Back in the days I played top 40 as a music radio broadcaster, I liked to play the hits. Program directors were (correctly) worried about burning out a song that was on its way to being a hit, but I never cared. There was a two-hour ‘no play’ zone on every record, so if the on-air person before me played ‘When Doves Cry’ in his last hour, I could only play it once during a four hour show. Screw that noise, I want to play the hits! I can’t tell you the number of meetings I had over this specific issue. Young people tend to be headstrong and in that way I was head of the class. Please read this.
The Edmonton Oilers are like that, you know. They just want to play the hits.
WHAT TO EXPECT IN MARCH
- At home to: OTT, CAR (Expected 1-1-0) 1-1-0
- On the road to: VEG, COL, DAL, STL (Expected 2-2-0) 2-1-1
- At home to: NAS, SJS, FLA, TBAY (Expected 2-1-1)
- On the road to: UTA, VEG (Expected 1-1-0)
- At home to: ANA, SEA (Expected 1-1-0)
- Expected Record: 7-6-1, 15 points in 14 games
- Actual Record: 3-2-1
- Season Record: 32-26-9, 73 points in 68 games
You might think I’m going to go off on the overtime GA, but for me the Oilers had a pile of chances in overtime and sometimes you need to give the other man his due. The St. Louis Blues have some players, and those players bested Edmonton in overtime. No, the problem for Edmonton came in the last half of the third period. The club simply cannot defend worth a damn and that’s going to be the story of the season. One year ago, they could outscore enough mistakes to damn near make it to the finish line. This year? The Oilers don’t have the horses.
- Savoie-McDavid-Hyman 13:07, 9-7 shots, 1-0 goals, 50X, 4-2 HDSC
A new line made necessary when RNH missed the game, and the new originals did some good things. McDavid scored, Savoie picked up an assist and Hyman led the club with four HDSC’s. I’m encouraged by Kris Knoblauch’s choice to elevate Savoie. It’s an interesting wrinkle.
- Podkolzin-Draisaitl-Kapanen 10:54, 5-5 shots, 1-0 goals, 51X, 2-2 HDSC
The Draisaitl pass to Kapanen, and the finish, is why hockey is the best sport on the planet. Draisaitl’s quick look, and then gorgeous dish are the kinds of things that make the big man tower over the competition. Sublime.
- Samanski-Dickinson-Roslovic: 9:09, 0-3 shots, 0-1 goals, 26X, 1-3 HDSC
Not much rhymed offensively for this trio, there were good boots and battle but you need to deliver a shot on goal in nine minutes of playing time. Both Roslovic and Samanski contributed HDSC’s, and Dickinson contests everything and I love it. Need to outscore. Dickenson is 2-3 goals since arriving (40 percent), the team is 44 percent without him since the trade (both totals five-on-five via Natural Stat Trick).
- Jones-Henrique-Frederic: 7:30, 7-0 shots, 100X
That’s a fantastic result for a fourth line. Max Jones can play, and he showed it last night. Frederic had a couple of shots on goal, he looks better in recent weeks and one imagines he will be a player the coach can count on in the playoffs. Getting Connor Brown vibes from the improvement, although the two are different player types.
- Nurse-Murphy 16:13, 12-7 shots, 0-1 goals, 52X, 2-2 HDSC
- Ekholm-Bouchard 15:13, 9-3 shots, 85X, 5-0 HDSC
- Walman-Stastney: 14:00, 3-2 shots, 0-1 goals, 46X, 2-3 HDSC
Three things stand out for me. First, Nurse-Murphy are playing too much. The die is cast on this roster, the puck needs to be heading north or it’s death valley days for all involved. I’m more than happy to see the duo player together and develop chem in time for the playoffs, but the coach should back them off in terms of minutes.
Second, I think you have to credit the Blues a little. The Ekholm-Bouchard pairing dominated at five-on-five but couldn’t cash. Maybe a little luck and a quality goalie, but part of last night’s story involves the other side. Paul Coffey needs to play this pairing more at five-on-five.
Finally, Jake Walman was 2-0 in five-on-five outscoring when away from Stastney. He was 1-0 with Bouchard in 33 seconds, and 1-0 with Murphy in 13 seconds. A coincidence for sure, but interesting.
It is a waste of energy to get upset over a team that has shown you what they are. This edition of the Oilers is identical to the 2016-17 edition of the team, save for one important fact. Back then, it was Cam Talbot stopping enough pucks to keep the game close and McDavid-Draisaitl outscoring the mistakes. Now, it’s McDavid-Draisaitl outscoring mistakes, but Cam Talbot isn’t here. I thought Connor Ingram played well enough to win, hope the Oilers run him heavy as the starter down the stretch.
CONDORS
The veteran AHLers are leading the charge now, Seth Griffith is having another fine year after looking ragged not many years ago. James Hamblin is enjoying a strong run and Max Jones saw NHL action last night. I think the kids should get a second wind here in the weeks to come, but the accomplishments in the first half for the new pros should not be overlooked.
Connor Clattenburg returned to action, he’s a bona fide prospect who could see NHL action over the coming weeks. I see a lot of comments about things he should change, and will push back vehemently. His future role lines up with his current playing style. Physical, aggressive, surprising finesse but no fancy stuff just balls out hockey. Don’t change a thing young man. You’ll be a legend before you know it. Remember the words of Harry Neale: “When crushers become rushers they soon end up as ushers.”
Vegas beats Chicago 4-0 to retake 1st in the Pacific….but..
ANA – .568
VGK – .567
SJS – .547
UTA – .552
EDM – .545
SEA – ,531
LAK – .523
Didn’t watch the third but Regula scored twice in the last two minutes – both wrippers from the right circle.
Summarizing!
The bad news: no soup was awarded tonight.
The good news: both Michigan and St. Thomas won, advancing to their respective conference finals.
Also, Lafreniere had a game-high 9 SOG to go along with a 9-for-13 (69.2%) showing on the dot.
From Bruce Curlock on Twitter
we are 5th in xGF% since the Olympic break behind
Dallas
Carolina
Vegas
Columbus
and 4th in xGA/60 behind
Dallas
Vegas
Carolina
Actually I don’t know when the Olympics were but this data is from Feb 25 to now
The 15th shot makes it 5-0 – just an awful goal on Tomkins (who has let the last two in relief).
Sounds like the net minders crapping the bed??
A wrist shot from the very top of the circles on the PP is stopped by Pickard but the rebound is juicy and its 4-0.
