Dennis King's scoring chances does a fine job of telling us how things are going and last night's numbers reflects how the top 4 lines are doing in terms of scoring chances:
- Horcoff line: 9 for, 4 against
- Gagner line: 3 for, 7 against
- Cogliano line: 6 for, 12 against
- Fraser line: 3 for, 1 against
- Hall 17:49
- Penner 17:26
- Horcoff 16:38
- Cogliano 15:55
- Pääjärvi 15:33
- Gagner 15:09
- Jones 14:42
- Reddox 14:31
- Omark 14:10
- Stortini 4:52
- Jacques 4:38
- Fraser 4:34
--
Tyler Pitlick scored his 20th goal last night and is second in WHL rookie points now (Marincin is 3rd). His 50 points have him in the league's top 30 point getters. I'll have a look at the Oilers CHL players on this blog tomorrow.
--
At the break, I think the Oilers are about where they expected to be in the standings. I picked them for 13th in the conference but management didn't address need at any time during the first half of the season. To have expected more was folly. My fault.
Speaking of prospects - I'm making a voyage down to Red Deer on Friday night to see the Oil Kings and Rebels go head-to-head.
ReplyDeletePurely looking at numbers, I can't understand why Nugent-Hopkins gets all this top-three hype, yet Michael St. Croix is hardly ever mentioned even as a late 1st rounder. So I'm going to go and check it out for myself.
Management not addressing need, hmmm?
ReplyDeleteFool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
Fool me three, four, five times, well now its 2011 and five years out of the playoffs. ;)
Hopefully they'll go into the break on a nice note but the Stars will likely be ornery. Little Squeaky probably on their case after the lost weekend.
"Little squeaky"? heheheee
ReplyDeleteLT: Love how you keep putting up this Halak vs Hall picture; it's a pretty nice picture, I must admit!
;)
What was the last hole that got filled? Khabby?
ReplyDeleteThese guys are hole-diggers, not hole-fillers.
BD - who's Little Squeaky?
The Crow.
ReplyDeleteObviously "the need" is a top 2 or 3 pick in the 2011 Draft.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I was just reading pat's article at BDHS, and have a scenario for the Oilers Intellegentia who read here:
ReplyDeleteYou're Ales Hemsky. You've played on this shitty oilers team for how many years, and you've got one trip to the dance to show for it. But, now that the team is getting good, and there are some other really excellent players coming up, the team is considering moving you. What do you do?
You're Steve Tambelinni. And just fo fun, lets say that you're a competant GM and this whole tank for 5 years plan was just a straw man so that when the team is ready to compete in 11-12, you look like you've overacheived. Ales Hemsky, your actual MVP is comming up on needing a new contract soon. He's been injured a lot, but is a helluva player when healthy. Can be a game breaker. But, he's also worth a lot to other teams, and you do have holes you need to address. You've only go so much money to sign players, and will need some for the kids in a couple of years, as well as for those holes we mentioned. What do you do?
What I'm trying to set up here, is that I think Hemsky will extend here, and I think it will be for at or near what he's making now. His injusry history is not pretty, but he can be a great player when healthy. I think that if you keep him at his current salary, you can fit him into the pay scale of a contending team. And I think Hemsky signs it because he wants to be here, since he was here for all the shit over his carreer so far.
Can anyone here think of a reason either side would not try to make this happen? Does anyone think Hemsky is worth more or less than I am suggesting here? Assuming Steve can read this situation, and the opportunity to get some great value here... any reason he doesn't pursue this?
Managment not addressing the need?
ReplyDeleteBut they gave it the "colllege try" last summer when they went after Malhotra. When it failed, there was absolutely no one else left in the market who would work.
(heavy sarcasm)
It's really not fair to ask this management team to multi-task. They can't assess that many things at once.
I think it should be noted that Hemsky's salary next year is $5,000,000.
ReplyDeleteThat, I presume, is the starting point for negotiations, not $4.1.
@ Oilerdago
ReplyDeleteAll that assessing is futile and even shameful if all they can think of now is to trade Hemsky and/or Penner.
This summer is ST acid test. he has shown in the past that he is capable of making trades that look good at the time(acquiring POS, Fraser), or are just good deals like Staois trade and Whitney trade. What he hasnt shown is the propensity to sign decent FA who are capable of helping out this team. Oilers can really turn it around this summer and that should be the fruit of assessing and not purging it all and going for more draft picks
As much as I like Hemsky, I wouldn't mind if he was moved. But I would not move him for a pick. It would have to be a proven and contributing center or defenseman. No need to stock an alreay full cupboard.
ReplyDeleteLowetide made a great point about Omark. He has proven he's an NHL player and it will be difficult to move him down to OKC. The problem is that we have too many good right wingers. And thats a nice problem to have. So as difficult a decision it is, someone simply needs to be moved.
An extra NHL-quality right winger is an asset that must be moved in exchange for something we need. Its a sign of bad management to store an NHL-quality right winger in the AHL. Good management will find a way to make a deal giving up something we have too much of for something we have to little of.
@SumOil:
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you say. My bone is that they had a Plan A for a 3C (Malhotra) and no plan B (Fraser is a 4C not a 3). Their read of the FA market has been poor since the early 2000's when they had no choice but to learn how to buy off the bargain rack.
For all Cogliano's skating ability, he still does not have the defensive zone awareness a good 3C has nor can he win a face-off. Going into next season with Lander as the plan for 3C is not smart - he'll be a rookie and will make lot's of mistakes along the way.
You need to have some vets who can help the kids through the learning process and a 3C has been a gaping hole since Stoll was sent away.
