That was what we used to call an old fashion ass kicking by the Calgary Flames at the Saddledome last night. The Flames hammered the Oilers senseless, tied the corpse to the team bus and drove it up and down Deerfoot Trail all night. Jesus, Mary and Joseph that was a sock in the jaw. This was a test of the Oilers ability to hang with the best team in the division. Asked and answered, and not a subject anyone needs to bring up again. The Calgary Flames are kings of Alberta. That’s a fact.
What can the Oilers do about it? Well, run the video, and in the words of Howie Meeker ‘stop it! back it up! play it again!’ over and over again. Identifying each miscue will take many hours, but there are many learning opportunities. Things like “don’t let the opponent tee off on a shot 10 feet from the net more than 10 times a game” and “what does coverage look like?” might be helpful. Give forwards a booklet called “Your defensemen are your friends” and give the goalies a booklet called “Are your defensemen your friends?”
Finally, after losing the five-on-five goal differential 9-2, maybe recalling Stuart Skinner from the Condors is a thought worth entertaining. The goaltending wasn’t the only issue, far from it, but the quickest way to reduce goals against is playing your best goaltender. Stuart Skinner has earned the chance. Monday against the Coyotes, if there’s a flight available.
THE ATHLETIC!
- New Lowetide: The legend of Oilers prospect Matvei Petrov continues to grow
- New DNB: Oilers’ defensive warts on full display in critical game against hated Flames
- Lowetide: Are Oilers approaching a crossroads with Zack Kassian?
- DNB: Should Oilers budget for Evander Kane beyond this season?
- Lowetide: Oilers’ 2022 draft strategy takes shape after trade deadline
- DNB: Oilers’ solid deadline adds depth but without goaltending upgrade, top concern remains
- Lowetide: 7 Condors who could impact Oilers’ fortunes in the playoffs
- Lowetide: 9 Oilers prospects who could be available in trade at the deadline
- Lowetide: Is Oilers winger Warren Foegele doing enough to warrant his contract?
- DNB: How Jesse Puljujarvi, as a player and person, became perfect fit for Oilers
- Lowetide: Darnell Nurse and Cody Ceci emerging as top pair for Oilers
- Lowetide: Ryan McLeod’s case for a spot on Oilers’ skill lines
- DNB: Oilers’ recent play only underscores that upcoming trade deadline must be a time to act
- Lowetide: Revisiting the Oilers’ choice of Evan Bouchard in the 2018 draft
- DNB: Markus Niemelainen collecting catchy nicknames as his surprise breakout accelerates
- Lowetide: Oilers fans still adjusting to Ken Holland’s management style
- DNB: Ken Holland Q&A
- Lowetide: Oilers top 20 prospects, winter 2021
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM MARCH
- On the road to: PHI, CHI (Expected 1-0-1) (Actual 1-0-1)
- At home to: MON (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 0-1-0)
- On the road to: CAL (Expected 0-1-0) (Actual 0-1-0)
- At home to: WAS, TBAY, DET, BUF, NJD (Expected 3-1-1) (Actual 5-0-0)
- On the road to: COL, DAL (Expected 1-1-0) (Actual 0-1-1)
- At home to: SJS (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 1-0-0)
- On the road to: CAL (Expected 0-1-0) Actual 0-0-0)
- At home to: ARI, LAK (Expected 1-1-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- Overall expected result: 8-5-2, 18 points from 15 games
- Actual March results: 7-4-2, 16 points in 13 games
- Oilers in 2021-22: 36-25-5, 77 points in 66 games
The good thing is that the loss, bad as it was, is just one game. However, the Oilers haven’t secured a playoff spot yet and there’s work to do. The spot they’re aiming for is third place in the Pacific Division, and both Vancouver and Vegas won last night. This is an uneasy Sunday morning at the Oilers offices. There are some worrisome things about this roster.
GOALTENDING
Mikko Koskinen started, stopped seven of 12 shots, .583 SP and now sports an .899SP for the season. I don’t think you can lay all the blame on MK, but this tandem has had more than enough opportunity and shown an inability to reach any kind of consistent level of trustworthiness. I’ve said it before, will say it again: Koskinen likely signs with a team that boasts better structure and has a few strong seasons in the NHL. He is a good goalie, but this team needs a great one. Mike Smith was in a tough spot coming in, played well for a time but was unable to backstop the team to success. He stopped 22 of 26, .846 and now owns an .896SP. Stuart Skinner’s NHL save percentage this year? .913. Give the kid a chance.
DEFENSE
Duncan Keith had an assist, took a penalty, one giveaway and a takeaway. He finished 6-9 shots and 2-1 goals, easily the best numbers on the team. Keith did scramble, and ran some luck, but survived. He is now 38-29 five-on-five goals, that’s a good season. Evan Bouchard is going to get skewered today from many corners, but his actual performance (one assist, drew a penalty) had some good things in it. He was 2-3 goals and is 45-51 on ice goals five on five. High event? Yes. Mistakes? Oh yes. Stick with him? Hell yes.
Darnell Nurse had as poor a night as I can recall from the big man, 0-4 goals and in bad places during every frame of the movie. He is 51-53 goals five-on-five this season, but 6-11 goals in his last five games. Played just 15:45 at five-on-five last night, I think backing off his minutes is wise. Cody Ceci had a poor night too, the pairing split on merit during the game. Ceci seemed to have gap issues with Nurse, the two men often in different area codes on dangerous plays. He played just 12 five-on-five minutes last night, again Woodcroft shuffling in an effort to stop the flood.
