear – numbers!
“Does that mean that the blog has to be about numbers and only numbers?”
Didn’t say that, but I was here long before you and I remember discussion was very heavily numbers based. What I am saying is there should be room for both but now it’s slanted more towards “see em good”.
“When the numbers are posted does it mean they can’t be discussed.”
I posed numbers. Was told to “stick them where the sun don’t shine”.
Is that the kind of discussion you are speaking of?
“Last night, the numbers show Nurse/Barrie >>>> Nurse/Bear – numbers!”
Why don’t you post them then? You like to write. We can discuss.
I like numbers too and I have more.
And Nurse is riding the PDO pony.
Nurse’s offensive production bump is only one of many reasons why he has been the best d-man in the North division this year and one of the best in the NHL.
Nurse was also tied for 7th in the NHL in 5 on 5 points over the last 3 seasons – tied with Hedman and ahead of Pieterangelo, Chabot, Giordano, Ekblad, etc.
Nurse’s offence isn’t all that much of a surprise.
Imagine if he was given more PP time or not asked to play over 3 min per game on the PK.
Nurse’s possession numbers away from McDavid are not great.
Nope…but don’t tell OP…he thinks it’s sustainable.
Do I expect Nurse to sustain being the top d-man in the NHL?
I don’t and never said I did.
I can certainly talk about how he’s played this year and his effectiveness which is pretty much all I’ve done.
Who you play with has a massive impact on counting stats.
Can you imagine what Quinn Hughes stats would look like if he played with McDavid?
It would be stunning.
And don’t natter at me about plus/minus…that’s a team stat and Hughes has been on the ice for 6 empty net goals while his team is chasing.
Yes, who you play with matters but, for you, it only matters when it fits your anti-Oile narrative as you gave no credence to Matthews playing with Marner when discussing Matthews vs. Drai.
I never bring up plus/minus, what a weird statement.
Of course, Quinn Hughes has been on the ice for more 5 on 5 goals than any other player in the league – 29 goals, six more than then next and 9 more than the next defender on his team (Edler: 20).
I also have seen enough of Quinn Hughes play to know that he is full value for this placement as its not arguable that he is a poor defensive player.
Boeser, Petterson, Miller, Horvat, Hogllander – Hughes’ most common forwards – a list of the best forwards on his team.
Hilarious…you say you never refer to plus/minus and then you refer exactly to that.
Good grief.
If you don’t know the difference between 5 on 5 goal differential and plus/minus, I would suggest you do some research.
You are declining cognitively so much as of late you don’t even remember all of the times you have used +/- as a goal post.
Poor HH.
Nobody on this blog has defended Nurse more than me over the years(Woodguy can attest to that). I just call em as I see him. I just concentrate on what he does well, hope it covers the bad and say good night. He’s not perfect but who is?
You concentrate on what he does well and hope it covers the bad – by eye or by data?
Both.
Or do I have to show you 5 years worth of posts defending that player?
The greatest percentage of a teams best defencemen play with their best forwards. And often the results for ALL these dmen are poorer when theyre playing with the 3rd and 4th lines.. no need for stats, it isnt rocket science. Its been that way forever. Some people just cant seem to figure this out. I think you’d find just about every “star” defensemans stats are poorer in these situations league wide no?
So, within the last week, a lecture was given on why Matthews goal scoring is sustainable.
Now, the lesson is that Nurse’s production is not sustainable as he’s “riding the PDO train”.
Matthews’ PDO – 1.060
Nurse’s PDO – 1.041
No lecture here:
CF%
Nurse w/McDavid: 55.60
Nurse wo/McDavid: 41.95
Thoughts?
*crickets*
Inconvenient truths….something…something…
The previous 2 seasons Nurse’s CF% without McDavid was only about 0.5% worse. xGF% was about 1.5% better.
Probably just SSS this season.
Please point me to any claim that Matthews shooting percentage is sustainable.
And ponies are not trains…in case you were wondering.
Hughes is still leading in the run for the Canuck green jacket. By the way how’s your prognostication of Calgary making a big move because they are playing the Senator’s. You should be cheering for Calgary to continue to flounder as they are Vancouver’s best chance at not finishing last in the North Division.
Willy been riding the pdo pony and using it to trample over Caleb
Caleb getting trampled. Not by Willy though.
Alex Chiasson scored the winning goal. He has four on the season. He isn’t wildly popular among fans, because of the cap hit, but he’s a winger with utility and has been productive in 15 games. Four goals in 15 games is a 20+ goal pace over 82 games.