But before we say they can compete next season, I would also say goalie is an issue. It looks like DD is ready to be a solid back-up, but is he ready to step up and be #1? If not, you have Khabibulin and that boat anchor contract that I don't think comes off the books even if he's sent to OKC.
This is pretty much a three line hockey club at this point, but I don't know that it should be in real terms.
ReplyDeleteThere is no point in leaving the kids on the bench.
Frelbo - The trouble with the Oilers trading any excess players is that it will come back to haunt us.
ReplyDeleteThis team with its injury history needs as much depth as possible or every year we will be an injury or two away from dropping in the rankings
Lowetide: I'm surprised you didn't mention that some guy who showed up in Edmonton in late 1978 and wore "99" is celebrating his 50th birthday today. From what I can remember, he did alright as an NHL player.
ReplyDeleteHbomb: Not as good as Rob Schremp tough.
ReplyDelete"99 is celebrating his 50th birthday"
ReplyDeleteHappy 50th to the great one. This is an interesting article by CP on Gretzky had he stayed, nothing new but pain never leaves...lol. 8-10 cups..wow.
http://www.news1130.com/sports/article/173656--edmonton-wonders-what-could-have-been-had-gretzky-stayed-with-the-oilers
MDF, good point on the injuries.
ReplyDeleteBut at some point we need to get off the pot and fill the gaping holes and fix the imbalance in the lineup. We have too many small scoring wingers and too few quality defensemen and centers.
Its nice to have depth in OKC. But when our injury bad luck ends, at the expense of a little less depth in OKC I would rather have Omark on RW and Foster/Fraser replaced by players that can help us win on center/defense. We can only do that by trading some of our quality assets.
Storing Omark in OKC "just in case" while we watch Foster and Fraser night in and night out is a formula that will never result in a winning team.
BD - who's Little Squeaky?
ReplyDeleteHe's the guy with the Dracula haircut behind the Stars bench. Can't miss him.
Tencer's early prediction has Dubnyk starting again. Are we ever going to find out what is ailing Khabibulin? Are we keeping hush leading up to the deadline?
I like that Renney is matching a lot more these days. Cogliano taking so many draws is kind of bizarre but I guess practice makes, umm... not so terrible? I wonder if this is a permanent thing or if Horcoff will resume his duties once he's in full form.
It looked like the powerplay was getting better last night. They were moving away from having a big glut of players lined up at the offensive blueline by moving the puck a lot quicker and it seemed to help.
Hey Hbomb: shhhhhhhhhhh
ReplyDeleteIM from Winnipeg and know Rick, Mikes Dad!! I know its a shame this kid doesnt get the top 30 rankings!! but as an Oiler fan We only have the one First rd pick as of now!! i want us to grab hime with OUR 2nd or other picks!!! any scouting department letting this kid slip outta the first will ALL look like idiots!!! but hey if he is there with OUR early 3O'S PICK they better take him!!!! I he doesnt go in the First round I wouldnt be shocked, nobody is writing anything about him!! if he had 5 scouts write article about him or if BOB Mckenzie actually saw the KID play he go in the TOP 25!
he HAS KNOW SUPPORTING CAST LIKE BARTCHI!
Lets just hope that Hemsky's concussion doesn't sideline him until past the trade deadline so that ST has an opportunity to at least get some offers for him this year. No one's going to make a deadline trade for a concussed player.
ReplyDeleteHemskys contract is already written.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=433200
Yeah that contract kind of sucks for the Wild.
ReplyDelete6 million a year for a guy that will probably play 60 games a season kind of sucks.
It's five million per year (at least according to Danny's article), yet smarminess.
ReplyDeleteMy sense is that $5 million per year over a long-term is indeed the kind of money Hemsky will command in his next contract, but god knows that my sense is usually wrong.
Diane Lane turned 46 last Saturday.
ReplyDeleteDiane Lane, eh? That explains a lot. I read on TMZ that she had a giant birthday cake delivered to her home and that police were called, the quotation was (I am paraphrasing):
ReplyDelete"Police were called to actress Diane Lane's California home on Saturday when a man burst from her birthday cake wearing a Canadian flag Speedo and an Edmonton Oilers puckhead and nothing else. The still unidentified man was described as 'smelling faintly like a brewery' and 'quite dishevelled'. He escaped police when he distracted them with strange tales about seals in Oakland and some guy named Mark Poosalot.
Ms. Lane described the experience as both slightly frightening and also strangely stimulating. She said that she has not slept since and that if the man was reading this that he should call her."
But at some point we need to get off the pot and fill the gaping holes and fix the imbalance in the lineup. We have too many small scoring wingers and too few quality defensemen and centers.
ReplyDeleteYeah, but that point isn't now.
If I'm Ales Hemsky I would rather be on a competently run team.
ReplyDeleteI will not criticised Toonces, er, Tambellini. I will not criticise Tambellini ...
ReplyDeleteAnd I hesitate to mention how Calgary would likely jump at the chance to acquire an Omark in exchange for off-loading Regehr's contract (he has become my Pacioretty).
IMO, the Stars thump the Oil handily tonight because they are irritated by the past few games. And because lightning only strikes once a week for this team.
1-60 on the PP is coming up! You can do it!
Lowetide made a great point about Omark. He has proven he's an NHL player and it will be difficult to move him down to OKC. The problem is that we have too many good right wingers.
ReplyDeleteHemsky
Eberle
?
Gregor is reporting Penner getting married over the all star break?!
ReplyDeleteAm I just late to the party on this? Is she from Edmonton and does it effect his chances of resigning?
