The Oilers are 4-1-1 so far in the preseason and now you’re just looking for a healthy ro–this just in, Kailer Yamamoto wasn’t on the ice yesterday and may not play another game in the preseason. He’s a player you want to get going offensively, so this is no damn good at all.
Dave Tippett is using that opportunity to audition Kyle Turris, which is being met by the fan base with calm, measured verbal. As one would expect. “Interesting idea,” said one fan. “I might have suggested another fellow, maybe young Perlini playing his off wing, but Tippett may be giving Turris a big chance to show something tonight since he’s on the bubble,” said another. One thing is certain: Oilers fans are engaged and following the coaching thought process closely as the chilly October winds arrive in the north.
The Athletic!
- New Lowetide: Does Dom Luszczyszyn’s 2021-22 preview mean math hates the Oilers?
- Lowetide: When will the Edmonton Oilers fully embrace analytics?
- Jonathan Willis: How the 2021-22 Oilers mirror their coach’s best teams from the past
- DNB: Maxing out LTIR
- Lowetide: What might Oilers do if Kailer Yamamoto’s goal scoring slump continues?
- DNB: Oilers’ Mikko Koskinen much happier with family by his side again
- Lowetide: Is this Jay Woodcroft’s final year coaching the Bakersfield Condors?
- Lowetide: How could waivers impact Oilers’ roster decisions?
- New DNB: Duncan Keith’s decline, by the numbers and video
- Lowetide: 9 bold predictions for the 2021-22 Edmonton Oilers
- Lowetide: Connor McDavid, Zach Hyman and line chemistry
- New DNB: Oilers training camp invitees tell us what it’s like to face McDavid in practice
- Lowetide: Why Tyler Tullio’s skill set is a good match for the Oilers
- DNB: Oilers training camp observations
- Lowetide: Why Colton Sceviour could be an important addition for the Oilers
- DNB: Derek Ryan Q&A
- Jonathan Willis: How can the Oilers find a long-term solution in net?
- Jonathan Willis: Darnell Nurse, in context
- DNB: The Oilers’ plan for prospect Philip Broberg
- DNB: Warren Foegele Q&A
- Lowetide: Oilers reasonable expectations for 2021-22: Goal differential
- Lowetide: Oilers’ reasonable expectations for 2021-22: Goal scoring
OILERS TONIGHT
Coaches change their minds constantly, and especially in preseason when someone could wake up with a wonky neck or blow a shoe on the way out of the barn. Here’s how things might look:
- Draisaitl-McDavid-Puljujarvi: This is the NO HOPE line, as opponents would have a very difficult time running against this trio every night of the season. Dare to dream. What if the No. 2 line was Smyth-Weight-Guerin from about 2000? Music!
- Hyman-Nuge-Turris: I’m intrigued by Hyman-Nuge, but thought about it in the context of a third line with 97 and 29 centering different units. Turris is getting a big look here, you can discount preseason all you want there’s not a forward down the depth chart who wouldn’t give his left nut for this chance. Godspeed, Kyle Turris.
- Foegele-Ryan-Kassian are set for opening night, the only question I’d have is how long did Tippett contemplate running Foegele with Hyman and Nuge. I think we could see it at time tonight. I don’t see Kassian spending the whole year on this unit but the other two are quality options for the third line.
- Benson-McLeod-Scevior on what looks like the last chance Texaco line. Someone needs to score from this group. Both Brendan Perlini and Devin Shore have made the club, Yamamoto may start on IR (but that’s not certain. So there’s a chance one of Benson, McLeod or Sceviour won’t be in Edmonton opening night. If not now, when? That applies to all three.
FORWARDS, PRE-SEASON SCORING
If you go into camp promising a man he’ll get a fair shake, and then send out Perlini or Turris, well that would be a tough pill. Devin Shore is a bit of a different story, because the Oilers don’t need fourth-line PK men as much as last season.
Colton Sceviour is interesting. I think he’s played well enough to get a contract but wouldn’t mind seeing the team run JP-KY-Kassian-Turris as the four right-wingers. I’ll be interested in seeing the coach’s decision.
