Watching Connor McDavid for more than a decade is one of the greatest entertainment experiences of my life. His ability to combine breathtaking speed, hand-eye coordination, creativity and execution are unequalled in my time watching the game (I saw Howe in the 1960’s).
McDavid in Edmonton has been a gift. I’m absolutely in awe of his exceptional talents every time I see him live. I’ve seen some great concerts, from the Rolling Stones to Genesis to Tina Turner (twice, she was the single greatest musical performer I’ve ever seen) and McDavid is as entertaining as any of them.
McDavid’s career has coincided with great knowledge for fans, meaning we can track his salary and his performance. That’s good and bad. Good, because I want to have as much information as possible. Bad, because it’s frustrating to watch perhaps the greatest player ever fall short annually in pursuit of the Stanley Cup.
WHAT TO EXPECT IN OCTOBER
- At home to: Calgary, Vancouver (Expected 2-0) (Actual 1-0-1)
- Road: Rangers, Islanders, Devils, Detroit, Ottawa (Expected 2-2-1) Actual 1-3-0
- At home to: Montreal (1-0)
- On the road to: Seattle, Vanouver (1-1)
- At home to: Mammoth, Rangers (1-0-1)
- Expected Record: 7-3-2, 16 points in 12 games
- Actual Record: 2-3-1, five points in six games
The Oilers are not yet the sum of their parts, and part of me feels there’s a tug-of-war going on for the soul of this team. You see, Kris Knoblauch is a button-down coach and his team features men with wings to fly. I don’t know if this idea rolling around in my brain is true, but do know the on-ice results look like a team featuring an uncertain thoroughbred. Whatever Kris Knoblauch is doing that makes Captain McDavid look like Captain Ordinary needs to be taken out behind the barn and ended. Leave the gun, take the cannoli.
I think the Oilers explode for a pile of goals one of these nights, perhaps it’s this one. Kasperi Kapanen is out for the game and perhaps quite a bit longer, this would be a good time to give Matt Savoie some five-on-five minutes with one of the Glimmer Twins.
For the record, McDavid-Savoie have been together for seven minutes at five-on-five, with an 8-4 shot advantage. The team’s five-on-five save percentage is .916, good for No. 10 in the NHL. Shooting percentage is 6.02, that’s No. 28 in a 32-team league. The Oilers should ‘Sonny at the Causeway’ the Senators tonight, but hockey is a damnable game of luck, fury, exhaustion and timing. I love it very much.
On the Lowdown today, Rachel Kryshak, CTO of Betalytics and ESPN contributor will make a special Tuesday appearance to talk about her Blue Jays and their big win last night. While she’s there, I’ll ask about expectations for Oilers-Senators. Then we’ll run phone lines all the way to the nation’s capital to speak with Daniel Nugent-Bowman at The Athletic. We’ll check the temperature of a team that has been on the road for a long time without getting much done. It’s round table day, so Declan, Donovan, Josh and Sam will be along to air grievances. Noon to 2pm, Sports 1440 and You Tube.
My kingdom for KK to staple Howard to McDavid’s wing and Savoie to Drai’s for like 6 weeks.
Or vice versa.
Jusy give them the reps and let’s have fun for a change. Both were great against Ottawa.
It would be exciting to see (and probably would lead to more excitement on the ice) – I think we all know the chances of this coach even doing it for a period is extremely low.
Yes I am getting way ahead of myself. This would first require splitting McDrai and keeping them on their own lines.
Who’s the 23/24 yr old RHC that Bob’s talking about the Oilers acquiring?
Rempe? Dach? Weisblatt? The rest of the options are pretty meh.
Draft years 2019 and 2020 that would reasonably be available. NHL.com didnt filter for age, just draft so undrafted wouldnt be there.
What a pedestrian start to the season by McDavid and Draisaitl.
McDavid 25th in pts, with 1/2 of Eichel’s point production.
Between the 2, only McDavid had had a multi-point game since the opener against Calgary.
If there was ever an opponent to get the offensive mojo going against, this would be the one. Gift-wrapped PP in OT and almost scored against 3-on-4 on 2 occasions. Not getting it done ES or PP.
This start to the season, I get it, optimistically, is better than previous 2 in the P% column. But this one has a different feel, and I am not sure if a turnaround is coming without the 2 C thriving apart on ES and together on the PP, neither of which is happening.
McDavid is actually tied with 9 other players for 37th at 1.14 P/GP.
Draisaitl is tied for 78th with 9 other players at .86 P/GP
Very likely those numbers improve substantially as the season progresses.
