I wrote this a few days before Craig MacTavish exited the scene as Edmonton Oilers coach: “(MacT) refused to discuss his future aside from saying it was under discussion with “Steve” and he had the look of a man who was comfortable with his situation. It could mean he’s determined to leave, or it could mean that he’s not staying unless the GM makes sweeping changes. The are some things we can be fairly confident about right now:
No matter who the coach is, the Oilers are going to prune the small forwards. The group that includes Sam Gagner, Andrew Cogliano, Robert Nilsson and Patrick O’Sullivan will not be as deep come the fall. Rob Schremp and Linus Omark have bad timing this summer, since smallish forwards are not in vogue. JF Jacques, Ryan Stone, Colin McDonald, Geoff Paukovich and Ryan O’Marra are forwards with size and as such have an advantage at TC. Even if MacT stays, this will be another season of massive roster turnover.” End of 2009 verbal.
The coach was Pat Quinn and the organization did in fact prune the small forwards. Jacques and Stone had prominent spots on the opening night roster and there was massive roster turnover.
That’s kind of the thing about changing coaches. The new guy isn’t going to put the same value on each individual player, so the procurement process must adjust.
I think Kris Knoblauch isn’t terribly far from Craig MacTavish in terms of the style of player who fits the coaching style deployed. A pile of first-round picks didn’t get far under MacT (Michael Henrich, Michel Riesen, Alexei Mikhnov, Rob Schremp) while a mountain of deep picks (Fernano Pisani, Shawn Horcoff, Kyle Brodziak, Zack Stortini) found their way to NHL careers.
Under Knoblauch, several of the July 1 signings (Jeff Skinner to Andrew Mangiapane) have not fared well, while some less heralded acquisitions (Vasily Podkolzin, Kasperi Kapanen, Jack Roslovic and more recently Josh Samanski) have thrived.
I think Stan Bowman has a real eye for value and can find quality in the later aisles of procurement. What would that look like at the deadline? I think a smaller asset surrender, meaning names like Bobby McMann, Claude Giroux or even AJ Greer would be preferable over another loud noise. This coach has shown the ability to get something out of less famous players, and that reminds me of MacT. It’s a theory not a fact, but Samanski is kind of delivering what Trent Frederic was supposed to, and the list of high priced talent that Podkolzin has bested is growing longer by the day.
Summarizing!
Taking a rare turn at 1C, Wakely scored his 6th plus a helper, going 10-for-13 (76.9%) on draws.
Lafreniere potted his 31st goal and won 9 of 13 draws (69.2%).
Lewandowski scored his 14th.
Park and Barnett each had an assist.
Fischer was not a resoupient.
Prospecting takes a break until overmorrow.
Condors kill a late PP and hold on for a 5-4 win. Good road effort to break that three game losing dream.
Howard with the game winner on the PP one-timer.
Ungar was “OK” stopping 26 of 30 – has come down to earth a bit.
Wild waist high backhand pass across the slot goes off Millman and in.
5-4
Condors with great puck and player movement on the PP for 45 second, Hutson down the wall to Griffith who comes up high, goes cross ice and Howard bombs the one-timer from the slot for the 5-3 lead.
Stilman with a long stretch pass, one-touched at center by, I believe Jones, to a streaking Hamblin who buries it.
4-3
Condor under pressure, Petrov gets the puck but fails to clear, more chaos, a bad rebound by Ungar, a scramble, Ungar slides well out of position, buried – game tied at 3.
Poulin with a great PK stick to break up a pass, feeds D’Amato to start the 2 on 1, back to Poulin, stopped, buries his own rebound.
Nice cross ice pass the Gulls and a wide-open net to tie it up.
Poor recognition by Ungar – very slow to start moving across – it was a LONG pass.
Brown pinches down, Pitlick stop the clear, takes it down low, finds Petrov in the slot who rip one under the bar. Welcome back from the press box Matvei Petrov.
2-1 Condors.
Justin Baily left ALL ALONE in the mid-slot with time to wind up and blast home the 1-1.
D’Aato win the draw, it rimmed around, Jarvenite battles had behind the net, the buck somehow bounces in front and D’Amato bang it in 1:57 in.
What’s your take on D’Amato?
When BAK was in CGY for the last game a friend of mine who’s a legit Oilers fiend said DD was one of the few noticeable players not named Tomkins, but I never seem to hear much about him (either good or bad).
