The Edmonton Oilers played a strong 200-foot game against the lowly Anaheim Ducks last night. In showing a complete game is possible with this group, the team discipline was pretty sexy for all Oilers fans. More sexy? Leon Draisaitl’s three goals that got him to 50 on home ice, Connor McDavid edged closer to 150 points (now at 146) and the team punched its ticket to the 2023 playoffs. Don’t look now, but this will be the fourth year in a row for Edmonton in the postseason. Music!
THE ATHLETIC!
- Lowetide: Edmonton Oilers post an incredible March with playoffs in sight
- DNB: The Oilers ‘found a way’ against the Kings
- Lowetide: How many more college players will the Oilers sign this spring?
- Lowetide: Edmonton Oilers at 2018 NHL Draft, making the final call
- DNB: How the Oilers’ playoff path looks rockier after loss to Golden Knights
- Lowetide: Should the Oilers re-sign trade deadline acquisition Nick Bjugstad?
- DNB: Why Edmonton Oilers and their star players believe Pride night is ‘important to celebrate’
- Lowetide: Evander Kane, Zach Hyman and the Oilers’ ideal Connor McDavid line
- DNB: Connor McDavid joins the 60-goal club
- Lowetide: Is the Oilers’ defence deep enough to win the Stanley Cup?
- DNB: What I got wrong: Jack Campbell hasn’t given Oilers a goaltending upgrade
- Lowetide: Stock up or down for every Oilers prospect in the system
- DNB: Oilers’ recent play gives 3 reasons to be optimistic about a long playoff run
- DNB: Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl shows he’s more than Connor McDavid’s sidekick
- Lowetide: What to expect from the Oilers’ 2023 NHL Draft after trading first-round pick
- DNB: Connor McDavid’s importance to the Oilers keeps showing no bounds
- DNB: Why Mattias Ekholm is a big addition for an Oilers team that needs to win now
- Lowetide: Oilers’ mediocre February shows importance of protecting the puck
- Lowetide: Oilers top 20 prospects, winter 2022
WHAT TO EXPECT IN MARCH
- At home to: ANA (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 1-0-0)
- On the road to: LAK, ANA, SJS, COL (Expected 2-2-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- At home to: SJS (Expected 1-0-0) (Actual 0-0-0)
- April prediction: 4-2-0, eight points in six games
- April results: 1-0-0, two points in one game
- March results: 12-2-1, 25 points in 15 games
- February results: 4-3-4, 12 points in 11 games
- January results: 8-2-2, 18 points in 12 games
- December results: 7-6-2, 16 points in 15 games
- November results: 7-7-0, 14 points in 14 games
- October results: 6-3-0, 12 points in 9 games
- Oilers in 2022-23: 45-23-9, 99 points in 77 games
The top three teams in the Pacific Division are now known, but the order of finish is out in the ether. Edmonton’s schedule has five games left, there is a path to the division title, but the oildrop need to cash several of the final games. Since January 1, the Oilers are 25-7-7, a blistering pace that reflects a coaching staff that has found solutions to problems, a farm team that has delivered, and some astute trades and signings.
It was my pleasure to attend the game as a guest of my friend Lynn last night, it had been some time since my last game at Rogers Place. So much fun to watch live, and to converse with someone knowledgeable about the game. I have been blessed with many kind gestures over these last months and am grateful for all. It was a great game, and I’m so glad I attended. Thanks, Lynn!
GOALIE AND DEFENSEMEN
Jack Campbell got the shutout and made several spectacular saves in a row during a first-period flurry by the Ducks. Among his 36 stops, NST had eight as high dangers and that sounds right. It’s great to see a player post a strong game during a trying season and that was surely the case for Campbell last night. I found the post-game reaction from his teammates to be revealing. He’s part of this team, no matter the difficulties of the season.
Darnell Nurse scored a goal off a broken play, it was his eleventh this season and his 42 points this season are a new career high. During the game, he fell and looked injured after taking a shot high, but returned and played well. He is 70-67 in five-on-five goals, it is heartening to see people coming around on his season and value to the team. Cody Ceci has been playing better in recent weeks, whatever nagging injury he has been dealing with may be easing as the days go down. Since January 1, Ceci is the only Oilers defenseman under 50 percent goal share at five-on-five. He’s 27-34 (44 percent) in that time, 4-7 since March 15. The visuals look better but the results are lagging. Perhaps for this reason, Nurse played two minutes with Vincent Desharnais at five-on-five last night.
Evan Bouchard picked up an assist and is looking more comfortable in all areas now that he is getting thunderous power-play time. The young blue was always effective with the man advantage but didn’t get a ton of time there. Now that he’s handling the puck more on the PP, I see his five-on-five decisions becoming more productive. Obviously, his new partner has much to do with the newfound success there. Mattias Ekholm had a great night, two points, great passing, strong defending and displayed a physical edge. He’s up in the play far more often than I thought he’d be, but the lead story is he’s damn good at it. Ken Holland’s best trade and it isn’t close. Trevor Zegras shouldn’t pursue altercations with Ekholm.
Brett Kulak is a luxury on the third pairing, his foot speed is exceptional and allows the club some leeway in terms of partner. He seemed to replace Ceci on the PK to my eye, certainly played more (2:16, 1-0 goals) than his season average (59 seconds). Vincent Desharnais is strong and his hits, crosschecks and slashes hurt like hell. How do I know? Opponents reactions. Across the league, everywhere he goes there is upset. Desharnais is a bad, bad man. Music!
FORWARDS
Leon Draisaitl was incredible last night, he is in a zone, skating well, seeing the ice and an absolute load. His shooting is strong, his passing is out of this world and his attention to detail the best I’ve seen during his career. The mid-season lull has been replaced by an extreme giant with all the moves. His reaction, and the crowd reaction, to goal No. 50 was a great moment. Among the loudest moments I’ve witnessed at an Oilers game.
Connor McDavid scored his 62nd goal of the season (incredible!) and seems to be in what I like to call the “Bobby Orr zone” of the season. Orr would often be reluctant to draw attention to himself, preferring to see Phil Esposito, Johnny Bucyk or others get the attention. It’s also true that the line (Nuge-McDavid-Hyman) has been outplayed lately by Draisaitl’s trio, as was the case last night. Either way, the captain is fantastic. Watching him play live is the most electrifying hockey experience of my life. I will never tire of it.
Evander Kane was physical and skilled, his pass to Leon Draisaitl for his first goal was excellent. He and 29 seem to have caught fire as a duo, that could be key to winning in the postseason. Frankly, I don’t see how any team can defend two top lines the quality Edmonton can currently send over the boards. Kailer Yamamoto had several chances to my eye, but couldn’t cash. Four shots, three HDSC, three TK, such a productive player. His is the fifth Beatle on the top two lines, but he does great work that contributes to wins. He needs to cash some of those chances.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had an assist, two shots, two HDSC and two TK, overshadowed by the Draisaitl line but still effective. Zach Hyman had a goal plus an assist, two shots, three HDSC and was his usual relentless self. He’s such a different style than the other forwards on Edmonton’s skill lines, as the sharp passes are replaced by a bullrush to the net all night long. I’m always pleased when a goal is scored by Hyman that doesn’t result in the delays associated with a review. It’s rare, actually.
Nick Bjugstad’s line (Warren Foegele and Mattias Janmark) did not have a good night (3-10 shots). It was surpising to me because the line has been doing good work. There were promising sorties, but Bjugstad was unable to move the puck quickly. Janmark did spring Foegele for a breakaway and that was the highlight, but the trio didn’t seem to be on the same page. Perhaps a shuffle is in order.