The centers look good 1-2-3, McLeod needs a big night. Drive to the net, make himself a nuisance, score a goal. He has talent, but his being ineligible for waivers is working against him now.
Benson is the guy. He needs to make plays, and this might be his last chance to do it. Perlini might be in there for the final game, as Tippett will want to run with a starting lineup or close.
DEFENSE, PRE-SEASON POSSESSION
I mentioned before training camp that Russell would play far more than people believed (injuries aside) and we’ll see him tonight with Evan Bouchard. Russell doesn’t move the puck efficiently, that’s Bouchard’s forte. Bouchard has very little experience, Russell played with Paul Bunyan. So, I’m looking forward to this pairing tonight.
I imagine the other two pairs tonight will be Nurse-Barrie and Keith-Ceci, at some point you’d like to see more minutes per game from the third pair but that’s a matter of trust. Perhaps Tippett will warm to Russell-Bouchard.
TYLER BENSON
If this is Benson’s last game of the preseason, and I believe it will be, then the young man will have gone through the entire training camp without playing with an NHL skill forward. He got 13 seconds with Leon, 10 with McDavid.
However, Brendan Perlini played 1:25 with McDavid and 36 seconds with Draisaitl.
One man grabbed the rope and never stopped climbing. Benson has been unable to move the needle and badly needs to show something this evening. As I said a couple of weeks ago about Marody, I believe in this player. He needs to use his 10 minutes wisely tonight.
WAIVERS
An interesting list today, I have some quick thoughts on a few names.
- LW Jonah Gadjovich, Vancouver. I think there’s a chance he gets plucked off the waiver wire, he’s a PF who scored 40 in his draft year and 15 goals in 19 AHL games one year ago.
- RW Kole Lind, Seattle. A skill winger with a solid pro resume, Lind not making the Kraken is no big surprise (they have a lot of candidates for work) but Lind might be a player of interest for another NHL team looking for complementary scorers.
- RW Alex Volkov, Anaheim. Genuinely surprised he didn’t make the team, Volkov has size and skill, he has been productive (seven goals in his most recent 37 NHL games) enough to warrant a roster spot.
LOWDOWN WITH LOWETIDE
A busy, fun, jam packed two hours today on the Lowdown, we start at 10 on TSN 1260. Israel Fehr from The Athletic will tell us the state of the Canucks entering tonight’s game, and Reggie Wayne will pop in and preview the NFL Thursday Night game (Rams v. Seahawks) and tell us what he’s doing now. 10-1260 text, @Lowetide on twitter. See you on the radio!!
Matvey Petrov with 3g and a plus 2 in his first Qmjhl game. Great start.
Yes, we’ve chatted about it – only 8 shots on net though…….
He had an assist too.
Anyone who thinks Macewan intentionally pulled of Kass’s helmet is delusional.
Try to imagine having Zack Kassian holding your shirt and throwing left bombs as hard as he can trying to cave your face in….does anyone actually believe a person in that situation could even process the thought “maybe if i can just grab ahold of his chinstrap maybe I can wiggle his helmet off” Wrong! First off, Macewan probably forgot Kass was a lefty, and was expecting to grab on to his throwing arm…he grabbed high, the chinstrap, and didn’t let go…helmet pops off. Linesman should have jumped in as soon as the bucket flew off.
Macewan is a goon. Suspended last year for a knee on Nurse! The game can do without players that attempts to injure!
You’d be surprised how much thought these guys put into all aspects of their jobs. They know exactly what the other guy’s tendencies are. When your million dollar contract depends in large part on your ability to beat someone else’s face in…..well, for some guys nothing is off limits.
Personally, I’ve never got the whole “get the takedown” idea, as we saw last night, it’s dangerous.
There’s gonna be some bad blood between these teams by opening night. Kassian injury aside, it was an entertaining game and both teams played well. Still a little preseason slop here and there.
liked McDavid’s response on whoever hit Drai as well.
That Duncan Keith guy was making some crisp passes with authority tonight.
Very good decision making with the biscuit.
I hope he makes the team.
Unfortunately I missed most of the game.
Thanks for that update on Keith.
