- Boxcars: 64gp, 15-17-32
- Shots: 152
- Plus Minus: -21
- Corsi (Rel): -0.5 (8th among F's)
- GF/GA ON: 25-44
- 5x5/60: 1.60 (3rd among F's)
- 5x4/60: 3.33 (6th among F's)
- Quality of Competition: 5th toughest among F's
- Quality of Teammates: 10th best among F's
- FO %: 47.4% in 820 FO's
- Offensive Zone Start FO %: 47.1% (8th easiest among F's)
- Cap Hit: $595,000 (RFA this summer)
- What do these numbers tell us? He had a good season on a terrible team. His plus minus and Corsi are in the red but he played some tougher minutes with drivel helping much of the time. Potulny has always been able to score goals and he did that at the highest available level. He did the one thing scorer's need to do: shoot the damn puck.
- How could these numbers be better? Potulny's breakout season came on a very poor team and he delivered 15 goals. I don't know that there's anything we can point to, except some inconsistency and missed defensive assignments. However, on this team that's really splitting hairs.
- What will his role be next season? I think the Oilers will probably have him in a bottom 6F role to start the season, but he'll be a ready option if Hall/Seguin or Eberle struggle. He's a plug and play forward, although one would guess he'll take fewer faceoffs a year from now.
- Will the Oilers overpay him? Probably, but Potulny doesn't have the kind of pedigree someone like Brule enjoys. If Potulny and his agent play it right, a two-year one-way deal at good dollars might be available and that would probably be a nice place to be for Potulny.
- This was a value contract. Hell, yes. He's a nice player, nothing extreme in any category (save for shooting) but he's skilled and is young enough to have a career.
- Who traded for him? Kevin Lowe, spring of 2008 which of course was previous to the first Tambellini hiring (there have been two, one right after the other. The first hiring was apparently a puppet hiring, but the organization has made it known this is his team now. For real. Starting now).
- How Important is he to the organization? He's fairly important. A value contract who can play multiple roles and might score 20 in a full season. He faded down the stretch but his goal scoring resume goes back to college days.
Performance in 2009-10: 64gp, 15-17-32 (.500)
Projected Role in 2010-11: One of the Oilers top 12F's and an NHL regular
I'm down on Pots but I have no idea why, I'd like to see him win a few more faceoffs and be a solid bottom 6 guy though
ReplyDeleteSwitching to Mr. Zimmerman?
ReplyDeleteWoodguy: Stones recorded it, so I thought it would be fair game. :-)
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's just another in a long list of guys who can't quite get to 0.5PPG and bring very little else. Actually, that's not true. I do think Potulny's stick skills and hockey sense will make him our best penalty killer as soon as this season.
ReplyDeleteI've watched the Pens series very closely and fuck, it depresses me just how far we are from competing at that level. Not only is the talent level of Crosby and Malkin on a different planet than what we carry, the compete level of everyone else is astonishing. They threw more in hits in Game 3 then I've seen the Oilers throw in a month. I'm talking real hits...and they threw around 60!
The worst of it with the Oilers is that they're built for the regular season, not the playoffs. And they still finished a dozen points out of second last. Some really good players disappear in the playoffs (Semin, Green) because its a different brand of hockey. Can you fucking imagine how bad Patrick O'Sullivan or Robert Nilsson would be in a seven game series against Pittsburgh?
I sometimes like to compare depth charts just to see how much we need to upgrade to become a Cup contender.
F1-Crosby over Hemsky
F2-Malkin over Penner
F3-Staal over Horcoff
F4-Poni over Gagner
F5-Kunitz over Brule
F6-Guerin over Cogliano
F7-Talbot over O'Sullivan
F8-Pouliot over Kennedy
F9-Fedotenko over Potulny
F10- Cooke over Pisani
F11- Rupp over Nilsson
F12- Dupuis over Stortini
D1- Gonchar over Souray
D2- Whitney over Orpik
D3-Gilbert over Letang
D4-Smid over Leopold
D5- Eaton over Johnson
D6- McKie over Strudwick
D6-Goligoski over Chorney
G- Fleury over Khabibulin
The point I'm trying to make is that it really doesn't matter if we keep half of these guys because they can't possibly be a part of a very good hockey team. MAYBE if Potulny becomes an elite penalty killer he can become a Max Talbot type on a good team but as of now he's a guy who can score 15-20 if he plays way more minutes on scoring lines and power plays than he ever should.
In the end, he's destined to be a somewhat valuable player on a bad team, just like this year.
