No one in the Edmonton Oilers organization (NHL level) had a good weekend. The players were second best in all elements, specifically the PK and the coaching staff should wear a little there. Whatever they are trying is too loose and the players clearly are unable to execute the plan. Better change if before the fans come up with a “The Swarm” level nickname.
The structure of the team is off, outlets are poor, the pressure being placed on the defensemen by opponents is working, and Edmonton doesn’t have a counter trey. So, everyone has something to work on. The gales of November are audible now, even in the executive offices.
The Edmonton Oilers farm club had a perfect week, and the team's top prospects (Xavier Bourgault, Carter Savoie, Mike Kesselring) chimed in. This team is going to win many games. How many NHL players will it produce? A player-by-player look. https://t.co/WMGSRjtrf1
At home to: NAS, NJD, DAL (Expected 2-1-0) (Actual 1-2-0)
On the road to: WAS, TBY, CAR, FLA (Expected 1-2-1) (Actual 0-0-0)
At home to: LAK, VEG (Expected 1-0-1) (Actual 0-0-0)
On the road to: NJD, NYI, NYR (Expected (1-1-1) (Actual 0-0-0)
At home to: FLA (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
On the road to: CHI (Expected (1-0-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
November expected result: 7-4-3, 17 points in 14 games
Actual November results: 1-2-0, 2 points in 3 games
October results: 6-3-0, 12 points in 9 games
Oilers in 2022-23: 7-5-0, 14 points in 12 games
November is not easy street for Edmonton. I think it’s safe to say coming out of the Devils and Stars games with zero points stings like a bugger. There are ways to dig out, and the road has been the friend to this year’s model Oilers. Edmonton is third in the division via winning percentage, fourth using total points. One encouraging thing: The Oilers are one of just three teams (along with VGK and Seattle) above 50 percent goal share.
SUMMARY
First GA: Pavelski shook Darnell Nurse, nice pass for a tap in.
Second GA: Colin Miller’s shot hit Jack Campbell’s glove and kept going.
Third GA: Jason Robertson’s shot off the post and in. Campbell has to stop that one.
Fourth GA: Jamie Benn’s goal was the result out being outworked (Ceci) and strong work from Robertson.
Fifth GA: Shot bounces off Ryan McLeod and straight to Benn. Bad luck.
Sixth GA: Great shot Benn, Kulak not effective defending two-on-one.
Jack Campbell had a tough game and copped to it after it was over. I think he could be directly held to account on goals 2 and 3, and you’d like him to stop one of the others. So, three goals would be reasonable on a good night of goalering, six went in on this afternoon.
Darnell Nurse scored a goal, and was late to defend the pass on the first GA. Two shots, one HDSC, he’s 10-10 five-on-five goals so far this season. Considering the qual comp, I believe that’s some good work during a tough portion of the schedule.
Cody Ceci got outmuscled on the fourth goal, and went 1-6 in five-on-five HDSC. He is 8-9 in five-on-five goal differential, playing top pairing minutes is a challenge. He’s the best RH option in my opinion.
Brett Kulak had three shots, a takeaway, was 3-9 in HDSC and was the only Oilers player with six defensive zone faceoffs. He is 8-5 in five-on-five on-ice goals so far this season, and his play has been solid in recent games.
Evan Bouchard had one shot, one takeaway and drew a penalty. His passing is especially outstanding among this group of defenders. Bouchard is 7-11 goals five-on-five after a truly ugly (0-4) first two games.
Markus Niemelainen had one shot, three hits and played a quiet, responsible game. He is 4-4 five-on-five goals. He was also 4-1 offensive defensive zone starts, less than ideal based on his skill set.
Tyson Barrie had one shot, four offensive and zero defensive zone starts, and went 1-0 goals. For the season, he’s 9-5 in five-on-five goal share, leading the team with a 64.3 percent total.
Evander Kane is hurt. He picked up an assist, took a bad penalty after momentum had been gained, and looked slower than normal. He’s hurt. Two shots on goal plus a takeaway. He’s scoring 2.48 points-per-60 and has a 60 percent goal share in the discipline, so it’s a productive 12 games. He doesn’t have the same swagger. Hurt.
Leon Draisaitl scored a nifty goal, three shots, one HDSC. He’s at 2.06 points-per-60 five-on-five and a 50 percent goal share. Goal share needs to be higher. He was 1-0 with Jesse Puljujarvi in just over three minutes five-on-five, and the two men are 43-31 since Puljjujarvi’s second Atlantic crossing. Perhaps we’ll see them on the road trip.
Kailer Yamamoto had a shot on goal and not much else. Played 2:56 in the third period, there were 11 other forwards who played more. He has played 171 minutes without scoring a goal. The only NHL forwards who have played more while not scoring a goal are Max Domi (172 minutes), Kyle Connor (173 minutes), Jaden Schwartz (181 minutes) and Oliver Bjorkstrand (182 minutes). This is all five-on-five via NST. Yamamoto’s individual HDSC have been halved season over season, from 3.88 to 2.11. You have to score at least a little.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins picked up an assist, one HDSC and drew a penalty, that’s a productive night. He was bumped down during the shuffle, but the line he centered (with Warren Foegele and Derek Ryan) handily won the shot share.
Connor McDavid had an assist, five shots, two HDSC, GV-TK, his 3.18 points-per-60 at five-on-five is the highest of his career (excluding the Canadian Division season). His individual HDSC have dipped from 5.15 per 60 to 0.95, that’s some kind of foolishness that will regress like a demon and right soon.
Zach Hyman had his usual: four shots, three HDSC, drew a penalty, one GV and three TK. He is scoring at a 3.23 points-per-60 rate five-on-five and is a splendid player. Much was made about “intimidation” of Jamie Benn but Hyman made the right play. Edmonton had a power play, he isn’t a fighter, and Benn was trying to even things up. When a team is losing, storylines are formed no matter how true they are. Do you seriously believe Hyman, who puts himself in harm’s way nightly, would be intimidated by that kind of silliness? Don’t buy the angle Edmonton isn’t tough enough. Beyond needing a shutdown defensemen, they’re plenty tough. Ask yourself this question: Who on the Oilers needs to be protected? McDavid? Have you seen his aggression and stickwork? Draisaitl? Come the hell on.
Warren Foegele had three shots, two HDSC and played well enough to move up to McDavid-Hyman when the shuffle started. His shots-per-60 and individual HDSC are up from a year ago, he just has to keep working.
Ryan McLeod had three takeaways and was 0-2 goals at five-on-five. He is 3-5 goals this season, the key to playing No. 3 center is outscoring. His makeshift line with Yamamoto and Devin Shore was not strong.
Jesse Puljujarvi had an assist, four hits and made several adept plays that could have turned into goals. He’s so good at disruption. The pass to Nurse was simple and the perfect pace. Edmonton didn’t have many passes like it during the game, so it gets a mention. An even better pass? The one to Holloway for his breakaway. When he moved up it was Kane-McDavid and good things happened. Will we see JP in the top-six on Monday?
Dylan Holloway got an opportunity to move up the depth chart during the game. He had a shot, two HDSC and drew a penalty. Missed on a breakaway. His skill was obvious in this game and one hopes he sees more time with the skilled men.
Devin Shore had a takeway and a 50 percent shot share at five-on-five.
Derek Ryan had two shots, three HDSC and four minutes in penalties. I liked his game, he had a point-blank chance and worked hard. He looked good on the Nuge line after the shuffle.