Brett Kulak got flattened by Milan Lucic, but had two shots and one HDSC on the evening. Tyson Barrie had two HDSC and a shot on goal, defensively he was unable to interrupt much on a night when every Oilers defenseman got lit up. It was a tough night for every defender, and picking a “best” defenseman would be impossible.
FORWARDS
Warren Foegele had one shot, one HDSC, a giveaway and two takeaways. Devin Shore drew a penalty. Zack Kassian had an assist, shot on goal and blocked two shots, he was the best player on the line and grabbed some minutes with 97, 29 and 93 as the game went on. His star has risen and fallen so often during a seven-year career, but he played well enough to grab some feature minutes and that’s worth noting.
Evander Kane had two shots, two HDSC’s and seven hits, the line had good numbers but was outscored 0-2 at five-on-five. I thought he would have more physical presence, and I do understand he had seven hits. Connor McDavid took what looked like a head hit late in the first, but seemed none the worse for wear. He finished with three shots and three HDSC at five-on-five, plus drew a penalty. McDavid’s scoring line (0-2-2) now has him at 97 points on the season, he could hit the century mark tomorrow. Kailer Yamamoto was active, but he didn’t impact the game much with the puck on his stick. After a tremendous recent hot streak (7-5-12 in 10 games) it’s difficult to be too critical.
Derrick Brassard scored an early goal on a nice tip net-front, but gave it back when pulling the chute on the backcheck moments later. Four shots, three HDSC, he has been good-to-great since arriving. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was Edmonton’s best player last night, an assist and 2-1 goals five-on-five and 1-3-4 overall. Jesse Puljujarvi had one HDSC and a giveaway, he played just 8:21 and I wonder if he’s hurt because there was no reason for him to play so little otherwise. One of the things one hopes Jay Woodcroft will do is stick with young people if they struggled (Bouchard), but I see no evidence of struggle in Puljujarvi’s game. He needs to be more selfish, but surely that doesn’t warrant a benching.
Zach Hyman is my new ‘Pisani’ even though they aren’t completely similar players. He’s a smart player who thinks the game so well he’s seldom in danger, and holy hell does that stand out on this team. He picked up two assists, now 21-22-43 on the season. Leon Draisaitl is 47-47-94 and posts gaudy numbers yearly, one day we’re going to regret not cherishing these days more. He was 3-1-4 on the night, should have been enough for victory all by his lonesome. Ryan McLeod had two shots, one HDSC and, like Yamamoto, was a little quiet.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The easy thing to do is overreact. I think recalling Stuart Skinner today is not an overreaction, your mileage may vary. One thing I will credit Ken Holland with is finding a spark when needed, and that was such a bad beat last night the GM might just give the kid goalie a chance. Skinner isn’t made of glass, you know, and some people predicted Skinner would have another lash at the net in Edmonton after the deadline. It could come to pass.
NEW for The Athletic: 3 changes Jay Woodcroft could make immediately to improve Oilers
https://theathletic.com/3212245/2022/03/28/lowetide-3-changes-jay-woodcroft-could-make-immediately-to-improve-oilers/
Wack how some factions hate the team for perceived issues, while other factions hate the goalies, and another faction alternately hates Ken Holland.
Question.
If the Oilers have some LTIR-derived cap space left (they have $567k currently) at the end of the season, can that be used to cover part of Bouchard’s performance bonuses?
I think the answer is no, but wanted to check since that would obviously be a better outcome for the team.
Nope – they have a zero dollar performance bonus pool.
Here is an article with some fairly high level but detailed info on bonuses and LTIR – its old but still applicable.
https://theleafsnation.com/2017/10/06/potential-bonuses-how-potential-performance-bonuses-can-cause-problems/
Thanks.
In non-hockey related news, Will Smith at the Oscars:
https://youtu.be/Ulu0cnm0yIQ
I’m getting close to deleting the last 40 comments, unless people want to stop impersonating the Bickersons, then we can leave things alone. Your call.
Sorry LT, replies to my post continued after your request so I figured it might be A-OK.
No worries, just trying to keep things on track. You weren’t especially Bickersonsy, I just don’t want this thing to go wobble and it always seems to this time of night
May I ask if the HH/JP conversation re: Vegas and the wild card vs. Pacific was part of this?
The reason I ask is that, unless I’m missing something, I don’t really understand what was wrong with that discourse.
I mean, there was bit of HH “doing his thing”, but not even to his normal extent (i.e finding anything anti-Oiler to post in any conversation and even changing the conversation to make it anti-Oiler), but I didn’t see insults or calling persons trolls or anything like that.
I mean, again, unless I missed something – just hoping to understand as a poster that has discourse with HH – 98% of such conversations are similar (and generally with a higher degree of antics).
OP, I have grown tired of the bickering back and forth between HH, you, and others. If you wish to have all of your posts remain, I would suggest losing all of the snippiness. That isn’t just for you, it’s for everyone. It’s silly, we’re all grownups, and little digs that start at 2pm tend to take over the comments section by 10pm. Argue your point, be clever, but the days of juvenile shots all the live long day are gone.
You never know OP, I’m a loose cannon with the delete button. Best be careful and talk about the subject at hand.
it would be a huge boost to most people that love this site if the two of you just agreed to not respond to each other
or if you just went for a few beers and (probably) realised the other guy isn’t an asshole (in person) after all…
Wobbly pops probably don’t help.
Much talked about prospect Aidan Mcdonough has told the Canucks’s he’s heading back to school. Per Thomas Drance.
Its looking more and more like he’ll receive his NHL awards playing for a separate org.
Summarizing!
A furious Quinnipiac rally falls short as Michigan gets a couple of EN tallies to preserve a 7-4 victory. Brind’Amour picked up the one assist. (Meanwhile, non-Oiler Owen Power picked up four of them tasty apples. Kid might be good.)