For me, its between Comrie and Potulny for an extra forward spot. They both have simliar strengths and weaknesses, so its splitting hairs on who to keep. Personally I'd rather keep Comrie, just simply becuase he's been around longer. Ideally I would like to see Potulny help make OKC better next year. I think its 50/50 he'd clear waivers.
ReplyDeleteCan you fucking imagine how bad Patrick O'Sullivan or Robert Nilsson would be in a seven game series against Pittsburgh?
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine how little it would effect the Oilers' overall play?
Yeah, it's just another in a long list of guys who can't quite get to 0.5PPG and bring very little else.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure why that's a bad number for a bottom six player, especially if 20 of those are goals. I mean, yeah, if he's in our top six for any length of time we're probably fucked. But he's a decent size and he shoots, that's good enough for me.
Man, great little chip from Malkin to Crosby on the 3-2 goal.
As Knighttown said - just another small, non-physical, offense-first guy on a team full of these players. Good for him that he got a shot and did something with it - but if he's on the roster next then that says a whole lot about how bad this team will be......again
ReplyDeleteOf all the runts on the roster or in the wings - I want to see only two suit up for us next year:
POS - buyout/trade by July 1
Nilsson - buyout/trade by July 1
Cogs - trade at draft
Pots - let him walk
Comrie - let him walk
Gags - resigned
Brule - resigned
Eberle - AHL
Omark - AHL
How anyone can look at that list and defend the personnel decisions made by this team in the recent past is beyond me. Buying out or trading Nilsson and POS, plus trading Cogs and letting Comrie/Pots walk - then replacing them with value vets on 1 year contracts would be a decent start on rebuilding. Give me a bottom 6 of Reasoners and Glencrosses on 1 year deals - overpay if necessary - but get some guys with size, grit and character on this team. Anything less will just indicate that this mgmt group has not learned anything.
Better get that hyphen in place there Asiaoil...the grammar nazi's are out in full force..:)
ReplyDeletere-sign
That's well said,although I still haven't decided between Brule/Cogs(I said in the Brule thread it'll come down to money imo)
And Comrie is an August signing for me...if we still need an NHL player to round out the bottom 6,I might give him a contract...maybe.
ReplyDeleteNot sure where "small" or "runt" is getting tossed around, he's 6'0" and 200 lbs.
ReplyDelete190, sorry, not 200.
ReplyDeleteThanks G - lord knows I’ve never been bashful about using the hyphens :)
ReplyDeleteAgree on Cogs/Brule - and if Brule demands $2 million plus and multiple years while Cogs agrees to sign for $1.5 million - then it could be Brule whose dealt. A bunch of factors in play - dollars, term, willingness take on a role that does not involve marshmallow minutes - but only one of those two guys is a keeper IMHO.
Hah, Staal just claimed that the Sens are an optimistic team the way they jump on chances.
ReplyDeleteIMO he plays soft and doesn't skate particularly well so he may as well be 3 apples tall.
ReplyDeleteKT, interesting comparison. I'd likely switch your F8 and D3 but the point is well made.
The whole size debate is interesting. If you have two guys with a similar skillset, compete level and all that then the bigger guy is going to be the guy you want but you know what? You want to see a small team? Check out the Wings roster for the past few years. Up front they were small. Really small. And they won one Cup and if one or two of Lidstrom, Datsyuk or Hossa are healthy in the Final last year they probably are defending two in a row.
ReplyDeleteSmall forwards.
You know who was a small forward? Stan Mikita. One of the greatest players of all time. And he's just one of a long list.
The problem with the Oilers, as pointed out, is that they have a lot of shitty hockey players. Now it just so happens that a lot of them are small but a few of them are big as well.
I wouldn't be jettisoning guys because of their size. I'd be doing it because they're lousy. Potulny is a useful player. Comrie too. Unless you're going to bring in guys who are better NHL players than they are (assuming the idea is not to finish dead last again, maybe it is) then its probably best to hang onto them if you can. Patrick Thoresen is half the size of JFJ and ten times the hockey player. I'd bring him in again and cut Jacques loose in a second.
Black Dog said...
ReplyDelete"The problem with the Oilers, as pointed out, is that they have a lot of shitty hockey players."
Pretty much sums it up.
Only one player on the team close to top ten at his position and it appears he wants a ticket out of town.
Potulny is a keeper. Bottom six with a desire for the puck and willing to take a hit. Get rid of some of the gingerpuffs, but not Potulny.
ReplyDeleteKnightown: It's the magic of playoffs. The one that turn every player into something you don't expect.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's just another in a long list of guys who can't quite get to 0.5PPG and bring very little else.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure why that's a bad number for a bottom six player, especially if 20 of those are goals.