You and H.H said he was a sure thing I know he’s only 20. Hw grew up being physically stronger then everyone which makes G.M’s salivate for that Cam Neely power forward. You can have all the tools and say the right things but if you don’t have Hockey Sense the NHL will eat yyou up and spit you out.
It’s time to end the Yamo experiment the league is onto Yamo with the quick give & go with Leon. Leon needs s bigger body winger that can drive to the net and open up a lane. I thought Holloway would produce and have a better start to his career. So far they been bouncing him with shitty playing time that’s not good for one’s confidence Tell the kid to relax your on the 2nd line for at least this road trip and let’s see this kids confidence grow like we’ve seen with Caulfield and Mercer.
Oilers took a chance drafting the smallest (both in height and weight) player who is currently in the NHL ( guess). Neither is he blessed with amazing speed. The result is a constant pounding by opponents 6″ taller and 40-50 lbs heavier. It is very likely that he is always banged up to some degree. I don’t see him with a lengthy career. Obviously only my opinion. You still have to admire the courage and tenacity of the player to reach the highest level in the game and I wish him well.
According to McKenzie’s 2017 list, at #22, there were eight players ranked higher than Robertson that were still available. Robertson (ranked #30) would have to have been considered a reach. Even in Robertson’s draft+1, he still didn’t look that great.
Four more teams took players ranked below Robertson in slots when Robertson was the BPA/highest-ranked. (Vancouver, Jersey, Buffalo, Detroit). They, and only they, are the ones that can be blamed.
At #22, the only players ranked higher than Yams and still available were Eeli Tolvanen and Klim Kostin (hey!). The Oilers were wise to pass on them and take Yams.
It’s the ultimate cherry pick. Robertson’s career path is an outlier. His pts-game was 1.2 or so, that’s good and the OHL is a fine league. Worth drafting in the first two rounds. However, luck is involved in drafting and Dallas got lucky.
I’ll take any bet within reason he doesn’t score 20 this year. How many goals in 12 games playing with Leon?? Yamo should be placed lower in the food chain where he belongs.
Not sure where you’re drawing that number from but Natural Stat Trick has the following:
Even Strength Goal Differential
18/19 30.77%
19/20 68.00% (this is the season he shot 25%)
20/21 56.47%
21/22 49.19%
22/23 61.54%
As poor as his counting numbers are this year, he’s being floated by the work of others and has an IPP of only 37.5%
This season, his xG% is 47.21% while his GF% is 61.54% BUT that is being buoyed by an unsustainable On Ice SV% of .944.
PDO is 1.038.
I would expect he will eventually score more but he’s generating just over one shot per game so the effect on PDO is likely to be limited as the on ice save percentage is almost assured to drop significantly over time.
Not sure where you’re drawing that number from but Natural Stat Trick has the following:
With Draisaitl (read the post I replied to).
I pulled the 63% number (across 4 seasons) yesterday. That’s specifically in minutes without McDavid as the 3rd on the line, presumably >63% if you include McDavid minutes.
I mean, it used to be true because guys like Scott Stevens had the freedom to end people. Now? I think a four-line team can run several smaller types, especially if their styles aren’t identical.
I’d like to see Holland swing a 1for 2 where he sends out JP and Yamo and gets a legit top 6er in return.
You’ll sometimes see these trades when a team has a LOT of holes to fill and will send out a good player and possibly a pick for two in return. It would likely take a team still believing they can turn JP into a points producer as a reclamation project.
Bjorkstrand was off to a slow start with Seattle. Would the Kraken do that deal?
If the Oil are going to beat the Avs, they’ve got to play the Makar pairing to a draw and absolutely feast on the second matchup. They can move up Nuge to do it but then you’re crippling the third line.
I’l add Foegele to the list 36 man games between the 3 of them and they have 1 fluky tip but it still a counts. This is a disgrace they’re not rookies on ELC these players are in their supposed prime . Holland it’s time you make a trade.
Yup. Granted Seattle would need to be fairly bullish on JP and Yamo’s potential to pull the trigger so it’s unlikely. That said, I’ve not been impressed with Francis as GM this go round, so if Holland needs someone to do something stupid…
Plus Yamo is a Pacific Northwest kid so that has some box office cache.
When the wide open reviewer jumped early and missed a gimme touchdown I thought it was over. Tom needs some receivers thst can catch a fricking ball. I betcha they get Odell Beckham before next week.
I haven’t seen it mentioned, and while I don’t care so much for the reverse retros (IMO they’re all just so gimmicky for my taste), I do think they did a great job “re-inventing” the old Oiler threads, both home and away.
I like that meshy pattern on the shoulders. I know it is standard on the Adidas jerseys, but it really pops in particular with the orange shoulders.
Just spent some time cleaning up the comments section a little. We don’t talk politics here. Please don’t post about politics on this blog. Please and thanks.
Looks like Murray will draw back in for Niemelainen.
————-
JP has earned the move up.
So has Holloway, in my opinion, but that isn’t coming it seems.
There is a case of Holloway at 1LW and Nuge to move down to the 3rd line as McLeod is starting to leak poor turnovers/chances against but, at the same time, allowing young players (McLeod) to work through struggles has merit as well.
Puljujarvi contributes to positive team play whereever he is, even if he isn’t scoring. Carolina is going to get a bargain next summer when the Oilers don’t qualify Puljujarvi.
I also think its safe to say that its OK that they aren’t offensive drivers.
Not sure if it holds true a year later, but IIRC in the 3 years before Landeskog signed his $7M deal he’d scored 1.25 P/60 without McKinnon, and was under water in SF%, GF%, xGF%.
So yeah, not everyone is an offensive driver. And yeah, it’s OK.
Oh, and it also seems like Landeskog was made in a Swedish glass factory.
Unfortunately this is probably what’s going to happen. Puljujarvi is 42nd in right wing league pay at 3 million. He is 73rd in right wing points (its early but not looking good). Only 59 right wingers make more than 1 million in the entire league. That means most third line right wingers are making 1 million or less. The Oilers also have Yamamoto and Foegle making too much which adds to the problem. They won’t be able to afford Jesse next year and his contract is up next. For what was supposed to be a bargain basement summer of free agents with the flat cap Holland shit the bed with a Janmark signing who is now in the minors. I gave Holland credit for Kane and Kulak.
He’s costing $125K on the cap right now and having that extra space would have zero effect on anything cap wise.
The only issue with Janmark’s cap hit is the inability to have the player himself on the team.
I am fully confidant the Janmark can help this team, right here, right now but they would need to move Ryan (or Foegle, or Kailer or Jesse) off the roster.
Janmark wouldn’t have been available to this team at league min. The Oilers signed him early and, if they didn’t, l’m sure another team would have – he’s earned the value for that contract over the years.
I’m also quite impressed with his professionalism. He’s an NHL player in the AHL because he makes $250K too much and he’s accepted it and is engaged and a leader since he’s been activated.
The team is tight against the cap because Holland filled it with good players – good players cost money.
Both Yamamoto and Puljujarvi have proven to be worth their current cap hits. They both had uneven and inconsistent seasons last year and provided $3MM worth of value.
They’ve both underperformed their cap hit this season but, of course, there are 70 games to go.
Neither of those contract were mistakes.
OriginalPouzar
November 6, 2022 12:20 pm
Is Evander Kane hurt or is he sick?
He didn’t skate (except for games) the last 4-5 days and Tony Brar mention on the Oilers Plus pre-game yesterday that he was been dealing with flu-like issues.