Gregor is reporting Penner getting married over the all star break?!
ReplyDeleteStupid Gregor, you can't marry a cheeseburger.
we'll if personal experience is anything to go buy the downturn in cardio workout from lack of sex will mean the guy is at least 275 by September.
ReplyDeleteThe upside being he will be much angrier on the ice.
She's Canadian. Former wife of fellow NHL'er Richard Zednik. Spousal abuse cited in their divorce. One kid. Yay.
ReplyDeleteDucey wrote...
ReplyDeleteBut at some point we need to get off the pot and fill the gaping holes and fix the imbalance in the lineup. We have too many small scoring wingers and too few quality defensemen and centers.
"Yeah, but that point isn't now."
So for a cost cutting exercise: why don't we quit paying Tambellini and Lowe (send them both on an unpaid sabbatical) because they are currently not doing anything? NOTHING
We can rehire them when it is worthwhile for someone to try to improve the team.
Geez if we tried to improve the bottom 6, PK, face offs, PP we might jeopardize a lottery pick. Nope its better to ride an undersized, unbalanced team without trying to get better
Omark can play both wings and has proven he is a legit NHL player, better than at least 5 forwards on the roster. Even debating sending him down to OKC at the organizational level is a condemnation of player scouting and management.
ReplyDeleteKhabibulin starts. I guess he's okay!
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday to the Great One.
ReplyDeleteObviously it was terrible to trade him, but credit where credit is due to Pocklington.
Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas and first-round draft picks in 1989, 1991 and 1993 was a monster haul. Not his fault Carson crumbled under the pressure of replacing a living legend.
Commonfan - don't forget $20,000,000 in cash to Pocklington as well which was huge NHL money in those days.
ReplyDeletehttp://25stanley.com/photo-de-party-de-noel-dustin-penner-et-jessica-welch.html
ReplyDeleteI like Google's translation of the comment under the picture:
ReplyDelete"They were seen together at a party for Hugh Hefner, they talked about their relationship to the radio and is all smiles during the holiday season around December 26.
Message to Dustin Penner. Stop eat turkey, t'explosent your shirts on the chest. You will not be able to follow your teammates Oilers younger and faster than you. You should follow the example of your incredibly hot blonde.
Thank you to Steph for the tip about that other famous couple of the NHL world."
Enjoy the Blades and Oil Kings game Bruce.
ReplyDeleteI'll be listening on the radio so be sure to tell us what you see out there.
Nelson - I remember a cartoon of a couple at the alter. He's thinking 'All I have to do is say "I do" and its all the BJ's I want.' She's thinking 'All I have to do is say "I do" and its no more BJ's ever.'
ReplyDeleteOh and go Oilers I guess...
ReplyDeleteI never thought I'd see the day where the ice was better in Dallas then Edmonton.
My favorite Gretzky memory is that slapshot goal over Vernon's shoulder.
ReplyDeleteFor whatever reason, that remains my favorite NHL goal.
I haven't seen this mentioned, but apologies if it has...
ReplyDeleteWoodlief has the post-WJC Red line Report out.
Rankings:
Red Line's Top 10 prospects
1 Gabriel Landeskog RW 6-1/201 L 11/23/1992
2 Adam Larsson D 6-3/220 R 11/12/1992
3 Sean Couturier C 6-4/193 L 12/7/1992
4 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins C 6-0/163 L 4/12/1993
5 Dougie Hamilton D 6-4/193 R 6/17/1993
6 Ryan Murphy D 5-11/176 R 3/31/1993
7 Ryan Strome RW 6-0/183 R 7/11/1993 Niagara
8 Brandon Saad LW 6-2/200 L 10/27/1992
9 Alex Khokhlachev C 5-10/172 L 5/9/1993
10 David Musil D 6-3/191 L 4/9/1993
Musil sneaks back into the top 10 after sliding over the past few reports.
Also, he has this to say about Mr. St. Croix:
Rising:
Michael St. Croix (Edmonton):
Has never been one of our favorites, but we can't ignore the sizzling scoring display he has been putting on. If he just keeps his effort and compete levels up consistently, he'll keep climbing.
Geez if we tried to improve the bottom 6, PK, face offs, PP we might jeopardize a lottery pick. Nope its better to ride an undersized, unbalanced team without trying to get better
ReplyDelete~Yeah, Tambo better load up at the deadline for that push for 26th~
Go cheer for the Leafs, they sound like your kind of team.
Black Dog - I don't know how everyone just let that go without comment...I literally broke out into a laughing fit while at work when I read that. Imagery is a wonderful thing.
ReplyDeleteWhat did Lowetide call him the other day, was it "that Philadelphia yahoo"?
ReplyDeleteAnywho, here's the buzz, the hockey one of course:
On Hemsky...
I am adding Hemsky to the Rumor chart this afternoon...I have heard two teams, Atlanta and Boston, have serious interest.
On Penner...
Dustin Penner is also available, and I have heard both NJ and Toronto (don't miss the irony) connected to Penner in rumors over the last two days.
speeds - Agreed. Best goal ever. Perfect shot. Amazing camera angle available too. 99 had the most accurate slapper ever and never seems to get credit for it.
ReplyDeleteIt seems Tambo likes to do his work from the trade deadline to the free agent signing period (Staois trade, Fraser trade, Cole trade, etc.) and then doesnt do anything else the rest of the year. After July 2 I really don't expect anything from him (other than maybe flying to Kelowna to wine and dine some guy who will never come here)
ReplyDeleteI think if he doesn't address the holes this year then we might as well write off the next season.