That means Savoie is the only Oiler NCAA prospect left standing. He and the Denver Pioneers have a date with the Wolverines in one of the semis on April 7.
Petrov and Tullio were both skunked (to use a fishing reference) in their respective games.
No prospecting to be had on the morrow, back at it Tuesday.
Both Nashville and Minnesota win this afternoon dropping STL to the 1st wildcard spot with 79 points.
Increasingly it appears the VGK sole path to the playoffs will be 3rd in the Pacific.
Dallas has 4 games in hand on them.
Five from the Central seems to increase daily.
With Winnipeg on a 7-3 run in their last 10, it’s possible that 6 Central teams could end up with superior points percentages.
Why would you say that?
Dallas and Edmonton are essentially tied, both 11 games over fake .500. Dallas with the worse record in their last 10.
Vegas’s paths to 3rd in the Pacific or 2nd wild card appear virtually identical.
Of course they’re the ones who need to right their ship, 26th in points% since Eichel was activated.
I guess if you ignore the fact that both STL and DAL have 4 games in hand, you might be right.
Vegas is only 1 point out of 3rd in the Pacific albeit with 2 more GP but they also have the easiest remaining schedule in the Pacific.
It sure looks to me like their only hope.
Right, and I guess if you ignore points % and focus on games in hand (?!?), then Dallas is somehow in a safer position than the Oilers.
Why do you have to be like this?
Have you checked the Stars remaining schedule?
I suggest you do.
When you’ve lost to Vancouver and the Islanders in your last 5 games, I’m not sure having a slightly easier schedule than the Oilers means anything at all.
Why, hh, why?
Probabilities.
Nothing more nor less.
In other news, Narcissist continues to troll Oilers fans; feeling special and clever while doing so.
Brind’Amour plucks a primary apple as Quinnipiac finally breaks the goose egg in period 3, but they still trail by three.
Could be in his way to Bakersfield soon (AHL contract) but no certainty he’s offered a contract (yet or at all).
7-4 Michigan final.
Owen Power with 4 assists.
I would also like to extend a warm thank you to Pittsburgh and Detroit for having a game today (so soon after last night’s assless chaps whipping) that reminds us that defensive incompetence is a virus that spreads quickly.
Thank you, Detroit. Thank you for being you.
Poor Ned. Having a rough stretch lately
I was just checking to see whether the defense had shown up yet… no? I guess I’ll check back later.
The Swiss woman’s curling team is plowing through everyone maybe they have Shania Twain as a Guru and secret weapon back home.
They should get Yamo after him. Get him to do a tikanen shadow job. While we are at it lock him in a closet learn some tic tok.
Is Yamo a good enough skater for that role?
Chucky would deal with that with great relish.
I think it’s time next year to have Holland and Gretzky as Co-GM’s then have Keith takeover the following year. I’ll take my chances with a hungry Gretzky as he’s come up through the ranks and definitely deserves a crack as a G.M.
Wouldn’t you be concerned Gretzky will continue operating like his mentor?
There is a reason teams clean house when they change GMs.
He should of been the G.M to begin he’s been groomed his whole life for this but the mob wanted a outsider. We both know Holland’s going back to Detroit after next year in some capacity. I still don’t understand the Keith trade and never will. Hopefully Holland leaves a few draft picks for Gretzky to begin his tenure.
truth.
Well put
There is a reason why the best hockey is played a certain way. Partly roster dependent as to tactics
It’s really pretty straight forward. Defend the house, it starts at the other end, which the coach has said
Canada 4 Jamaica 0. Qatar 2022 here we come! Canada is officially a footy nation. John Herdman went to the same school of coaching that Woodcroft did. Both of them have lots of positive energy and only have good things to say about their players in public. Classy individuals.
Awesome sauce! Well done, Canada.
What a Coach this team is going to surprise come World Cup. Does anyone know when the Main Draw is for which Bracket they will be placed in?
Reja, the draw is scheduled for April 1.
https://www.si.com/soccer/2022/03/22/fifa-world-cup-draw-procedure-top-seeds-pots
For sure
Tough loss won’t go far in the playoffs with 2nd best Goaltending every game. You would think Woody would be in the call up Skinner camp. I wonder with him not being Holland’s boy how much say he has in roster moves?
Woody has said he’s in contact with management daily.
I would note that, Woody had Skinner on the roster for 3 (maybe 4) games and didn’t play him.
That surprised me anyhow Smith doesn’t look right probably age but if his groin is bothering him LTIR him and call up Skinner. I would of dressed Archibald as well this team needs a pest and he’s looked good since his return.
I hear Mike Smith is starring in a reboot of that Alan Thicke sitcom, Groin Pains.
Sather used to use Brackenbury to get the team going
Balls out, every shift, all the time. Hockeying not so much there, but it had its place
Maybe they’re saving the physicality part of the game for the playoffs.
They need a Kelly Buchberger someone that works his ass off every shift and is part crazy. After the Backlund cheap shot where there was no response when the game was out of hand just tells me this team is missing a few other ingredients besides Goaltending.
Meanness
You definitely go after a better flame if they do anything. But you have to be that kind of dude. The Oiler org collects nice guys. They’ve even made Nurse nice
That’s what Kane needs to do. And everyone in the bottom six not named Nuge, and at least 3 of the D
After years of hitch-hiking the galaxy, there is one piece of advice that holds true above all others…
No word on whether Marvin was an Oiler fan, but judging by his demeanour…
(This is, of course, all Brandon Perlini’s fault)
Stauffer also tweeted this tidbit, and with Bob one always has to wonder about foreshadowing:
Quick update from @Condors
Dylan Holloway who picked up three assists in a pair of weekend games vs Grand Rapids has a taken a step forward over the last few games. Told the 2020 1st round pick is skating well, making plays… trending in the right direction. Has 7-9-16 in 28 GP.