Solid bottom 6 AHL hard working energy guy – he’ll work his way around the AHL until he’s done – not sure he ever gets an NHL contract (let alone NHL games) but will be a good guy to have on your AHL team!
Lepannen not in tonight (was not expected to play both ends of the back to back).
Marjala and Hambln swap – good idea as the top six has been cold – maybe the coach could play Jarventie in the top 6 at some point.
Petrov back in – often a healthy scratch.
Ungar starts.
Is BAK running more of a top-9 or a traditional top/bottom six alignment?
Seems to me like RJ would be a top-6 type player in the AHL…
More of a top 9 I would say – Jarventie is moved all over the middle six
Frank Seravalli
@frank_seravalli
2026 Olympic Men’s Hockey Overall Standings – through Feb. 14:
1. CAN 6 pts (+9 GD) – 1 GR
2. USA 6 pts (+7 GD) – 1 GR
3. SVK 6 pts (+2 GD) – 0 GR
4. FIN 6 pts (+11 GD) – 0 GR
5. SWE 6 pts (+2 GD) – 0 GR
6. SUI 3 pts (0 GD) – 1 GR
7. LAT 3 pts (-3 GD) – 1 GR
8. GER 3 pts (+1 GD) – 1 GR
9. CZE 3 pts (-2 GD) – 1 GR
10. DEN 0 pts (-5 GD) – 1 GR
11. FRA 0 pts (-7 GD) – 1 GR
12. ITA 0 pts (-15 GD) – 0 GR
MORE:
https://x.com/frank_seravalli/status/2022804098806857917?s=20
Canada SHOULD beat France by more than the American beat Germany (without even taking in to account that Canada seems to be playing better as a group so far) but you never know.
Canada could beat France by 10+ if they really wanted to but will they?
The US will go in to their game knowing what margin of victory they need for first seed.
Does McDavid get 5 points to tie the record for points in an NHL participation year, in only 3 games?
Russell is a gamer
US down 2-1 to Denmark after 1.
I have no illusion of the US losing at this point but this game may not be a big blowout and goal differential will likely be the difference between Seeds 1 and 2 between Canada and the US (and 2nd seed is looking like Sweden in the QF).
But #1 seed is looking like Finland in the semi-finals.
Didn’t Slovakia win group B? Which means they’re headed for the quarter finals ahead of Finland.
Slovakis is the #3 seed, Finland is the likely #4 seed,
Got to get past the QF to play in the SF – not that Canada should lose to either but anything can happen in a one-game elimination.
Was just about to say the aged poorly as the US scored three quick ones but Swayman beat from the point (better than getting beat from center) and the US are only up by 1 after two periods.
Denmark up 2-1 on USA after a 90 foot lob goes past Swayman. 50 minutes left in game
Going to intermission, Danes hold off the pressure to keep it 2-1 over the Yanks. Mads Sogaard is the most searched player on Hockeydb as I write this.
Former Oiler Patrick Russell on the ice for the last shift of the 1st defending against the Tkachuk brothers doing Tkachuk-scummy things.
Salo swayman
Who could ever forget Stone being immortalized in the Glen Campbell classic “Ryan Stone Cowboy”…
What a flashback. Wow did we spend a lot of time fretting over a litany of players that collectively didn’t amount to much.
Gagner had talent, but was empty calories and generally outscored and overpaid for his value.
Cogliano was given away ostensibly because he didn’t want to accept diminished role in Edmonton.
Most of this guys were out of the league in a few years.
Interesting times for sure. I remember many heated discussions here as stats were becoming more mainstream, about how size didn’t matter. I did not agree, all things being equal
I even contacted Scotty Bowman for his thoughts through a sports site he was writing for to some extent, in the comments. He actually responded much to my surprise and delight. He didn’t think it mattered so much anymore as the players could skate so well
It was about the time teams were also getting into stats, and we saw a lot more smaller players, especially D. I don’t think it held up in the end (most of the small D didn’t stick), teams have gone back to preferring size, all things being equal
Nik Lidstrom was “small” by your definition at 6’1″ 180.
He managed to win 7 Norris Trophies and, since his last win in 2011, “small” D have won the award 7 times including the the last 5 in a row.
Suggesting they don’t stick is interesting.
Scotty was certainly onto something.
Heh heh. Of course you use one of the best to ever play as a rebuttal. He was light but the height is close to average. NHL has him as 6’1 192
He was also drafted about 3 decades before the period I was thinking of
Scotty knew him very well which likely informed his decision about how size was becoming less of a factor.