Mr DeBakey, why even bother wasting the time to repeat the drivel. I can be just as accurate as HockeyBuzz.
ReplyDeleteI've 'heard' that [Insert random player here report from other sources that might be in play] could be traded to [insert random team here].
Done. Click 'submit' and collect my advertising and subscription fee moneys from all those suckers out there.
MDF you couldn't be more wrong.
ReplyDeleteWhat we see as him doing nothing is actually a very intensive period known as assessing.
Way to go Peener.
ReplyDeleteRegarding 99's 50th, here's nice little stroll down memory lane from Puck Daddy
ReplyDeleteGretzky was an UFA after the end of the 1991 season. He had taken advantage of Pocklington's financial difficulties to renegotiate and shorten his contract. Three years was all that was left. The Oilers won one Cup in those three years. They only left two on the table.
ReplyDeleteWhat Gretzky didn't factor into his plans was that Pocklington would trade him and get a return before Gretzky left in 1991 for nothing.
Pocklington did Gretzky a favour in being greedy enough to become the villain. If Gretzky had not been traded and left as he intended to in 1991, Gretzky would have been the villain.
Wasn't 99 signed until 1999? Did he have an out clause or something?
ReplyDeleteAfter watching what AA is doing with the bluejays, its getting harder and harder to watch tambo sit on his hands. After unloading Vdub and getting what he got back, no GM for the rest of time has a "unloadable contract" excuse.
ReplyDelete//Wasn't 99 signed until 1999? Did he have an out clause or something?//
ReplyDeleteTo repeat my last post
"Gretzky was an UFA after the end of the 1991 season. He had taken ADVANTAGE OF POCKLINGTON'S FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES TO RENEGOTIATE AND SHORTEN HIS CONTRACT. Three years was all that was left."
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFirst to Gretzky and then to the rest.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite goal of his was the one in G2 at Cgy in '88 as well. The thing about me and him was I was Always a Messier guy just because I thought it was so awesome how Mess was such a badass and so goddamned skilled as well. I never really appreciated Gretzky for the simple fact that he was so fucking good you just Expected him to be that good all the time and it was the ultimate case of me taking a player for granted.
In wondering how many more Cups they would have won, Wayne vs Mario in a finals or two would have been magic and you know I'm gonna say how great it would have been to have beaten Roy and Cuntreal in '93 if the old gang had been kept together:)
As for tonight and the rest of the year I think 4 should be playing pivot for the rest of the year as soon as 14-83 come back and hopefully that's starting next Wed vs LA because it seems like 14's gonna be ready to go for that one and 83's also already riding the bike and running the treadmill so he must be close as well.
Then I'd go with:
27-4-14 - 4 and 14 keep their chem and 27 can certainly follow along.
91-10-83 - those last two have played together forever and 91 is a guy who should be able to help them play PVP.
28-89-23 - for now you keep the latter two together and 28 rounds it out.
16-13-85 - a fourth line that's useful and really you have six guys to make a third line.
This means 67 is out in the cold - at least IMO and is hopefully dealt as soon as someone sees his healthy which will probably require a showcase so that means 28 to the fourth line and 16 to the pressbox - but him and one of 22 or 46 stick around as the 13th or 14th forwards.
Renney was blowing shit about how that man 33 had to be in the lineup but he should be gone along with one of the other candidates. Hopefully Lowe comes out firing and makes a trade as soon as the freeze thaws;)
Also, I wish DD had gotten the call tonight because he was wobbly that night in LA after he was given a BTB start on the heels of an impressive win at SJ and I want to see how he reacts to more work.
Note: also because I have 15 dollar parlay on the Oilers reg and the Hoyas and OKC to cover and DD gives us the best chance at winning:)
But, still, it's important to see what he might be able to do with more of a workload. That and finding out about 4 as a pivot are the biggest deals heading down the stretch.
Also, I'd like to see some gears changed from coaching staff to the point of a total rework of the ST because we know the PP's terrible but the PK sucks Again and also someone tell Renney to start hard-matching the 10 line PVP and stop dicking around with anyone to that contrary.
According to Spector (of Spector's Trade Rumours, not Sportsnet), Hemsky was never really shopped and is certainly off the block now, given his concussion.
ReplyDeleteKatz' ginger:
ReplyDeleteTo be fair there is no cap in MLB. Sure Vernon's contract eliminates a bunch of teams from employing him but there are enough rich teams who might be willing to take a chance on a guy capable of hitting 30 HRs and 100 RBIs.
I really miss Gretzky. I remember where I was when he was traded. The worst part about living in Manitoba was getting the gears from all of my relatives. They used to bug me all the time before the trade... things like "did you hear? Gretzky got traded." And then one day it actually happened. Which sucked beyond belief. I lost my love for the Oilers for awhile. I didn't enjoy the 90 Stanley Cup as much as I should because Gretzky wasn't a part of it.
Time really does fly when you're not looking.
//I didn't enjoy the 90 Stanley Cup as much as I should because Gretzky wasn't a part of it.//
ReplyDeleteI rooted harder and enjoyed it more, because all the other guys got their due.
My best 99 memory is entirely selfish - it was the night in '86 (or '87) I can't quite remember at the Saddledome where Gretzky got the third star, and on his way out passed me his stick, instead of signing an autograph. Then my dad had to pull the thing away from the bloke behind us who wanted it.
ReplyDeleteSealed me for life as an Oiler fan and a follower of Gretzky.
What would Hemsky's concussion have to do with quietly taking offers for him?
ReplyDeleteIs he expected to be out 5 weeks?