You could argue that he might be more productive than Foegele, who is clearly a 3rd liner. FYI 2 of the 3 points Holloway got were on the PP. Skinner aside, I would argue that we do not need to add more rookies to the NHL mix.
Holloway and the organization are better served with him involved as an important player getting PP time in an AHL playoff run, rather than getting 3rd or 4th line minutes in the NHL.
He is doing okay, but he is nowhere near the levels of Yamo, or McLeod when they were brought up. He needs to at least play it out until the AHL team has completed their run.
I do agree with this.
Similar to Broberg, most of Holloways’ points have been on the PP. This isn’t to say he (again, like Broberg) isn’t impacting the game a high level. He surely is. You notice him every time he is on the ice – he is around the puck and the play every shift.
Part of the lower production, like Yamamoto’s at the time, is due to legit 3rd line winger – he is simply not playing with the higher end skill on the team at evens.
At the same time, while a material player that does lots of good things out there, he’s not the “scoring chance machine” that Yamamoto was prior to his call up – of course, Holloway remains younger (and younger then McLeod when he popped).
Bea Katriina Niemeleinen joined the world this morning. Congratulations to Captain and crew. Mother and baby are doing well according to the Twitterverse.
Baby
YodaNemo:https://twitter.com/Condors/status/1508120823604781057/photo/1
That felt like 3 losses in 1. They got beat on the scoreboard, they beat the piss out of us, and their putrid fans won absolute bragging rights for the season.
I need another bottle of whisky to stomach this one.
Can we agree that an “overpay” for a true #1 goalie is worth it? Is anyone in Calgary fretting about the extra year on Markstrom’s contract? Rolie had his ‘06 run, Talbot had a great year, but man oh man it’s painful to watch season after season get washed away by average to poor tending. Fingers crossed Skinner continues on the Demko path
The reason Skinner should be playing 50% of the game now.
1) He is at least as good as the other two guys
2) One has to find out about him before summer time, so one knows what type of goaltender one is in the market for, and for how much money. He has done his time in Bakersfield. One cannot damage him by playing him every 2nd game.
Skinner and Koskinen would be the most logical tandem if one took the 50/50 approach. One really can’t wait on Smith to recover his game. So waive him and send him to Bakersfield.
I have been on this, mostly point 2, for months now.
As of now, and for a whole, there is no reason to think that Skinner can’t give the team every good a chance to win a game on any night than the 2 veterans – and an argument can be made for a greater chance.
Given the above, combined with point 2, and this has been an organizational fail over the last few months – in my opinion.
They can still make the move but, at this point, it seems very unlikely they will.
Yeah, a lot of us have seen the obvious for some time.
The Mike Smith revival show is over.
Why couldn’t SS have a Binnington moment?
Because Holland is stubborn and set in his ways.
The biggest thing for me is how this team is not ready for playoff hockey
it’s not even the defense, yeah they’re not good but are much better than yesterday.
the biggest thing I noticed is how all these big forwards we got had little interest in the physical stuff
Foggy is beyond worthless
Kassian was ok overall but he needs to be a wrecking ball
Kane somehow got credited with 7 hits but don’t think I’ve noticed more than 1
Hyman !! get dirty
Drai needs to get dirty
So goes for everyone else not named Mcdavid
no you won’t be able to target Gaudreau. He’s made a career out of not getting hit but target Lindholm. Calgary was playing Suter hockey and targeting Mcdavid without the puck. You think playoffs are gonna be different?
Go get Dirty!!!
Agreed. This team isn’t dirty enough for the NHL regular season let alone the playoffs. Every top team in the league employs multiple scumbags and the whole team plays on the edge. I’m not sure why the Oilers haven’t figured this out…
At 6’4” Jesse Puljujarvi is a giant skating marshmello man who hasn’t thrown a hit in his entire career. Not sure if he is going to help the Oilers in the playoffs or just get pushed around as usual. Don’t dislike the player but I think its safe to say he is what he is.
They seem to want ‘good people’ who are ‘nice’
Doesn’t work in the NHL, too many not nice guys
It could be the system as well. Sutter’s forecheck encourages finishing the check. It is very disruptive to the receiving team, that’s why it’s a thing for good teams
Perhaps it’s time to address why the team needs a great goalie.
And how do the Oilers afford a great goalie without a major overhaul of the roster? If the savings from losing Mikko’s contract goes to raises for Nurse, JP and Yamo where’s the money to pay for a great goalie?
Duncan Keith has it. Mike Smith has it. Evander Kane has it. All the extra $250K and $500Ks has it. All the extra unnecessary years added to a contract has it. All the moves made instead of solidifying the extremely obvious position of goal tending has it.
Not all of it is on KH. Some is inherited. But some is self inflicted.
What would people rather? A consistent .923 all situations goalie, or the moves made to try to offset .898 tending?
As has been the case for years…it is death by paper cut.
Holland has been continuing the same approach that sewered his predecessors and, in some ways, is even worse.
Unconscionable that he didn’t get Chicago to retain on Keith being one of the most blatant examples.
Also trades Caleb who Chicago obviously asked for plus a pick as well. The entire trade smells of something not right.
Please name the goalies available with career .923 save percentages. Lol.
Consistent doesn’t equal career. But good point. .923 is great tending. Since you moved the goal post, so will I. Let’s say .910 is league average. (You can google this, it seems to be from a couple of sources). It’s generally accepted the .915 gets you to the playoffs.
