We are so close, so close and yet so far, in the words of the great hockey observer Frankie Valli. So we are left to discuss, disagree and make bold statements about Mike Babcock’s tendencies. Even though he hasn’t coached in years, we’re grasping those straws for knowledge and comfort. Please read this.
How many rookies will we see? I have just two, Josh Samanski and Quinn Hutson.
Is there a chance Klefbom returns? No Klefbom.
Are the Oilers better? I think they will go deeper this year, and yes just based on what I see as a goalie upgrade, they will be better.
How much does Howard play? I have him playing 60 games, scoring 13 goals (ninth on the team). I have him getting minutes with Draisaitl, but probably most of them later in the year.
What about Hutson? I think he gets squeezed more than you’d like, Hutson needs an injury or needs to show Babcock early what he can do. There is a player there, I just wish the boots were a little faster. It’s going to be close, like Hunt for Red October close.
What about Samanski? I have him playing 51 games, not scoring much. I envision a Jason Dickinson shutdown line with Samanski and one of Janmark or Joseph. I mean real Boyd Gordon usage here. Like if they see center ice the Oilers get a penalty kind of thing.
Who emerges? I have Podkolzin and Savoie matriculating but just one more gear, and I have Max Jones grabbing an NHL job and keeping it. Sneaky belief in Devon Levi having a good season, too.
Does Frederic play center? No. I think it goes 97-29-93-Dickinson until they trade for a RH center.
Who is the MVP? Connor McDavid. Or Leon Draisaitl. Mike Babcock has to have a brilliant season, I mean absolutely pristine year.
What are you most worried about? I’m most worried about the guy who follows Mike Babcock as coach being the hockey version of Gerald Ford.
What do you mean by that? I mean the worst thing in the world isn’t a coach who is overconfident and living in the past. It’s a coach who isn’t able to motivate and doesn’t understand what is happening on the ice.
That doesn’t happen in the NHL, man. Oh. OK.
What will be the first clear sign of Babcock’s intent? The first real one will be opening night lines and pairings. That’s when we will know if Babcock’s verbal was for show or he plans on doing things like playing 97-29 together and running Josh Brown out there every third shift
You absolutely suck. Babcock will play it straight, man. OK. I remember an opening night that saw the following lines: JF Jacques-Horcoff-Hemsky; Penner-Cogliano-Brule; Ryan Stone-Comrie-O’Sullivan (the “checking” line); Moreau-Gagner-Stortini. So, yeah.
Oh for crying out loud, Quinn had been away from coaching for years! Yes. Several years. Thank goodness that’s no longer a concern.
Babcock is a massive upgrade in coaching from last year.
And there is no Skinner and Nurse.
You consistently fail to acknowledge the obvious.
The Oilers do not exist to provide NHL opportunities to the mediocre. Despite your endless yearing.
Does Levi count as a rookie? We know he’ll play.
Hutson definitely needs a couple more injuries but, yes, he likely gets games. Can Tralmaks make a case? I like Marjala but don’t see it. Clattenberg has work to do but, if he does it, he could also see games. I don’t include Michaels as an option until he proves me wrong.
Carfagna could rocket up the depth chart but Stastney/Regula/Brown. I have no idea what to expect from Cibulka but looking forward to watching him and find out!
I am pretty sure we’ll see Raty in Edmonton at some point.
To qualify for the NHL’s Calder Memorial Trophy, a player must be 26 or younger by September 15 of that season.
They cannot have played over 25 regular-season games in any prior NHL season, or 6+ games in two preceding seasons in any major professional league.
Levi played 42 and 52 games in the prior two seasons in Rochester.
In 39 NHL games played, he has posted a .894 save percentage with a GAA of 3.29
In his last season with NHL games played, the 6’0″ 192lb goaltender was clearly the third string tender with a 2-7 W/L record, .872 and 4.12 GAA.
Why do you think he will play?
Because Jarry is mediocre and held together with duct tape while Andersen is very good while also being held together by duct tape.
Duct tape wont last a full season with heavy usage.
Didn’t we just have that? His name was Knoblauch, Kris Knoblauch.
It may be out of order, but if the next coach is Gerald Ford, Knoblauch is surely Jimmy Carter.
Completely ineffectual and out of his depth.
It made me laugh when Connor and Leon called out the coaching last season and everyone was saying, “No, they’re not complaining about the Oilers coaching, they’re just praising other coaches.” Or some sad excuse to that effect.
C’mon, man.
The Oilers are worried about keeping McDavid happy and on the team? Maybe they should have fired Knoblauch the first time McDavid complained about the poor coaching.
Definitely should have fired him when Leon chimed in.
But, as usual, the Oilers worry more about optics than winning.
Same as it ever was.
I agree mostly, but my goodness it is hard to fire a coach who takes a team to two straight SCFs. It really is.
For sure. Bowman was right to give time and not disrupt things too quickly, but it slowed the process and probably toasted last season. At least more than it might have been, they were also out of gas
The Gerald Ford metaphor was utterly misplaced.
Knoblauch was an utter disaster last year, never more so than in the playoffs.
The issue for the Oilers is how to do they upgrade the top 6 forwards – can Bowman find someone to dupe to acquire actual NHL quality – Vancouver , Columbus and Winnipeg beckon.
Knoblauch got the Oilers to the Stanley Cup final twice. Neither McLellan, nor Tippett did that. Tippett’s teams twiced choked big time, in the play-in against Chicago, and against Winnipeg. McLellan had a replay of a San Jose type collapse against Anaheim. Woodcroft was outsmarted by Cassidy.
Knoblauch’s mistake (it may have been Holland’s mistake) was not getting to Broberg soon enough, which cost the Oilers a cup. Jackson and Bowman then made the team significantly worse in July and August 2024, and in the summer of 2025.
Knoblauch made poor assistant coaching hires when Gullickson and Coffey left.
Losing in the finals twice, made the team lose confidence in the coach. It doesn’t mean Knoblauch was a bad coach. Coach’s just have finite lifetimes.