Heard that too. Would explain zapped energy, slower sluggish brain(s). He didn’t miss time right? so if true, worried it’s too late and may be getting passed around room.
so if true, worried it’s too late and may be getting passed around room.
There’s not really any way to prevent it getting passed on is there? Though it certainly is possible it is/will affect more than just one player.
bcoil
November 6, 2022 11:59 am
One observation that has bothered me for a few years now is this.We have had some real good goalie talent come thru this organization but sooner or later they have not lived up to expectations and have moved on .The only constant for all these years and all these goalies is…..Dustin Schwartz
I don’t remember the Oilers ever having a young goalie for Schwartz to work with besides Skinner.
Anyone else the Oilers have acquired the last decade has been in their late 20s. Maybe that’s more of the problem. They have generally acquired older goalies that weren’t NHL established or backups.
Perhaps if the Oilers had acquired a young hot prospect or an established star goaltender and they went in the crapper I would agree Schwartz is the problem, but that hasn’t been the case.
Why be mad at a guy because he hasn’t turned water into wine?
Tough role for me to assess without more inside info.
The red flag for me was when Dubnyk had success after leaving the org and credited his new goalie coach for tweaking some things in his game. If memory serves, a big part of it was the mechanics in how he tracked the puck.
I think the jury is still out on whether Campbell is actually a good goalie or not so I’m reluctant to lay that all at the feet of Schwartz.
I’m fine with them turfing the guy if they can find someone better. Sports is a results business.
I’m surprised OP hasn’t chimed in. Normally as soon as you mention Schwartz’s name he’s on his Horse being his pageboy on how valuable and lucky we are to have this man coaching the Oil.
No, he’s not but he’ll cite the information he’s heard and ready about Schwartz.
As always, you absolutely mis-state my position – I have very little opinion on Schwartz, have certainly never stated anything that you indicate, but solely provide the facts as I’ve heard/read them.
Duby went through a number of organizations before Sean Burke helped him turn it around. He also said himself that the wasn’t receptive to new info until Burke broke through to him.
Where’s Duby now? I think that’s a bigger reflection on the player than the coaches of the various organizations involved.
Not a spring chicken, but it’s not unreasonable to consider him as an effective backup option. I liked him plenty, but I do also wonder if he had the zest between the ears to really make it. At this point, all signs point to no.
Looks like he came off the rails again three years ago. Didn’t play in the NHL last year.
Carter Hart works with Schwartz in the off-season.
From accounts, he’s very highly regarded.
From accounts, a large part of the job is actually with respect to opposition tenders and I query how much of an impact DS has had on ruining Markstrom’s ability to play against the Oil.
Isn’t Carter Hart from Edmonton? If he comes back here in the offseason, his working with Schwartz would be more a function of geography than anything.
I come from a world of results not fairytale land with a excuse for this or a excuse for that. Our Kin Folk can spot a Carpetbagger before he even opens his mouth.
I couldn’t tell you Carter Hart’s reasoning for working with him but I would presume he wouldn’t do so just cause “he’s around” if he didn’t have respect for the man and his coaching.
Depends what you mean by “part”, really–each water molecule is certainly two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. But oxygen atoms are vastly bigger than hydrogen atoms–more than fifteen times bigger, by mass, so on some level a water molecule’s got far more oxygen than hydrogen.
Of course, these terms are also imprecise, in that when you say “oxygen”, people tend to think of the compound, gaseous at SATP, that our bodies use to produce glucose. To a lesser extent, when you say “hydrogen”, people think of the gas that filled the Hindenberg. And water contains none of either of those things: if you combined oxygen (what we breathe) with hydrogen (what was in the Hindenberg) in any ratio, you wouldn’t get anything remotely like water–rather, you’d get a room in which you wouldn’t want to light a match.
Happy to be ‘got.’ It was funny. I should have just expressed a mathematical constant.
It was actually an exercise to see if some people possibly cast down votes without reading the actual content of the post (ie purely based on the user name of the poster).
A better test would be posting the same content under two separate user names.
Thank you for this brain exercise. Sometimes we think something is simple, when it can be quite complex. And other times, we make something complex, when it is really quite simple. I hope I have the wisdom and patience to have everything in the right place.
YYCOil
November 6, 2022 11:24 am
Why is Broberg not dressing for Bakerfield do we know?
ha reminds me: my brother was playing an ECHL equivalent league and took himself off the roster two weeks by pulling something attempting a dance move in the dressing room.
The biggest issues plaguing this team are 1) Team defence/Shots Against/Goals Against 2) PK 3) Goaltending 4) Balanncing the lineup in terms of quality and ice time 5) Depth Scoring
HenryDrix
November 6, 2022 10:58 am
We need a Larsson for Barrie type trade, and one or two RW. Current RW’s, Hyman aside, are not getting it done. On the fence with Derek Ryan.
In the interim, slide Kane to RW and talk to Holloway about playing RW. Might as well learn now.
teddyturnbuckle
November 6, 2022 10:36 am
Its time for Yamamoto to come out of the top six for now. He has done jack squat so far and he looks hurt from preseason. I would move Jesse (made 2 great passes last game but unfortunately its been a year since he made the last one) up for a few games and run Mcleod , Yamamoto and Foegele as the 3rd. I would also sprinkle Holloway in a bit more all through the line up to get him up to 12 mins a night. If Woodcroft can get Holloway up and running it will pay off big time in a month. Campbell was brutal against Dallas and it starts early in games with him. There is definitely a pattern forming around the first few shots with him. Skinner has been rock solid starting games. Oilers in the bottom 9 in the league with 3.5 goals against per game. Same old problem with this group. They need to score 4 goals a game to have a chance at winning.
Imma downvote this sentiment for all that in some unknowable, unexplorable timeline it may in fact be true.
JimmyV1965
November 6, 2022 10:22 am
IMO Campbell is responsible for the first goal as well. He kicked out the rebound directly to Hintz. I wouldn’t normally take issue with it, but I think that was three goals in row where his rebound control was a major factor. Maybe it was three of four.
Not blaming him for the loss, but this rebound thing is becoming a big issue.
On one hand, I agree his rebound control is a weak spot; On the other hand, goal 1 doesn’t happen if McDavid and Hyman aren’t both preparing to spring the zone.
Goal 2 was weak (I don’t think it went through the webbing after watching a few more times in slo-mo), and goal 3 was tough but also such an unlucky bounce. Felt to me like a bad team game, and a whole week’s worth of bad luck for Jack.
One consolation, they are headed out on a tough road trip after a couple bad losses . Something they usually rise up for and embrace the challenge with mucho gusto .
Fun fact: “Mucho gusto” is actually Spanish for “Nice to meet you“.
Last edited 1 year ago by Tarkus
W
November 6, 2022 9:51 am
I thought the effort was there until the second bad goal(off the post) and them I could see their eyes rolling in their head. This loss is squarely pinned on Jack. I don’t know what they can do except start Skinner more.
Of the top offensive players on the Oilers, Evander Kane at least passes to Puljujarvi, so maybe that might be a good line for Jesse to play on.
Yamamoto would be better in the bottom six in easier minutes.
Jesse’s offensive strengths with the puck on his stick is as a midfielder rather than as a striker (as we saw last night). He is a high level disruptor, which contributes to team offense, but not necessarily to his own boxcars. McDavid and Draisaitl carry the puck so much through the neutral zone, that there are no midfield offensive plays for Jesse to make when he plays with them.