The fourth line (Devin Shore between Derek Ryan and Klim Kostin) was more productive, 5-4 shots and 51 percent expected goals. The group was most noticeable for getting dropped, Shore at the end of the first period got clipped by a Duck and Ryan took a shot off the back of the leg from friendly fire in the third period. Kostin had a lot of try, but at times attempted to get too much out of plays. I wonder who is coming out when Dylan Holloway (who scored for Bakersfield last night) is recalled or Raphael Lavoie (who also scored for the Condors) gets his first look. Both are coming.
All in all, a great night at Rogers and an enjoyable evening with good company. I’m ready for the playoffs, but am also eager to see where these final scoring numbers land and the final standings. It’s going to be a fun spring.
This team has seen a massive number of personal milestones lately. The three 300g club, Stuart with his 10 month win record, Connor hitting 50, Connor hitting 60, leon 50, new pb for Hyman, new pb for Leon points, new pb for mcdavid in points, new pb for nuge, new pb for nurse, the training staff must seriously be running out of tape and pucks
I don’t believe in God, but I believe in hockey gods….when conor dedicated the first win of the season to lil Ben….I think the gods grinned ear to ear
Flames tied at 4 with 5 min remaining
In other news, fire is hot
Kings over the Canucks is now a final
Shames keep pace with the Jets. Exciting end to the season.
Total goals scored last 4 seasons (2019-20 to 2022-23):
Draisaitl 229
Matthews 222
Ovechkin 215
McDavid 214
Pasternak 202
Best passer and best goal scorer. Only behind McDavid in assists over that time period. What a player.
One of these players had a broken wrist last season.
They should give him the award for the player that scores the most goals with a broken wrist.
Did he miss 10+ games and score 100 pts?
So, he should get credit for scoring goals that he didn’t really score?
Another fun fact?
The funniest part about your comment is none of those players had a broken wrist haha. Hand injury maybe, but no need to make up lies.
Leon played on 1 leg through most of the playoffs and his ankle was still bothering him till after the all-star game. It was confirmed in last night’s game.
And you call OP Baghdad Bob…..
Whatever Matthew’s next contract is signed for must be terrible as he’s injury prone (if it was an oiler)
Kings had 11 shots on goal after the first two periods.
Kings down to 5 dmen. Edler will not return.
Rathbone and Bear are paired together btw
That is a Bingo!
Good thing we softened up the Ducks for the Flames on the first night of the Ducks’ B2B…
How does Lucic continue to dress?
Confirmed Lucic reads this blog.
phlegms have been fortunate to get our leftovers on the back half many times this year.
It’s too bad that it’s not April 1st today. LT could have done a gameday thread for the Canucks / Kings game.
I think HH’s been dreaming of having a LT run Canucks blog for the past ten years.
King’s up 2-1 near then end of the second period.
Kings riding some good luck there, according to NST (which has the expected goals 2-1 going the other way).
The real question is whether or not the Kings will give up more than 2 goals.
An amazing run.
Kings are a solid team, having a great run. No doubt.
Sadly no help from the Canucks. The dagger (3-1) goal from LT’s draft pick, Kaliyev.
Moneypuck gives the Kings a respectable 7.1% shot at the Cup.
They lost to the Oilers without giving up more than 2 goals.
Markstrom pulled after giving up 2 goals.
so much for that quality goaltending
I’m curious if anyone knows of any special goalie program or goalie coach in Western Canada that lead to the WHL producing some really solid goaltending prospects who played in the WHL between 2013 and 2018. In that time They produced Tristan Jarry, Aiden Hill, Logan Thompson, Connor Ingram, Carter Hart, and Stuart Skinner. That is quite the concentration in time and space for solid NHL goalies. There is nobody during that timespan from QMJHL or OHL that I know of that has their ‘up arrows’. Team Canada may be depending on a few them soon. Jarry is a year older. The only other Canadian goalies who may get the nod for Team Canada in the next year or so would be Fleury and Kuemper (also a WHL product) and they may ‘age-out’ soon. Am I missing a non-WHL goalie? The 2015-16 season had all of Hill, Ingram, Hart, and Skinner playing well, with Thompson further down the SV% chart. It has me wondering if there was some kind of goalie program they had access to when they were younger.
Well… there’s the fact that Dustin Schwartz is the high-level goalie consultant for the WHL, despite his reputation around the interwebs.
Also, Mike Smith went to a summer camp in Kelowna with a goalie consultant and saw immediate improvement in his tracking and rebound control. More information about that coach would be interesting.
A friend of mine on my mens league team was in Edmonton for the Arizona and San Jose games last week. He played with Woody 17 years ago and got the royal treatment while in town with dressing room access and lots of staff and player interactions. He was telling me he spent quite a bit of time talking with the video coach Jeremey Coupal about offside reviews. Apparently the coaches get a message on their iPads flashing offside a few seconds(how ever long it takes to quickly review) after the other team crosses the blue line. This means the coaches already know that the play is coming back before the other team is finishing their high fives. I guess they use the iPads because it gets too loud in there after a goal to rely talking on the ear piece.
Summarizing!
Chiasson had a helper as the Blades lost in OT. They trail the series 2-0 as it heads to Regina.
Petrov was held pointless despite a team-high 4 SOG as the Battalion lost Game 2. Series now tied at 1.
Prospecting takes a break until Tuesday.
Puljujarvi with a primary assist on Carolina’s first goal today for his first point as a Hurricane.
I’m not one who thought he was going to break out on leaving the Oilers, but he is far better player than he’s shown in the past year plus.
Here’s hoping he can get his career back on track.
Carolina has a really structured system. It’s not easy making a mid season switch of teams, particularly to a buttoned down team like Carolina. Someone shared an Ethan Bear quote in which he marvelled at their level of preparation. It’s understandable that he’s been struggling.
No, changing systems wouldn’t necessarily be easy, but Puljujarvi was struggling for a long time as an Oiler too. I think he’s got a lot more to give than we’ve seen since the calendar flipped to 2022.
Wouldn’t it make you play better in a well-prepared, structured environment? There’s no confusion on the part of the player and most guys thrive in that situation. As for difficulty changing teams mid-season, I’m not sure that is always or often the case. Our own Matthias Ekholm and Nick Bjugstad have fit in seamlessly. Meier, Gavrikov, Blueger have been good for their new teams. The Canes other deadline pickup, Shane Gostisbehere, has assimilated well by TOI and production.
So strange. The Peg leading NJD 4-0. Cowtown down 2-0 to the Ducklings. Still time left for either/both to change I guess… but fingers crossed. 😉
Just checking in. Damn, this team is really good with Ekholm. It feels like we’re going to win the cup. I didn’t pay much attention to Ekholm before the deadline due to his cap hit. I didn’t think he was a realistic trade target with our cap constraints. Nice acquisition, Ken.
I like to get in Kenny’s grill but if you spend and get player that good it’s worth it. Difference maker, game changer. I’ve mentioned that cup teams have won because of the top drafted talent, but also key acquisitions. Boson traded for Lindholm and Orlov
Kenny made one finally. Hope he can play his contract out well and then some
I’ve mentioned before how amazing “The Drop” series on Oilers Plus is – I had watched a few months ago which were episodes on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd round from last year but there are 15 episodes now and the most recent is about the trade dealdline and the tie leading up to it.
All the usual cool clips from the dressing room and amazing angles of the bench and the ice, etc. is all there and cool video of many conversations with Holland on the phone with other managers and internal discussions.
One day I’ll watch the entire series – great production value.
That game was highly enjoyable reaching several milestones, while in my opinion, the outcome was never in question.
The Oilers were simply so much better. To my eye the Oilers were simply head and shoulders the better team.
Every player knew the outcome. Oilers were going to win, as politely as possible.