Condors dominating but they leak the 3-0 on a 2 on 1 against the flow of play – the feed cut out on the rush and as they showed the replay but it looked like the attacker was shooting from the top of the circles.
Thanks for the updates. Doesn’t sound like Picard helping his case to be recalled….(Not that is a likely scenario)
Condors have carries the flow of play and have given up 13 shots and are down 4-0.
Pickard bowled over after a sloppy rebound – PP upcoming but Leppanen won’t be on it as he grabbed the guy and they traded punches – it was a fight but Leppanen’s gloves were not dropped – no hesitation from Leppanen.
Texas comes down on a one-on-one and Pickard is beat clean from the face-off dot and its 2-0 just over a minute in.
Pickard with a poor clearing attempt, the puck is turnover over, the point shot is blocked down and the puck is deposited over the shoulder for a 1-0 deficit just over 20 seconds in.
Condors back to 12/6 tonight with Pickard starting.
Marjala between Jarenite and Howard, Clattenburg where I suggested a few days ago, with the vets Hamblin and Griffith and Hutson playing with Poulin and Pitlick.
Ducks lost in regulation to Ottawa earlier today.
Ducks got screwed on a goalie interference challenge, which would have kept the game at 1-0. Good for the Oilers that challenge didn’t go the Ducks way. I thought for sure the goal would get overturned, but it was another example of the mystery that is GI.
The league (Parros) fuked up on the Gudas 5 gamer so they wanted to show the masses they aren’t biased.
Sharks win 4-2 at the Bell Centre and move into a playoff spot.
Celebrini with 2G 1A
FWIW Button top NHL affiliated prospects not playing in the NHL
Howard 37th
And behind a certain former oil prospect
Sam O’Reilly? Howard has been fading a bit – 4 points, -5 in his last 10
What type of GM do we want? I liked the O’Reilly pick, projected as a solid two way 3C. Thing is, you can get those a lot of ways. It’s been mentioned today there aren’t elite prospects in the system. The team lacks shooting scorers, especially ones that are higher status pre NHL, ie higher talent
Isn’t that the type of deal we have been talking about here for years? A analytical type move? Mid range for potential higher end?
Yes I liked the Howard trade. Just pointing out he has been cold recently. Though I think the team in general has as well.
Bummed out he didn’t get traded to a team that would give him a fair chance.
How does that jive with the fact that his down turn started well before the deadline and his play has picked up post deadline.
The new elite defensive 3rd line center didn’t cover his man on (I believe) the first GA.
Two big gaffes in two games directly leading to goals against.
Sample size is fantastic
Off topic, but what the heck are the Oilers doing with Roby Järventie? What does this kid need to do to get a shot? The Oilers seemingly bailed themselves out of a terrible draft when they traded Bourgault for Jarventie, but they now refuse to call him up to realize the win. Baffling. They will likely resign him as an rfa after this season but seems like this is another opportunity missed. Jones played well last night, but he isn’t part of the future. They should have had a look at Jarventie in that spot.
Would be great to see him get a shot.
They had to run him through an AHL season to see if his knees could take it. It’s too late now unless there is a compelling reason. Next camp will be interesting. They have several young forwards ready. We might see some move as Bowman shapes the roster in his own image
Next season will be interesting as you say. I hope Howard works his ace off in the summer and barges through the door, it would help a ton up front. Truth, I feel we need a big D add somehow, likely FA, depending on if anything is available at all.
They are pretty big already, only Stast is small. Emberson is just under average. I imagine they will run what they have next season, and if Ek fades he’ll move down, Stast as 7 D as he can ‘play’ both sides. I don’t like off hand, most coaches don’t, but it does allow for better coverage for injury
If they can run a normal camp, start better for once, they can have more even TOI between 2 pair and 3 pair, so whoever is playing better in a game gets more of it
I find although ember is not big he seems extremely solid. Often seems to surprise guys in board battles. He doesn’t have that tank like build either.
He has acquitted himself well this season. I still prefer a bigger player for his role. For me, and I have been debating this for 15 years around here, and so many former players and coaches and GMs think it, being big is an advantage and especially important for playoffs
The only smaller guys I want have to be top end producers with jam
He missed a few games on back to backs in October but has been full time, no limitation player since then and his knees are a non-issue at this point.
It should not be too late now. I see no reason why a Max Jones should play over him due to time of season?
Jarventie was drafted 6 years ago and has only 7 NHL games to his credit.
There’s a non-zero chance he returns to Finland to play.
cool story, thanks for stopping by
I’ve been calling for his call-up for about 6 weeks to two months now – James Hamblin aside, he’s been their best forward for a while and is making lots of “NHL plays”.
He is one of the prospects that I do think could fit in very well on an Oiler fourth line and would 100% have called him up over Max Jones. He can play a hard and grinding offensive zone game, is strong on the boards and a fine 2-way player.
This is a miss just like playing Brandon Manning over William Lagesson was a miss.
Defensive hockey.
It is more boring to play. It is more boring to watch. A team needs it to win, especially to win it all.
97 will have to sit down to himself and have an Yzerman moment. I am not sure he will make that change and really should he? not sure.
They’ve been playing “defensive” hockey. It gets them beat.
Assertive hockey that attacks in every zone is what wins.
Did you just say this team plays defensive hockey ?? lmao
The players that need to pay attention dont and cheat for offense and don’t stay in plays and create goals for the other team.
They are like a kid that doesn’t like a certain subject in school, they could totally do well if they applied themselves and paid attention but just don’t enjoy it enough and don’t want to do it.
Ah yes, it’s McDavid fault.
Not saying that at all. He is the leader of the team. Incredible player. It’s a team so no not his fault but he leads. As LMFH said, play assertive defensively and your team will follow that, don’t abandon your D responsibilities, dont fly the play figure it out. Mistakes will happen of course.
You may think I am picking on him and bashing him, I am not, he is my favourite player. A slight tweak could lower how high event his numbers are.
They have had stretches, and when they do it doesn’t hamper offense. As Curlock said if the start out to play for a 2-1 game, the talent likely makes it a 4-2 win, and they will still get their games when they roll teams. They just have to focus on coming out well, not getting behind, and take games over
They played 50 minutes like that against the Blues and that’s how it was going, if they had finished more of their chances
I agree—he’s not to blame. He’s been a gift that ended the darkness. Still, I wonder what could have been (or could still be) if he and Draisaitl embraced a more genuine team game. Less flashy, less dramatic, but if the best players and leaders fully bought in, everyone else could play within themselves. Where might they have gone—or still go?