I thought he struggled in the d zone though. Took two d zone penalties, one lead to a canucks pp goal. I will agree – some nice passes and a nice one timer on the GWG. With the puck he is still a special player. Without – we will see how it goes.
We knew that’s who Keith was though, and I think we’re hoping that Ceci can cover the difference. Him and Larsson would have been special..
Also I didn’t see his first penalty, but the “holding” call was very weak. Roughing would have been a stretch call, he pushed the player with the puck and got 2 minutes
One of his penalties was a reaction to the forwards turning over the puck in a real bad spot. The other was just him playing a little greasy. He’d get away with it in the playoffs. 🙂
http://www.oilersdeathmarch.com/marches/2021-22
…
Takes you to: Hunter1909’s Death March™ in a roustabout manner looking to press another few aboard before we set sail(puck drop Regular 2021-22 Season Game One) for faraway adventure(a winning NHL hockey team).
Thank/You/for/Your/cooperation
Yamo got cleared today so he’s an option for Saturday (and should be fine for opening night).
Make me the head coach for the Oilers and Yamamoto gets put on the 4th line with the proviso he remains there all season long. If he plays well enough he gets minutes guaranteed on the powerplay.
This is in no way a demotion. Oilers historically are good with 4th lines those rare times when if they take them seriously.Ever since the 1990 Oilers Kid Line that won them the 5th cup.
Injuries can also throw him into the top 6. I coached a few times in my life and its not rocket science. My Theory of Coaching: its about having the very best players lead everything, anytime they are needed lmao.
From Tip and a couple of the guys – Kass is in good spirits and joking around. Seems like he’s allright but they’ll see how he is tomorrow.
lol
What’s so funny?
A joke.
A joke that, as a lawyer I seriously doubt you could ever understand.
Ya, posting “lol” is not a joke but carry on.
It sure looked like when MacEwan got on top of Smith, which was initially incidental from his battle with the defenseman, he headlocked Smith to pull his mask off. That’s why Smith and Nurse were pissed, and why Kassian later challenged him to the fight. From the Sportsnet feed, it was also clearly visible that he grabbed Kassian’s earloop/strap and pulled the helmet off, that was not accidental. From that same angle, it is not clear if MacEwan had his hand or arm on the back of Zack’s head as they were going down.
He 100% pulled Smith’s mask off intentionally.
Whether he pushed Kassian into the ice though, I have no idea.
Yep…I think MacEwan intentionally flipped the helmet off. Looked like he had a plan and malicious intent.
He’s like a distant cousin of Oilers goalie Mike Smith.
Has anyone seen a video of the Kassian incident from a different angle than the one Sportsnet showed? If you find it, please post it. I can’t tell for sure if Macewan pushed his head into the ice or not. Sickening incident. If MacEwan did that….sheesh. Should be suspended.
Especially after ripping Kassian’s helmet off
Nah. Too much interference with the Don Cherry pure game as it already is.
North Bay Battalion
@OHLBattalion
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2h
Hey
@EdmontonOilers
, we’re big fans of this Petrov guy.
HUNTER1909’S OILERS DEATH MARCH™ URGENT UPDATE
With less than the quota, the site needs more than 99 total by opening night which is in less than 1 week.
http://www.oilersdeathmarch.com/marches/2021-22
The site will be open to take new entries for the rest of tonight. Possibly longer.
Thank – You – For- Your – Cooperation
Where is Archie when an empty netter is needed?
Mike Smith with more points and now more scoring opportunities than Podkholzin this evening.
Who gives a better beat down; Mike Smith or Dan Cloutier?
My money is on Smith. A ladder tournament including Pat Roy and Hextall would be necessary for answering the ultimate question.
Billy Smith with his wooden Sherwood Stick
Smith with the near miss on the empty net
I wonder if a goalie has ever had a Gordie Howe hat trick – wouldn’t that be something
That would be something indeed. Going forward, it would have to be called a Mike Smith hat trick for goalies.
It would be like another Mario 5X goals each way maybe less likely lol
Huge game for Smith – now, feel normal tomorrow Mike, please.