Now who, since KH has been in charge, has been available in that range? Markstrom? Kuemper? Once again, I’ll let you google.
I think Seattle could be talked into moving Grubauer, down year but he’s in the range.
Who is calling for a great goalie?
I think most folks would be satisfied with an average quality NHL starter, I know I would be.
That being said, I agree. The cap situation this offseason is not good. A major overhaul might be necessary regardless.
These are LT”s words for the day above. Did you not read them?
And plenty people around all parts are calling for great. In the last stretch when the goaltending was above league average many aren’t satisfied.
Obviously an ugly game to watch as an Oiler fan. Lots of shortcomings have been pointed out and rightly so. One thing that struck me as extremely disappointing was our lack of physical pushback. Backlund takes a cheap run at Connor and a couple of Oilers give him a push. Really. No one says drop the gloves with Luc but did Johnny or Lindholm even get touched that game? This team talks about being a close team and liking each other. I didn’t see that last night.
LT my apologies for a comment that got deleted. There is a certain poster who takes great joy in grinding Oiler fans especially after a loss. Normally I can ignore him but kind of snapped last night. Again Will be better.
He gets the best of me once in a while. I bet that gives him some strange dysfunctional satisfaction. That provides me solace. I don’t behave this way with other ppl. Call it having a good mother?
The good thing is it’s one game. I’m glad these things come out now. We don’t have much time to rectify the problems, here is hoping we can.
I hope they go after a Logan Thompson / Connor Ingram type goalie in the summer. Goalies with a solid amateur and pro record leading up to being ready to start in a tandem next season. But maybe they should have been trying to trade for him sooner as it may be too late to get Thompson out of Vegas:
“The 25-year-old has started six straight games, going 4-2-0 with a 2.51 GAA and .927 save percentage, and he seems likely to hang onto the No. 1 job for the Golden Knights even after Laurent Brossoit (undisclosed) is able to return.”
I’m not saying VGK would have had the slightest interest in trading him but wouldn’t it be nice to have Skinner and Thompson (or equivalent found through analytics and scouting) right about now.
The previous summer my deep dive settled on Anton Forsberg, who Holland actually signed, but we all know what happened there…and when that happened Holland really should have scooped up Ned…
Husso seems to be the obvious target, but he will be a tough get with all the suitors he will undoubtedly have. So the targets I have circled as goalies who are the right age and under the radar/under valued with good results at the NHL level, include Charlie Lindgren and Ken Appleby.
This will be unpopular, but if I were in Holland’s shoes I would run a triad of Skinner and 2 goaltenders like those fellows. Who ever emerges after 15-20 games will be the dudes. He has painted himself into a corner and needs to be creative to get himself out of it.
Disposing of the Smith contract and how he does so will also be paramount, but I don’t think there is another GM that still consults the NHL Guide and Record Books to make personnel decisions.
Husso has trailed Skinner at every year of development as a pro. Worse than Skinner at each stage (and being older at each stage).
Husso has popped this season as 27 year old (I think) in a small sample.
No reason to buy high on any such player without testing the home grown, drafted and developed prospect – the better prospect.
Yes, but that is not how it will play out. Watch someone overpay Husso this summer, unless he flames out (or should I say Oilers?) in the playoffs?
Oh, I have little doubt that a team will give Husso a solid AAV for term – I’m not even staying that he won’t be worth it, I don’t know.
I’m simply opining that we we have a developing tender that very well “could be Husso” right now, today – we don’t know but there is no reason to think its not possible.
Play the developed and ready talent.
I tend to agree with you on Husso and Skinner. Husso may not be able to repeat this season but you’ll have to pay for him and pay him at this season’s rate. Skinner may be that goalie that pops next. But he’s only 1 bullet in the chamber. I think they should have at least one more in that range (age, track record, size). That’s why I tried to identify Thompson and Ingram. I think we may just see them emerge by next season and it looks like Thompson may be emerging as we speak. He either won’t be available anymore or he will be too expensive.
This is the age when under the radar goalies
”pop”.
Husso this season:
1st 14 games: 9-2-1, 1.81 GAA, .945 sv%
2nd 14 games: 7-4-3, 3.01 GAA, .897 sv%
Far too often we are saying “this is a learning experience, a teaching moment, lots to see on the films” and so on. This is not a young team. We should not be saying this, having these kind of repeat performances as often as we do. At some point this team needs to mature and consistently play the system that wins them game…or not.
Been a long decade of ‘this is a learning experience”
Nurse is 27
Keith is almost 39
Ceci – 28
Barrie turns 31 this summer
Kulak- 28
That is 5 of the 6 D…..
Early season hot streak (points percentage wise) based on exceptional special teams and meh 5 on 5 play.
Mid-season swoon (season changing) due to continuing meh 5 on 5 and special teams cratering to normal levels (terrible PK levels).
Recent post-Woodcroft better play based off of top of league 5 on 5 play (via various metrics) and recovering special teams (but still meh).
————
Last few games have seen exceptional special teams. PP is looking like October levels which is historic. PK is high end right now.
If there is any chance that the 5 on 5 last night was a “one-off” (which, for this team will be more like a “once in a while), perhaps they can get both 5 on 5 and special teams going at the same time which could lead to something heartening.
Of course, its hard to look past that defensive performance last night and think this team can defend, game after game, at 5 on 5 but, really, they have been doing so at a much higher level then last night, consistently, in recent times.
In any event, GREAT to have the special teams BACK!
It was an ugly evening, yet would of been nice to see the refs keep their whistles out in the 3rd. Watching McDavid being elbowed in the head without the puck at center ice.. I mean come on.
Bring up Skinner and see what shakes.