It’s not that their individual brilliance isn’t hugely positive; it’s the ripple effect on the rest of the team that suffers.
I worry that as their skills fade and they perhaps take lesser roles on other teams, that’s when the Cups will finally arrive. It may take the sunset of their careers to grasp what Yzerman learned long ago.
StevieY didn’t get his first Cup until age 32. They’ve still got time to figure it out. Missing the playoffs this year might light that fire.
People in Edmonton are so insecure anytime someone points out the obvious … that McDavid and Draisaitl haven’t won anything because they cheat for offence.
No a 52% 5v5 goal share is nothing to be proud of if you’re McDavid; he may lead the scoring race, but MacKinnon, Kucherov and yes even Matt Turtlechuk are eating his lunch in terms of their impact on team performance. All those guys have Cups.
They have to cut the risk out their games. For McDavid that means shooting more and stop trying to force passes through. For Leon, that means he needs to knock it off with the cross ice backhand passes that may connect 1 of 10 times, and he needs to try shooting from somewhere else other than his office.
For guys that have been to two Cup Finals, they’ve played very immature for long stretches of this season, and the Oilers are where they are because of it.
Absolutely!
I’m glad we’ve won just enough games to keep KK employed.
why haven’t they made the change yet
I’ve spoken about Dubas before. Opinions of him around these parts are mixed, that’s fair.
But the man can build a bottom six on the cheap out of free agency in a snowstorm.
3rd Line
Elmer Söderblom – Ben Kindel – Avery Hayes
• Elmer Söderblom — Age 24 — Cap hit $1,125,000 — Acquired via trade from Detroit Red Wings for a 2026 3rd-round pick (trade deadline, March 6, 2026; carries over from his 2-year, $1.125M AAV deal signed with Detroit in July 2025).
• Ben Kindel — Age 18 — Cap hit $975,000 (ELC) — Drafted by Pittsburgh Penguins 1st round (11th overall), 2025 NHL Draft (signed to 3-year ELC in July 2025).
• Avery Hayes — Age 23 — Cap hit $830,000 (ELC) — Undrafted free agent signing (two-year ELC signed March 2025).
4th Line
Connor Dewar – Blake Lizotte – Noel Acciari
• Connor Dewar — Age 26 — Cap hit $1,100,000 — Acquired via trade from Toronto Maple Leafs (along with Conor Timmins) for a 2025 5th-round pick (trade deadline, March 7, 2025); re-signed to one-year deal in July 2025.
• Blake Lizotte — Age 28 — Cap hit $1,850,000 (current year; extends to $2.25M AAV starting 2026-27) — Signed as UFA (from Los Angeles Kings, July 2024); extended three years in January 2026.
• Noel Acciari — Age 34 — Cap hit $2,000,000 — Signed as UFA (previously Florida Panthers/Toronto; three-year deal from July 2023, final year).
Total bottom-six cap hit: ~$7.88M
(Breakdown: Söderblom $1.125M + Kindel $0.975M + Hayes $0.83M + Dewar $1.1M + Lizotte $1.85M + Acciari $2.0M. Exact totals can vary slightly with performance bonuses on ELCs.)
Acquisition breakdown: Draft 1 • Trade 2 • Free agent 3
So the Pens bottom six is about $5m cheaper than the Oilers.
The Pens bottom six is credited with their success while the Oilers bottom six has been dragging the team down.
It gets even crazier when you compare asset spent in terms of draft picks.
The Oilers spent two first round picks for Dickinson/Dach and Henrique, plus the second for Frederic. Also McLeod for Savoie. The Oilers also spent another 4/5 round picks in Henrique and Frederic deals along with a 5th for Grubbe who didn’t pan out.
Vs 1 third round pick for Soderblom and a 5th for Dewar.
Coach doesn’t play them enough together to form any continuity or identity.
It starts with the wrong philosophy though.
For Dubas, having guys that can defend and transition the puck is non-negotiable. That and they have to be younger and cheap.
Oilers often bring in guys who can’t defend, and overpay for older vets or grit.
Dubas’ problem was signing contracts. Wanted to be one of the boys in Toronto and it cost him.
Soderblom 6’8 251, 42 GP, 0 G/60, 5v5 GF 0-3 Trade
Kindel 5’11 181, 62 GP, .81 G/60, 5v5 GF 30-33 Draft
Hayes 5’10 174,10 GP, 1.18 G/60, 5v5 GF 2-6 AHL team
Dewar 5’10 183, 65 GP, .78 G/60, 5v5 GF 30-26 Trade
Lizotte 5’9 170, 54 GP, .41 G/60, 5v5 GF 20-21 UFA
Acciari 5’11 205, 51 GP, .68 G/60, 5v5 GF 22-19 UFA
Not really out of UFA, but that is pretty good goal production. I’m not sure that is a great balance for playoffs for a bottom six, we’ll see, maybe. That’s what really counts, can they produce like that and handle the physical side? And is a guy that big a playoff pylon and rides pine
For the players the Oilers have to use bottom 6
Dickinson
Kapanen
Roslovic
Frederic
Lazar
Samanski
Dach
Jones
Henri
Regardless of cap I would take that group over the Pens for playoffs
They also got Mantha for 2.5M x 1 who is on pace for 60+ points.
Bowman has done more in his time than any semi recent GM in longer. The core has been in place since Connor was drafted, he is of course the crown jewel
Perfect no. There isn’t actually that much to do after this season. If the new guys play well and will take affordable contracts what’s left? Many will say a goalie, for me maybe. Maybe a tweak on D? There are home grown forwards to fill in for anyone that leaves
There aren’t really any holes now, if players were at career norms. Can’t control injuries. Nobody is aging out except maybe Ek. Maybe they make a cap move with Nurse. Maybe a more tenured better fit as coach
This season might not be like the last couple, but it’s not entirely unexpected. I think there is a lot to be happy about. To me things are going in the right direction. Maybe they never get where they want, but there’s not a lot holding them back
I worry about the lack of elite prospects. Savoie is one and is tracking well. I don’t think Howard, Hutson or Samanski are there though they could be useful players.
I also worry about the D. Walman needs to rebound or our D is getting old and is expensive.