While Nik is the best example you shouldn’t ignore the rest of my post.
A D that can control play has far more influence on winning than some brute that is MOAR BIG.
Hell, we can go back to Duncan Keith who at 6’1″ 192 won the Norris in 2010 and since then the big boys are the exception not the rule.
Of course every well constructed D needs balance but it’s hard to find an elite D corp that does not feature a a modern puck moving D and those tend to be below average in size/weight….(and win the Norris almost every season)
D’oh. The Oilers gave away the only one who was small and fast.
Small, slow, and below NHL average shot. That is the trifecta.
Size and speed weren’t the only issues. Most of these guys that suffered from lack of size also had poor defensive reads, lack of adequate back pressure, and poor in zone coverage.
Gagner was tagged with the “also in photo” meme by LT, but all of these guys were as bad or worse defensively.
True
I wonder if they package Stastney, Hutson/Howard/Savoie and a pick to get a good right shot D? That’s a pretty good package but not sure who is out there. They aren’t moving ekholm, Nurse or Walman. I don’t know why they kept acquiring LD.
Emberson, Savoie and Mangiapane for Artem Zub
He’s got trade protection and I’m not sure why Ottawa would move him but he’s my target
Zub was my hard target during the C19 year when we played in the North division.
The time to have acquired him was prior to his extension, can’t see OTT moving him for less than a song.
Note, I may still be willing to sing that tune, depending on the key.
I think we’re on the same page – I was pushing for Zub prior to the extension as well
The thing is, he’s only got 1 more year left on that deal
I’m not sure why Staios would move him either, but crazier things have happened – nobody was talking about Walman at last years trade deadline
I would much rather keep Emberson because I think he can be an excellent third pairing RD.
but Zub does look great. Not sure why they would trade him but I think they need to use some of our assets to grab an RD. Then they have 3 good pairings. That should be priority IMO.
Zub is a right shot D, and yes, that should be the priority. Acquire a RD to play 2nd pair with Walman and bump Nurse down to 3rd pair to play with Stastney/Regula
My comp for Emberson is Matt Benning. That’s not a bad thing, he’s just not the solution for 2RD
Zub is such a stud and brings exactly what this blue line needs. Not likely tho.
Agreed. We finally have a serviceable journeyman-ish RHD for the third pair who won’t be pricing himself out of the position. Keep that or you’ll be looking for it later.
Always liked him for the Oilers. Like a Chris Tanev
That’s a top-tier trade idea.
Zub is the right player profile to partner with Nurse.
Gives the Oilers a proper L-R balance they haven’t had in their top 4 since …
Since January 1st 2025: (grain of salt I might be off by 1 or 2 on the totals)
There have been 41 RHD trades, 38 if you don’t include Ellis and Weber.
There have been 35 LHD trades.
Top 4 options for RHD that have been traded
Rasmus Andersson- wasn’t being traded to Edmonton
Jordan Spence- was not an NHL option when he was traded
Brandon Carlo- not what the Oilers wanted
Jacob Bernard-Docker- wasn’t an NHL option when traded
Noah Dobson- Could not afford to trade for him or pay him.
Seth Jones- fan base would have rioted.
There were 14 trades of bottom pairing defencemen. That’s the options. There isn’t a lot of options to choose from that were realistic or cap friendly enough.
Good defencemen don’t get traded often, especially RHD.
Sounds like a lot but I wish Oil had done something like that very early on with Gags n Nilsson n Shremp – parlayed that early promise into an actual blue chip piece. Centre or Blue preferably. Whatever they do keep the young German.
At last year’s TDL I was intent on Brandon Carlo, had no idea he was available for so cheap.
This year I wonder if going for someone with more hairy ass per 60 might be the play.
Be cheaper on the cap and to acquire given boxcars, but add an element that’s sorely missing.
I haven’t done any kind of deep dive into the numbers (cap or fancies) but some names that come to mind are Luke Schenn, Zack Bogosian, and Erik Gudbranson. Justin Falk always seems to play well against us, with and without the puck, so despite poor numbers in previous years’ assessments he’s still on the back of my mind.
The knock on these guys are typically related to their boots, but given they’re still around I wonder if they have enough left in the tank for a deep Cup run with a specific role (defend the slot, mostly).
If not the more famous names looking for a last hurrah (aka the Holland Tunnel of procurement), who are the younger guys that play a similar role worth a look (the Kulak to Statsney type of move)?