Yup, I’ve made the argument before that Jesse is more of a 6 or 8 in soccer when everyone expected him to be a star 9. A Kante or De Rossi, if you will.
Jesse played that tournament full of confidence, a confidence we have seen only in spurts in the NHL. The only coach that has shown that confidence in him was Tippett.
He was noticeably slower the last 2 games, reminded me of Lucic speed out there much of the time.
Bag of Pucks
November 6, 2022 9:29 am
Not sure why as there’s not a long track record yet but I trust Woodcroft with in season adjustments. I believe he’ll get the PK sorted. Weird that poor starts have morphed into poor finishes.
Campbell is a bigger concern for me because of his track record. He took a LONG time to establish himself in the league and has been inconsistent as a starter until the Leafs where I’m told he got worn down by workload last season. He’s not a ‘made man’ yet imo and certainly has no significant playoff resume to speak of.
A longterm committment to this player was a risk. A calculated risk, but a risk nonetheless. Skinner is a massive insurance policy for the Oil and Holland is very fortunate he’s paying out early.
Many of us preferred an option like Allen. Campbell was the best of the alternatives. Goaltenders scoring a big or just biggish long UFA deal, often struggle in their first year. The Oilers, apart from Nurse, have a subpar defense. Koskinen was oft maligned unfairly, but I doubt Spector or Matty will snark at Campbell in pressers or columns.
I would have preferred a bet on Georgiev because he comes from the Rangers goalie factory. But I’m fine with Campbell. Gs are voodoo after all and this team looks to be gifted enough offensively that we don’t need Roy in his prime back there.
I’m also fine w him even if he sucks most of the rest of the season. Goalies turn around all the time like…things that turn around. There’s just no knowing.
Yesterday’s game to my eye was the worst display of effort I seen this year.
Sometimes I feel this team expects the other team to just roll over and don’t have to put a 60-minute effort in. We are not going to sneak up on any teams. Time they need to realize every night requires a 60-minute effort.
dustrock
November 6, 2022 9:12 am
I said I wasn’t mad after the Devils game. This game was a different story. Campbell has been atrocious but the team looked completely uninterested, top to bottom..
It looked to me like a game in the late Tippett era. Or the late McLellan era. Or the late Hitchcock era. You get the drift.
Whatever new coach bounce Woodcroft got is gone now. Is this some seasonal thing with Edmonton because of the weather?
McDavid talked about the Oilers “learning a lesson” from that 7 seconds against the Devils.
I guess the lesson was don’t try at all, and you won’t have to worry about blowing a lead.
Came away impressed with the young Devils. Speedy, skillful, crisp passing, strong possession, diligent checking, good sticks, all with a non standout D… kinda reminded me of the Oilers when they’re clicking. Am I crazy? (well yes, yes I am). Exciting head spinning game.
So I was intrigued and watched the Devils Flames game, it was interesting to see them go up against a bigger more defensive minded bunch. Alas, Flames got one point.
Now the Stars game was a different matter, unsatisfying unentertaining in many ways. And I’ve let it go. There are going to be dud games. But more “wow what a game!” games.
Also decided to stay positive and hopeful at this point; Campbell: slow starter, learning Oiler hockey. And we do have Skinner! Yamo: believe hand not 100%, impacts his tenacious digging out qualities for one thing. JP & Niemo: hopefully Kurri had good chats with them, in detail in their own language may be a thing. MacLeod: maybe nervous that mom and dad, and big bro, were in town? learning to how to pace energy in an NHL season? Holloway? I just overall like what I’m seeing so far. Kid has skill, moxie.
Bling
November 6, 2022 9:12 am
Agree with those lines.
I was a little tough on JP for not being a driver, but he made several very good plays against the Stars. Who were the recipients? Nurse and Holloway, two very good players. My point is we often forget the Ryan Strome lesson — do not judge a historically good offensive player when they are playing with substandard scorers.
Seeing the top 6 get lit up last night emphasizes why you probably want JP up there. I like Yamo as a player, but he had a horrific sequence where he failed to neutralize his check and then lost his stick. JP, whatever his perceived faults, is very strong on the boards and adept at making that quick outlet to the streaking C.
I’m fine with the Monday lines except I’d flip McLeod and Ryan. Unless the fourth line is getting expanded minutes then McLeod is just too good to waste there. It’s alright to give him a reset for a game or two but I’d hate to see him there for any length of time.
I agree he needs to continue to get more minutes than the 4th line would generally provide (even with his special teams) but his game has taken a down-turn recently and he’s making costly mistakes – could use a quick re-set.
W
November 6, 2022 8:53 am
Yes to Mondays lines.
Tarkus
November 6, 2022 8:43 am
Apropos of nothing, I love living in a province that observes Daylight Savings Time year-round.
Nobody can provide a reasonable explanation for why we continue to follow this idiotic process but we still do, despite children being hellish for several days and the economy taking a hit, year after year.
I’m of the mindset that time is fundamental & measurement of same shouldn’t be f’d with.
There is growing support for Daylight Savings Time year-round, which is better even as it is kind of upside down. Instead of adjusting our clocks to our invented schedules, why not adjust our schedules to the clock? Makes more sense for mid-day to be noon as opposed to 1pm.
Much as it hurts to say this, Saskatchewan has got it right.
Im an Edmontonian but left at age 25 for Saskatoon…spent the next 32 yrs in that lovely city…all the while missing the clock turning back and forth….now Im back and totally agree Saskatchewan has it right.
All I care about it is that, if Alberta gets rid of it, its in conjunction with Ontario, New York and all other major centers getting rid of it. The time difference between Alberta, BC, the eastern seaboard, etc. should remain
Because you seem to be an even bigger word nerd than myself, I present this grammatical correction with all due humility.
It’s “daylight saving time,” not “daylight savings time.”
Many people render the term’s second word in its plural form. However, since the word “saving” acts as part of an adjective rather than a verb, the singular is grammatically correct.
Foegele or Yamamoto are going to tie it here. Their ears are ringing too much.
lol Why not just reply to OP’s comment.
Byfield assigned to AHL….
Blown pick the game is to fast for him. We call this no hockey sense
You and H.H said he was a sure thing I know he’s only 20. Hw grew up being physically stronger then everyone which makes G.M’s salivate for that Cam Neely power forward. You can have all the tools and say the right things but if you don’t have Hockey Sense the NHL will eat yyou up and spit you out.
No, I did not – again, mis-stating positions.
On a non hockey note, Raptors with a big win over the Bulls despite not having Siakum in the line up!
I see my fan is back!
Gents, again I must request you stay within the boundaries of conversation on this blog. Please and thanks.
thank you good sir, lets stick to the hawkey!
It’s time to end the Yamo experiment the league is onto Yamo with the quick give & go with Leon. Leon needs s bigger body winger that can drive to the net and open up a lane. I thought Holloway would produce and have a better start to his career. So far they been bouncing him with shitty playing time that’s not good for one’s confidence Tell the kid to relax your on the 2nd line for at least this road trip and let’s see this kids confidence grow like we’ve seen with Caulfield and Mercer.
Oilers took a chance drafting the smallest (both in height and weight) player who is currently in the NHL ( guess). Neither is he blessed with amazing speed. The result is a constant pounding by opponents 6″ taller and 40-50 lbs heavier. It is very likely that he is always banged up to some degree. I don’t see him with a lengthy career. Obviously only my opinion. You still have to admire the courage and tenacity of the player to reach the highest level in the game and I wish him well.
Yamo also turns out to be the 100% objectively correct pick at the spot.