Oilers wanted:
2 points, Drai hatty, Campbell shut out, and no injuries.
Ducks tried to contest a little but that was hammered down. Connor knew the outcome was a 5 goal difference and he wasn’t going to run it up any more than that.
sure is nice to be on the other side of these games now.
This is the NHL. You score as much as your team can when opportunity is there.
You can’t tell me teams purposely hold off on scoring more just cause they are being polite.
It’s just a phrase.
represents patting the goalie to see if he’s okay, the informal discussions on the ice, watching players give each other a tap. Did you miss that?
and yes, teams let off the gas all the time when a game gets embarrassing. It’s the NHL
Well here come the playoffs. With much depending on injuries, puck luck and goalering. If no major injuries to the top 7F, 4D and Skinner the Oil stack up well against anyone.
Respectfully, I would add one other “depends-upon”… namely officiating. The playoffs turn officials from game-managers into game-deciders. Let’s hope our Oilers have climbed into the officials’ good books (after an eternity otherwise) and get the majority of favourable calls. Fingers crossed.
What a glorious time to be a hockey fan, and in particular a fan of the Edmonton Oilers. It seems like the pieces are coming together nicely – credit to Holland and the organization, really. 97 didn’t have a particularly amazing game. Still pulled off the amazing ring-around-the-rosie goal. Draisaitl – Ovenchicken but a better passer, and in his prime.
Lots of good teams out there, and luck always plays a factor, but I think this team has the strongest chance at a cup since the Messier years.
“Ovenchicken”
LOL 😂🤣
It’s a weird inside “joke” that I’ve been using for years. Glad you liked the nickname. 🙂
Always knew him as the great ape.
Oh, another surprising bit of positivity – just saw that Moneypuck has the Oilers with the best odds of winning the whole shebang at 13.4% (even higher than the Bruins at 12.6%).
Drai’s a beast with a wicked shot and Oil are blessed to have him, but even his best doesn’t stack up to peak Ovenchicken. No one does, imo.
Too much time on my hands and many numbers to ponder…
I am musing today about a quick and dirty way to guage team’s performances in a couple of circumstances that could be telling for the playoffs… notably what to expect re breakaway success and odd man rush success. Culling the data on a game by game basis is onerous, so for your consideration I have the following:
As a proxy for breakaways I am perusing shootout records as is a similar situation as is one man vs the goalie. As a proxy for odd man rushes I am using 3 on 3 OT records, as again more likely scoring is 2 or 3 on 1 (or on 0!) situations. A caveat: extremely small simple size and individual goalies involved may not always be the one who will be carrying the water in the playoffs, so is only for fun!
In the Pacific, among playoff bound teams (and Calgary just in case), shoot out success ranks thusly to date: LA 7-3, Vegas 4-3, Calgary 2-3, Edmonton and Seattle both 0-4. In the Central it is Minnesota 7-5, Colorado 6-3, Nashville 5-2, Dallas 3-3 and Winnipeg 1-1.
For 3 on 3 OT, here are the numbers to date. For the Pacific, Seattle 9-4, Vegas 8-4, Edonton 4-5, LA 3-7 and Calgary 5-12. The Central is Winnipeg 9-2, Colorado 7-3, Minnesota 5-4, Nashville 5-6 and Dallas 4-11?!!
Acknowledging the sample size issues, etc., What would be your takeaways from these numbers, fine folks? Is it largely a reflection on the goaltender in each game, or of the quality of the shooters? WIll it have any predictive value or is the sample too problematic? Does any of it pass the eye test and smell test to you?
It doesn’t pass the small test for me because shootouts don’t fully approximate an in game breakaway. It’s a staged thing with more time to prepare. In game breakaways are tougher for the shooter because they have to be cognizant of back checking and tough for the goalie as well especially if a second winger presents as a viable pass.
Thanks for putting this together.
I think you answered your own question. With a sample size that small it is impossible to tell if the difference in those numbers is due to skill or luck.
I was hoping it would be more of a blunt instrument rather than a precision tool, TBH. Largely due to the sample size issues. Small differences not useful, but hoping broad swings would be telling to some degree…
I guess we cheer for the Canucks tonight. They play the Kings.
No guessing – of course.
I prefer to think of it as cheering against the Kings as opposed to for a team but the cheered for result is what it is
The Canucks have actually beaten the Kings both times they played them this season.
Shush – don’t tell HH or we will bombarded with fake stats.
Wild and Preds tomorrow
In addition to the west coast game later tonight, I very much would like the Jets to beat the Devils.
Looking good
Ekholm Oilers
75GF-49GA +26
4.69GFPG-3.06GAPG +1.63GFPG
384GF 251GA +133 over 82, which would line up extremely well to the Bruins.
The layout of your post really reminded me of a Ricki post. Thought we had a bear sighting for a fleeting moment.
Let’s hope these rates can sustain over a full year next year… god help the Pacific if Campbell bounces back, giving them two strong goalies.
A bit of consternation surrounding Broberg’s lack of playing time recently…I’ll attempt to reset the perspective. Broberg is 21yrs old, has played 66 NHL games and 1 playoff game. He’s slotted in the #7/8 spot heading into the playoffs on a championship calibre roster. He has one additional year on his ELC and the perfect mentor on the squad. It seems to me Broberg is exactly where Ken Holland wants him … Another masterclass in development…in an alternate decade of darkness universe Broberg would be drowning on the top pair after Nurse walked as a UFA
In fairness, I think one person has a large degree of concern. Most see what is happening and understand it’s the best case scenario and that injuries occur.
I can’t argue with results and the Oilers record generally in recent months and their record with Deharnais in the lineup.
I do think Broberg is a legit NHL d-man than can play nightly on a top team’s 3rd paring but I understand why he’s behind Deharnais and I’m cool with it.
I also realize the Oilers have absolutely zero cover on the right side and Broberg is the first injury cover on the right side and think it would behoove the org to get him reps on the right side.
Jason Demers is not an option.
Surprisingly Broberg is getting the Bouchard treatment being that he’s a Holland pick and Bouchard wasn’t. I imagine Woody and Manson love the cycle beaking physicality of Vinny.
Until today, I’ve not seen you “be cool with” anything other than a regular slot in the lineup for Broberg… I’m not saying I agree or disagree with that, but to suggest anything other than you being very vocal about Desharnais being slotted above Broberg hasn’t had you being very negative in regards to that would be super disingenuous and any backtracking at this point to try and suggest otherwise would not be a good look on you in regards to the rigidity of your spine.
Wait, so a person should not be able to change his opinion on a subject after periods of time and more information. One should just show a rigid sign and not be open to change. I guess that’s the view of the “I must be right on the Internet” – I will not be open to discussion or sway at all from what I know is right crowd.
I still think the Broberg should have been playing mostly every night over the last while.
I always have said that I think Vinny has an impact and I like him in the lineup. I have also said that I think Broberg is better and he will me a massively important piece of the future and they need to get him minutes in these important games.
I still believe all these things except, while I continue to think Broberg is the “better player”, at this point as we head in to the playoffs, I agree that Vinny’s impact is simply too great to have Broberg play over and instead of him.
Of course, there are other ways to get Broberg in to the lineup which would include the odd night off for Vinny maybe the odd night off for Kulak and, of course, 7D.
Changing your mind is different than suggesting you always felt that way.
Well, that’s great, but who wants hooves in the first place?
Would seem to be damn inconvenient on the ice.
You’ve seen Bambi, right?
Those NCAA kids seem to develop and they only play 30 games a year
Obviously we all want to see Nugey get a 100, but man it would be an extra cherry on top if he could go on a goal per game pace and notched 40g as well.