JW,
ReplyDeleteDo you have a link for that?
Here's what Spector had to say in Trade Rumours:
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Both have one more season at over $4 million remaining on their contracts, which might keep both in Edmonton for the remainder of this season. There would probably be a better market for them in June or early July, when teams will have more cap space to work with. Hemsky’s injury history could significantly reduce his market value.
Ducey
ReplyDeleteI was following this team before you and will be following it after you leave. To suggest we do nothing night after night when we continue to lose is worse than a farce. And if you were paying for season tickets for the last number of years with a single exception you would realize that
Last year ......oh "its the injuries"
This year ...."we're rebuilding".
Not all problems the Oilers have will be solved by the amateur scouting staff and that currently seems to be the absolute totality of the "Plan" scrupulously hewed to by K Lowe and Tambi.
Next problem that is going sneak up on this management group will be managing our salary cap...... and when management says "geez who knew" .......clearly not them but a professional management group would have planned for it years in advance.
I find Spector excels at merely finding the simplest explanation quashing the rumours offered by other sources.
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying he has done this with Hemsky in this case, but a prudent observer such as Spector might remark that teams have no interest in Hemsky right now given that there are no guarantees he will be able to play the remainder of this season.
I enjoyed the '90 cup win More as well just because I could be very wrong about this but I never thought Gretzky fought hard enough to say and I always blamed Janet for wanting to pursue her "career" in Hollywood.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely hated the Kings when Gretzky went there and the '93 Cup Finals was the only time I couldn't find a reason to root for a team. I remember watching it with all my Habs buddies and I honestly didn't give a fuck what happened.
godot10:
ReplyDeleteI've heard that before about Gretz being able to renegotiate his contract due to Puck's financial troubles, but I've never heard an explanation for why he was able to do that exactly.
Do you have details?
I'll wade into the Gretzky pool.
ReplyDeleteMy best memory of him was during game 5 of the 84 SCF when he essentially erased the myth of Billy Smith being hockey's all-time money goalie.
I was thrilled to see post-Oilers Gretzky never win any more cups.
ReplyDeleteHad he won anything in the USA, the NHL would have pretended the Oilers never existed.
Messier leaving was the real death knell for the dynasty, especially since Bernie Nicholls was sold to the Oilers exactly the same way as Blair MacDonald was sent to the Canucks - with inflated stats courtesy of Gretzky.
The irony of "small market teams" being, that the Pocklington Oilers did everything they could to ensure the inflation of players, by selling Gretzky to the Kings in the first place.
ReplyDeleteRe: Gretzky leaving, from what I know, and from what my grandfather went on and on about, the real reason Gretzky was shipped out was because of the Conservative Party of Alberta screwing over Pocklington after he tried to push his way into the party in a leadership role and the rebuttal to that was the whole Gainer's fiasco and other such calling in of the debts he had and so forth, thus causing the money troubles that forced Puck to move Gretzky.
ReplyDeleteI always liked the story, and I don't know how true it is (never wanted to find out).
I expect the Oilers to lose tonight, but am hoping for a win -- its Dallas, though.. lotta Oiler killers.
The other John said...
ReplyDeleteI was following this team before you and will be following it after you leave. To suggest we do nothing night after night when we continue to lose is worse than a farce. And if you were paying for season tickets for the last number of years with a single exception you would realize that.
So your opinion is more valid than his because you've followed the team longer and you spend more money on watching them? I'm not sure I see the logical connection.
I think Ducey is right here: management needs to fix things, but there are windows in which that is wiser than others. Ducey isn't suggesting "doing nothing", rather that right now, the prudent thing is to acknowledge that short term improvements that move the team out of lottery position are a bad idea. They are building for the long-term and that requires patience. Otherwise, the Oilers will continue their past pattern of dwelling in mediocrity making minor adjustments to a team whose problems run far deeper than that.
It would be nice if Tambellini had fixed some of these holes earlier and given the team a chance to compete sooner, but he didn't. Playing 'would have could have should have' is always a losing game.
Gretzky was able to renegiotate a couple of times, each time shortening the contract. The last time was somehow related to the Gainers bankruptcy, or Puck's trust company bankruptcy in 1987. Pocklington's business affairs were never straightforward.
ReplyDeleteGoogling says that final contract was 5 years, ending in the summer of 1992 (my memory says 1991), after which he would be a UFA. Some sites suggest, Gretzky had an option after 3 years or in 1990 to become unrestricted (according to the an ESPN documentary) (So it was 4 years left when the trade was made, not three as I suggested in the earlier post.)
Pocklington asked for two more years on top of the four before he made the decision to make the trade.
At the 11th hour and 59th minute, Sather said he would stop trade if Gretzky wanted him too.
In any case, Gretzky was going to be gone by 1992.
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2008/08/05/gretzky_trade_rumours_timeline/
//February or March, 1988: According to Wayne Gretzky, Edmonton Oilers owner Peter Pocklington approaches him and asks to renegotiate his contract so it would run for two more years. Gretzky, who has been saddled with long-term deals since he was 17, tells him, "'Absolutely not.' I'd finally got my contract down to four years, and I didn't want to give that up", said Gretzky.//
I honestly love watching Linus play on the offensive side of the puck. The guy is hungry and calm. If they dare send him packing back to OKC they are going to be ensuring this guy packs his bags and leaves town as soon as he is able. He deserves to be here.
ReplyDeletechartleys
In any case, Gretzky was going to be gone by 1992.
ReplyDeleteIn any case he'd have to renegotiate in '92. You may be right that he would have left, but it's still pure speculation that he'd have left and not re-signed. There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip.