—
Can’t lie, I’m a fan of this player, and this man. Smart, physical, team-first veteran.
Chiasson had a tough start to the season, like many of the depth forwards. Through 5 GP, he was 0-0-0, -5, then he sat upstairs for a while.
Since then he is 10 GP, 4-3-7, +3 in a shade under 12:00 per game. He was doing good work on the powerplay without getting rewarded on the scoreboard; by our reckoning at the Cult of Hockey, his goalie screens were contributing factors to six (6) Oilers’ PPG before he garnered so much as a point, but he finally found the sheet in the last 3 games: stuffing one home to open the scoring against Calgary, making a beauty one-touch pass on the tying goal in Vancouver, then scoring on another close-in jam play last night to again open the scoring. Each a key goal within its context.
I get that his contract isn’t popular, but to these eyes he comes pretty darn close to covering the bet. He’s defensively sound at even strength & a serious plus on the powerplay, he’s a good teammate who happens to possess the only Stanley Cup ring in the room. Always good to have at least one of those on the premises, I say.
For sure he is NOW covering the bet. The angst that the fan-base had was that he wasn’t. He, like Turris and JJ, were killing this team at 5v5. Shocking that when the bottom 6 doesn’t give it away the team wins. Like what Chiasson and JJ have done during this run – keep it up boys if you want to play and get another contract.
Once Kassian is healthy, do you see a spot for him in the line up right away? Haas and Khaira have a grip on the 3/4 center role right now, and Archibald is an every night player. Its Chaisson, Neal, Ennis, Kassian and Turris fighting for the 3 other bottom 6 winger spots if they don’t go with 7 D. Nygard seems to be on the outside looking in.
The thing about Chaisson is he has been very streaky over his tenure with the OIlers. If Neal is healthy and Chaisson goes cold again, then Neal and Jesse can cover the net front role on the PP if Chaisson sits.
Maybe Tippet just keeps platooning and rotating these guys, when everyone is healthy,because once players figured out that Tippett would not hesitate to do this with the taxi-squad this year, everyone who comes back in the line-up is making solid contributions. I would expect the same from Kassian especially if he realizes that even when healthy he has to earn his line-up spot every night.
Holland loaded up on depth with the condensed schedule all teams will have injuries and players will go cold. Now that Tippett has things rolling and has nice options on who sits and who plays we are going to be competitive and a hard team to beat on any given night.
Well said Bruce. He’s a cagey vet that brings some scoring and leadership in addition to being one of the few players outside the top-6 who don’t get killed defensively.
It’s tough watching him struggle because of the price tag, but you’re absolutely right. When he’s on, he is full value for the cap hit.
Stauffer: “Draisaitl is battling right now to play on an every night basis.”
He’s no Steve Auston.
Saw what you did there! Lee Majors would approve.
No indication oh why that is?
McCurdy’s post below may shed some light on this.
We know Matthews didn’t skate today (but will likely to play tomorrow).
Muzzin was back at practice today (full face shield).
Likely Jack Campbell in net tomorrow night.
As it turns out, tonight’s Wisconsin game in on TSN2.
Thanks for the heads up!
Thanks OP. Looking forward to seeing him in action
Elliotte: Nuge’s first choice is to remain an Oiler. The org loves that and don’t want to replace him. There’s a will on both sides to get something done. Implied it was the same for Nurse.
Nice effort by JJ, how do we shut off the vid?
Scroll to a different post?
Other than that, you will have to ask Ryan.
Jack Campbell likely to start tomorrow night per Bob.
Matthews didn’t skate today per Elliotte on ON
Has a minor wrist injury…likely nothing structural.
I think he’s got a wrist issue he’s been dealing with an exacerbated last game.
I don’t think he’s likely to miss the game though (although that was info from early this morning).
Another year, another injury for AM34. Ho hum
Ladies and Germs,
Turk Sanderson aka JarJar Khaira on How to PK:
That was a thing of beauty. That was Petterson and Hughes that he split between and almost getting the chance for the shortie. And then holding off 3 Canucks for several seconds to keep grinding down the time. Excellent overall game for the Oilers on the PK. Vancouver registered 5 shots in 4 power plays, The Oilers had 13 shots in 5 power plays.
Down 1-0, the Canucks had two PPs in the 3rd but didn’t record a shot on either of them and only 4 shots on the period as a whole. They can’t even score effect well, lol.