I didn’t notice Frederic begin even remotely close to physical all night, or anyone else for that matter. Nice to get the two points but man, this team is nowhere close to playing like a contender to start the season. I hope that they wake up soon or it’ll be a short season. The look so disjointed and disinterested, no jam or connectedness. I hope that’s because we’re almost done training camp 😏 I hope that when Hyman returns that his work ethic is contagious, they’re just not playing with any intensity at all.
#NeverInDoubt
Big faceoff win by Savoie.
Both 21 year olds contribute offensively.
Middle of the lineup scores a big goal as requested.
Seeing Savoie live, man he’s got jets. He battles so hard along the boards
He should be paired with McDavid
Well look at that. Win a draw and simply rip the puck in the top half of the net
This 2 min PP1 has to end!
I’d start PP2 for next PP to send a message
It’s a good thing it wasn’t a 4 minute PP.
start taking applications for pp1. Walkman takes Bouch spot to start next time.
Another brick in the Walman to seal the deal!
From Ekholm and Savoie.
So Walman did make a difference…….. Yea!
The German not feeling it just yet.
Ottawa stinks, they’ve given up 30 goals in 6 games. Oilers are soft and should be embarrassed.
Yep, talent level isnt even close without B kafuk
Absolutely, you wouldn’t want to give Oilers credit for a win.
That would be like being positive.
Point banked!
The rush that just happened feels like the first time this season I’ve seen Drai skating the puck up the ice rather than coasting looking to pass.. maybe the start of getting the big German going..
Nothing but stop ups and drop passes. Someone put their shoulder down and drive the damn net!
Forwards also avoiding contact at all costs
That was probably Bouchard’s best play of the year – a good defensive play stoping the rush and then transitioning the puck up for a fast break forward.
Should be a regular occurrence.
This is line 1 in his job description
We could use some snarl on the back end. Would love me a J Smith or Beukaboom these days.
There is zero snarl on this team.
It is fascinating how small the team became over the past year or two. I really don’t understand the procurement strategy at times
Oh boy it’s a glaring team weakness. This is supposed to be Darnell, but that part of his game has been declining for a while now.
Bowman only wants puck movers though. Which shouldn’t mean that they don’t need to defend hard!
Hell I’d take Sarah Nurse over Darnell right now.
Tonight’s “Hit of the Game” was Walman essentially bumping into a Sen along the boards.
That should tell you just how soft this team is.
It’s not just a Nurse. Wallman plays a tough game, so does Ekholm. Emberson isn’t as big but was among our most consistent hitters last season and is certainly not afraid of contact.
Degensemen that hit but can’t skate or move the puck just can’t play in today’s NHL. The hard hitting defensive defenseman whose only play is to whip the puck up the boards is a thing of the past. Just like there are hardly any players who are only there to fight.
Hyman was doing enough hitting for the entire team
Not worried so much about hits. How about starting with making the Oiler net front a hard place to get to instead of a coffee room for the opposition
Time for the middle of the lineup to step up and score a goal: Podz, Frederic, Savoie, Roslovic, Henrique – someone.
Would be far more likely if the team had their best centers playing center.
Nah, that’s crazy.
Man, that D zone coverage on goal 2 was awful all around. All 5 fixated on the puck, 1 hand stick waving, covering no one
Should add another weak ass grenade thrown behind the net by Emberson to avoid contact at all costs to begin the pain
D running for the hills at any sign of pressure
Could not believe two Sens were allowed to stand shoulder to shoulder top of the blue paint and no Oiler attempted to move them??????
Didn’t even attempt to get under their sticks to at least make a tip more difficult.
I guess maybe they were hoping to block the shot, but they were both off to the sides!
Oilers have 14 shots, no matter what else this is not how you win at hockey.
Awful systems.
Doesn’t help when they over pass and fail to get a shot. Like Howard’s shooter mentality. Winning more puck battles would also help. This team is out of sync for sure.
Is it illegal to provide some resistance to opposition setting up shop at the top of the crease?
All 2 needed to do was take 2 strides to get it on his forehand for an easy hard clear. Instead its a soft backhand to ensure he was well clear of any contact.
Then he backs over to the weak side covering no one allowing an uncontested lane to the net
So no mention of Ekholm losing the battle (along with the forward, can’t remember who)?
Also a weak effort. Alligator arms. Avoiding contact at all costs
Also an issue. Ek on the wrong side of the play. But the puck shouldn’t have been in the zone. Primary error was 2
Kulak and Emberson might as well have handed them a chair, ala George Costanza with the store security guard.