100%? Drafting 18 yr olds has never been an exact science. Let’s give it a few years…..
He was drafted in 2017 – looking at the draft class there isn’t any one in range that’s even close, MAYBE Jokiharju
Some kid named Jason Robertson was drafted 17 spots after Yamamoto.
6’3″ 200.
On pace for 55 goals after scoring 41 last season.
Objectively.
Right, and Yamamoto has outscored 13 of the 21 players drafted ahead of him (including 6 of the 8 forwards drafted in the top 10).
I have vague recollections of this kind of stat being used during the Lowe+MacT era.
Another stat proved that the earth is flat.
You sure there’s a stat for that? I think you might have it backwards.
According to McKenzie’s 2017 list, at #22, there were eight players ranked higher than Robertson that were still available. Robertson (ranked #30) would have to have been considered a reach. Even in Robertson’s draft+1, he still didn’t look that great.
Four more teams took players ranked below Robertson in slots when Robertson was the BPA/highest-ranked. (Vancouver, Jersey, Buffalo, Detroit). They, and only they, are the ones that can be blamed.
At #22, the only players ranked higher than Yams and still available were Eeli Tolvanen and Klim Kostin (hey!). The Oilers were wise to pass on them and take Yams.
It’s the ultimate cherry pick. Robertson’s career path is an outlier. His pts-game was 1.2 or so, that’s good and the OHL is a fine league. Worth drafting in the first two rounds. However, luck is involved in drafting and Dallas got lucky.
lol you got him for sure, Harpers Hair.
100% Please show your work and describe why this is true.
start browser
click on address bar
insert google.com
search “2017 NHL Draft”
click on hockey db link
use eyes
They were trying to make-up for not drafting Debrincat. Yamo is useless our 2nd line should be feasting on the opposition especially at home.
Leon with Kailer is 6-3 goals in 78 minutes. Producing 4.58 G/60 and goal share of 66%
Leon without Kailer is 3-6 goals in 98 minutes. Producing at 1.87 G/60 and a goal share of 33%
It seems this statement is simply false.
I’ll take any bet within reason he doesn’t score 20 this year. How many goals in 12 games playing with Leon?? Yamo should be placed lower in the food chain where he belongs.
This statement?
It’s been false for 4 years it seems. 63%GF since Yamamoto came into the league. Better than McDavid-Draisaitl FWIW.
Not sure where you’re drawing that number from but Natural Stat Trick has the following:
Even Strength Goal Differential
18/19 30.77%
19/20 68.00% (this is the season he shot 25%)
20/21 56.47%
21/22 49.19%
22/23 61.54%
As poor as his counting numbers are this year, he’s being floated by the work of others and has an IPP of only 37.5%
This season, his xG% is 47.21% while his GF% is 61.54% BUT that is being buoyed by an unsustainable On Ice SV% of .944.
PDO is 1.038.
I would expect he will eventually score more but he’s generating just over one shot per game so the effect on PDO is likely to be limited as the on ice save percentage is almost assured to drop significantly over time.
http://www.naturalstattrick.com/playerreport.php?fromseason=20222023&thruseason=20222023&stype=2&sit=ev&stdoi=oi&rate=n&v=p&playerid=8479977
With Draisaitl (read the post I replied to).
I pulled the 63% number (across 4 seasons) yesterday. That’s specifically in minutes without McDavid as the 3rd on the line, presumably >63% if you include McDavid minutes.
Pretty clear who the passenger is.
Well yes.
The ‘driver’ is the #2 NHL scorer over the past 5 season (by 70 points over #3).
I mean, it used to be true because guys like Scott Stevens had the freedom to end people. Now? I think a four-line team can run several smaller types, especially if their styles aren’t identical.
I’d like to see Holland swing a 1for 2 where he sends out JP and Yamo and gets a legit top 6er in return.
You’ll sometimes see these trades when a team has a LOT of holes to fill and will send out a good player and possibly a pick for two in return. It would likely take a team still believing they can turn JP into a points producer as a reclamation project.
Bjorkstrand was off to a slow start with Seattle. Would the Kraken do that deal?
If the Oil are going to beat the Avs, they’ve got to play the Makar pairing to a draw and absolutely feast on the second matchup. They can move up Nuge to do it but then you’re crippling the third line.
Not in a hurry to see either leave but always ready for hypothetical magic.
I’l add Foegele to the list 36 man games between the 3 of them and they have 1 fluky tip but it still a counts. This is a disgrace they’re not rookies on ELC these players are in their supposed prime . Holland it’s time you make a trade.
Worth noting that Bjorkstrand has outscored Yamamoto and Jesse put together AND he carries a lower cap hit than that duo.
Yup. Granted Seattle would need to be fairly bullish on JP and Yamo’s potential to pull the trigger so it’s unlikely. That said, I’ve not been impressed with Francis as GM this go round, so if Holland needs someone to do something stupid…
Plus Yamo is a Pacific Northwest kid so that has some box office cache.
If Holland trades the 3 million dollar men I want a dman coming back. The Oilers have internal solutions for rw. Not so much on D.
Given up on Broberg?
He is a complete unknown and compiling a lengthy injury history. IMO the Oilers need a sure thing at 2LHD if they want to go deep. Kulak ain’t it.
I see both sides of the debate.
Yamamoto has been up until right now a serviceable winger;
Then…
He’s currently banged up yet they insist on playing him which if true is stupid but I only watch the Oilers.
Then…
The other side wants to dump both him and JP – despite no other credible replacements.
First player to pass for over 100,000 yards and a final minute drive to beat the defending champs.
Tom Brady, you Magnificent Bastard.
Thanks Tom for that unbelievable drive with no timeouts!
Guy has antifreeze in his veins.
Overcame 7 drops by his receivers and nothing from the running game.
The kind of player you tell your grandkids about.
When the wide open reviewer jumped early and missed a gimme touchdown I thought it was over. Tom needs some receivers thst can catch a fricking ball. I betcha they get Odell Beckham before next week.
What, nobody talking about Rogers today?
5 losses in a row. Sucks to be him.
To the Lions no less.
The schadenfreude is literally off the charts for me.
Agreed. Chris Godwin in particular has been disappointing. And of course, Brady misses Gronk.
Freaking incredible. They looked pretty terrible -then the game winning drive with no time outs.
Insane. Just insane.
That drive was Montana-esque. Worthy of Brady’s hero, Joe Cool.
Tom Wilkinson.
I haven’t seen it mentioned, and while I don’t care so much for the reverse retros (IMO they’re all just so gimmicky for my taste), I do think they did a great job “re-inventing” the old Oiler threads, both home and away.
I like that meshy pattern on the shoulders. I know it is standard on the Adidas jerseys, but it really pops in particular with the orange shoulders.
Just spent some time cleaning up the comments section a little. We don’t talk politics here. Please don’t post about politics on this blog. Please and thanks.
What would he say if the bartender was a woman?
check out flames nation misery loves company lol
Tom Brady’s pregame speech today?
https://youtu.be/CNJx6BfibE0
Jason Gregor
Woodcroft trying some new lines…
RNH-McDavid-Puljujarvi
Kane-Draisaitl-Hyman
Foegele-McLeod-Ryan
Shore-Holloway-Yamamoto
JP and Ryan move up and Yamamoto goes down.
Nurse-Ceci
Kulak-Bouchard
Murray-Barrie
Looks like Murray will draw back in for Niemelainen.
————-
JP has earned the move up.
So has Holloway, in my opinion, but that isn’t coming it seems.