No team that has been drafting for years low in the draft and competing at the top has many or any elite prospects. Unless they make a trade for one, which means they lost something good
This is why I think teams should not give out NMCs like candy, and that only truly elite players should retire with a team. You do that for organization building reasons. In other sports you trade guys that are near the point of fading, while their rep is highest, to replenish the org with talented youth
Being sentimental about it means instead of staying current, the team faces the wilderness, and as we know, drafting high doesn’t equal success. Rebuilds don’t equal a Cup. You don’t have to have elite players to win a Cup. It helps, but you can also do it by having good players and being deep
I hope Walman gets back to his game of course, but having just turned 30, that isn’t old for a D. Only Ek is old
Yeah, agreed. The Athletic has just begun its team prospect rankings. From worst to fifth-worst, in order: Florida, Dallas, Edmonton, Toronto, Colorado. In other words, basically the league’s elite teams over the past 5 years. (As for Vegas and Tampa, they were in last year’s bottom 5, so they’ll probably still be near the bottom this year.)
The notable exception? Carolina. It’s because they resist fan pressure to be trade deadline buyers. But the LT community seems to want to be buyers, so we can’t really blame management for our lack of prospects.
Carolina also can’t translate reg season success to the playoffs. Teams that win don’t draft their way to a Cup. It takes all fronts because it is so competitive
The last paragraph is spot on.
We flushed all of the institutional memory going back to Holland among non-core guys the last 12 months.
Growing pains should have been fully expected given the roster turnover and shift to youth for filling holes.
Luckily for us fellas like Podz, Savoie, Kap, Emberson and recently Samanski have been meeting the challenge lately.
Yes the lack of defensive detail among the core is frustrating but I cannot expect guys the have played 100 games a season the last four years to be jazzed 82 games a year. That’s unreasonable and it’s very unreasonable given how craptacular the Pacific division is.
Ive seen Walman better the last two. He seemed to snap to attention after that crash into the end boards in Dallas.
BTW Ducks were shutout in Ottawa this afternoon. Popgun starting to stall out…
Ottawa is the goods. They are stifling defensively. Stutzle is a gem.The funny thing is they likely wont make the playoffs They are pushing though, battling the 3pt bettman is a tough go.
This season has definitely felt like a retool season all along. Last night’s game was frustrating at the end, to play well all game for the most part then… We need a very solid D add in the summer if we can afford it and also keeping Murphy.
Savoie looked damn good last night. Was great to see the elevation.
Damn, you really hit the nail on the head.
That’s why we gave out so many NMCs. It looked like we had a team with 29 playoff wins in two years, and had that team locked up long-term. On paper, that’s a big win.
In reality, the Oilers seem to be less than the sum of their parts. With a couple of exceptions, it’s been that way for twenty years.
Why?!!
The Oilers. To borrow a phrase from Lt, I think we have the problems with Oilers management surrounded.
The pro scouting piece should be the easiest part too. Established levels. The most visibility. Grown adults. If they’re missing this bad on evals rather than failing to integrate, that’s beyond embarrassing.
The integration aspect though…working with your coach, building a team together and following through on a plan…don’t see any of that.
The pro scouting seem to get an idea of who a player was, like Mangiapane. They sort of thought he was the 21-22 player. A fiesta goal scorer. They don’t seem to be able to spot the decline.
There should also be zero of what I’ll call “player fixation” in pro scouting.
Aside from 1/1 absolute superstars, there are many, many players who can do what you need.
These guys get stuck on specific players, and chase. It shows a fundamental misunderstanding of their job and the market.
Absolutely.
The Oilers always overpay for perceived grit or offense.
Other teams find guys that can play defensive systems well and fill offense in on the cheap.
Look at the Pens example above. They have Connor Dewar putting up similar points to Savoie. Acquired for a 5th round pick and has a $1.1m cap hit.
Maybe. I think given his salary they thought they were getting a guy that has a history of two way play, isn’t puck optional, and has an edge. That also could spot in throughout the line up. Apparently they talked to the players about playing against him
It didn’t work, but I get the idea. That a lot of these mid UFAs aren’t working is something to think about. Arvi is like he was elsewhere
Look at it this way.
The Oilers signed 29 year old Mangiapane for $3.6m x 2. Now that is a lot of cap and money for a 3rd line player.
Dubas traded a 5th for Connor Dewar, then 25, and extended him at $1.1m
One of these moves is not like the other.
One team is paying a premium and betting against decline in aging player.
The other is paying a cheap price and betting on upside in a younger player.
Dewar: 65 gp: 14g11a35 p +9
Mangiapane: 56 gp: 8-7-15, -21
I agree Dewar – in hindsight – would have been a better choice. Bowman was also looking for a more aggressive player. Playoffs reward those guys. It was a fair bet Mangi at 29, which isn’t too old, on the Oilers could get 35 points and had a history of the type of play they are looking for
Frederic is now coming around to the type of player they wanted. A more concerning thing to me is why these signings are having trouble with the Oilers. I don’t think it is that they are looking at the wrong players, I’ll except Skinner because he was a wrong choice. All analytics about 5v5, and not noting what an odd duck vanilla player, which they didn’t need
That when these players move on they return to norms – ones the Oilers were looking for – suggests it’s something about the team. Noting that Bowman mentioned players that actually want to play in a support role, and do the unglamourous dirty work
Haha yeah. 100%. They also keep hiring the same type of GM – past success, hockey men, left previous teams in cap hell.
to be fair, Dubas also left Toronto in cap hell…without having success.
Shanahan owns most of that.
Jeff Skinner got a 3 million 1 year deal, that’s not over valuing him. That’s taking a flyer on a vet with a history of putting up some points and seeing if it pays off.
I liked the signing at the time. They do need to find a way to make sure these guys will fit with MCDavid or Draisaitl though, as guys like Jeff Skinner don’t bring much if they aren’t in the top 6 or play on the power play. So they just end up sitting or playing poorly in the bottom 6.
That signing cost us Holloway
Insane stuff. Holloway was like 1M+ less too.
Sometimes i hate the game of hockey. They played a great game, wobbled end of the 3rd and i counted 5 bounces to our 1 in that stretch. There was a stick in the crease that deflected a netfront gem. 97, savoie, and hyman all couldnt push it across the goalline 3 separate times ala Devon Toews.
Sometimes this game isn’t fair and I just have to live with it. We got the Byfield bounce so maybe this year is retribution.
Hockey has way too much randomness in it.
Team Canada was the better team, but USA took home the gold.
Hellebuyck is part of Team USA.
Bowman should be fired right now.