Whatever the reasoning for having the D pinch off the line so often when they have no business doing so. Endless plays last night could of been thwarted just by simply backing off.
Nurse last night, I’m not sure what’s going on with the fella but he’s clearly not himself.
Also, Nuge is clearly far and away the 3rd best forward in org and it’s not particularly close.
I’m excited to see how Woody and company learn and grow the team from this.
Damn that sucked lol.
I always got a kick how Faulk was considered by Oilers fans to be a points cannibal but when you brought up that Nurse was a points cannibal you got shouted down
As the Oilers edge closer to locking down their playoff spot, we are pleased to let you know your Season Seat Renewal Package and 2022 Playoff Option will be arriving early next week.
Bad timing to have a stinker when you are coming for major cash from your fans!!
Until the 6th goal I figured Oilers always had a solid chance and no doubt they also thought the same thing. High pressure hockey had the Flames playing their A game to keep up.
But when every third Flames rush leads to a goal or something close, the team is going to compensate and this team hasn’t got the chops to play high level and close checking simultaneously.
Skinner is the clear solution. Letting him rot in the AHL could perfectly skew the season once the playoffs arrive(assuming they make the playoffs).
Big moments, big saves and/or skill players making skilled plays.
Markstrom with a massive stop on Kane and then, I believe, Lindholm, coming down and Smith not able to match – Game.
One goalie made the save and one goalie didn’t.
At the same time, one forward nailed his shot and one forward didn’t.
Amazing save by Markstrom but he doesn’t have the chance to make that amazing save if Kane doesn’t give him a chance by shooting the puck back towards the middle of the net. He had a good third of net upstairs/short side. Not really “blaming” Kane but he didn’t get an A shot off there and it cost them.
Lindholm (I think) didn’t miss the shot on the way back.
————
Don’t get me wrong, even if the Oilers tie the game there, they would almost assuredly have given it back, and more, shortly after in any event but, still, that “TSN Turning Point” didn’t have to be like that.
Sometimes getting embarrassed can trigger a team to go on a winning streak. If I had the ability to scrape data like Georgexs or Redbird62, I would be interested in how teams typically respond to an embarrassing loss. Of course, you would have to define ‘embarrassing loss’ first, which is subjective. But if you set the parameters to a) losing by 4+ goals, and b) giving up 7+ goals in a game, you could creat a list of teams and see what the response rate was (did they win; did they get a loser point; did they lose again). I’ve never seen this kind of analysis done before.
I’m growing quite concerned about the fragility of this team. In three of the last four games, they have simply imploded. Say what you want about the game last night, but it was very winnable up until the seventh goal, and then they fell apart. Ditto for the games against Colorado and Dallas. I’m not sure how you even begin to fix something like that.
When did they implode against the Avs? 10 seconds before the overtime goal?
The goal cane quick in OT, but I don’t think the Oilers ever actually had possession of the puck. The way I remember it is thinking they looked the Three Stooges out there. Two guys even ran into each other.
A whole bunch of shit happened, with Kadri hauling Nurse’s hemet off after a cean defensive stop being primary among it. That was a solid game overall.
Calgary is a really good team. Full stop.
Superior goalering goes a long way but they are also a deep and very well coached group.
Last night’s beatdown isn’t worth overanlalyzing. Calgary was better and has been better than Edmonton for most of the season. They are an elite 5 v 5 team. Edmonton has been improved in that regard under Woodcraft, but has a ways to go.
Big week coming up.
This team has it’s warts, I think we all recognize what they are. The elite teams have fewer of them and have found a way to stay consistent, while maintaining their defensive structure and possess the self-awareness to play “within themselves”. That is to say, they keep doing what individually brings them success, while playing within the team concept they all mostly follow.
I thinking the experienced dmen were so amped up that their adrenaline pushed them outside of their normal game (they tried too hard because they were using emotions, not logic) and the Flames players feasted on their errors. Once their blood was in the water, and apparently the necessary adjustments were not made, it was over.
Disturbing trends for sure. I would like to think these mistakes will be corrected in a timely manner, but it is a challenge given the recent past.
McLeod and Nurse are both amazing skaters but sometimes it is to their detriment as they will put themselves out of position and rely on their skating to recover. Opposite Pronger. Positionally-sound hockey is far more effective.
So, I said below that that was the perfect Sutter game. I want to elaborate. Calgary could have dressed in their white jersey last night and if you squinted slightly, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was Sutter’s LA Kings.
All the role players were there. Sutter always bet that the refs wouldn’t call too many penalties for fear of seeming biased. Clutch, g, rab, slash, impede, provoke, trip. And our team fell for it. Team structure went to Burning Man, last seen staring intently at its hand wearing a wedding dress three sizes too small.
The Oilers will be okay. The team has been playing well recently.
They’re not a deep playoff team. Heck, they might not even be a playoff team. I think Kenny should have paid the guy in the Calgary net for that.
We’re starting to see the results of mediocre tending. The team start sinking towards their own net, to protect the goalie. Ironically, the worst thing you can do, as Calgary demonstrated by, oh, how many goals scored by the trailing player. A play you negate by playing good positional hockey.
Jay had a masterclass in wily coaching by an Albertan farmer. I hope he was taking notes.
You thought the team was trying to protect their goalie last night?
Sure. I even outlined why it was misguided. I’ll go over it again. When you don’t trust your goalie to make a save, you sink in to protect him and the goal, leaving the low slot open to a pass from behind the net.
The defense is too used to making the correct play, as in taking away a pass, or angling the player off only for the puck to still go in.
The goalies don’t need to be spectacular. They just need to make the saves they’re supposed to make. We have one goalie who is either brilliant or terrible, no in between. And the other looks as if he doesn’t have his full range of motion. And our best goalie “over developing” according to the GMs game plan.