We could have a 60, 50, 40, and 30 club. Let’s really get crazy and get Kane on that pace to add a 20g/season to the club!
🤣🤣🤣
Stauffer put out a tweet saying Oilers are the only team in the NHL with 4 80pt players. 97,29,93 & whatever # Hyman is 🙂
If Kane had played a full season I believe we would have 5.
That’s some nice balanced distribution right there
It does not happen often in one’s life….but ever buy a product from the store and it *far exceeds* even what the companies marketing department said?
Mattias Ekholm is a puck mover. Full Stop.
Credit to the SportsNet panel last night for providing more evidence.
I was told we bought a ‘ defensive defensemen’ instead we received a puck moving defensemen that can viciously ( ask Zegras) defend as well.
As LT often says, the puck always heads North in a hurry with Ekholm.
Ridiculous
How good his skating and passing ability is was really over-shadowed by playing behind Josi for so many years. He’s a really cerebral player as well … always seems to be in the right position in all three zones, and moves the puck quickly to good spots on the ice.
I know there have been generic times in the past when I’ve felt that maybe Leon could be better than Conner but then there are stretches like most of this season where you admonish yourself for even considering such a thing. “What a dummy!”
But then there are stretches like this last few weeks where Leon has to give Connor his “good” line mates because Connors are “playing so poorly” only to see Leon and his cast of misfits torching 97/93/18.
Exactly how good is this version of Leon Draisaitl?
Fun Fact. Our top three (McD, Drai and Nuge) already have 147 goals for the season, Chicago has only 184 for the WHOLE TEAM. Anaheim 188 and Columbus 198. Won’t do it this year, but is it possible we could see a season where our top three score more goals than the entire worst offensive team? Top four on team might pull it off (even this year), but top three??? Our top four has a total of 181 at the moment.
Another fun fact:
The Boston Bruins have only ONE player in the top 65 in scoring in the NHL.
The Bruins not only have won the Presidents Trophy with two weeks to go in the season but also have a goal differential of +119.
Something about scoring more than you give up comes to mind.
You should read Doms article about having stars
I have.
The Bruins have several and many excel on both sides of the puck.
Boston has given up 163 goals while the Oilers have given up 254
Their leading scorer is +33
Must be something in the water.
Probably not a solution, as he has shown subpar reaing comprehension skills to date. Let’s ignore him and let him play with his crayons elsewhere.
A fool uses staistics as a drunkard uses a lamp post… more for support than illumination.
Sure. The Oilers have the third-best goal differential in the league. Simple arithmetic suggests they score more than they give up.
The Oilers have that covered too.
Since Jan. 10th they are tops in the league in points % and tops in goal differential (Bruins #2 in both cases).
Best Division n hockey? You mean the one with Buffalo, Detroit, FLorida, Ottawa and Montreal? I would put the Metropolitan above them, surely. Boston is having a season for the ages, but as far as Divisions go, The Metropolitan has more depth. Last time I checked the Bruins were one team, a Division is 8 teams – best team does not mean best division. More likely 5 teams from the Metropolitan make the dance vs 3 from the Atlantic. Get over yourself.
Oilers clinched a playoff spot which means they could lose all of their remaining games and still make it in.
Oilers are closer to winning the western conference than they are “scrambling for a spot”.
The central division is also weaker than the pacific.
The number of times you have “cut seasons in half” to try to make the Oilers look bad is, well, everytime you think it helps push your narrative.
Sometimes it seems like you are genuinely interested in talking hockey, but for the most part you turn into an anti-Oilers homer who seems to be on the verge of an mental breakdown.
Messier did a number on you.
Thing is, I never jump in banners as that can get you arrested in many countries.
Er,,, grammar is a thing. You WAVE the banner, you JUMP on the train… reading comprehension is a good thing also.
Stay on point, HH. This is about the top 3 on a team outscoring another team’s whole roster. The Bruins don’t figure into that converstaion unless you have an example where this particular set of circumstances has occured before. If you want to contribute to this conversation, stay on topic and stop throwng out unrelated facts to steer towards a different and unrelated topic. It is getting very old, very fast.
Remember, when you think you are the smartest man in the room, you are most assuredly not.
Somedays my greatest regret is the lack of a Mute button.
Different teams in different stages of their roster construction.
Boston has been for many years constructed around Bergeron – depth all over the place, with either Marchand or Pastrnak being the lead on offence. Ullmark got the first year on a new team heebie jeebies out of his system. They were ready to go right out the gate this season, and jumped out to a huge lead. Doesn’t hurt that Bergeron took a massive pay cut, though the bonus structure on his and Krejci’s contracts will eat into their cap space next season, making it impossible to ice a roster as deep as they are this season + Pastrnak is no longer on a bargain contract. This is their “all-in” year.
Edmonton as constructed around McDavid and Draisaitl + RNH, Kane, Nurse and Hyman … was a work in progress for the first half of the season. They had a mediocre first half while they were putting it all together. Holloway, Jesse and McLeod were supposed to have bigger roles, but eventually gave way to Janmark, Bjugstad, Foegele, and even Kostin up front. Barrie and Murray were upgraded to Ekholm and Desharnais, and it took a half a season for Skinner to emerge from under the weight of Campbell’s newly signed contract to become the starter. Kane was missing for half of the season after a freak injury, otherwise we might have had 5 players with 30+ goals.
The Oilers have been on a tear since, as good or better than any other team in the league …
… and they have their most important players locked up for the next few seasons with about 2 million give or take of dead money coming off the books this summer, and no further issues with LTIR, and their first round pick next season to use as a trade chip … all things that Boston does not have. Right now these two teams have the highest odds of coming out of their respective conference and meeting in the Finals.
I’m OK with where the Oilers sit today and for the next few seasons.
Always something negative from you.
Some people are only happy when they are miserable, and misery loves company. I would HATE to see his kind at a party. Fisticuffs would likely ensue.
You should have seen the posts of his that LT deleted today.
Don’t think my heart could have handled it!
Since January 10th, the Oilers are +51, and the Bruins are +50.
This is what i took away from this thread:
Mayan Oil: Fun fact, I am really enjoying watching the oilers score all these goals!
HH: fun fact: I am insecure.
Gracias, Amigo.
De nada
Is anyone still ‘trading’ Leon for MacKinnon or Matthews this morning?
Confounding to me that Leon is putting up career goals per games numbers that are putting him in the conversation with the likes of Ovechkin and Lemieux, and some are still underrating our German Giant. For Gord’s sake, he lit up the playoffs last season on one leg.
Lest we forget, scoring goals is the hardest (and most valuable) task in this league. 3×50 goal scorer perennially voted the best passer in the league. Acknowledging this player’s legitimate greatness doesn’t make you a homer. Giants walk among us.
I consider myself so lucky to have grown up watching Gretzky and Messier reinvent and dominate this great game. To have a second chance to see it again with Connor and Leon? Music!!!
People talk about all kinds of things, and trading Draisaitl for MacKinnon (as an example) is a fun thing to discuss. It’s like would you trade Gretzky for Lemieux back in the day? I don’t think it’s being disloyal, it’s just talking.
I said it below, Drai is one of the most underrated players. During a season where his play has been often criticized, he has still scored 120+ points. Unreal.
Fun fact:
If MacKinnon surpasses 100 points (he’s at 97) he will become the first player to score 100 points while missing 10 games or more in a season since Mario Lemieux.
A great playmaker who is fortunate to play with the best offensive defenceman since Paul Coffey. Leon is a much more prolific goal scorer and a much better passer. MacKinnon is the better skater.
Missing ten or more games to injury.
Drai scored 110 in 71 games during the covid shortened 2019-2020 season.