Oh…. It’s beautiful
He looked like Messier cutting back across the middle and driving down the right wing. Only difference, in the 80’s he would have stuck an elbow into Hughes’ chops and drove the net for the goal, and no call of course.
So, Barrie >>>> Bear????
First game back from a concussion with limited minutes. It’s a little early for that isn’t it OP?
Small sample size. As I saw it Nurse Bear were gifted the harder minutes. There were times where Vancouver was having trouble staying out of one another’s way. To say Vancouver is a fragile team would be an understatement.
Of course I was being a bit facetious with that post (and it was a parlay off the Nurse/Bear vs. Nurse/Barrie stat comparisons that have been posted over the last few weeks).
Concussion doesn’t allow me to process sarcasm or facetiousness so you’ll have to cut me some slack or ignore me
Bear hasn’t played for a month and already has more TOI with Nurse. Bear played the 3rd period.
I expect we get to see Bouchard move over to LD to babysit Barrie on the 3rd pairing.
Bouchard is the goods from his on the tape passes to being on the right side of defenders while tying up their sticks in the slot. The biggest surprise for me is his strength forecheckers just bounce off him. No way in hell Tippett rests him more than the odd game in the distant future.
Gaetan Haas has been a difference maker in the Oilers’ lineup – he solidifies the bottom six with great defensive responsibility and IQ to go along with quickness and tenacity and some offensive ability. His PK abilities are looking to be top drawer as well.
One of the main problems the Oilers have had for years, in addition to the bottom six not only not helping, but hurting the team, is no legit top pairing d-man, let alone 1D.
Darnell Nurse, through 23 games is not only a legit top pairing d-man but he is a legit minute munching 1D in the NHL.
This is a massive development.
He looks fantastic and he seems to be gathering more confidence. Call the cops but do we actually possibly have a shutdown Centreman.
My only real concern with Haas is durability. He hasn’t shown to have that yet.
Hopefully he does prove to be more durable than he has over his first season and a bit in the NHL.
Smart guy….
Vaughn Woodruff
@conkanen
Replying to @dstaples
and @BruceMcCurdy
Listening to podcast now…we agree on Haas. He is very quick with a high IQ and defensively responsible with some offensive upside for a bottom 6 player imo.
11:38 PM · Sep 26, 2019·Twitter Web App
Is this Gaetan & JJ enough to keep Turris out of the lineup?
With a little bit of Chiasson thrown in Yes. Hope Tippet agrees.
Lets not kid ourselves, Kyle Turris will get another chance in the lineup.
Maybe he’ll even be able to turn it around – look a JJ Khaira.
Lets just hope that Turris doesn’t see the lineup until Tip is all but forced in to it – with a RW or Center injury.
Last year’s team, which was great early, middling to meh in the middle, and great in the last two months was winning based on, essentially, one strategy: McDavid/Drai drive offence at evens and historic special teams.
We knew that both special teams would regress and Drai/Yamamoto would not have a 78% goal share for the season so the winning ways were unsustainable.
This current edition, of course, relies on McDavid and Drai and good, but not great, special teams but is getting amazing depth scoring, not only from the bottom two lines but from the back-end as well and not only scoring from those bottom lines but, recently, really really solid play – offensive zone shifts that create momentum with Drai/McDavid off the ice and create offensive zone faceoffs.
This is a sustainable way to win games.
Mike Smith’s run is not sustainable but, if not for Demko being fire in the game last night, Mike Smith doesn’t need to be out of his mind. The opposition got A tending and the Oilers’ matched or bettered in in net – fire!
Last years team was the Edmonton McLeons it wasn’t surprising they got bounced early. To go places you need the whole team involved since Smiths arrival the D has been playing like a well oiled machine. I really think Smith’s outspoken leadership is rubbing off on everyone
One day in the far future you will be using the line: his PK work reminded me of Jujhar Khaira (that’s a compliment)
I’m trying to create a clip of him ragging the puck, but Giphy ain’t having any part of it. Might be too long/big. It’s 14 seconds of beauty.
People worried about Nuge’s contract term should take a look at the success being had by the Los Angeles Kings right now. While all the talk about the Kings in the off-season is what great prospects they have, their resurgence right now is being driven by Kopitar (33) Brown (36), Carter (36) and Doughty (31). Skilled veterans who take care of themselves can be major contributors well into their 30s. Bergeron (35) and Marchand (32) don’t look like they are slowing down and Krejci (33) has returned to being a valuable contributor. If the Oilers need to go 6 years to keep Nuge, at $7 million, I think he can still be a very valuable member of the team when he is 33-34.
agree 100%
Browns Browns resurgence is a great story. Kassian can rebound i hope as well
No place for Kassian in the lineup. Who do you take out?