They should fire the mall, common denominator.
The Jarry trade sealed the deal friend
Should they have just kept going with Skinner?
Ya cause we already have a cambell 1.0 situation and now its a 2.0. Jarry had is writing on the wall. It isnt even an upgrade. No retention in the deal. Had to dump kulack it was a bad trade.
We could of prob got walsteed out of minny you never know
With what assets. Wallstadt was only going for a proven 1st line or high end 2nd line centre.
This is pure hindsight
Not quite.
Jarry’s contract was known to be buyout proof, due to presence of signing bonuses when we had acquired him. It was also known that he had missed some games in November due to a lower body injury. He was also below replacement level last season.
Stan made an all-in bet off a 14 game sample this season.Jarry had historically good numbers, but hadn’t beaten league average over a season in 3 years
And yet people on here were desperately clamouring for Jarry pre-trade. Skinner was the whipping boy to the same level as Jarry is now. Some things never change
Jarry had been at or above league average in 6 of the previous 7 seasons. It was a reasonable bet.
Tons of people hated this trade at the time. Objectively it looked like a lateral move at a significant cost.
Holland and company were fast asleep when the Wallstedt train went slowly by.
The writting was on the wall for Skinner too. We will never know if Skinner would have been any better than Jarry or even worse than Jarry moving forward as Edmonton’s starting goaltender. Plus there could be a lot that we don’t know about the stuation as it was unfolding with Skinner in Edmonton.
If we’re being honest, the problem started with Pickard. He was unplayable this year. Skinner actually had the highest start percentage of his career iirc, due to the issues with Pickard. We know goalie workload impacts save percentage.
Anticipating that a 33-year-old Pickard who had a lower body injury during the playoffs, was a good option was the mistake. Stan had all summer to sign someone else or make a trade.
We know non elite goalies decline at 30 and somewhere between 30-35 fall off the cliff.
They certainly could have bought time by trying out Dipietro for free.
They could have tried Ingram before trading Skinner.
In hindsight, yes, but I understand why they didn’t due to the fact he was still trying to settle into the AHL and they were trying to give him some time as part of his mental health recovery. If the circumstances had been different maybe they would have tried.
And putting up an .856 in Bakersfield. It didn’t even make sense to call him up when they did. But sometimes things don’t work out as predicted, and every once in a while those go our way.
Yes. He was .943 or so in the three games. The pressure was fading. Should have called up Ingram if that was the plan anyways or traded for DiPietro or a similar type.
With Savoie Samanski Podz Fred. I see a good young supporting cast for the remainder of the mcdria years. Add in useful players like Kap/ Ros. for free
I prefer this method as opposed to acquiring old past prime players to fill the secondary roles. Mistakes have been made no doubt( mang, likely jarry) important mistakes.
I do like that he moved on from mang and some noise that he tried to move on from jarry.
The 1st round for Mangiapane and a conditional 2027 first-round for Dickson and dauch for an FA the freely signed here. Oh boy we are in trouble
No, a conditional 2027 1st rounder for Dickinson (half retained) and Dach and offloading Mangi’s contract.
They played a weak last 10 minutes and the other goalie played great. ( Ingram was good, but the other guy better)
Didnt like Henrique out there instead of Dickinson in the last bit, or Nurse.
I think Henrique should be in the pressbox when Nuge is. back. And I would put Nuge on the 3rd dot and Savoie on the top line.
Samanski is getting better every game. Jones played great last night. Leave him on the 4th line Sunday with Freddy and Samanski.
You know the game well, does it make sense that given the Oilers get ‘goalied’ so often, and their 5v5 scoring trails shots (what they should get based on how many) and xGF, that their scoring tactics aren’t right?
There are things that increase scoring odds, and they don’t seem to be a focus. I think I see other teams working for those, as a plan. They could also spend some time practicing shots, they hit so many posts it’s incredible
Crosby said years ago after a lower scoring season he didn’t know that he could get more chances, but he could bare down and finish more of the ones he got, and he did do that
In the same way how MacT talked about things Nurse does – and MacT likes Nurse a lot- when defending that lead to his problems. He has some technique issues that you would think D coaches would have addressed over so many years
Fixable things, the easier side of things. Easier than losing too much or changing players out to see something different, which doesn’t seem to make much difference
You keep posting this and ignore the fact the Oilers are the 2nd/3rd highest scoring team in the league.
Its like you want them to score a different way or something I don’t quite understand it.
Let Stan sign the college free agents and let him sail off into the sun set,
They waited for him to get an approval from the league to get reinstated which caught the team with no GM and their pants down
and it continued to get worse from there
All they had to do for their last 3 GMs was look at when they took over, the rosters, transaction history and where their teams ended up when they were dismissed. A few google searches. Or just pay attention over the years.
Terribly run franchise that can’t get out of its own way.
To be a fly on the wall in the Oilers office for these decisions over the years. The assistant GMs and analytics folks must see the patterns described by Ryan in his post. I don’t see them as yes men, but maybe they need some new blood in that circle as well.
With some disappointment currently surrounding the oilers. I find myself most excited to watch how Samanski and Fred are able to extend ozone time with cycle shifts. Often full shifts then hand off to the next line.
I believe this pair can be a positive factor in a playoff series.
A line of Fred/ Sam/ Savoie( or Kap) could surprise.
Last nights game looked like the Three Stooges playing the Marx Brothers being officiated by the Keystone Cops.
Yet as putrid as the Oilers were they almost stole it until the last 4 minutes of the game.
I forget the player who got high sticked in the face with the referee standing there staring at them refusing to make a call, but that is bush league officiating.
The Oilers give zero shirts about defense and are very impatient. They insist on high danger low percentage chance plays looking for the quick payoff. This attitude starts at their Captain and filters down to too many players.
If they don’t button down their defensive play as a team they are finished.
Actually thought both McDavid and Drai as well as Dickinson and Samanski did a good job coming back in our zone last night.
I find that the back check typically isn’t the main issue for these guys. It’s the in zone coverage, reads, and poor breakouts leading to turnovers imo
It’s wild how bad the Pacific is this season.
If the Oilers finish above 8th then they have a good shot at making the conference finals, which is unbelievable because the Oilers are not good.
“There was a two-hour ‘no play’ zone on every record, so if the on-air person before me played ‘When Doves Cry’ in his last hour, I could only play it once during a four hour show. Screw that noise, I want to play the hits!”
I assume you didn’t play Darling Nikki?