Ovechkin also did it in 2010, and of course McDavid scored 100 in 56 games in the shortened 20-21 season. Numerous players did it before Mario as well.
Ha! How could I forget McD’s 100 in 56.
McDavid had over 100 points in 56 games recently.
Draisaitl posted 110 points in 71 games in 2019-20 so, unless you’re trying to highlight the difficulty of returning from an in-season injury, this seems like an awfully niche stat to throw out in a half-hearted effort to counter the original comment. Even if you are highlighting the difficulty of returning from an in-season injury, the arbitrary cut-off of 10+ games hardly seems valuable when Matthews posted 106 points in 73 games just last season.
Fun fact:
MacKinnon has never scored 100 points.
McDavid scored 100 in 56 games
I never played hockey growing up, world’s worst skater. I never followed hockey as a youth either, I was a CFL fan mostly at the time and most of my friends weren’t too big on sports in general in my younger days. I became a fan watching Gretzky on TV in the 80’s and have been hooked ever since. When you see magic on an almost nightly basis, you can’t help but watch! Now I am the biggest hockey fanatic I know. Go figure!
I think the argument for Mackinnon ended when he signed his new contract. When he was $5.3 it was a no brainer because he was one if not the most underpaid player in the league. Now Leon is majorly underpaid.
MacKinnon was also a straight up dirty player in the playoffs last year. A number of questionable late hits. Like Kane, I think it’s an effective part of his game but if he wasn’t a superstar, he’d be getting some suspensions imo.
Is trading a top 5 player for another top 5 player underrating?
But Mackinnon is absolute tire fire in his own zone last 2 seasons plus (in Patrick Kane territory)
To me, it’s a fool’s errand. It’s like speculating what would The Who be like with Geddy Lee on bass instead of Entwhistle. We should appreciate the magical chemistry we have.
The two best best players in the world. “I call that a bargain. The best I ever had!”
https://youtu.be/Ka_pPf7OqiE
Geddy sat in for Chris Squire when Yes was inducted in the HOF
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1-NsnlPc54
Steve Howe and Trevor Rabin on guitar
I remember that fondly. Geddy was living his ultimate prog rock dream that night.
Chris Squire’s playing on Long Distance Runaround is one of my favourite bass lines of all time. I find Drama to be a very underrated album in their catalogue and his playing on that is monumental as well. He is missed.
Darn cool factoid Gerta. We don’t see enough of you around lately. Love your commentary.
Some tire fire:
https://www.naturalstattrick.com/playerreport.php?fromseason=20222023&thruseason=20222023&playerid=8477492&sit=5v5&stype=2
This fella woke up in an extreme amount of twists and pains, apparently the Ducks are his favorite banner to wave.
Been 1% in defensive metrics two years running. But hey he plays on a good team
I’m thinking McDavid and Lauren wouldn’t like spending time in Turks and Caicos with MacKinnon and ____ as much as with Drai and Celeste – just a presumption though.
Not enough attention is given to kane and how the team is so much better with him in the lineup..the ducks and particularly vatrano where coming after the oilers physically in the first period until kane put him through the boards after he took down drai..I don’t recall the ducks throwing any hits after that as that physicality disappeared..the best way to stop the oilers is to be physical and give them little space but when Kane is in the lineup teams shy away from that
For sure. I think that Kane has absolutely no uncertainty about what he is doing or what he’s going to do travels through the others. There seems to be more clarity
I think it’s also important that since Ekholm arrived Nurse is playing his meaner game again. He has less on his shoulders and he’s responding well, he’s feeling it
The final piece for me is Shore is playing well enough to use, they added Bjugstad who is huge even if not typically aggressive. And Klimdros and Des. There are many tough players and big players now. I’ll bet Ekholm is no cakewalk if he gets mad. It’s not all on Nurse and Kane, which means someone has their backs too, must be freeing for them
Much less appealing to try the old ‘punk the Oilers’ gambit. It will cost and it will hurt. As you said I think the Ducks had that light come on. Kane’s hit was nasty enough to send the message
That cross check to Zegras’ ribs by Ekholm last night was pretty vicious. Between Ekholm, Nurse and Desharnais, teams are going to pay the price when they spend time in our zone.
When I watched that last night, my first thought was that our beloved Oilers have become the Dallas Stars of the 90’s. We have the top end offensive talent up front, with a bunch of big, mean, filthy defensemen to protect our end. I guess that makes Skinner our Marty Turco.
Except OUR big mean and nasty D can actually skate and play the hockey, unlike the pylonesque thugs of Dallas past…
Yep, Desharnais has good wheels and can make an accurate first pass. I’m just hoping Bouchard can become a decent facsimile of Zubov.
Hatcher doing his head shake on the bench, camera on him after some egregious thing he did to an Oiler, still makes me sports mad
When i played soccer i went by the following mantra: on the very first 50/50 ball you gotta run through it. If you back doen on that one, you back down on all of them. But show a little crazy on all of them, and guys go in slightly hesitant on all the 50/50 balls there after. You assert your the alpha dog, and everyone falls in line….
Hockey is a game of flow and movement. It should lend itself to being multi-disciplined ie being strong in all aspects of the game such that one is comfortable in all 3 zones. To me it is especially important to be able to defend on any part of the ice in the defensive zone. Defense men should be comfortable defending away from the net and forwards should be comfortable defending front of net.
A true phrase we hear time and again is “take away time and space”. To do this within the flow of play, at 5 v 5, always go to the puck carrier posthaste!!! When the puck is held by an offensive player along the boards unchecked, I at times see the closest Oiler (often a defence man by the net) take a stride towards the puck carrier and then retreat, I think because “their place is by the net”. But time and space must be taken away! In my mind we must be comfortable having defence men check along the boards and forwards defend the net. This enables flow of play.
In the NBA because of flow of play and switching defensive assignments, you often see a Kyle Lowry at what, 6′ 2″ briefly guarding a 7 footer under the net and doing so very physically – flow of play. His team mates know they have a small man guarding a very tall man by the net and adjust their strategy accordingly to minimize the chances of getting the ball to the 7 footer. As the play evolves, there is a natural transition where a Lowry ends up back checking another guard.
If anyone remembers Magic Johnson’s rookie season playoff performance against Philadelphia, it was remarkable in that he didn’t per se play guard or forward or centre. he just played basketball all over the court ie he was comfortable where ever he was. I think basketball has evolved more so to where your position – guard, forward, centre, is now much more multifaceted than we see in hockey. I think in hockey we need to make our players more comfortable being multifaceted to facilitate flow of play which to me makes the game so much more enjoyable.
Interesting take. One issue I see is hockey plays a lot faster than B Ball, there is less time to react and adjust. A puck travels much faster and is much smaller
I’m not sure there are enough players that can mentally handle the game played like that. For our Oilers, when the D are moving around the D zone the net front often gets left unprotected and they get scored on like clockwork
Like the last two games, when they have a D guarding / clearing the net front consistently they are much harder to score on
Do the black aces get the league’s minimum salary?
Nobody gets paid during the playoffs.
Not quite, the players get an honorarium that increases with each round of the playoffs. Something along the lines of $10k for a first round exit, up to $125k for winning the Cup.
Not sure how the Black Aces figure into that as I believe that figure is only paid out to active roster players.
Good point, no regular salary, but they do get something (most of them anyway).
Since January 1, the Oilers are 25-7-7, a blistering pace
and 24-5-6 Since January 10th, which is the best in the NHL. AND 13-2-1 since March 1st, when Ekholm joined them, which at .844 points percentage is the best in the NHL.
Jan 10 was when Desharnais made his debut, btw.
Well, there you go. Desharnais and Ekholm. Key pieces. Ekholm is +18 in just 16 games with the Oilers, wow!