To further add to the 7/11 v 6/12 debate. Maybe you take out a D-man?
Chiasson/Haas/Kassian
The Oilers will have 12 forwards most nights and I take Zack Kassian over Patrick Russell.
I’d like to see him sign for $7Mx8 and retire as an Oiler. I feel like Nuge will continue to perennially produce up to 49 points until he’s put out to pasture.
I’m generally against signing UFA aged players for their “regressing 30s” but I make an exception for Nuge give I don’t think his game will regress much at all in his early 30s and would be just fine with 6-7 years (would prefer 5 years).
He is also, drafted, developed and grown up as an Oiler – that’s a bit different than bringing in an external UFA in his late 20s.
The Kings seem to be arriving a bit early.
Going back to last season, they won 5 straight before the pause so are now 16-9-3 since.
With word today that the Kings are looking for an age-appropriate LD, a team in need of a centre might do very well in accessing their ridiculous depth at that position.
Arriving early? This team is being led entirely by its veteran group right now. There is no way to tell what their prospect pool is capable of since only Vilardi and Anderson are making contributions of any significance. This is more like a “Monty Python Holy Grail”: “I’m not dead yet” moment for the older Kings.
Yup. If you are Holland you have to find out if there is a deal to be made.
Arriving early or not, Montreal look like they need a centre, and they have a few left shot D man that would probably walk onto that Kings roster.
(On Vancouver Sucking) Hey!!! Look over there!!!! Look at those Kings!!!!! Penn & Teller would call this “Misdirection”.
Jones-Bouchard played 7:48, going 3-3 shots, 2-2 HDSC and 8-4 Corsi five on five.
Yep.
2nd game for them – on the road as well.
Jones Bouchard look to be a complementary pairing. Both played a positionally sound game for the most part. It is fun to watch a pairing where both players move the puck so well. Jones was very sound defensively by my viewing.
Exactly.
Jason Garrison. Brandon Manning. Kevin Gravel….Eric Gryba.
Massive step up in the D depth of this organization.
“Superman or Green Lantern ain’t got a-nothin’ on me”: ….man…Donovan, Thanks LT. The boys are playing like superhereos right now…..
Discussion about brickyard Rogaine being a savior??? Nonsense…it’s just a goalpost moving garbled babbling from a cognitively challenged individual who is mocked incessantly by normal Lowetidians. God himself pokes sticks in the Canucks.
No Oilers tonight but it’s Dylan Holloway time – tonight and tomorrow afternoon.
Big 10 Network subscription only $30 for a month (I believe that is USD and I’m not positive if one can get access without a US VPN).
We don’t have to OP. You just keep bring the updates – and many thanks.
Onhockey.tv had ncaa
It did and still does, sometimes.
With that said, I have had huge issues with onhockey and Wisconsin games over the last 3 weeks so bit the bullet and bought the Big 10 subscription in addition to the US VPN.
Onhockey didn’t have the Denver game last night – first time I could find a Pioneers game on there.
I’ll have to look into it. TSN had a badgers game on 2 weeks ago and i quite enjoyed it. Better hockey then i anticipated honestly
Or livetv.sx has ncaa
For my blackout nhl games in Halifax here, which seem to happen alot. Its nhl66.ir
That’s my go to for streaming games, otherwise I tend to use bilasport before onhockey.
Here in NL it is on TSN 2 tonight at 9:30, NL time of course.
One other thing, is anyone concerned about Leon? It seems he’s been more deferential about shooting since he took that massive hit from Pionk a few games ago.
He often seems off to me, although it wasn’t as apparent last night, though.
He looks down a gear to me. Not carrying the puck with the authority we are used to seeing. Could be banged up.
Yes, I suspect he has a few bumps and bruises.
I watch Leon closely at all times (have him in my keeper league, for one thing!) He took a shot to the facial area in the last minute in the first game in Ottawa (the one he was first star). At game’s end when the club came out to celebrate the win a pan of the bench showed him hunched over, head on the boards, not feeling good at all. The next night he was shown sitting on the bench feeling his teeth & fiddling around with his mouthpiece & looking distinctly uncomfortable … and he played like absolute crap. Then in Montreal he played just 17:06, a season low by 2½ minutes.