Yeah, but Schitzo, he wouldn't put up 20 goals and 40 plus points in the bottom six. A true bottom sixer would play virtually no power play time and lots of penalty kill time. They'd also very rarely play with top line talent. Potulny spent lots of time on the first PP unit and played many games with Penner, regardless of what qualteam says.
Jordan Staal; 49 total points and only 5 on the power play and I haven't seen him with Crosby or Malkin this whole playoff.
Wayne Simmonds; 40 points-0 PP points.
Jochan Hecht-42 points-3 pp pts.
Andrew Ladd- 38 points- 1 pp ots.
Ryan Potulny- 32 points- 12 pp pts. and serious time at #1C.
The one thing we've learned this year is that producing 0.8 points per game (in a stretch) playing with Dustin Penner is not special. Cogs did it, Brule did it, Pots did it, Gags did it. Anyone doubt if Pouliot got a month at #1C we'd have another "breakout" candidate?
Get rid of all these clowns and get me one guy (a la Glencross) that can produce more than 1/3 of a point per game WITHOUT the damned plum minutes.
(and I don't literally want to trade Gagner for Glencross)
A true bottom sixer would play virtually no power play time and lots of penalty kill time
ReplyDeleteOk, that's a really good point.
But that said, is there a role for him if he signs cheap enough? Would 7-10 goals on the 4th line do it?
Let's sign a bunch of tough guys and play brass bonanza to cover the fact that we suck.
ReplyDeleteAnd get Larsson.
Would 7-10 goals on the 4th line do it?
ReplyDeleteYep, that's a start and I'd guess it's pretty rare. When was the last time we had a 4th liner score that many? Anyway, yeah, if he could approach double digits in goals, create off the forecheck, play on our first PK unit and win 50% of his faceoffs then you've got the makings of a real bottom sixer. The issue though, is the template for the player described above starts and ends with speed, which he doesn't have. Max Talbot, Tyler Kennedy, Chris Kelly, Jason Chimera...that type of guy.
See people think a demotion for a 2nd line player is the 3rd line. It really isn't though. Playing on the 3rd or 4th line on a good team is a different skill set. Players that are fringe second liners are a lot closer to the AHL/press box than most people realize, especially come playoff time. You see guys like Huselius, Demitra and Sykora get benched or PB'ed all the time, at this time of the year. We've got soooo many of those guys.
I see Potulny slotting in right where he is. Top AHL scorer/fringe top sixer on bottom feeder. Jesus, look at Alexandre Giroux. He's huge and scored 60 in the AHL last year and still can't get an NHL job.
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ReplyDeleteI like Potulny's compete. It's similar to the kind of compete you see on good teams fourth lines.
ReplyDeleteOh and i believe there will be a race for N1 next year. That or one of the most deep draft ever.
ReplyDeleteHow often do you see a 6''3 kid who puts up 96 as a 16 years old?
Sean Couturier my friends. Will be a hot debate between him and Larsson.
Yeah the top end of the draft has three potential franchise players, but then is reportedly pretty shallow on depth. If we're going through a rebuild we should almost plan for an all-or-nothing approach. If we're not going to make the playoffs we should tank the season while working to improve our developmental process (drafting, AHL coaching & management, physical training at AHL and NHL level). Larsson or Couturier along with our pick this year would give us two impact players if they continue to develop.
ReplyDeleteDwight Helminen sighting.
ReplyDeleteNugent-Hopkins looks game.
ReplyDeletePlus I'll hype my Blade Duncan Siemens.
Dan Tencer reporting a rumor on his twitter that the entire training/medical staff has been fired.
ReplyDeleteGiven the fact that this team has a history of chronic injuries that are likely related to training (shoulders, anyone?), misdiagnosis (concussions, anyone?) and plain rushing guys back (.... everyone, anyone?), I have a hard time not supporting this.
While Tencer says that PR folks have denied it, and that he's not investigating further at this point, the obvious question about this "medical/training staff fired" rumour is "Would that include Ken Lowe?" I don't really see how it wouldn't, but him being fired would be remarkable.
ReplyDelete(Incidentally, I've never heard any suggestion that he wasn't good at his job, and it's probably worth noting that his tenure as trainer has included several periods during which the Oilers didn't suck and didn't have a unreasonably high injury rate.)
You'd think that Ryan Stone would've got "Like a Rolling Stone"...
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletePotulny does have a great one-timer. I wonder about Brule though. I don't remember him being in many positions to receive a one-timer, but the kid has a hell of a shot. I would like to see him given more PP time.
ReplyDelete