Smith is a prima donna NHLer lmao
Sure, Smitty, try that in exhibition but I trust you don’t do that with a one-goal lead in the regular season.
Why isn’t Derek Ryan taking that draw?
Kassian is two for two on serious injuries in his last two fights. Nonetheless, MacEwan showing how big of a piece of shit he is. He grabs and holds on to the helmet earpiece until the helmet flies off and then clearly drives Zack’s head into the ice. Garbage play by a garbage player.
Nonsense.
Reality is nonsense to you, yes, we are well aware.
Take it easy on HH. He’s coming to the realization that Chiasson will make the team and him and Petan will be in the Canucks top 6 forwards so he’s a little grouchy.
To his defense he was the first guy waving to the bench for help. Let’s hope Kass is ok.
I would be too if I just intentionally drove someone’s head into the ice and realized what a dumbass I had just been.
lol so Kassian, arguably one of the least admired players in the NHL from every other team fans perspective is all of a sudden cute and cuddly?
$3.2m about to open up on the LTIR.
Not currently the concern.
That was rough-his arms were tied up and hit his head pretty hard on the ice
Kassian’s skull thickness has been tested long long ago. You could fry an egg on that head.
Methinks that Sceviour just made the opening night roster.
Human side of things more important at this point
lol wtf are you trying to do here
Not many season ticket holders would agree.
Its a blood sport, NHL hockey until its completely sanitised in future then will probably go extinct.
Not many go to a hockey game to want to listen to anyone preach about the human side of anything.
Given the vibe in the area – in the 3 minutes after Kass’ head hit the ice, I think most in the arena were more concered with Kass’ well-being that the potential $3.2MM of extra LTIR
That’s another one I don’t get. If he interferes with the goaltender, it’s goaltender interference, a minor penalty. If he doesn’t interfere, it’s a goal. Grey area like this in a professional sports league is bullshit. It’s kind of a penalty but not really so we’ll waive off the goal but not put him in the box. Dumb.
Refs. Control. The. Game.
Refs. Call. It. To. Allow. A. Wack. game. To. be. Appealing. To. people.
If you are really serious about accuracy, why not try Physics for a hobby?
2nd line with a 5 on 5 goal but Hyman called for incidental contact and the goal called off.
Terrible call on replay.
I credit Nuge for a 5 on 5 goal.
Hyman’s right skate was in the crease and behind Halak’s leg, I think that’s the right call.
Hyman should have laid down and pulled on the Halak’s knee/pad and it would have been a good goal.
*wins thread
Hyman was living in the crease. He had the top floor apartment.
He shows to be a great Ryan Smyth type.
That was a nice goal, even if it wasn’t a goal.
lol was about to give some kudos to Barrie for that defensive play, but it was actually Ryan.
Geez, Kass, at least get the puck deep, my goodness.
Geez can’t get out of our own zone. Not good.
Nurse going to the box with MacEwen was a poor trade for the Oilers.
When it comes to how Rogers doles out their beaucoup bucks, I can’t decide whether they should spend their $$$ to boost the Jays’ payroll or fix the Sportsnet app so it stops hanging up all the damn time.
Anyone else having this issue?
Nope, I stream online independently. Rogers is hot trash.
Podkholzin is going to be a beast.
Book it.
Lol he’s having a good game.
At some point, he’s bound to be on the ice for a goal for and bound to have a game where he isn’t on the ice for a goal against.
Hasn’t happened yet.
But, yes, I do agree, he will develop in to a solid player – he has some bull like qualities.
Brogan Rafferty was supposed to be a beast, too.
I believe you ‘booked’ that one as well.
Looks like Radek Dvorak to me. Nice player, but you’d like a little more offensive ability.
It will be cool poster to get on the wall of Art Ross winner Podkholzin and Norris winner Rafferty posing together at the NHL Awards.
MacEwan is such a stupid douche.
Haha, hilarious Garrison saying McEwan did NOTHING at all there.
That guy is just such a tool. I lol’d. Man… just the worst.
Yup, Pettersson is good, real good – smart guy signing for the 3 year deal (4 year UFA deal).
How many years will McDavid have left at that point?