Gonna take some astute GM work to retool this team during the off-season. I don’t believe they have the right people in place to get it done.
They have among the worst people this side of Mike Milbury.
If you’re watching closely, the team is in the midst of a re-tool rigjht now.
Been saying for several months this feels like a transition year and that’s how it’s playing out. They might still be fortunate enough to make the playoffs (we’ll see) but if you look at what Bowman has done since become GM, there is a new, younger core emerging with Emberson, Podkolzin, Savoie, Samanski in the NHL now, Howard, Jarventie (?), Quinn (?), Clattenburg, Carfagna, Akey coming. We’ll have to see on Regula and Stastney (good bets, but not yet established).
These are pieces that can compliment McDrai, Bouch over the next couple of years. How long Nuge, Hyman, Ekholm can continue to deliver is a question. And we’ll see what happens with the other role players.
It would have been nice (smart) if Holland had traded Broberg when he had a chance, and maybe they would have kept Holloway (but then, you may not have Podkolzin).
But in the end, pieces are emerging. They need to fix the goalie, Nurse/Wallman in that order. But next year is looking better than this season.
Yes. This was clear in training camp. So many new faces, experiments all year long.
I believe we were told in Oct by GM SB that we wouldn’t see this year’s team until Feb or March. Here we are. Younger, faster, (moderately cheaper —and still recovering from injuries. I would like the on-ice leadership to play more consistent responsible hockey, but generally I’m excited about what I’m seeing.
Are they really younger and faster?
Younger and faster than Corey Perry.
Exactly, and beyond that are they?
2024 Oilers-Stars playoffs
Game 1 3-2 Oilers
Game 2 3-1 Stars
Game 3 5-3 Stars
Game 4 5-2 Oilers
Game 5 3-1 Oilers
Game 6 2-1 Oilers
2025 Oilers-Stars Playoffs
Game 1 6-3 Stars
Game 2 3-0 Oilers
Game 3 6-1 Oilers
Game 4 4-1 Oilers
Game 5 6-3 Oilers
The Oilers beat the Stars 8 times in the playoffs the last 2 years and allowed 3 goals only once.
I don’t know what happened to this team.
The GM is only good at NCAA and Europe player procurement and can’t build a team or manage assets. To me that’s issue #1.
The core on the team are mentally and physically tired with barely no offseason in 3 years. I blame the coach for over playing Connor-Leon but how can you blame K.K for the lack of finish and errand passes especially by McDavid since coming back from the Olympics. This team has had nothing but bad luck this year when it comes to posts-crossbars-open nets-reffing.
Lots.
personnel change
aging players
too much hockey over last three years
other teams’ scouting them, and improving
regular season games that just dont mean as much
etc.
There was a play late in the 3rd, Oilers up 2-1. Oiler D sends puck up right board into the neutral zone. Blues player is closer to it than Leon, looks like an 80-20 puck. Leon doesn’t make sure he gets in front of Blues player, he doesn’t make sure he’s on the right side of the puck, but skates to left hoping the Blues guy bobbles or misses the puck and Leon will have a clear lane deep into Blues D-zone. Cheating for offense in tight game at that stage is unforgiveable. Leon knows better than this. And I know single events and all that, but it seems like most Oilers players do that all the time.
I remember those crappy AZ teams under Tippett who always played the right way and played hard. Why can’t our guys play the right way on a consistent basis? Why can’t the coach get them to do so? Am I missing something?
Hope plays for easy offense been happening all year with no consequences. Sometimes they work and it helps you win a scoring title.
And they rarely adjust based on game state
I they had 3 power play oportunities and couldn’t cash in even one goal. Sure you can give the Blues credit. But what it was IMO is that Nuge wasn’t there and they certainly missed him. The game shouldn’t have gone into OT and it should not be over looked that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins wasn’t on the ice.
Yes. I wrote yesterday about the “change” after the Nov 25 loss to the Stars that led to a strong Nov 26-Dec 25 club record. The only obvious change was the return of RNH. I was hoping for another post-Stars drubbing surge. Alas, there was a change. That change? The absence of RNH. I loved Savoy on the McD line, but missed the voodoo that RNH brings (esp on the PP).
ps. Hoping all goes well with the arrival of the new family member.
Savoie was so good on that line last nite. He created and was part of many many offensive opportunities. Give and go type while also making several plus defensive plays.
Agreed Nuge was certainly missed most on the pp.
Savoie could have won that game all by himself with all the opportunities he had. No touch.
Stone hands Todd Marchant doppleganger.
——————————
100%, he should continue to be physical and aggressive but he needs to do that while “playing hockey” which is not what he did when he got sent back down where he totally disregarded the game and hunted for big hits and fights and was in the penalty box more than on the ice unit he got himself inured again.
Finishing checks and being aggressive is key – running around and throwing very borderline hits and sitting in the penalty box or IR is not.
His coach has indicated, in multiple occasions the need for Clatt to learn to “play hockey”.
There is a minimal level of being able to make a play at speed and being able to get the puck out high on the defensive boards – he needs reps, 15 min per night of ice time – not 6 minutes and the penalty box.
He’s also not that big for someone who wants to play that heavy. The body only takes so much. Great to want to play a throw back style, I’d welcome it on the Oilers, but control is necessary
He actually is big 6.2/216. I assume he will get to the 220 wt this summer with hard workouts and proper nutrition. That’s a big kid
I’m not sure if I believe that. The Oilers have him at 215, but it was 205 earlier and the Condors and Puckpedia still have 205. But if he’s that heavy, yes that’s a tank
While 2-1-1 for 5 out of 8 points is nice, this isn’t something to celebrate given the 3rd period collapse. At this point in the season and they still can’t/won’t play proper hockey in their own end.
You have to factor in all context. 3 games 4 days, a B to B to finish, injuries. Bob was saying they were getting in late, 3AM and 1AM. A 3rd period collapse is probably a lot to do with that, even if we wished for 2 points
I’m good with .625 P% on the trip. The Blues have also been playing well lately, so 3 tough teams in a row. Now take it to the bank as the schedule gets easier
I am well aware of all the “context” and that “context” doesn’t negate that the Oilers led 2-0 with just over 8 minutes left in the game.
Yes that was not good. As a mature team they should be able to finish the game well enough to win. Fatigue does play into it though, and given they are already dicey defensively it happens. They played 50 minutes well and crapped out. As they do
If this has been covered and I missed it, apologies, but any word on Dach’s injury?