That was truly brutal defending!
Stu needs a Stolarz moment. Piss poor start, effort wise, by the Oilers to start this period. Stu needs to be heard at the bench on this break.
This is where Mike Smith was one of my favorites. He’d rip his D a new one mid play after the first weak ass play
Loved those outlet passes. A really nice skill to have in the goalie toolbox.
Stuart Skinner is not an NHL starting goaltender. I’m at ice level and there’s just so many baffling or slow decisions that he makes. The team is disconnected, I know, but we need a true number one goalie.
Based on what tonight?
No goalie is able to fight through THAT screen and find that puck that went off the post and in.
Please.
I thought his processing the game looked slow on TV, it’s even slower live. He just looks lost, he just doesn’t track the play fast enough. Slow to react. Just my observation
Fair enough but I haven’t found that at all this season – almost the opposite.
I find with the exception of the Rangers game, where he was excellent; he looks better, I think that’s only because he’s mostly making the saves that he should be making anyway. I still don’t believe that he’s our starting goaltender when McDavid hoists Stanley.
Yep – watching him live on all but his very best nights, this becomes obvious.
I get Bowman doesn’t want to tank Skinners value when the trade happens yet I’ve never seen a Oiler Goalie recieve so much rope by the organization and especially local media.
Pretty much no chance on that one – 4 bodies, no-one moving the Sens players, off the post and in.
Bad penalty by Nurse and the Sens are back in the game.
Stu looking good this season – Calgary moment excluded.
Winning goal last game as atrocious – that’s the only bad goal he’s let in (Calary was a puck handling gaffe), in my opinion. Agree, goaltending’s has not been near an issue.
In fact, Stu is above expected per Woodley coming in to tonight.
Disagree with both of you, I am not a Stu hater, trust me, I want to see him succeed as much or more than anyone, but the fact is he CANNOT be counted on. It might not even be a Stu thing, but this team clearly folds under him, especially after a bad goal, which are far too frequent, what is unfortunately far to frequent is him letting in so many wtf goals… he can look like a Vezina candidate for 53 minutes, let in a meh goal, the team folds and then everything goes down hill from there. But it isn’t working has not worked and therefore will likely never work.
Does anyone who watches other teams play regularly know if there is another team in the league with a PP1 that stays out for the entire time virtually every time? I think this is not ok. If you cannot skate hard and battle for every puck you should get yourself to the bench for PP2.
Colorado often does.
Don’t need to take that penalty Darnell – Stuzle had no angle to the net and you had support.
nurse isnt playing well at all … its not even up for debate
Playing with Kulak??
anyone
Shocking that when they put a shooter (Ike) with McDrai that good things happen.
They didn’t put Howard with them – he came out of the penalty box and the scoring chance presented before he had a chance to get off……
I know that it was circumstantial, I was referring to having a shooter with the glimmer twins is a good thing. Maybe KK will notice 😂
And HS him for three games?
For being the Oilers’ PBP team, Jack and Louie sure spend lots of time shining up the opposition, regardless of game state or how good/bad the opposition is.
Why is that?
I don’t know what them talking about the good parts of the opposition bothers so many.
They see the Oilers every day and call every game and talk about all the great on the Oilers daily
They see the Sens twice a year and it makes sense to hear about the great start of Pinto and other positive things on the Sens.
10.5 million dollar pressures getting to Bouch? he doesn’t look as confident lately
Pretty much the same as every start to the season – Bouchard always sucks early.
Well same could be said for 9.25 Nurse and 14 Drai and even 12.5 McDavid. None yet at their best. Bouch far from alone!
Second period sag happening. Sens with some good chances.
Oiler goalies remain perfect on two on nones!
Missing the game tonight.
That explains the early lead.
What’s going on with Bouchard?
His TOI is lagging.
Kulak is playing the most.
Things are looking good. Please stay away!!
i think hes having a early season funk 😕 he hasn’t looked with it so far
Stu!!!!! Big save!
Great save by Stu – big save.
Iceman can shoot !
First career goal for Issac Howard – Love it
the GF/60 for Howard/McDavid/Drai is off the charts…….
Ike with a spike!!!
Howard ain’t no coward when it comes to rip the pill.
After that penalty, Howard is now trying to win the Holdby Baker Award.
And there’s his first NHL goal.
He is arisen.
So 97 can shoot!
That’s a relief.
Tough save for Stu after having only seen one shot – point blank on the 2 on 1 – solid save.
That’s not a penalty, that “crosscheck” happens 50 times a game, no?