One will leave this year. The other should, but still has a year left. And the other has sideburns.
Woodcroft is Tippett Tippett is Woodcroft
Tippett what an idiot keeps overplaying his stars
woodcroft “ I know I’ll overplay the stars”
Oilers fans “brilliant!!!”
Yeah, sensing that same theme as well.
Pssst:
Nurse is down 2.5 minutes from Tippett
Draisaitl is up 11 seconds
McDavid is down 40 seconds
Pretty good trends overall.
Do not know if the beat down was more painful as the dentist with no freezing but the colour commentary was down right brutal. It was bad enough to lose but sheesh to have to listen to that pablum spitting diatribe was as enjoyable as licking a metal post at -40.
I want to congratulate everyone, just 73 comments deleted in last night’s GDT. We’re getting better!
Yikes. That must be some kind of record?
Oh no, not close.
“We’re getting better!” –cannot tell if this is sarcasm. That is probably not a good sign.
I have had worse BOA game-day threads over the years. Most of yesterday’s deleted tweets were of the petty and personal variety, people with grudges who cannot. let. go. and will. not. stop. It was a good night from the moderator pov.
Where is the report a post button?
Bring out your dead!
https://youtu.be/a4fwrdr_bZo
No truth handler, you!
It’s pretty clear that the example poster suffers from mental illness. He’s made the same post hundreds of times and doesn’t have the capacity to change his overarching message. Another prominent member can’t help but to post inciteful comments under the false guise of a contrarian point of view. Could be a great contributor but chooses not to.
Gross.
It seems the only time I notice this poster commenting is when they wish to be disrespectful.
“There are very few people who are going to look into the mirror and say, ‘That person I see is a savage monster;’ instead, they make up some construction that justifies what they do.”
Which is basically every comment from this poster. “Disrespectful” is a mild way to describe this particular comment.
In terms of Oilers history, that is the worst defensive effort I’ve seen by this club since the 11-0 drubbing at the hands of the mighty Hartford Whalers.
“Once is happenstance. Twice is a coincidence. Three times is a pattern.”
This current core has played its way through four HCs and from that I think we have enough qualitative data to hypothesize that there is a consistent pattern playing out.
This core cannot handle prosperity. They commit to team defense and the results improve. After the initial prosperity is realized, the bad habits start to creep in and the results trend downwards. Forwards not backchecking and flying the zone. D not minding the gaps. Goalies sloppy with rebounds.
On the surface, it presents to me as a team who’s core is more motivated by individual performance bonuses than they are team goals. Fully acknowledge that is a very damning statement but with the pattern being established over 4 HCs, is there a more palatable explanation. Stubborn? Slow learners? Struggle with system play? If those are the alternatives, are any of these reasons more satisfying than players simply playing selfish hockey?
I’ve seen it too many times with this core. They are an undisciplined team that refuses to fully commit to a ‘one for all and all for one’ process, thinking they can turn that on as and when it suits them. Hockey is a sport full of dozens of dirty little jobs that you have to do to be successful. This core doesn’t like the dirty work. They like sitting in the corner office with their feet up.
Ever since the Chicago play-in debacle, I’ve been a ‘prove it to me in the playoffs’ fan with this club. I refuse to fully engage with this group until they prove to me that they are an actual collective motivated more by team than individual accomplishments. Last night’s performance only reinforced every doubt I have about this leadership core.
I would argue the team has been consistently torpedoed by bad mngt. The core is fine IMO. But mngt has failed to surround them with good support players, especially on defence and in net.
So by core, I assume you’re referring to McDavid and Drai, maybe add in Nurse and Nuge?
The problem is the core still has no goalie.
I don’t think any of the players are motivated by individual performances but I do agree that this team has a serious problem committing to defence all the time. They want to play attack, attack even when they are up by a goal with 5 mins left. Until they can keep the puck out of their net this team is going nowhere. I didn’t see many bad goals by Smith or Koskinen last night but I did see forwards not covering pinching D men , forwards flying the zone before the puck gets out and D men getting flat out beaten up the middle repeatedly.
I don’t think the results actually fit this narrative.
Under McLellan the team gave up the 4th most goals against his first season (15-16). That’s with Talbot playing .917 goal in his first year with the team. They were an awful defensive team that year. It was only his 2nd season where the team looked good.
Under Hitchcock, IIRC the team went on a massive PDO heater for 10 games, but they never actually looked good or played particularly well.
In Tippett’s first year the team actually gave up slightly more 5v5 goals with the major gains being a dominant PP and PK.
Under Woodcroft, well we’re only 22 games in. There don’t actually seem to be defensive improvements in previous coaches first years, so it strikes me unlikely the core would commit to Woodcroft for 15 or 18 game, then get selfish again (and again, I’m not seeing any evidence they’ve previously gotten selfish after committing to defense).
I don’t remember an entire defensive unit being as poor as the Oilers crew were last night. Obviously the forwards didn’t help a lot and the goalies didn’t do anything extra to help, but man that was some bad defence. It was quite shocking since there has been a marked improvement in that department with the new coaching staff. There have been relatively solid performances on the back end, as of late, so this was a real blind side.
On A brighter note, I don’t think it’s possible for the backend to play any worse. Keith was passable but he looks to be wearing down as well. Everyone else was simply awful. It’s not like Calgary was doing anything amazing either. Just simple positioning issues and leaving people wide open. Manson must have been chewing up hockey sticks after that one.
Bieksa was right about Johnny Hockey. Connor seems to have to fight for every free inch of ice and is fouled at least twice as often as what is getting called. Meanwhile Johnny skates around like it’s Saturday afternoon shinny at the outdoor rink. You don’t need to goon him but he’s a little guy. Every Oiler should be making the game much less fun for him. It’s what star players always have had to deal with.