What’s the GDP for Bangladesh?
As relevant a question.
8 I’m guessing
Whataboutism number two, tonight.
Pettersson wants to leave YVR why else the 3 yr plan
He signed the deal that gets him the most money possible in a term that gives him the ability to get out the fastest.
My goodness Mike Smith – that’s 3 stretch passes for high danger opportunities.
Honest question – would Chiasson be a better fit as a 3RW with Ryan and Foegle than Kassian?
More solid defensively and on the boards but the speed……
Yes, but his speed is an issue. Kassian is faster but loses his mark all the damn time.
Just here to say the left nut comment made me laugh very hard. Thanks!
Important block there by Hyman as, after Ceci lost the initial battle on the puck retrieval, it was Hyman’s weak play that led to the extra Canuck zone time.
Keith started this game 1-7 Corsi five on five, now sitting at 10-12. Nice recovery.
Playing mostly with the Benson line against the Pettersson line….
NST (hasn’t updated for the entire game) has Keith-Ceci as the top defensive unit against Pettersson, but the Nuge line well over 3 minutes. Benson 1:57 at that point. I have no doubt Keith and Benson were out there, but if there was a matchup (I don’t know that Tippett was line matching), the Nuge line and Keith-Ceci pairing would have been the feature unit up to the 12 minute mark of the third period.
Good break out pass, Keith to Benson.
Yup – he’s had a solid/good game tonight.
Keith/Ceci playing most miutes with Scevious/McLeod/Benson and most TOI against Pettersson/Garland and sawing off posession and 1-0 goals.
Does Stauff breath when he talks?
Should listen to him on the radio.
Yeah he was a bit up tight and racing. As he gets more comfortable with the broadcast team his delivery should settle down.
I’m liking Nurse’s game. He’s been pretty solid against Pettersson. Lugging the puck, created a nice one-timer chance at the end of the period there.
Benson noticeably not being on the ice for an extended period of time
Benson with two solid hits in succession on that shift – I was about to give Kassian kudos but that was Benson – and he looked fast on those bangs.
I saw the same. He also finished a hit against a Canuck on the nearside boards that Sceviour couldn’t.
My goodness Draisaitl what a pass.
That was a Ceci pass?
My mistake, I think you’re right, that was Ceci, not Draisaitl.
I wasn’t sure either. Also thought it was Drasiaitl at first.
I guess Larsson doesn’t make that play..
Ceci with a great play at the offensive blue to get that puck to McDavid leading to that scoring change.
Keith/Ceci is starting to come.
Mike Smith is elite with the puck tonight – this is one of his best games I’ve seen playing the puck (normally I hate when he tries stretch passes but he’s firing distance bullets tonight).
Nice skill pass by Turris there.
Smith is entering the ‘old man strength’ stage of his life. 10 years from now he will be at his peak.
It so nice to see the team without terrible skaters like the Real Deal or Chaser.
16 says Hi!
Benson’s skating is markedly better than either Chiasson or Neal – my goodness.
Really?
Last year Benson’s skating was league average — it didn’t prevent him from arriving in place on time but it didn’t gain him any advantages.
This year, he’s clearly added another gear and improved his acceleration.
You’re either not watching or take pleasure in being a downer.
That’s a great step up by Nurse with the poke check as Elias Pettersson crossed the blue line with speed. Excellent defence.
Another very solid delay and back pass by Keith at the end the PK to get it to Ceci for a clean exit. Bear would make a play like that every once in a while and get lauded for 48 hours.
I’m probably late to joke but:
Didn’t take Coleman long to pick up how to properly play Sutter hockey.
It must be disappointing for the flames that their new 3rd liner acquisition, that they are moonlighting as a 1RW, won’t be available for the first BoA.
Should have been more.
I think pk is gonna be an issue with Larsson gone
Might have a problem, asking for too much from Nurse.
Ceci is quite good on the PK but Larsson plus Bear leaves a big hole – Bear did his best defending on the PK.
After Turris and Kookoo Bear was the worst penalty killer with an 8.5 PkGa/60 last year
Larsson was 5.6
He’s there. Changed hands and shrunk over the summer.