The Brandon Carlo trade was not cheap…and has turned into basically a disaster for the Maple Leafs. Carlo has been a disappointment in Toronto, and that is being kind.
Fraser Minton, a regular at centre this year for Boston, the 2026 first round pick and a 4th round pick.
TOR has been a tire fire — tough to assess if he’s the issue or disproportionately affected by team play. As Woodguy often pointed out, QoT matters a lot, possibly even more than QoC.
Either way, would I have been willing to essentially pay the Ekholm price for a huge top-4 RD who’s cost controlled and helps fill the age donut in roster construction? There’s an argument to be made in its favour. Possibly a strong one.
Agreed. if that move is out there pull the trigger.
I would do Faulk if the price wasn’t too high, he has done well in second pairing minutes on a terrible team. And he still skates well via NHL Edge. But Armstrong is asking a lot for all his guys it seems.
I think Carlo could be had relatively cheap this year – Treliving is a terrible GM, and the TML media have already started sharpening the pitchforks.
Except Carlo is not good anymore.
Boston dumped Frederic on Bowman and Carlo on Treleiving.
Carlo has been injured … that’s not the same as “not good anymore”. He’s been a premier shutdown RHD since the day he entered the league and is the same age as McDavid. He’s a distressed asset because of all the BS that happens around the TMLs.
Let’s have some Saturday morning fun and get crazy.
Rumours seem to be that Oilers and Maple Leafs are ready to do business with the Oilers linked to all of OEL, McMann, and Roy.
What’s the cost to acquire all three?
Oilers get:
OEL
McMann
Roy
Some money retention
Maple Leafs get:
Mangiepanie
Henrique
Howard
Samanski
2027 First
2027 Second
Yay or Nah?
Propose your own. I’m keen to read them.
That would be Milbury GM level bad.
That would be a Misadventure that could be fatal.
Toronto always seems to overvalue their players. Much like what Edmonton did in the decade of darkness.
This is getting downvoted badly … but I totally see the value in what you’re proposing. Oilers fans have been over-valuing our prospects since Steven Rice and Louie Debrusk were prospects.
It’s very unlikely that Howard has a career better than Sam Gagner, and it is more likely that Semanski is back playing in Europe after his current deal is up. The 2027 1st and 2nd will be 4-6 years away from contributing.
Meanwhile we get rid of two bad contracts, one with term left on it and get a LW with size and speed that can play up and down the lineup, and a big RHC who can play on our third line.
The only thing I would change about your proposal would be to swap OEL for Carlo … we don’t need another LHD trying to play his offside. I’d much rather have a big RHD who can anchor our PK, which has been terrible since Ceci left. Also, it wasn’t that long ago that OEL was completely washed … then he got a Ring in Florida on their third pair, and everyone here pines for him again. I don’t get it.
I’d also want to discuss extension with McMann first to make sure that he doesn’t want the moon on his next deal.
Also, if there is any way to send Frederic along instead of Semanski, then just getting rid of that coke machine would be a huge win.
I suspect the downvotes are more for sending away draft picks. In the current market it’s not rational to give away high draft picks unless you’re getting a lot in return for low cost.
I’d argue dumping 2 bad contracts and getting 3 players that could improve your lineup is a lot in return. BTW – Leaf’s fans would probably laugh at your guys trade suggestions, except that they also know that Treliving is a terrible GM, so anything is possible.
Last year there was serious chatter about Rantanen. If we’re shopping in that aisle I’d have time to consider Robert Thomas.
This and Armstrong owes us!!! lol
Thomas is only going somewhere if a top centre prospect, say something like Michael Hage, is coming back in the deal.
The money for him ended up going to Bouch. Part of the trade was for Bouch. I think that would have been a bad trade
Bouch is more valuable to the Oilers than Rantanen would be or Thomas.
Unfortunately, as of now, they are being directed to the Michael McCarron aisle.
Any updates on Henrique? Is it possible we will have enough room to acquire at the deadline and keep Henrique in the press box for playoffs? If not, might that understanding encourage him to reconsider his no-move?
Henrique is to be activated coming out of the break per all the intel including Stauff.
If the Oiler can find some cap to acquire a real contract, they have the “luxury” of some bigger AAVs to sit in the playoff but there is currently no cap space for that add.
They asked Henrique in the off-season and, from accounts, he had zero interest in waiving – I don’t imagine that has changed.
Prospectalentine!