Since then, hit & miss, including several “maintenance days”. There have been a few times he passed when I would have expected him to shoot, & a few other times he’s deferred to Kahun in the faceoff dot, neither of which suggests it’s a facial issue he’s dealing with.
Whatever it is, by eye his game is maybe “half a bubble off plumb” as our host likes to put it.
But it’s not all bad: he scored a pair of beauties in the 3-2 win over the Jets last week, then his fabulous passes set up all 3 goals that pulled the Oilers back from 0-3 to 3-3 in Vancouver on Tuesday. During the 5-game win streak he is 2-6-8, +4 with an ATOi of 22:32, so I guess he’s managing whatever it is.
Yes, It is amazing what we are really seeing from the not 100% healthy Leon.
As you correctly point out, Draisaitl dealing with a few injuries is still a thing of beauty to watch.
One of many things I have learned from our host – is to sit back more and appreciate what we are witnessing from both Leon and Connor.
The team is looking awesome, way to go Schmiddy! Shout-out to Sam-wise. It will be very interesting over the next 2 weeks.
I keep reading about the RNH and Larsson UFA stuff. Does it make sense to anyone to re-up impending UFAs before the Expansion Draft? If I am RNH, does it make sense to re-up now?
My list: CMD, Drai, JP, Yamo
Nurse, Bear, Jones, Lagesson, Skinner
Thoughts?
My concern is Seattle offers RNH 8.0. Will RNH sign for 7.0 here or less. I would but would Ryan?
I think Nuge or any pending UFA will look at the team Seattle assembles.
If it looks as good as Vegas and they are giving more dollars and term I could see UFA’s bite on being part of history.
Plus Seattle is a neat city closer to Nuge’s neck of the woods.
It might be more about the total package. If Seattle offers 55 mill over seven, are we prepared to match that even over eight years.
$7Mx8 is still the same as $8Mx7, so the Seamen will have to offer more than $8M to really pitch Nuge on financial gain (aside from lower taxes).
I don’t see the need to protect Skinner. Better than him will be available, for instance VGK can’t protect either of Fleury or Lehner, Drieger in FLA, and Allen will likely be chosen from MTL, etc.
I don’t know where I come out on 7/3/1 or 4/4/1 yet, feels too early to make the call. A handshake deal with Larsson and Nuge would go a long way. We’ll have a much better idea once Klefbom has surgery and is a ways into his rehab process.
Unless we resign Smith again to a one year contract, we actually won’t have a goalie to EXPOSE in the draft that fits the criteria other than Mikko. You would have to protect Skinner just to expose Mikko..and losing the last year of his bloated contract wouldn’t be catastrophic
Seattle may be able to assemble a decent team but, realistically, they aren’t going to have the same early success as Vegas so:
1) Why are so many so sure that Nuge will run to Seattle for big money. I think, at this stage, Nuge also will want to win in the short term. Money matters, of course, but team will as well.
2) Ron Francis isn’t a silly man and I’m not so sure he’s going to just offer Nuge an overpay in term and cap hit. This $8M for term offer from the Kraken is far far from a sure thing.
I’m not even sure we can expose him without his consent… or is that only for a full NMC and not the M-NTC he’s listed with at CapFriendly?
Mikko has a modified No Trade Clause.
He does not have a No Movement Clause.
He can be exposed.
I think they may end up going with 7F as I think Nuge will sign before the expansion draft:
McDavid, Drai, Nuge, Yamamoto, Puljujarvi, Khaira (if he continues his play), Kahun/Archie
Klefbom, Nurse, Bear
Larsson re-signed after expansion draft to 2-3 years X $2.75M
Seattle has their choice of Kassian, whichever of Archie, Kahun, Khaira go unprotected, Benson, Lagesson, Jones.
If the Oilers lose one of Lagesson/Jones, it will suck but they have Samorukov and Broberg coming in behind and Lennstrom is in the conversation as well.
There is a chance that Klef is left unprotected as he won’t be ready to start the year (but likely during the year sometime if he could just get to Cleveland for his surgery).
I am increasingly of the view that the play is 7-3-1 and regardless of the NHL ruling you don’t put Klefbom on your protected list (as shocking a decision as that is for me). You hope he gets back soon but I think the injury situation is too great to risk exposing Jones over.
McDavid, Draisaitl, Nuge, Yamo, Puljuarvi, Kahun, Khaira (again, something I didn’t expect), Nurse, Bear, Jones, Koskinen.