Not sure what the deal is with Jesse. Ankle sprains are notoriously slow healing but his skating looks fine. Woodcroft is a bright guy and he must see that JP is consistently performing at a high level. I’ve decided to quit worrying about it and let things sort themselves out. Edmonton seems like such a perfect spot for him so hopefully it turns out that way.
I haven’t heard much about Neimelainen’s game in Bakersfield but the Oilers could certainly use his toughness, especially against the Flames. A grittier fourth line would be a great help as well. The hope is that Calgary hasn’t gotten into their heads. The Oilers were carrying the play for large stretches but it was impossible to overcome all of the lapses.
If I was Holland I would be bringing up Skinner and the big dman and see how that goes. Holloway is looking great as well.
If you bring Neimo up, who comes out? 7D sounds right. Play D or Neimo gets your minutes.
Right a healthy competition never hurts anyone. Just need to be fair about it.
Does the team have cap space for a Skinner recall?
Send down one of the others and lots?
Smith and Koski are ‘not’ good NHL goalies. I have watched decades of hockey and cannot convince myself otherwise. People with knowledge league wide say that all the time. For years now. It is Lansky’s sticking point on the Oiler’s fortunes on LT’s show, every time he’s asked. Gage on the other shows says it
They both have significant issues with technique. It is the cause of their ‘inconsistency’. They are both too old to change much for 99.999% of goalies from what we know about goalies. They’re weak sauce play is contributing to team issues. It is fundamentally destabilizing for a team trying to become stable. Boo Holland, boo. Awful judgement
Yes they can stop some harder shots. But that is expected right? When you’re in the world’s best league? All goalies get beat and flub saves. It’s giving up the ones that they should stop, all the time, every game, that is the problem
Save the ones you should, some of the ones you shouldn’t, everybody is happier. If playoff success matters, put your blankie down, grow up and do your job Ken. For 100178000.00 freakin pesos, make a hard call
The best goalie you have, even if not perfect, isn’t on the roster, and these two suck hind teet, to put it in the popular vernacular
Anyways, how’s everyone’s day going?
so you have been watching hockey for decades and this is your assessment of last nights game that it was goaltending that lost the game?
I think it’s possible to believe our goaltending sucks and the defence was awful last night. They are not mutually exclusive opinions.
At one point midway through the season, Koskinnen led the league in goals allowed on Low Danger Scoring Chances. Not sure where he ranks now. He’s not an NHL starting goalie. We should know that by now.
the part you are missing is our goaltending doesn’t suck our team defence sucks.
Again, not mutually exclusive ideas. What I do know is that everyone who played defence last night will play in the league next year. You can’t say that about the goaltending.
Funny how the goalies rarely suck when the Oilers play sound team defense.
No, they do suck still. That Koski said he only looks at wins now is a deep tell
That they win is in spite of the goaltending. Making some big saves means nothing, almost all goalies do
It’s not just me saying these things. Gage says the same. Both of them have terrible technique. Make basic goaltending mistakes constantly win or lose
When you win multiple games with a sub .900 did you play well, or did the team carry crappy goalering? When the SV% is higher there are few HDSC, but still multiple GA. Good goalies would be getting shut outs when the team D limits to a handful good SC
.908 is the minimum acceptable standard this year. I know what I think
I didn’t say they lost them the game. But they aren’t NHL quality starting goalies, and it affects how the team plays as a group
When the opposing broadcast crew says it seems like every shot is going to go in, probably not a good thing. They watch a lot of hockey after all
Did anyone answer your question?
Yes.
They have only $567k in cap space, but in order to call up Skinner they’d need to assign someone off the 23 man roster to make a spot for him, thus opening up more cap.
One would think they would waive and assign one of the two current goalies but that seems like a non-starter for management and best case scenario would be 20 skaters and 3 goalies on the roster which is, well, far from ideal.
If and when a decision to run Skinner is made, I think waiving (or LTIRing) a goalie is likely.
Whether that decision is coming we don’t know, but I expect continued sub-.900 goaltending from either goalie will get it done.
Did you know Smith passed Mikko in Woodcroft era SV% sometime in the first 30 minutes on Saturday.
First Oilers game I saw live in 7 years (lived in the UK till December).
Thought it was a good bet to see best on best.
Now can’t get “make it 10” chants outta my head.
Shake it off and crush ARZ tomorrow!
The first many games saw the oilers back check hard, defense men were able to stand on the line . That seems missing ..
also I love Calgary sitter style hockey. Aggressive and fast .. I wish we had that killer instinct to play hockey … sitting back is shit …
watching our D back up into the goalie was brutal and all night the flames successfully out the puck behind the D and the d had no time …
I mean there were some positives but dang the goalies were hung to dry and they did not help either.
i would bring up skinner
I didn’t watch the 3rd period as I had to go, but I’m pretty glad I didn’t.
i don’t know. Maybe it’s because I didn’t watch the supreme collapse in the 3rd, but honestly? I’m not too excessively worried about what happened last night. We all know the goalie situation isn’t great. Defense sure didn’t help, but it was a weird lack of focus/effort/?? that all seemed like a tremendous outlier verses their other games.
Sometimes it’s good after you’ve been on a heater to get humbled like that. Especially only being weeks until playoffs, best to smarten up and get things in focus before it happens in the playoffs.
If nothing else, be interesting to see how they bounce back.
I agree that it’s an outlier. Just hard to swallow on a Saturday night against Calgary.
A weird outlier two whole games after their last epic third period collapse at Dallas.
This made me chuckle.