A Sexteturday beckons.
Barnett was the only NAmateur to light the lamp anoche*. Since his return from the WJHC, he has 4-2-6 in nine GP. He has also been playing RD since the calendar flipped. Is his spike because of the switch to RD, or settling in at the college level? Makes ya think…
Fischer’s next point will tie his career-best 19 from yesteryear.
Lewandowski’s next point will give him 50.
Michigan (Park, Barnett) @ 3 p.m.
Notre Dame (Fischer) @ 4 p.m.
UMass-Lowell (Wakely) @ 4 p.m.
Saskatoon (Lewandowski) @ 6 p.m.
Kamloops (Lafreniere) @ 7 p.m.
All times, at all times, are Mundare time.
*Spanish for “last night”, pronounced “a-NO-cheh”.
Ahhh, yes. Mundare.
The place where the locals speak softly but swing a big… sausage.
Any chance you can pick up some sausage while in Mundare? It’s kinda the best
Vegreville, which is only a short distance from Mundare, also has a meat shop on main street that has excellent sausage.
I’ve actually tried Stawnichy’s, and it’s indeed good. My wife’s folks usually have some in their fridge when we visit.
I like to tease my wife that the Ukrainian Co-op in Regina makes better sausage, to which she makes strenuous denials. (In the interest of preserving marital harmony, I practice said teasing sparingly.) In reality, they’re pretty damn close IMO.
If you (singular and plural) are ever in Regina, give it a try.
The Ukrainian Co-op is our go to for sausage. Their smokers are going all the time! We love their triple garlic sausage. I’ll be stopping by the Ukrainian Co-op in the coming days.
Having had both in quantity, I would kindly (but firmly) suggest that Dale’s offerings at Tofield Packers are superior in both price and flavour. His jerky is also top shelf.
So much good info today!!!!
I think they can probably afford 1 bigger move if they unload Magpie. I doubt Henrique will waive his clause. I do think this team is small for playoff hockey on that current 3rd line.
Can Freddy really start going where he could move up? Who knows.
Stauffer now says the #1 choice appears to be a D man . Probably a right hander for the 2nd pairing. Hopefully it’s a big one that can punish guys in front and make good passes.
Ideally this team changes its defensive structure and Especially its breakouts. Knobby said they were going to make some changes, so let’s see what they are I guess.
Going to be an interesting 2 weeks in the trade world once they get back and the freeze is lifted
They can certainly use a solid RHD to slide in on the second pair. But they also need to boulster that third line somehow.
Put Nuge at 3C which will bolster the 3rd line and put one of Savoie, Howard or Roslovic in the top 6.
Tough to see any material add unless they can rid themselves of Mang fairly clean or their is a season long LTIR placement of a real contract.
So glad to hear this. And I called it earlier this week.
Seravalli absolutely roasted Nurse on Bobs show. And then Stauff replayed it a couple times. Stauffer doesn’t do things by accident. I think Nurse is gone by the start of next season and Walman/new guy will be the new second pairing.
And to be honest it’s just common sense. A new 2RD that can PK will be 20 minutes a night. There’s no world where a 3C gets more than say 14-15 on this team with 97/29/93/18 playing 90 of the 170 or so minutes of ice time available.
It’s about time the MSM started throwing shade on Nurse. Forget the contract … he just sucks now. Addition by subtraction. Time to sharpen up the metaphorical pitchforks and railroad him out of town before the window to win with McDavid and Draisaitl closes.
An upset at the Olympic hockey tournament as Latvia beats Germany 4-3.
Draisaitl with 1 assist.
That’s not an upset any more than Slovakia beating Finland – Latvia is a strong hockey nation with world class goaltending.
While the goaltending is a strength, the rest of the lineup features only 3 active NHL players.
Germany has 8.
Looks like an upset to me.
We all know exactly why you think it’s such an upset. Just go away. Please. For the love of God.
Germany got goalied.
That is not really an upset. They are two pretty equal teams.
Germany is ranked 8th in the world…Latvia 10th.
I agree. I see easy tiers:
Tier 1: Canada, US
Tier 2: Sweden, Finland
Tier 3: Germany, Latvia, Czechia, Slovakia, Switzerland
Tier 4: Denmark
Tier 5: Italy, France
Tiers with ranking inside tiers:
Canada
US
Finland
Sweden
Czech
Switzerland
Slovakia
Latvia
Germany
Denmark
Everyone else
It’s got to sting for Draisaitl, but those are close teams. Is it the top two teams in groups that continue to the elimination stage, or top 3? If it’s top 2 then Germany might have to do well against the USA, which could be difficult.