An VD is +15 in just 31 games.
I didn’t think VD was ever a positive.
Only when the tests are negative.
56-12-14, 126pts over 82 would be the prorated Desharnais team record.
67-10-5, 139pts over 82 for Ekholm.
This scoring goals and beating people up thing is pretty fun stuff.
For all the “strength of schedule” talk, the Oilers head on the road for pretty much the rest of their season.
I know several of these teams are bottom feeders, but two are not. I’d argue this is a tough trip and chopping it (2-2) would be a good result.
The SOS stats should also consider home / away records.
End of season, a factor is WHO has something important to play for. If you get up on team that has clinched their spot/is resting players, or a team who has a disappointing season vs their initial expectations and is missing the dance, they may have some participants who resign themselves to a lesser outcome, as to them the juice isn’t worth the aqueeze once they fall behind.
Edmonton on the road this year: 23-11-3 (vs 22-12-6 at home – so consistent wherever they play). Rest of schedule: Road to LA (25-9-4 @ home, just whupped them earlier this week so key game but very hopeful), Anaheim 12-22-3 @ home (not losing any sleep on that one – outscored them 15-6 in winning 2 of 3 this year)), San Jose 8-20-10 at home, outscored them 12-5 in two vicories so far this year), Colorado 21-13-5 at home, lost twice to them both in OT 3-4 and 5-6 but they are beatable. And fnally a home game vs San Jose again (14-19-5 on the road, but last game of a miserable season for them so potential roadkill again.). I am not worried much. I would not be surprised to see them beat LA , sweep the weak sisters and possibly take out Colorado as they have a message to send after the WCF last year. 5-1 is my minimum expectation, 5-0-1 or 6-0 very possible.
Dom at the Athletic actually has a great breakdown of this on his points projections page.
It’s based on Average Opponent Projected Points
CAL 74.9
EDM 79.5
SEA 81.6
LAK 90.6
VGK 100.5
COL 82.2
DAL 86.9
MIN 88.5
WIN 94.8
NSH 102.9
Based on this, it appears NSH will almost assuredly miss and CAL has a very good chance of grabbing the last wildcard spot.
EDM, VGK and LAK will most likely duke it out for the Pacific crown but the Oilers most certainly have the easier path while Vegas has the highest mountain to climb.
Home
CAL 67%
WPG 67%
DAL 67%
SEA 57%
MIN 50%
LAK 50%
NSH 50%
COL.33%
VGK 33%
EDM 20%
Worth noting that EDM, DAL, COL and CAL have better road than home records.
Flames are finally getting stops, man I’d love to see them in the playoffs.
That Wednesday game between Calgary who is playing b2b and 3 in 4 nights and rested Winnipeg is probably the one game playoff of who gets in
If Calgary loses that game they have to make up 5 points in 5 games which is almost impossible
Nah.
Calgary has Anaheim on a back to back tonight, then Chicago at home Tuesday before that game and finishes with Vancouver, Nashville and San Jose.
Winnipeg has games remaining against New Jersey, Minnesota and Colorado.
I don’t like their chances at all.
You mean the Nashville team that has a higher points% than Calgary?
Well if you are counting out Winnipeg, I like their chances of making the playoffs even more than ever.
Yeah..me too.
Makes the playoffs much more interesting.
Watching them get destroyed by Colorado makes playoffs interesting? Ok
We need to win Conference then, so we can have a BOA first round, a beat up Vegas or LA in the second round. Love it! A potential rematch with COL for Western Final, but MIN or DAL wold be good series too.
The Wednesday EDM @ LAK is just huge.
If LA beats VCR tonight, they jump over the Oilers with equal games played and will be only 1 point behind VGK with a significantly easier schedule.
LA has the best home record in the WC at 25-9-4 while EDM has an excellent road record 23-11-3.
Should be fun.
Rule number one of sports betting
Dont ever bet on a Minnesota team in the playoffs
… and never get into a land war in Asia. (Inconceivable!)
I only follow one rule: whoever HH picks, I take the opposite.
While the Oilers have made hay at home recently, on the season, they still have a better record on the road.
Seems like outcomes of NHL games and moves up and down the standings is more than just “strength of schedule” – I remember all those rubber roads for the Oilers that just never game. Now I see Winnipeg blow out the Devis the flames losing to the Ducks near the end of two.
Strength of schedule cannot overcome, you know, the flames just not being a playoff caliber hockey team all things considered.
Kostin impressed me last night. Of the bottom 6, he seems to have the best puck skills. He can hold onto it and drive to the net. His edges are good and he has pretty good speed, too. I’m hoping they give him more opportunities and that they re-sign him as I think there is more potential to unlock. He also brings some swagger to the team and is a great interview.
I’d be floored if they don’t re-sign him.
Agree…and get a discount since his second half was not as good as the first.
He is a beast. It must be zero fun defending him. Add to that he can also beat you up
If he can dial things in a bit he is a very helpful player. He’s 23, he has some room to mature his game, I think he will, even if he doesn’t go full Nuge
Not Kostin’s best game but the guy takes full advantage of his limited ice time hitting everything in site. When he gets the puck in the offensive zone he is a handful. He also draws a few penalties taking the puck to the net. On top of all of this he is the teams enforcer and an upgrade on Kassian. Hasn’t lost a fight yet and has surprised a few tough guys with his fists. The only reason he doesn’t play more is because he is still a work in progress in his own end. Seems to stop moving his feet in the defensive zone. Kostin always talks about how much he loves being an Oiler which is a nice contrast from other players who wanted a fresh start on another team. He seems like a guy Holland can bring in next year for around league minimum which would be a big win for the Oilers.
Kostin’s one of the only forwards reminds me of the plucky Oilers teams of the 90s that win or lose (mostly lose) would take their pound of flesh. Especially after Slats yelled at them.
— I’m surprised LT doesn’t receive and/or accept more invites to games : what’s wrong with you people on Edmonton who have season tickets?!!!
I would love it Lowetide attended a game with me.
But I also wouldn’t want to do that to him.
It nwould be on my bucket list also, but I am sure not on his!
Yes people! This man needs to be at every playoff game! Do your thing!
Here’s an idea… if someone wants to QB it. Everyone who donates towards a pair of tickets every playoff game, gets a chance to join LT for the game. Excess proceeds at the end of the playoffs could either go to LT as a thank you, or go to a charity like the Ben Stelter Fund. ANyone in Edonton want to take this on? I am out of country and my access to internet is sporadiic, so I cannot do it, but it would be a worthwhile cause. Maybe the Oilers might even chip in something like box seats, food vouchers or matching funds if approached properly as well….
I think it would be a great way to say thank you to our gracious host who has put up with our collective foibles for so long and provided such an outstanding community for us to enjoy. Lowetidian for Life!
Alternately, we could just buy the tickets, and auction off the chance to join LT for each game, throw in a nice pregame meal and some bux for food and bevvys, I am sure Oilers PR would love to do a small scoreboard intro each game for “LT and friend(s)” perhaps even do a small on air interview with LT and his guest du jour as a possible.
HA! If tix are in sold out or problematic, perhaps they would host him in the owner’s box? C’mon Darryl, it would be fun!!! And great PR for the Oilers at minimal cost as well.
Wonderful watching the Oilers just take care of business as they should against a bottom feeder. Great win, great for the standings and great for the stat sheets.
Don’t see Holland trying to break in Holloway or Lavoie for the playoffs.
Only shuffle I see is McLeod moving back in at 3C
I think what we’ve seen since the trade deadline is the main playoff roster, sans McLeod, with Broberg and Shore/Kostin shuttling back and forth into the lineup depending on whether Woody wants to deploy 11-7 or 12-6 on any given night. Holloway would come into the lineup in case of injuries, and even then he’ll play very limited minutes.