Is there an online feed for the Dallas/Oilers game on this fine Gretzmas Day?
ReplyDeleteATDHE.net has been pretty slow to open the feeds lately (often miss the first half of the first period) but they're usually pretty reliable. That's where I'm watching it.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.atdhe.net/33229/watch-edmonton-oilers-vs-dallas-stars
ReplyDeleteDustin Boyd has 14 goals and 0 assists in 17 AHL games.
ReplyDeleteThe ridiculous numbers this league can produce.
Thank goodness Khabulin was in net for that shot.
ReplyDeleteThanks, William, for the link. Started watching just in time to see Khabbi let in a softie.
ReplyDeleteRW Hemsky, Eberle, Omark,
ReplyDeleteLW Penner, Hall, MPS, X
C Horc, Gagner, X, X
D - X, Whitney, Gilbert, Petry, Peckham, X, Smid, X
G - DD, Lemony Snickett (unfortunately)
PB'd keepers Reddox, Mayber storts
I honestly like to see Hall still playing center right now. If he can play it actually might make Gagner a tradeable (value trade type) asset then you're just a bottom six (I still think Cogs either sets up on the wing or he's not a cog I'd like to keep) and a 1, 6 & 8 Defense away....You might not be able to fix them all for next year but you could definitely start (say fix all but #1 D (maybe get another 2-3)
Damn does Snicketts suck.
chartleys
Every time I think about Khabbi being the team's MVP, the scene from the original Tim Burton Batman movie with the Joker telling his henchman he's his #1 guy comes to mind.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0ag9Sll6RI
Adam Burish must have more than half of his goals vs the OIl.
ReplyDeleteI probably mentioned this before, but you can add fighting to the list of things Fraser doesn't excel at.
ReplyDeletefoster should try not to pull that back past the blue line.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping Khabby can lose 20 straight games. It would be tough but I think he's got what it takes.
ReplyDeleteThe Ginger is snake-bitten. That's like the 2nd post in a couple of games for him.
ReplyDeleteI had the chances at 8-2 for the Oilers and they had a helluva period.
ReplyDeleteThe new 10 line is absolutely owning.
Some of things I've noticed and the first things are the really only three bad plays I saw:
- Khabby can go fuck himself. Burish isn't a sniper and shit like that can kill you,
- a very poor pass by 58 that almost hurt us.
- a play by 26 up the right boards where he was scared to take a hit and it almost lead to something. If he's not putting up points then he's piss-poor.
Some very nice things:
- at 16:08 the Oilers had PP scoring chance where 23 connected with 91 on a slap-pass into the slot. It's noteworthy because it's the first time I've seen the Oilers attempt it.
- at 13:04 the Oilers 4th line were hemmed in their own zone after being caught on for an icing and 22 made a play that blew me away just because he took the puck on the right sidewall and held off Ott with his arm before calmly getting the puck out of the zone.
- at 11:03 89 just threw the puck towards the crease and 91 barged in there attempting to whack at it. Here was the kid using his size.
Great period by the Oil.
I still read "veteran who can help the kids through the learning process" as "veteran who can help the fans through the losing process".
ReplyDeleteThose of use who don't hold season's tickets don't see much upside to finishing ninth.
Is the game that much more painful to watch because we can't win a face off? The PP--which really has been too painful to watch even with visions of sugar plums--needs to be fixed from within. On the evidence available, if need had been addressed, they'd have the puck more often, and still have no clue what to do with it.
"Hey coach, what comes after winning the face off?" Can't blame Tambi for everything.
Whenever NK gets scored on I think of this:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MRu8N2K0NY
This whole time I have been tentative to rag on Khaby thinking that it must be extra tough to be a goalie behind a bunk D. Now though, I know that y'all are right and he is very bad at this. I really want him to mouth-off and get Sourayed cause that's the only way I see him going away.
ReplyDeleteI really want him to mouth-off and get Sourayed cause that's the only way I see him going away.
ReplyDeleteExcept that, unlike with Souray, we'd still be on the hook for Khabibulin's cap hit.
Christ, but that signing was bloody indefensible at the time, and has become only more so in hindsight.
Mercifully, NK's contract is off the books when the Oilers need the cap room.
ReplyDelete3-0 to be sure, but look at those do-able girls in the crowd.
ReplyDeletewell, here's a game I don't feel like watching.
ReplyDeleteOne weird thing about this year is how obvious the score effects seem to be for the Oiler games. I fully expect the Stars to turtle for the next 20-25 minutes. If the Oilers grab a couple, they'll turn it back on.
ReplyDeleteHuggie bear showing why he belongs in the lineup.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete@stevesmith
ReplyDeleteSame Anonymous here,
Oh really, hey? That sucks. But still I just want him gone. If we are going to pay for his ferrari's with extra cup-holders for a few more years might as well put him where he can't keep us losing by one (or 6) next year.
maybe I'm just extra mad at tonight's game..
ps. Poor Storts. That sucked.
RQ - yeah, I was thinking similar things last night when they were going on about the # of 1-goal games the Oilers have been in.
ReplyDeleteMethinks our opponents are playing down to our level and just coasting. Makes the data gathering process, like scoring chances, irrelevant.
Wishing Mac was dressed tonight
ReplyDeletewtf checks Gagner in the mouth. I haven't been watching this game but I'm guessing Smac isn't in the lineup?
ReplyDeleteWell, not irrelevant. You just have to look a little deeper. I've noticed Dennis has the overall ES chances as pretty tight for most games, but I have a feeling the chances when tied or within a goal are a little less flattering.