I was really hoping to see him in a few more games to see if he could gain any traction.
Haven’t heard but it looked like a core thing by the way he hit the guy. Hopefully a strain and nothing torn
He’s on LTIR.
Finally, Jake Walman was 2-0 in five-on-five outscoring when away from Stastney. He was 1-0 with Bouchard in 33 seconds, and 1-0 with Murphy in 13 seconds. A coincidence for sure, but interesting.
————
They miss Ty Emberson – it was nice to see Walman have a “better game” but he’s not close to where we need him to get to. Heal up Jake.
They absolutely miss Ty Emberson. And it might be a good idea to get Alec Regula back if Emberson is out for an extended period of time, even if it’s just to balance it out with his righthandedness.
Before last night, I was opining about Regula in for Walman on the premise that Walman needs to heal whatever is ailing him and cratering his mobility.
I would also take Regula over Stastney for the L/R balance.
Of course, they have zero cap space right now for that and would have to send Samanski down and have 11F on the roster.
What if they sent Max Jones down and called up Regula? They would have 12 forwards & 7 defensemen with Nuge hopefully available to come back.
They could do that.
Walman looked to have a broken rib issue the way he moved back off that 2nd hit . I don’t know this for sure but hopefully he gets back soon and healthy. He was really beginning to play well.
I blame missing out on a point and a regulation win on Ryan and Breanne for not planning a summer birth like many NHL players. While I like Savoie on McDavid’s wing, damn did they ever miss Nuge on the PP.
Zone entires were messed up and multiple very odd (bad) decisions by each of McDavid and Drai trying to force passes through multiple sticks.
The zone entry to Nuge then nuge back pass to Bouch is unusually effective. The pk team knows exactly what’s coming but can’t stop it.
So many teams copy that, including Team Canada
Right. I’d think it’d be easy to duplicate that with another player but instead the oilers tried to force entry.
If Nuge gets hurt in the playoffs the oil need a back up plan. Same as with Hyman net front.
At this point there’s probably not enough wiggle room to experiment.
When McDavid zone entires and dishes to Nuge on the half wall, Nuge almost always makes a clean play leading to full possession with time and space. You are correct, is generally back to Bouch – I believe the opposition knows if they cheat high there, it will create numbers for the Oilers on a play towards the net.
They should have actually tried Savoie instead of Roslovic in Nuge’s position
That seemed the obvious choice to many.
“They should have actually tried Savoie instead of Roslovic in Nuge’s position.”
Are we still talking about babies? I get confused easily.
That’s what I was thinking. But of course vets first
I don’t think I understand the logic of having Roslovic on a shutdown line with Dickinson. It would seem to make more sense to swap him and Kapanen there. And yes, I know Drai is good with Podz and Kapanen but Roslovic should fit in fine there, shouldn’t he? Hes here to score, not defend.
Ya Roslavic is miscast in that role. He can be incredible with dria as he was earlier in the year. I’d like to see that again.
It is too obvious to me. Give that third line an identity and let them own it. They don’t have to score at all really just try not to get scored on. Kapanen and Samanski are great fits there.
He’s probably there for offense, but he is leaky. 5v5 per 60 Ros is 48.65GF%, Kap 60.61 GF%
Yeah I just don’t think we have the luxury of asking the third line to score. It should be a different vision than we had than when we had Henrique there scoring 30-40 points the last couple of years. Putting everybody in a position that aligns with their strengths would be good
Kap has some game, and right now is better defensively
Im not convinced KK is making all the lineup and ice time decisions
Who else would be?
I dont have that answer, but I don’t believe any coach in full control would plan for their team to play like this. I suspect the style of play has been influenced by those who benefit from it
Who knows> Everything is always so odd you may be right
A scoring touch doesn’t hurt on the third line.
Despite the speed wobbles, a tough 4 game road trip and .625 PTS%. I bet they are pretty happy overall. Things are easier to close out, I hope the injured guys get back healthy soon
Woodguy
@Woodguy55
Western Confernce Standings using points percentage shown as points over/under fake Bettman .500
Central
COL 33
DAL 27
MIN 22
Pacific
ANA 10
VGK 8
EDM 6
Wildcard
UTH 8
SJS 5
Out of playoffs
LAK 4
SEA 3
NSH 2
STL -2
WPG -2
CHI -4
CGY -6
VAN -17
Today:
ANA @ OTT
SJS @ MON
LAK @ NJD
PIT @ UTA
SEA @ VCR
CHI @ VGK
Worth keeping an eye on LAK.
They have a laughably easy schedule the rest of the way.
Games remaining against current playoffs teams: 4
Games remaining against non-playoff teams: 13
In April they have a 6 games homestand with 5 games against non- playoff teams before closing out the season on the road vs. SEA, VCR and CGY
A lot of the ‘easy’ teams become spoilers. Just like the Blues, once they’re out, the deadline over, they often begin to play freely, way less pressure
Very true but if they manage to win more than half those games they could make things tough on the front runners considering games in hand.
It’s going to be a tight race for sure
Aaaand they lose tonight.
The HH curse continues
Prospectilence!
A quintet of NAmateurs shall hockey today.
The Michiganders square off against Penn State in a Big Ten semifinal. It appears that Barnett is back at LD after playing RD exclusively since the WJHC.
In CCHA semifinal action, Berry and St. Thomas battle upstart Augustana who is coming off their first postseason win in program history.
Lewandowski collected his 100th WHL point last night with an assist. He has plenty of those (45) this season.
Lafreniere rounds out the sched with another chance to clinch a playoff spot.
Michigan (Park, Barnett) @ 3 p.m.
St. Thomas (Berry) @ 3 p.m.
Kamloops (Lafreniere) @ 7 p.m.
Saskatoon (Lewandowski) @ 7 p.m.
All times are two times and are also Fort Steele (BC) time.
People keep saying Walman is injured as an excuse for his poor play, which has been worse than Nurse’s this year.
Is playing an “injured” Walman more the solution?
How many minutes can the aging Viking really play?
Nurse is really the only minute muncher available. Decide on the best partner for him, and let him munch minutes.
I don’t understand what you are hoping to accomplish with your constant posting about Nurse vs Walman. Tar and feathering Walman does not paint Nurse pretty.
Walman isn’t 100%, Nurse is. It only makes sense that Nurse should be seeing more ice time. As well Ekholm isn’t getting any younger. Nurse & Murphy should be playing more minutes. The other option would be to split up Ekholm & Bouchard.