Skinner and Desharnais are the only two rookies that Woody trusts right now.
Next year we’ll see Broberg, Holloway, Lavoie break into the roster with cups of coffee for Philip, Bourgault and Tullio.
Aside from Kane, this year’s team has been very lucky with injuries … also Holland gave Woody a lot of forward depth to work with this year.
Special shout out to Desharnais … manna from heaven … he looks so damn poised out there, it’s easy to forget that he’s a 7th round pick within only 31 games of NHL experience. Holland should prioritize getting him locked up long term this summer.
Definitely.
Holloway may play if/when a couple of injuries hit but I can’t imagine that Lavoie gets introduced to the NHL in the playoffs (yes, I know this has happened). Lets not forget there are experienced NHL players in the AHL – Benson, Malone, Bailey, McKegg, Griffith.
I could see Holloway joining the team for game 1 but I would think they would keep Lavoie playing AHL playoff games until the Condors are done before calling him up (Holloway may as well, we’ll see).
Some nice words on the Nuge here…
https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/20-fantasy-thoughts-nugent-hopkins-flying-under-the-radar-as-he-closes-in-on-two-50-point-seasons/
Regarding Nurse, you know what coincides with “people coming around on his season and value to the team”? The arrival of Ekholm. It was just not sustainable the way the defense was run prior to his arrival, when it was basically one top-pairing facing most of the elite comp while two 3rd pairings attempted to tread water vs. the rest. Notice how the noise around Ceci has quieted also? Same reason. And everyone loves Bouchard now too. Best deadline pick-up since Roloson. And Roloson didn’t make his impact until the playoffs began, so maybe the best deadline pick-up ever.
Having Ekholm also paints us a picture of what it would’ve been like if we didn’t lose Oscar. This defense would’ve been much more balanced for the previous 2 playoffs, and would’ve had $2m more to spend (Oscar’s AAV vs. Ekholm’s). Take a mil from that and imagine Larsson had stayed (so replace Ceci with Larsson)…would we have beaten Colorado last year? Dare to dream.
Yeah, the Klefbom injury set the time table back in a huge way.
Though I’m not sure that Larsson would’ve stayed with the Oilers in the alternate universe where Klefbom doesn’t suffer a career-ending shoulder injury. His decision to leave seemed deeply personal, and not because of his role on the team or his relationships with other players, coaches or management … he just needed a change of scenery, after his father passed. I can relate … I did the same thing after my mom passed.
Totally agree … Nurse-Ceci was being run into the ground (out of necessity) before Ekholm arrived. Desharnais playing like a seasoned vet 31 games into his career has been the other missing piece that has rounded out the D core. I’ll admit, I was worried about the RHD depth chart when Barrie was moved, but Desharnais has really settled my doubts.
I’m really enjoying Nurse’s game lately. Captain Obvious that he is enjoying the newly acquired defenceman. He’s got several important goals lately, career highs and getting his pound of flesh in the corner board battles.
Hopefully this doesn’t spin the blog out of control but I had a look at the top 25 defenceman on the NHL app last night, Nurse sits 25th but comparing some numbers of key players around the league, he’s showing well (Goals/Points/Plus-Minus) among his peers. We know his salary is a little high. A healthy Nurse will be integral to the playoff run.
Nurse stacks up real well by the traditional numbers.
Over the last 3 seasons among Dmen league wide he’s:
25th in overall points
7th in overall goals
10th in even strength points
3rd in even strength goals
4th in shots
10th in plus/minus
12th in TOI per game
1st in SH goals and 3rd in SH points as well
All the while playing the most difficult minutes in the league (the most 5v5+PK TOI/game and the most TOI vs elites, at least over the past 2 seasons).
Ekholm will ease some of those difficult minutes, but what Nurse done over the last few seasons is really impressive if you look at it impartially.
Nurse is a legit #1 d-man in the NHL.
I don’t think any reasonable list has 32 d-men ahead of him (and, without seeing the list you mention, I bet I could argue that he could be a bit higher).
I don’t think he was 100% healthy to start the year (similar to Drai) and his mobility wasn’t quite where it normally is.
He’s been an absolute stud in recent times, and its not the goals, its the improved shut-down play in the defensive zone, the increase nastiness in battle, continuing to be elite defending the rush, etc, etc.
That may be, but Lucic for Neal is close.
It was critical to gaining 3.3MM in cap space since they bought out Neal in the summer of 2021.
Having Lucic put up GF% 41.9 last year and 42.0 this year for CGY is a nice bonus to that trade.
Without Lucic, Calgary would be in the playoffs
There’s a reasonable argument for that.
You misspelled Markstrom
Love your moniker! I was considering getting a Foegelthorpe jersey for my collection!
Sutter is probably the biggest reason the Flames are out right now. Lucic with Huberdeau, not playing Pellitier and Ruzicka and keeping Wolff in the minors
There have been quite a few times where the Flames were down by a goal and within the last 5 minutes, Sutter would still roll out Lucic.
I don’t think the Flames were unlucky by not having any 3rd period comeback wins this season (prior to the other night), I think they were just Milan Sutter’d
Yeah, Treliving really bailed us out there!
Many have argued vigorously (is there any other way?) that the deal hurt the Oilers.
The original signing of Lucic by Chiarelli hurt the Oilers.
Holland mitigated the damage of that contract by trading him for Neal, and then buying Neal out.
The league later made the unprecedented decision to unfairly award Calgary with a pick, even though the actual conditions were never met.
The cap space that was opened up by buying out Neal, allowed the Oilers to sign Hyman … I can live with the end result.
I’m not arguing the point, agree it was necessary and a productive move. I’m saying the opinion is not universal, which I’ve always found interesting.
For me, the deal was necessary in order to open up cap space for immediate improvement but it was an expensive deal.
The Oilers got a bit use out of Neal but, really, they retired $750K for multiple years and gave up a third round pick (yes, I know what the league did there) for the ability to buy out player which the team will still be paying for for many years.
The immediate cap space and the fact the relationship had become toxic (and I think the player’s attitude as well) meant it was necessary and a good trade but it was expensive and remains expensive
I saw the problem as being the Oilers agreed to a contract that was not buyout-able. It was such a bad contract for an NHL team, and acquiring Neal (to buy him out) was a get out of jail free card. As WG mentioned, the bonus is getting Mr. Sutter to play him so much, but that wasn’t part of the trade. 🙂
Don’t disagree on the terms of the Chiarelli signing – just awful.
It was a get out of jail card but it was far from free – the team is still paying for it.
I’ve always taken that to be a reflection of that part of the fan base that so vociferously hates Holland that they can’t see past their biases to properly evaluate the merits of that deal on its long term outcome.
Since we’re being retrospective today:
Milan Lucic was brought in to replace Taylor Hall at LW.
Milan Lucic was traded for James Neal + the NHL gave the Falmes a free 3rd round pick.
James Neal was bought out to open up cap space to sign Zach Hyman.
In Taylor Hall’s best season as an Oiler he put up 80 pts in 75 games.
Zach Hyman has 80 points in 74 games this season.
Proof that Chiarelli is an under-appreciated genius?
Well the capspace cost this season could also be looked as:
Hyman (5.5 million) + retained capspace on Lucic (750K) + buyout cap hit for Neal ($1.9 million) = 8.15 million.
Proof that Holland is a terrible GM?
Next year the effective cap hit to have Hyman on the roster will be 5.5 million for the next 5 seasons. Whereas Taylor Hall is signed for 6 million for the next 2 seasons.