There is a case of Holloway at 1LW and Nuge to move down to the 3rd line as McLeod is starting to leak poor turnovers/chances against but, at the same time, allowing young players (McLeod) to work through struggles has merit as well.
I wonder if these lines see the light of day? (I have no issue with them)
Woodcroft does often seem to switch things up in practice and then back for the next game.
It is unfortunate Broberg is injured.
Nemo and Murray have been underwhelming on the third pair.
Broberg’s from the same delicate glass factory as Kelfbom.
This appears to be the case.
Certainly a real concern
Oil should start a hot yoga program or something w their Swedish prospects. Always something pulled or torn.
As long as he doesn’t have Staph that’s as nasty as it gets. I believe that almost ended Kelfbom career
I don’t think Puljujarvi has earned moving up so much as Yamamoto earned a demotion.
Puljujarvi contributes to positive team play whereever he is, even if he isn’t scoring. Carolina is going to get a bargain next summer when the Oilers don’t qualify Puljujarvi.
Puljujarvis advanced stats have been bad this year. One of the worst on the team.
I suspect his outstanding metrics from the last couple of seasons was mostly usage.
Winner winner chicken dinner
I posted this yesterday before the game. WOWYs for Puljujarvi and Yamamoto over the last 2+ seasons (beginning of 20-21 to yesterday).
McDavid-Draisaitl-Puljujarvi — 337min 56%SF 60%GF 55%xGF
McDavid-Draisaitl-no Puljujarvi 335min 59%SF 65%GF 61%xGF
McDavid-Puljujarvi ————— 834min 57%SF 59%GF 59%xGF
McDavid-no Puljujarvi ———– 935min 54%SF 55%GF 56%xGF
Draisaitl-Puljujarvi —————- 223min 53%SF 52%GF 57%xGF
Draisaitl-no Puljujarvi ———- 1464min 47%SF 54%GF 45%xGF
McDavid-Draisaitl-Yamamoto — 159min 61%SF 76%GF 62%xGF
McDavid-Draisaitl-no Yamamoto 513min 56%SF 58%GF 57%xGF
McDavid-Yamamoto ————— 406min 55%SF 51%GF 57%xGF
McDavid-no Yamamoto ——— 1361min 55%SF 59%GF 58%xGF
Draisaitl-Yamamoto ————– 1092min 46%SF 56%GF 44%xGF
Draisaitl-no Yamamoto ———– 595min 48%SF 50%GF 51%xGF
Good numbers for both players. But I don’t think either player is magic.
Now do Puljujarvi and Yamo, each without 97/29.
Yamo w/o CMD & Drai——–425:51 47.85%SF 29.03%GF 50.34%CF
JP w/o CMD & Drai————410:04 48.60%SF 38.10%GF 50.96%CF
Pretty bad goal share for both, I guess slight edge to JP?
I am not sure what to make of the w/o CMD and Drai numbers.
I think it is safe to say neither player is an offence driver.
I also think its safe to say that its OK that they aren’t offensive drivers. Not every player has to be such and they aren’t paid as such, right?
Do many teams had 6F/7F as true offensive drivers?
Not sure if it holds true a year later, but IIRC in the 3 years before Landeskog signed his $7M deal he’d scored 1.25 P/60 without McKinnon, and was under water in SF%, GF%, xGF%.
So yeah, not everyone is an offensive driver. And yeah, it’s OK.
Oh, and it also seems like Landeskog was made in a Swedish glass factory.
Maybe he’ll score 20 playing with his buddy Aho but I doubt it.
Godot you will make Spector so happy if that comes true😉
Unfortunately this is probably what’s going to happen. Puljujarvi is 42nd in right wing league pay at 3 million. He is 73rd in right wing points (its early but not looking good). Only 59 right wingers make more than 1 million in the entire league. That means most third line right wingers are making 1 million or less. The Oilers also have Yamamoto and Foegle making too much which adds to the problem. They won’t be able to afford Jesse next year and his contract is up next. For what was supposed to be a bargain basement summer of free agents with the flat cap Holland shit the bed with a Janmark signing who is now in the minors. I gave Holland credit for Kane and Kulak.
I think you need to look at all forwards for salary since lots of ‘center’s play wing and positions listed aren’t always accurate.
Oilers ‘$3M men’ and their salary rank among forwards:
Yamamoto 196th (192 players play 1st and 2nd lines)
Puljujarvi 199th (through 206th)
Foegele 212th (through 218th)
So all 3 are paid as 3rd line NHL forwards, though on the high end for 3rd liners.
This season their points ranks are 266th (tied), 319th (tied) and 363rd (tied). So clearly not good value to this point.
Of course last season they were at 154th, 180th and 254th, so solid value for what they’re being paid today.
Jamark’s signing doesn’t really negatively effect anything.
He’s costing $125K on the cap right now and having that extra space would have zero effect on anything cap wise.
The only issue with Janmark’s cap hit is the inability to have the player himself on the team.
I am fully confidant the Janmark can help this team, right here, right now but they would need to move Ryan (or Foegle, or Kailer or Jesse) off the roster.
Janmark wouldn’t have been available to this team at league min. The Oilers signed him early and, if they didn’t, l’m sure another team would have – he’s earned the value for that contract over the years.
I’m also quite impressed with his professionalism. He’s an NHL player in the AHL because he makes $250K too much and he’s accepted it and is engaged and a leader since he’s been activated.
Yeah, I wondered whether he’d report. A lot of guys wouldn’t.
Before this year he’d played 9 AHL regular season/playoff games, but all of them were after his SHL seasons had ended (across 2 yrs).
This season is the first AHL games he’d played since coming to NA (2015), and they are purely because of cap issues.
Great! Who exactly are their replacements?
The team is tight against the cap because Holland filled it with good players – good players cost money.
Both Yamamoto and Puljujarvi have proven to be worth their current cap hits. They both had uneven and inconsistent seasons last year and provided $3MM worth of value.
They’ve both underperformed their cap hit this season but, of course, there are 70 games to go.
Neither of those contract were mistakes.
Is Evander Kane hurt or is he sick?
He didn’t skate (except for games) the last 4-5 days and Tony Brar mention on the Oilers Plus pre-game yesterday that he was been dealing with flu-like issues.
Heard that too. Would explain zapped energy, slower sluggish brain(s). He didn’t miss time right? so if true, worried it’s too late and may be getting passed around room.
There’s not really any way to prevent it getting passed on is there? Though it certainly is possible it is/will affect more than just one player.
One observation that has bothered me for a few years now is this.We have had some real good goalie talent come thru this organization but sooner or later they have not lived up to expectations and have moved on .The only constant for all these years and all these goalies is…..Dustin Schwartz
I’d say the loss of good goalies (Dubnyk, Talbot) is due to the head coach over-playing them.
Or maybe not commiting to playing at least some sort of team defence in front of them?
Have we ever heard verbal from a departed goalie crediting Schwartz for playing a key role in his development?
You tend to hear that sort of thing with the top tier goalie coaches.
I don’t remember the Oilers ever having a young goalie for Schwartz to work with besides Skinner.
Anyone else the Oilers have acquired the last decade has been in their late 20s. Maybe that’s more of the problem. They have generally acquired older goalies that weren’t NHL established or backups.
Perhaps if the Oilers had acquired a young hot prospect or an established star goaltender and they went in the crapper I would agree Schwartz is the problem, but that hasn’t been the case.
Why be mad at a guy because he hasn’t turned water into wine?