I have suggested Regula in to give Walman time to heal – of course, no cap for that now.
Nugent-Hopkins goes on leave, and the PP immediately sucks.
I don’t think Roslavic is the right player there to replace Nuge.
Biggest factor in the game last night.
They always default to Roslovic as the injury replacement on the PP and I don’t think he’s the right replacement for Nuge – should have been Savoie (in my opinion).
There’s clearly a book on the Oilers about chasing a guy rounding the net and both the C and dman being useless in front.
Dickinson standing in front covering nobody on the 1st was very reminiscent of goals against with Carolina, Vegas and Dallas.
All that said Draisaitl clanked the post in OT. Podz clanked the post when it was 1-0 Dallas.
Dog days of the season and bearing down just that little bit more.
Its all about peaking so there’s lots of time.
I’d suggest they peak rfn or risk missing the dance.
Playing exhibition games until Nov got them here
As I’ve been saying for the last half season. If you want a defensive presence on the top line that a job for Savoie and make Nuge drive his own line.
Sub .900 again.
Out dueled by a rookie again.
#ItstheGoalies.
I don’t blame Ingram on any of those. Two were perfect shots off the post/cross bar and in and one was a one timer passed from behind the net to the slot where he hardly had any time to react.
the tying goal hit the middle of the post.
Ingram was down early.
It looks like right post and in to me. And right before he shot there were 4 guys in between Fowler and Ingram
McDavid hit a post too on what should have put the game away for Edmonton. Hofer isn’t a rookie and he was probably fortunate to have backstopped a victory for his team.
Hofer isn’t a rookie. It is his 3rd season backing up Binnington. This year, he really isn’t backing up. He is stealing Binnington’s job.
Must have been on the radio, Binnington was asked about the Oilers and he said no goalie could help them the way they defend. We have seen this for years, goalie never good enough
Like any position if you have the skill it’s about confidence to play well. Goalies need predictability to get a bump ahead on reads. What goalie can feel confident behind this chaos? Team play is the main culprit of their woes, and always has been once they started icing a line up of all NHL players, which was years ago
If no coach can fix it then it’s the core – the team leaders – that aren’t interested. The top players set the tone. Maurice talked about it and how Slasha Barkov being out meant the heart of the team was absent. They are playing poorly compared to before. It’s the same with every championship team
Tend to agree and as an outsider looking at the way the leaders play, it seems like they won’t adjust their play to be better defensively. When things aren’t working, they just “try harder” to do the same things. More effort while disregarding the defensive side of the game will never work no matter how hard they try
They force things, and it isn’t successful enough to think it’s a plan
It’s not that they force things, it’s more the risky plays they try that teams are starting to look for and pounce on.
I say force because of things like trying to pass through a gaggle of players, trying to force a play that isn’t there and works 1 out of 100 times, Leon usually off the wall, and then it’s right up main street for the other guys, often odd man because the Oilers remain so shitty at line changes
I’ve been saying all season long … the Oilers can’t defend. And it starts with McDavid and Leon, and is compounded on the back end by Nurse. People who still hold on to the belief that the Oilers are a contender are delusional. When three or your top four players are completely inept in their own zone, you’re not winning anything. The Oilers will be lucky to get into the playoffs this year in the weakest division in the league.
Defense wins championships.
“Won’t defend, not “can’t defend.”
On-ice leadership has done it before. Has taken pride in it, too.
Last year McD bristled when a reporter asked him about what seemed a new team commitment to playing defence, said they’ve been that way for a long time (I’m paraphrasing). Last year Drai played himself into believing he could be in the Selke conversation this year.
But this year, these two are playing fast and loose with any notion of defending. It’s there, what they *can* do. But inconsistently.
Cue my broken record about McD one day having his “Yzerman moment,” Drai living up to his words about Selke, and how until Oilerville sees this kind of on-ice leadership we may never see a Cup.
You mentioned 3 players each of which played big minutes through two cup runs to the SCF. Maybe its delusional to think that this group can’t be a contender based on that fact they have the exact same core that defended well enough to get to two SCFs (McDavid, Drai, Nuge, Hyman, Ekholm, Bouchard, Nurse)?
No doubt, to this point in the season, they have not defended anywhere near a level they would need to in order to make it three straight runs but the group 100% has it in them – they’ve proven it over the last 21 months.
Can they do it? 100%, its proven. Weill they do it this season? Its certainly looking less and less likely but “can’t” is not correct.
You make good points. I do wonder if a different coach could get the message across better. Maybe they are just tuning Knoblauch out. I would personally love to try a Torts or Laviolette right now. A Deboer vs Gulutzan matchup in playoffs would be fun too.
I think they need a different type of coach. McLellan if here now might have worked, back then he didn’t have the horses and the Dup were too young. No to Torts, that type of coach has always had a short shelf life, even shorter now
Berube was a terrible pick for the Leafs. What that says to the players is we see you as a bunch of wimps, no compete, don’t care enough, perhaps lazy and don’t work hard enough. Give him a lower talent grinder team maybe, but the Leafs have/had a ton of talent and took the champs to game 7, nobody else did. Look what happened
They need a coach that can bring everyone on board mentally, and is good at building the group. It’s not just about get better players, there is a cap. It’s about getting all of the players playing their best games and pulling together
Good at keeping the mood the right colour and temperature, the best can. The GM has to get the right mix of players, and upgrade when and where he can. I see Bowman as doing his part so far, and adding depth to the org
Hard no to Torts, he wrecks every team he touches.I was surprised hat he got a job after Vancouver!!!! t
Was “Slasha” Barkov intentional? I like it.
Yes it’s his nickname apparently in some parts
Must be the McDavid effect. He drives the bus and Nurse is helping with the navigation.
Yikes
There are few things I care less about than Jordan Binnington’s opinion.
I don’t believe we watched the same game, Ingram bailed the oilers out time and time again.
Yes, and I don’t think Jarry was as bad as everyone said in Dallas. He made a lot of good saves in an unstable environment. Yes he could have been better, but he isn’t at his best right now, and they sure didn’t give him a leg up
Moneypuck had the Blues with 2.65 expected goals.
NST had the Blues with 2.58 expected goals.
He 100% made a key save on the Torapchenko (sp?) breakaway but Ingram was about average this game (by my eye and number).
Expected goals for the Oilers: 3.26 and 3.02 – it seems Hoffer out-duled Ingram.
Hofer is not a rookie.