ReplyDeleteStill I'll admit the Oilers have been better at ES than I thought they would be. More like just out of the playoffs quality as opposed to their 28-30th place special teams.
I didn't know there was MMA on tonight...
ReplyDeleteI think this game is going to be like that Rangers game. Oilers get beatup in all facets of the game.
ReplyDeleteIf the put Cogs jersey on Smac for the rest of the game would anyone notice?
ReplyDeleteIt's awesome that Peckham went after Richards on that shift. You have to like the kid.
ReplyDeleteCogliano, jones, reddox PP ?
ReplyDeleteI think Dustin Penner truly hates to score goals.
ReplyDeletethoughts?
Any of you friends know of a workin stream?
ReplyDeleteThat was a pretty malicious elbow on Reddox there. Looks like a mouse on his cheek, hopefully not an orbital injury or a concussion.
ReplyDeletehttp://habsvision.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteSorry, that stream just went down.
ReplyDeleteRobidas is a serious asshole. Pretty blatant elbow there. It's safe to say these teams don't like each other.
ReplyDeleteYeah, concussion was my first fear too, especially with how he got creamed in Buffalo last year.
ReplyDeleteRenney and Khabby and the PK are murdering me.
ReplyDeletePeckham is great. I wish Vandermeer would have just decked Richards for mouthing off to him while Teddy was fighting big brother.
ReplyDeleteGuys are too afraid to lose money with a suspension these days. If Gretzky had taken a crosscheck to the face someone on the other team was going to pay for it that game. It was a given. You just don't see that any more.
Kudos to Reddox and Smid who both have 5 registered hits already. This is one of those games again where the score doesn't really matter. Bring the physical game and keep it going to the end. Leave an impression.
The powerplay gut is back again. Hall managed to gain possesion once by weaving through four players but I wouldn't count on that happening every time. They need to move the puck quicker.
They're getting destroyed on faceoffs again.
Khabibulin looks like he's playing beer league.
If Fraser does that a couple more times, we won't have to worry about him not being a capable 3C.
ReplyDeleteThat's glut and not gut.
ReplyDeleteHow is interference defined in the NHL rule book? I'm confused.
ReplyDelete***Trolling Alert***
ReplyDeleteI dont really post here anymore, but wanted to posit the following question to dedicated oilfans - Who else is sick of having an 'enforcer' on this team that cant fight!? yeah, thats what I am getting at.. I have liked storts for years, but the guy is, and has been for years, an embarrassingly poor fighter.. is it or is it not his time to go?!..
This is shades of JS Giguere. Get Khabi back on the sauce.
ReplyDeleteThat's THREE blatant uncalled headshots. Good job refs.
ReplyDeleteSMac definitely would earn his keep tonight.
RiversQ: They don't have a place in any sports.
ReplyDeleteFor those keeping score, crosscheck to Gagners face, elbow to reddoxs face, elbow to jones face.
ReplyDeleteHow would Smac have prevented the high hits?
ReplyDeleteHe is useless. Noone is going to fight him.
The only way to stop it is to have your own physical players capable of actually playing the game lay the body on the other teams star players.
Godot: That or you know... teamates actually standing up for each other.
ReplyDeleteProbably the most poorly officiated game I've seen all year.
ReplyDeleteRobidas could have easily got a match penalty for what he did to 85 and the interference was galling on Fistric's hit.
I know Kyle Raymond's name was mentioned but who else did the game? Safe to say they won't be working in the playoffs?
Oilers played a great first but Khabby didn't show up until the third and the Oilers have two things going against them now:
1. they'll never win the ST battle
2. they can't win faceoffs.
You can tie one to the other as strongly as you want to but we know how those areas are gonna go every night.
Oh I forgot that they're losing the goalie battle too.
ReplyDeletere: faceoffs, it's getting worse. 16/51=31% tonight, they're down in that 33% range every game now it seems. Gagner is far, far worse than that. I'm pretty sure it's his last three games that he's gone 1/8=13%, 2/12=17% and again 1/8=13%. I think I might be able to outdo that FFS. What the hell is wrong with him??
ReplyDeleteI asked this awhile back and there were some good thoughts. Could Gagner's recent struggles in the faceoff circle have anything to do with playing with rookies on either wing?
ReplyDeleteOr is that just excuse making?
Numbers aside, I think Gagner is fighting something right now. Sometimes I think 91 is invisible to him.
ReplyDeleteGlad I went out for supper.
ReplyDeleteGod sakes the Blades radio broadcast is interviewing LaForge...
I can't remember who the pivot was but it happened to the left of the Stars net in the first or third period and the Oilers guy did his job but his wingers couldn't totally win the draw.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if things like that are happening on a regular basis to 89 - I love watching 23 play but he's not gonna be able to help in this capacity - but things are out of control right now. I look at the faceoff numbers at night's end every game and there seems to be at least two of the opp pivots running at 70%.
It's like the jesus PK: it's sucked for years and no one seems to give a fuck about it.
Lowetide: Can you isolate who was on the ice for a draw, look at at who won that draw, and make conclusions from there?
ReplyDeleteYou'd need a situation where a centre went from one set of wingers we can reasonably expect to be hard on the puck (IE Smyth + Pisani) to a couple who we can reasonably expect to be softer (Samsonov + Hemsky). And then a large enough sample size in both cases. Or, heck, just all faceoffs a guy took with Smyth beside him vs all those taken with other wingers.
If Renney ever lets 4 play pivot for the reason of the season - and more and more I like Renney less and less - and 4 starts looking decent then I think it will be the end of 89.