I’m not mad at the guy. I’m suggesting where one could look for evidence if they’re doubtful of his contribution.
Schwartz has been with the team since 2015, and with the Oil Kings for 5 years before that.
Laurent Brossoit is the other goalie who Schwartz has brought up for the Oilers.
Tristan Jarry as well for the Oil Kings.
Why have we gone through so many Goalies with him as a Coach. I get it he’s a nice Guy but results matter.
Tough role for me to assess without more inside info.
The red flag for me was when Dubnyk had success after leaving the org and credited his new goalie coach for tweaking some things in his game. If memory serves, a big part of it was the mechanics in how he tracked the puck.
I think the jury is still out on whether Campbell is actually a good goalie or not so I’m reluctant to lay that all at the feet of Schwartz.
I’m fine with them turfing the guy if they can find someone better. Sports is a results business.
He’s on his 5th head Coach and 3rd G.M how is that possible? He has to be connected with the Boss Man it’s the only thing that makes sense.
I think many GMs in the NHL still operate under this notion that goalies coach themselves and the goalie coach is a glorified personal trainer.
As an ex goalie himself, I’d love to hear Holland’s perspective on the value of the role.
Maybe he’s a ghost I’ve worked with a few of those people. They’re never seen except payday and some fun functions
Same people that grow alligator arms whenever the dinner bill arrives?
I’m surprised OP hasn’t chimed in. Normally as soon as you mention Schwartz’s name he’s on his Horse being his pageboy on how valuable and lucky we are to have this man coaching the Oil.
Why would you invoke the name of the daemon? What have horror movies taught us if not that?
No, he’s not but he’ll cite the information he’s heard and ready about Schwartz.
As always, you absolutely mis-state my position – I have very little opinion on Schwartz, have certainly never stated anything that you indicate, but solely provide the facts as I’ve heard/read them.
Duby went through a number of organizations before Sean Burke helped him turn it around. He also said himself that the wasn’t receptive to new info until Burke broke through to him.
Where’s Duby now? I think that’s a bigger reflection on the player than the coaches of the various organizations involved.
Aged out of the league? It happens.
He’s 36 until May.
Not a spring chicken, but it’s not unreasonable to consider him as an effective backup option. I liked him plenty, but I do also wonder if he had the zest between the ears to really make it. At this point, all signs point to no.
Looks like he came off the rails again three years ago. Didn’t play in the NHL last year.
https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=62478
Carter Hart works with Schwartz in the off-season.
From accounts, he’s very highly regarded.
From accounts, a large part of the job is actually with respect to opposition tenders and I query how much of an impact DS has had on ruining Markstrom’s ability to play against the Oil.
Isn’t Carter Hart from Edmonton? If he comes back here in the offseason, his working with Schwartz would be more a function of geography than anything.
I come from a world of results not fairytale land with a excuse for this or a excuse for that. Our Kin Folk can spot a Carpetbagger before he even opens his mouth.
I couldn’t tell you Carter Hart’s reasoning for working with him but I would presume he wouldn’t do so just cause “he’s around” if he didn’t have respect for the man and his coaching.
That’s a good point actually
Water is two parts hydrogen to one part oxygen.
Just curious as to how many down votes this factual statement will yield.
Depends what you mean by “part”, really–each water molecule is certainly two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. But oxygen atoms are vastly bigger than hydrogen atoms–more than fifteen times bigger, by mass, so on some level a water molecule’s got far more oxygen than hydrogen.
Of course, these terms are also imprecise, in that when you say “oxygen”, people tend to think of the compound, gaseous at SATP, that our bodies use to produce glucose. To a lesser extent, when you say “hydrogen”, people think of the gas that filled the Hindenberg. And water contains none of either of those things: if you combined oxygen (what we breathe) with hydrogen (what was in the Hindenberg) in any ratio, you wouldn’t get anything remotely like water–rather, you’d get a room in which you wouldn’t want to light a match.
In summary, down vote.
Nice.
He got you.
Happy to be ‘got.’ It was funny. I should have just expressed a mathematical constant.
It was actually an exercise to see if some people possibly cast down votes without reading the actual content of the post (ie purely based on the user name of the poster).
A better test would be posting the same content under two separate user names.
Thank you for this brain exercise. Sometimes we think something is simple, when it can be quite complex. And other times, we make something complex, when it is really quite simple. I hope I have the wisdom and patience to have everything in the right place.
Why is Broberg not dressing for Bakerfield do we know?
“nicked up” according to Ryan Holt on Condors broadcasts.
Stauffer said it was something that happened off the rink and that it was not major and to expect him back real soon.
Stauff said he should back in about a week (that was on Friday) so, hopefully for the games next week.
Talking to Leavins the other night and his intel is that this is a different injury from the one in rookie camp that hampered him through camp.
ha reminds me: my brother was playing an ECHL equivalent league and took himself off the roster two weeks by pulling something attempting a dance move in the dressing room.
off the rink injury.
SUBJECT: The penalty kill can go to hell
Yesterday’s game
Oilers Powerplay: 11:27, 6 shots, 1 goal
Stars Powerplay: 2:34, 8 (EIGHT) shots, 2 goals
Oilers now 3rd in the NHL in PPGF/60, but 30th (3rd worst) in PPGA/60.
Seems like a waste.
The biggest issues plaguing this team are 1) Team defence/Shots Against/Goals Against 2) PK 3) Goaltending 4) Balanncing the lineup in terms of quality and ice time 5) Depth Scoring
We need a Larsson for Barrie type trade, and one or two RW. Current RW’s, Hyman aside, are not getting it done. On the fence with Derek Ryan.
In the interim, slide Kane to RW and talk to Holloway about playing RW. Might as well learn now.
Its time for Yamamoto to come out of the top six for now. He has done jack squat so far and he looks hurt from preseason. I would move Jesse (made 2 great passes last game but unfortunately its been a year since he made the last one) up for a few games and run Mcleod , Yamamoto and Foegele as the 3rd. I would also sprinkle Holloway in a bit more all through the line up to get him up to 12 mins a night. If Woodcroft can get Holloway up and running it will pay off big time in a month. Campbell was brutal against Dallas and it starts early in games with him. There is definitely a pattern forming around the first few shots with him. Skinner has been rock solid starting games. Oilers in the bottom 9 in the league with 3.5 goals against per game. Same old problem with this group. They need to score 4 goals a game to have a chance at winning.
They should of traded him when he had positive value this off-season now we’re stuck with him and Foegele for another 1 3/4 years.
Imma downvote this sentiment for all that in some unknowable, unexplorable timeline it may in fact be true.
IMO Campbell is responsible for the first goal as well. He kicked out the rebound directly to Hintz. I wouldn’t normally take issue with it, but I think that was three goals in row where his rebound control was a major factor. Maybe it was three of four.
Not blaming him for the loss, but this rebound thing is becoming a big issue.
On one hand, I agree his rebound control is a weak spot; On the other hand, goal 1 doesn’t happen if McDavid and Hyman aren’t both preparing to spring the zone.
Goal 2 was weak (I don’t think it went through the webbing after watching a few more times in slo-mo), and goal 3 was tough but also such an unlucky bounce. Felt to me like a bad team game, and a whole week’s worth of bad luck for Jack.
Agreed.
This rebound issue is a thing to start.
One consolation, they are headed out on a tough road trip after a couple bad losses . Something they usually rise up for and embrace the challenge with mucho gusto .
I like the gusto.
I like the mucho.
Fuckit i’m in.