They should’ve kept Hall, but the die was cast by the time Holland became GM. If Hyman remains a valuable contributor for the majority of his contract, then I think Holland will come out looking pretty good in the end … final grade TBD.
(One final thought: I think it gets interesting if one considers the alternate universe scenario where Chia drafted Turtlechuk instead of Jesse … 102 points in 74 games for $9.5 million/season)
If so, they were ridiculously in error.
That trade was great from day one, as I noted on day one.
I’m obsessed with the Punjab goal call “German Juggernaut”….am I the only one who hasn’t heard that nickname for Drai?
He doesn’t call a great game. Having said that it’s tough after listening to Jack every night.
Singh’s a Vancouver guy, who doesn’t really know our team very well. Wish he would just call the game straight without the attempted theatrics, the way Bob Cole used to. Either be a local guy with a genuine passion for our team’s success like Jack is, or be a detached national guy … but don’t try to be both.
Singh was born in Brooks, grew up an hardcore Oilers fan, and went to school in Calgary where he also now lives. Not sure where you got “Vancouver guy” from?
I haven’t commented on this subject, because as a broadcaster I believe it isn’t my place to say “get rid of that guy and put the other guy in” but there is a piece of this discussion that is being missed.
If Jack moves up to call the national games, there’s every chance he calls the Leafs, Habs or Canucks and not the Oilers. Network pbp men call the national game. That isn’t always Edmonton.
I offer this not to disrupt, but to inform. Please return to regular programming.
Ah, I stand corrected. I guess from his work with HNIC Punjabi, I assumed he was from around lower mainland BC. Mea culpa.
I still like Jack better, but honestly I don’t really pay that much attention to what any of the commentators are saying anyways.
It was different back in the day when Oilers games could only be enjoyed over the radio.
Scenarios for a potential call-up of Holloway or Lavoie prior to the end of the season.
Oilers have literally $0 of cap space. Both Holloway and Lavoie are more expensive on the cap than any of Broberg, Shore or McLeod. The first two the only AHL eligible players and McLeod currently eligible for LTIR.
So, essentially, to call either up, it would be two of those off the roster so likely a McLeod LTIR placement along with Shore waived and assigned as I don’t think they’d assign Broberg without a replacement D.
Shore has been such a good soldier that I really don’t think they would do this just to get Lavoie a game in and I think they want Holloway to finish out the season in the AHL – picture of him post-game have bandages, etc. on his shoulder and suction type spots (a sign of therapy I think).
There is another potential thought which would be to activate Murray off LTIR as 7D and send Broberg down – that combined with a McLeod LTIR placement (or Shore down) allow for a recall of Lavoie.
I really don’t see it happening unless there is a really injury fill in need.
Also, when the season is over, are those both automatic call-ups? Maybe Holloway but I do believe they would want Lavoie playing in the AHL playoffs until the Condors are done – then he comes up for “the playoff experience”, right?
Also, on the McLeod LTIR placement, etc., he is going on the road trip. Woody said he doesn’t know when he might play but he’s coming on the trip.
What a treat!
So happy for Campbell. Well-deserved after battling through a tough season.
Is Draisaitl one of the most underrated players of all time? MacT made a helluva pick. Definitely one of the most underrated goal-scorers. He is a three-time 50 goals scorer, but he is known as the league’s best passer.
I also agree with Elliote, Drai is having a fantastic stretch but his play last spring was god-like.
I am so pumped for the playoffs.
I get it, players are human and when you have 3 nights in Vegas the young millionaires will have their fun. Evason said as much.
But damn it Minnesota I needed you to win last night. These Knights can’t be getting free spots on the bingo cards, I want the division!
Seems almost shortsighted too. Do they want to play the Stars or Avs round 1? Maybe they don’t care as long as they’re in.
Prospecty!
A different duo than who toiled yesterday takes to the ice in CHL playoff activity. Chiasson’s Blades will try to avenge getting smoked in their own barn in Game 1, while Petrov’s Battalion seeks a 2-0 series lead when it shifts to Mississauga.
North Bay (Petrov) @ noon
Saskatoon (Chiasson) @ 4 p.m.
Both times, as usual, are Indian Cabins time.
WC standings April 1/23 using points percentage shown as points over/under fake Bettman .500
Pacific
VGK 25
LAK 22
EDM 22
Central
COL 21
MIN 21
DAL 20
Wildcard
SEA 15
WPG 11
Out of playoffs
NSH 9
CGY 9
STL 0
VAN 0
ARI -10
SJS -17
ANA -20
CHI -22
LAK plays their game in hand on EDM in VAN tonight, then EDM plays LAK in LA Tues. GO DYS!!!
WC teams +/- to fake Bettman .500 over the past week:
EDM 4
SJS 3
COL 2
CGY 2
MIN 1
DAL 1
VAN 1
VGK 0
LAK 0
WPG 0
NSH 0
STL 0
SEA -1
ARI -3
ANA -3
CHI -4
Turtle derby the last wild card spot continues with CGY showing some life.
Remember when the Central was all-powerful & the Pacific was the weak sister?
Pacific is the best, Minnesota found out last night
EC standings April 1/23 using points percentage shown as points over/under fake Bettman .500
Atlantic
BOS 47
TOR 25
TBY 19
Metropolitan
CAR 30
NJD 28
NYR 23
Wildcard
NYI 10
PIT 8
Out of playoffs
FLA 8
BUF 6
OTT 3
WSH 1
DET 0
PHI -4
MTL -11
CBJ -21
PIT is looking like they’re going to slide out. Interesting that BUF hasn’t gone away entirely.
“PIT looking like they’re going to slide out”
I am fully supporting this statement. As I for one am tired of seeing them win so much. Move over Crosby and Malkin! Your days are done! It’s time for all to fully embrace the McDavid-Draisaitl duo/team! (This includes those stubborn Eastern Media Outlets with their “Everything Leafs” shtick)
I respectfully disagree… mostly because I would rather see Crosby out in the first round against the Bruins than giving Tkachuk the chance to play at all. Crosby deserves the first round losing spot more.
Plus Crosby vs Bergeron has always been great entertainment.
Oilers Playoff Death March:
Rules:
1 – how many games do the Oilers win during these playoffs?
tie break
2 – how many points do Leon+Connor score combined?
tie break
3 – How many goals does Evander Kane score?
Hunter1909 plays Playoff “deathmarch”
1 – 16
2 – 57
3 – 12
16 wins. I love the Koolaid!
72 combined points
11 goals for Kane.
1 – 16
2 – 79
42 points in 21 games for Connor
37 points for Leon
3 – 10
156 points, that’s the historic target – that would leave us wth a phrase that states: The only players ever to accomplish this were named Wayne, Mario and Connor.
Two points a game, that’s the recent pace and the pace he needs.
Maybe throw one four pointer in there so he doesn’t have to play the last game of the season!
Hey, I have a ticket to that game!
You can watch Bjugstad, Shore, McLeod and Foegle continue to show how deep this team now is and the the bottom six is now a weapon for the team.
156 for Connor, 130 for Drai, 105 for Nuge? I have a dream….
As the failed breakaway chances for Foegele continue to add up and stack upon each other, its becoming more and more clear that he is going to score a massive breakaway goal in the playoffs #1997
He was a turnover machine last night. His first period was maybe his worst as an Oiler.
Every player takes a turn at being a turnover machine, except Nuge of course, Leon takes his turn.
Yup, that line as a trio was poor last night and Foegele was part of that.
I presume they will get right back to being effective starting Tuesday. Foegele (and all 3) have been quite consistently effective for a while now. I’m quite confident is was just a blip.
A la Marchant vs DAL back n the day?
Foggy also has 1 or 2 plays every game in his own end that frighten small children.