ReplyDeleteShowerhead: That seems about right. Do we think (as a group) the Oilers question the VALUE of winning faceoffs? That they don't know the impact of it?
ReplyDeleteI suspect that's it. I think they think worrying over faceoffs is like men who waive lanterns at runaway trains. Thanks Rodney Crowell.
ha ha. My baby started crying as soon as LaForge started talking and didn't stop until he stopped talking. I have no idea what he said.
ReplyDeleteHowever, they seem to be sperging about the preseason game against Chicago that will be in Saskatoon next year. (I wouldn't go to it for free)
LT: Good thoughts, I wondered the same thing about having the rookie Swedes on the wing. Not only are they not (in my observation) much help on scrambled draws, but they aren't going to fill in and take those tough draws on Gagner's weak side - all the onus is on the C to get it done, and get it done clean.
ReplyDeleteStill, 4/28=14% is so far beyond pathetic that I don't think we can pin it all on the wingers.
Dennis: Do you write your own material? "More and more I like Renney less and less". Good one.
(And yes, I know you do!)
Fight night here at Rexall too. Three dandy tilts in the second, the boxes were full with seven guys at one point. 3-2 Blades over Oil Kings, start of the third.
ReplyDelete"Police were called to actress Diane Lane's California home on Saturday when a man burst from her birthday cake wearing a Canadian flag Speedo and an Edmonton Oilers puckhead and nothing else. The still unidentified man was described as 'smelling faintly like a brewery' and 'quite dishevelled'. He escaped police when he distracted them with strange tales about seals in Oakland and some guy named Mark Poosalot.
ReplyDeleteMs. Lane described the experience as both slightly frightening and also strangely stimulating. She said that she has not slept since and that if the man was reading this that he should call her."
This was fucking great.
She's Canadian. Former wife of fellow NHL'er Richard Zednik. Spousal abuse cited in their divorce. One kid. Yay.
Isn't this just more of the same lackadaisical behavior from Penner? I mean, he's so lazy, he can't even be bothered to get his own fiance pregnant. Fucking typical. And he barely celebrated after his goal. 2 nights in a row that he showed sub par effort after goals.
The 05/06 Oilers were strong up the middle, but damn the wingers were way, way harder on the puck than these guys. Smyth, Pisani, Torres, Dvorak, and the good Moreau all playing in the top nine? Whew. That has to help the faceoff percentages.
ReplyDeleteJust thinking about this still makes me question that the forwards are even worse than the dmen on this team. The forwards aren't as soft as Joffrey Lupul or full diapers, but damn close.
Bruce: thanks.
ReplyDeleteI had to try and up my game after Pat's creative writing essay;)
If Renney ever lets 4 play pivot for the reason of the season - and more and more I like Renney less and less - and 4 starts looking decent then I think it will be the end of 89.
ReplyDeleteI'd say this is only true if Hall can play center and they draft a center in the first round this June (i.e. Couturier or RNH).
Most good teams have three good lines, and two years from now, running Hall-Gagner-Horcoff down the middle might be one of the stronger trios in the league.
Plus, like Lowetide, it strikes me as silly that they'd give up on a 21-year old with 3.5 years NHL experience. Wouldn't strike me as smart. Then again, I never associated Steve Tambellini with "intelligence", so who knows...
I like Gagner, but I'd love to see the Oilers move a young player before everybody including BobStauffer realize they can't play hockey. If Gagner isn't a true top six forward, I want to see him gone ASAP before his value goes in the toilet. I still have hope for him, but he's progressing slowly.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching what AA is doing with the bluejays, its getting harder and harder to watch tambo sit on his hands.
ReplyDeleteIts funny, I was going to post something on this earlier and thought that no one follows the Jays here.
Everyone loves AA, but they hate Tambo. In reality, they are doing the same thing.
Besides trading Wells, AA traded his #1 starter for a prospect who won't play in the majors this year, and flipped Napoli for a reliever who will be a FA a year earlier.
He has been doing everything in his power to load up on draft picks, and has quite a few holes in the lineup going into this season.
Jays have no where near the amount of holes the Oilers have.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, they look fine going into 2011 where the big thing is breaking in Kyle Drabek and seeing if JPA and Lind can play catcher and first.
Ducey
ReplyDeleteNo longer follow baseball, at least not since the Expos left Montreal. Can't comment on validity of Vernon Wells trade but he was making 25% of the Blue Jays payroll and they were nowhere near good enough. Wells should also be in his prime and he is not.
But AA is at least going up to the plate and is taking his cuts. He is not sitting on his hands and doing nothing. Being in a rebuild does not mean that you do not try to improve your team. It does not. Particularly in a year where is no clearcut #1 pick.
What peeves me off is we are not even trying to get better on the periphery. Why not bring a good face off man? That is not going to take us from #29th to 16th overall. It just is not.
There all sorts of incremental advantages that we are not trying to acquire because we have a plan and come hell or high-water we are going to follow it.
Someone posted that the Oilers have the worst record in the NHL since 2006. Not 2nd worst, not 25th overall. We were the single worse team in the NHL over the last 5 years and at a time we were not trying to be bad. We were trying for the playoffs, spending to the cap and still losing. The managers running those teams are still running this team, as astonishingly as that is.
Plus absolutely hate the Leafs LOL
For the 'enforcers' crowd, a quick question: how useful was Derek Boogaard that night Mattias Ohlund got pissed off at Mikko Koivu.
ReplyDeleteAnswer: Totally useless, because enforcers don't prevent cheap shots.
TOJ: that is sobering, to say the least.
ReplyDelete