All the teams continue on past the preliminary round.
The winners of each group and next top team in points from the preliminary round get byes.
1-4 byes
Then, 5-12 playoff to get down to the final eight 5-12, 6-11, 7-10, 8-9.
There is no reseeding.
1 vs (8/9)
2 vs (7/10)
3 vs (6/11)
4 vs (5/12)
The preliminary round is just for ranking and seeding purposes.
Thanks.
Elliotte Friedman
@FriedgeHNIC
Finland beats Italy 11-0, outshooting them 62-15.
Group B:
1) Slovakia
2) Finland
3) Sweden
4) Italy
Big goal differential puts Finland in excellent spot for the 4th seed — the final bye into the quarterfinal
I believe Slovakia has won group B with a GD (amongst games with Sweden and Finland) of +1, Finland has a GD of 0, and Sweden has a GD of -1. (All lthree teams being one win, one loss). And will likely be the #3 seed.
You are right and Finland probably has a good chance at the 4th seed.
If Finland is the #4 seed, it might be preferable to be the #2 seed than the #1 seed.
Well, the preliminary round is also for 4 teams getting a bye to the QF and not having to play an extra qualifying game….
Unfortunately for Drai and the Germans they have Grubby in net
Grubauer has a .916 in 22 games for Seattle of the NHL this season.
Drai played over 28 minutes today…..
Samanski just over 20.
Elliotte Friedman
@FriedgeHNIC
One update from last night: Kevin Fiala is having surgery this morning in Italy.
No clarity yet on exact injury, but, unfortunately, it will be season-ending.
All the best to him in his recovery.
That is a tough loss for LA. He is out for the year. Now they will have to go hard after another offensive forward for sure
Might be a stretch but I wonder if they might take a run at Auston Matthews.
The California boy might want to go home and the Leafs look like they’ll be embarking on a very painful rebuild.
“California Boy”
Such deep ties to Cali since he moved away when he was an infant.
What, you don’t have fond memories of where you lived when you were two months old?
Like shooting fish in a barrel.
A guide on how to post as HH:
1) be wrong
2) get corrected
3) try to save face “heh, got you guys”
4) declare victory
Scottsdale is in California?
Cap space may keep Bowman relatively quiet at the deadline.
I mean, from all accounts, Henrique I being activated coming out of the Olympic break and, as of now, even with Samanski and Pickard assigned to the AHL, the Oilers still need to find $100K in cap space in order to activate him – that means someone assigned or waived/assigned to the AHL unless there is a trade or a new LTIR injury.
Maybe Bowman has a trade worked out for Mang but, if not, do they waive Mang and send him down – they would be able to bring up Samanski if they did that. Maybe it’s Janmark but that seems unlikely (if not warranted). Savoie? No way, he’s PK1. Lazar? Maybe but it would not let them call-up Samanski.
Unless they can trade Mang without real cap back or retainment its tough to see too much happening at this deadline.
Unfortunately this coach seems to love Janmark and probably will argue the GM ( lol) on moving him. Janmark has been terrible in all aspects of his game in the last while. I would hope he is traded , if they bring in a mid 6 forward that can pk as well as be larger, hits and can play up and score
Stan needs to go Moneyball and trade Janmark away so KK stops playing him
Agree. Coach likely won’t let Janmark go given how much he over-trusts him (and still thinks he’s an option in the top 6 every once in a while).
Tough to see him traded given he’s over-capped by apx $400K with another year of term.
Another negative value contract.
Interesting take LT. Given the way he has them playing I’m not sure how it works out, I would like to see their system get at least a tweak
System needs a few big tweaks. Breakouts are terrible as is the D system play in our zone .
The scuttlebutt coming off social media seems to indicate that the Oilers have changed plans from acquiring a Top 6 F and instead looking for a Top 4 D to stem the bleeding on the back end. I agree with your Athletic article and there will be a flood of activity after the Olympic roster freeze
Do wonder who they are targeting?
Unfortunately, the Oiler don’t even have room for their current roster with Henrique about to be activated and need to find over $100K of cap space to get compliant (so send someone down – if its Janmark or Mang they can call up Samanski) – going to be tough to make any material acquisition unless someone goes on LTIR.
Mang disposed of clean would be key but that seems increasingly unlikely without real pain.