Fun fact: “Mucho gusto” is actually Spanish for “Nice to meet you“.
I thought the effort was there until the second bad goal(off the post) and them I could see their eyes rolling in their head. This loss is squarely pinned on Jack. I don’t know what they can do except start Skinner more.
Yesterday you could see why the team that drafted Jack (Dallas) only gave him one start! (I kid!!!)
Of the top offensive players on the Oilers, Evander Kane at least passes to Puljujarvi, so maybe that might be a good line for Jesse to play on.
Yamamoto would be better in the bottom six in easier minutes.
Jesse’s offensive strengths with the puck on his stick is as a midfielder rather than as a striker (as we saw last night). He is a high level disruptor, which contributes to team offense, but not necessarily to his own boxcars. McDavid and Draisaitl carry the puck so much through the neutral zone, that there are no midfield offensive plays for Jesse to make when he plays with them.
Yup, I’ve made the argument before that Jesse is more of a 6 or 8 in soccer when everyone expected him to be a star 9. A Kante or De Rossi, if you will.
He wore #9 at that famous World Junior & confused the shit out of all of us.
Jesse played that tournament full of confidence, a confidence we have seen only in spurts in the NHL. The only coach that has shown that confidence in him was Tippett.
Trying to follow here. Jesse plays with Kane but not McDavid or Draisaitl. And Yamamoto goes to the bottom 6?
RE LT’s summary on Kane today. It felt like I was listening to a Trent Reznor song.
Kane was on the receiving end of 8 hits in the Nashville game. He has been below par in the 2 games since.
Let’s hope he gets a chance to heal up soon. Valuable player.
He was noticeably slower the last 2 games, reminded me of Lucic speed out there much of the time.
Not sure why as there’s not a long track record yet but I trust Woodcroft with in season adjustments. I believe he’ll get the PK sorted. Weird that poor starts have morphed into poor finishes.
Campbell is a bigger concern for me because of his track record. He took a LONG time to establish himself in the league and has been inconsistent as a starter until the Leafs where I’m told he got worn down by workload last season. He’s not a ‘made man’ yet imo and certainly has no significant playoff resume to speak of.
A longterm committment to this player was a risk. A calculated risk, but a risk nonetheless. Skinner is a massive insurance policy for the Oil and Holland is very fortunate he’s paying out early.
Backup tendy could be the story of the season.
Many of us preferred an option like Allen. Campbell was the best of the alternatives. Goaltenders scoring a big or just biggish long UFA deal, often struggle in their first year. The Oilers, apart from Nurse, have a subpar defense. Koskinen was oft maligned unfairly, but I doubt Spector or Matty will snark at Campbell in pressers or columns.
I would have preferred a bet on Georgiev because he comes from the Rangers goalie factory. But I’m fine with Campbell. Gs are voodoo after all and this team looks to be gifted enough offensively that we don’t need Roy in his prime back there.
I’m also fine w him even if he sucks most of the rest of the season. Goalies turn around all the time like…things that turn around. There’s just no knowing.
Danger Will Robinson. Danger Will Robinson.
Yesterday’s game to my eye was the worst display of effort I seen this year.
Sometimes I feel this team expects the other team to just roll over and don’t have to put a 60-minute effort in. We are not going to sneak up on any teams. Time they need to realize every night requires a 60-minute effort.
I said I wasn’t mad after the Devils game. This game was a different story. Campbell has been atrocious but the team looked completely uninterested, top to bottom..
It looked to me like a game in the late Tippett era. Or the late McLellan era. Or the late Hitchcock era. You get the drift.
Whatever new coach bounce Woodcroft got is gone now. Is this some seasonal thing with Edmonton because of the weather?
McDavid talked about the Oilers “learning a lesson” from that 7 seconds against the Devils.
I guess the lesson was don’t try at all, and you won’t have to worry about blowing a lead.
Came away impressed with the young Devils. Speedy, skillful, crisp passing, strong possession, diligent checking, good sticks, all with a non standout D… kinda reminded me of the Oilers when they’re clicking. Am I crazy? (well yes, yes I am). Exciting head spinning game.
So I was intrigued and watched the Devils Flames game, it was interesting to see them go up against a bigger more defensive minded bunch. Alas, Flames got one point.
Now the Stars game was a different matter, unsatisfying unentertaining in many ways. And I’ve let it go. There are going to be dud games. But more “wow what a game!” games.
Also decided to stay positive and hopeful at this point; Campbell: slow starter, learning Oiler hockey. And we do have Skinner! Yamo: believe hand not 100%, impacts his tenacious digging out qualities for one thing. JP & Niemo: hopefully Kurri had good chats with them, in detail in their own language may be a thing. MacLeod: maybe nervous that mom and dad, and big bro, were in town? learning to how to pace energy in an NHL season? Holloway? I just overall like what I’m seeing so far. Kid has skill, moxie.
Agree with those lines.
I was a little tough on JP for not being a driver, but he made several very good plays against the Stars. Who were the recipients? Nurse and Holloway, two very good players. My point is we often forget the Ryan Strome lesson — do not judge a historically good offensive player when they are playing with substandard scorers.
Seeing the top 6 get lit up last night emphasizes why you probably want JP up there. I like Yamo as a player, but he had a horrific sequence where he failed to neutralize his check and then lost his stick. JP, whatever his perceived faults, is very strong on the boards and adept at making that quick outlet to the streaking C.
Bingo!
I’m fine with the Monday lines except I’d flip McLeod and Ryan. Unless the fourth line is getting expanded minutes then McLeod is just too good to waste there. It’s alright to give him a reset for a game or two but I’d hate to see him there for any length of time.
Re-set is a good word for McLeod.
I agree he needs to continue to get more minutes than the 4th line would generally provide (even with his special teams) but his game has taken a down-turn recently and he’s making costly mistakes – could use a quick re-set.
Yes to Mondays lines.
Apropos of nothing, I love living in a province that observes Daylight Savings Time year-round.
I agree. It screws over my sleeping patterns.
Have never understood the purpose of flipping back and forth.
so dum.
Nobody can provide a reasonable explanation for why we continue to follow this idiotic process but we still do, despite children being hellish for several days and the economy taking a hit, year after year.
Well, that’s humanity for you, I suppose.
More people (and countries) are questioning this practice. I am guessing in the next few years we will see it disappear which would be a good thing.
you forgot pets.
Saving Daylight is great and we should save it all year around, Daylight Losing Time sucks.
I’m of the mindset that time is fundamental & measurement of same shouldn’t be f’d with.
There is growing support for Daylight Savings Time year-round, which is better even as it is kind of upside down. Instead of adjusting our clocks to our invented schedules, why not adjust our schedules to the clock? Makes more sense for mid-day to be noon as opposed to 1pm.
Much as it hurts to say this, Saskatchewan has got it right.
Im an Edmontonian but left at age 25 for Saskatoon…spent the next 32 yrs in that lovely city…all the while missing the clock turning back and forth….now Im back and totally agree Saskatchewan has it right.
All I care about it is that, if Alberta gets rid of it, its in conjunction with Ontario, New York and all other major centers getting rid of it. The time difference between Alberta, BC, the eastern seaboard, etc. should remain
Because you seem to be an even bigger word nerd than myself, I present this grammatical correction with all due humility.
Source: https://www.history.com/news/8-things-you-may-not-know-about-daylight-saving-time
The linked article goes on to give a through recap of the history of daylight saving time.
Tldr: it’s to conserve energy use, and ze Germans figured it out during the Great War.