Love what I’ve seen of Lagesson but think he slips through.
Thanks for all the replies folks!
My thinking is that Dmen are a cornerstone of prolonged success and you need 8-10 due to the grind of an NHL season, they also take so long to develop. Therefore a depth defenseman IMO is more valuable than a depth forward.
Having seen the struggle with this franchise with their D-Corpse, it is such a spectacular sight to see so much Depth in town. Sammy will be coming off shoulder surgery, despite his European success, so I would not count on him to bolster the roster next season and Broberg will need at least a year in the AHL.
Regarding Skinner, he is a valued asset and he has the raw tools, but he is still 2 years away from revealing his true potential I believe. There is substantial value in helping him get there and in having solid goaltending depth in the organization. I can see Seattle keying in on this, which was the only misstep by Vegas, I believe. Skinner would be a prime target for them. They won’t touch Mikko. Let them go after depth forwards.
Unless Skinner blows the doors off the AHL this year, I can’t imagine he will be chosen by Seattle – there are many teams with two established NHL netminders that can play in the NHL right now.
My point with the Vegas reference is that they did not adequately address their organizational depth at the Goaltending position during their Expansion Draft. Skinner wouldn’t be targeted for the NHL, he would be a #4 or a 4b, assuming #3 is going to stick with the NHL team next season.
I have not done a deep dive into projecting Seattle’s potential Expansion picks yet, but I expect they will be loaded on D and G and will target 10 or so 21-24 year AHL/Euro prospects to build organizational depth.
I sincerely think that Skinner has a boatload of potential and is in the upper echelon of 21-23 yr old NHL G prospects, he just needs to play AHL games.
I will dig into this later this year, once he has played 10-15 AHL games.
Thanks for the clarification.
Firstly, I don’t there will be taxi squads for the 2021/22 season (I sure hope not) so I would anticipate the Kraken only carry 2 goalies as per normal course.
I do consider Skinner a decent prospect, and it seems the org is still quite high on him, but, even though I can’t speak to where he would place in his age group of prospects, the Kraken will have access to a number of established NHL players, including young players with upside and I just don’t see Skinner being on their radar.
So the question is…. who gets the crease Saturday night? I’m thinking Smith is a no-brainer, but the workload is starting to get heavy for the 38-yr old.
Putting Konk-ANon in net would be tantamount to admitting its impossible for the Oilers to beat Toronto.
Probably Smith.
I’m going to be the contrarian and say go with Mikko on Saturday. I think the key to this tandem is to not have either guy in the crease or on the bench for too long of a stretch.
Koskinen is rested. Both goalies need to play regularly. In a regular schedule, I would rather see Smith on Saturday since he is so hot. But in this shortened season I think you start Koskinen in the first of 3 games against Toronto just to get him in a game.
It is nice that the Oilers are in a position to take a run at first place but I don’t think one should put “everything” on the line to do so…no need to burn out Smith here. In a season where there are no fans, home ice advantage is mostly nullified and first place is not nearly as important as it would be in most seasons. Really looking forward to this 3 game playoff type series.
Go Oilers!
Re: home ice advantage nullified???
Uhm….pretty sure having last change is bigger benefit than fans in stadium…
for a 48-year-old, not a 38-year-old. 😉
You get a shutout, you get the next start. It’s pretty much the rule, no?
Unless you really want to piss him off.
I say for sure Smith will start you never rest a Goalie coming off a shutout unless it’s 3 games in 4 nights on back to backs and on the the road and even that’s debatable Tippett is going to ride Smith like rented mule and bank as many points as possible while he’s in the magical zone. When Kosh gets the net again he’ll have a more relaxed and confident D in front off him with less pressure to win and he seems to play better when that’s the situation.
After his last shut-out, Smith started the next game against the Jets and gave up 4 goals in 11 shots before being pulled. I would guess Tippett will start Smith, but I wouldn’t say it is a given. Toronto hasn’t seen Smith yet this year and Smith beat them last year despite giving up 4 goals. Koskinen played well in his last 2 starts, being beaten only 3 times in 86 shots and if he doesn’t play till Monday that will be 9 days between games for him.
Hi all, been a while. Been lurking. Felt compelled to give a shout out to Sahm Garn-jay, who was not only in the picture last night, but front and center….. well done, Sam.
Well said. Love seeing Sam do well.
Welcome back, JT.
Hope your family’s health has been less of a worry.
Doing much better now, Thanks Munny. New job in a new town, looking to move the family. More time to check in!