What can the Oilers brain trust do today to inject some energy into this team?
Should Whitney be ready, the sun could break through the clouds. There were all kinds of breakdowns last night (and on the road trip) but the Smid-Gilbert pairing has been fine to my eyes throughout the storm. If Whitney could pair with another Oiler defender that's two legit pairs.
Next up, Theo Peckham. I have no idea if he's injured or if he's forgotten all of the lessons learned, but we've seen this before over the years and Teddy isn't good. At all. Coach Renney has to see that, and a trip to the pressbox is long overdue. A guy like Teubert might be the better plan right now, and yes I know he's a flat out rookie. However, Peckham is a human grenade right now, he's in every police photo after a goal. I don't know if David Staples tracks errors anymore, but this guy is the new Steve Sax.
Up front, I think it's time for a change. Move those kids around, maybe take Hemsky off the Smyth-Horcoff line and it might be a plan to callup Linus Omark since goals for are a tough item. Candidates for the pressbox include Ben Eager, Eric Belanger, Magnus Paajarvi and Lennart Petrell. Hell, that entire 4line (Lander's shot aside) could use a night in the pressbox.
I think the coach Renney's prime targets to get rolling are Taylor Hall and Ales Hemsky. Find those two some chem and things will roll. As it is, this is going to be a long week for Oiler fans.
Oh, and one more thing: does anyone really believe a Sam Gagner for Cody Franson trade is a reasonable one? I'm sure Franson has some nice things, but giving up on Gagner is crazy. The one thing the Oilers have is time to develop a secondary offensive line, and Gagner is certainly capable (when healthy) of delivering offense.
He needs to step up, but you can say that about a lot of people this morning. I'll be interested to see the callups, the line shuffles and the goaltending decision for Saturday night. This is a massive portion of the season. Remember those horrible December nights where "instant loss night" was an everyday happening? I don't believe this team is there, but then again last night didn't seem possible even a week ago.
This team is very poor this morning. There's a lot of skill and there's a lot of promise. But the Oilers are once again shy of actual NHL players. It'll be interesting to see how many of the kids will begin to perform at their previous levels. Right now, there's no swagger, no confidence, nothing rhymes.
I hope the shake-up includes a 91-23-57 line. Chemistry.
ReplyDeleteTHIS IS AN OUTRAGE. WE WERE PROMISED BY THE JOURNAL'S JOHN MACKINNON THAT THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH GOALS WOULD BE FIGURING OUT WHICH ONES GO ON THE HIGHLIGHT REEL. ALSO WE WERE TOLD THAT RYAN SMYTH SUCKS. AND SOMETHING ABOUT RUSTY STAUB.
ReplyDeleteI don't know why anyone thinks that a 91-57-23 line would have instant chemistry? What are people basing this on? IIRC there was a post that those three have played (outside of one preseason game) a total of 1:21 together.
ReplyDeleteI'm not against trying it, but everyone seems to want this because they think the line will instantly score 4 goals in the first game.
Rant aside, We're pretty screwed on the Blue right now, as usual. If All 3 mentioned can't go in the next game against Chicago it is going to get ugly. And I get to go to that one, fantastic.
As for the forwards, lost doesn't begin to describe it but I think shaking up the lines will do. Put Jones with Horc and Smyth, since that seemed to work for some reason. Split up the kids, as the magic has stopped. I'd give Hall and Eberle to Ganger and let them run and see what they can do. I'd try RNH with Hemsky and PRV.
And for the love of god, someone please staple Ben Eager's ass to the press box. The guy is a joke. He was brought in as an enforcer who can also make a play. Right now he is doing neither, and doesn't seem interested in it either.
Renney was fairly calm last night at his presser. The last few seasons there seems to be that time when coach after games transitions from angry/frustrated to a surrendering calm. It's usually in January/Feb however. Not saying this is it but sure felt like it listening to him. Of course the calm is because he saw this comming despite the good start, as it involved a lot of luck.
ReplyDeleteFranson could be a good value pick up, but not if Gagner is going back the other way.
ReplyDeleteFranson's problem this year is apparently that he's a right D that can't play on the left. Toronto has Phaneuf and Schenn eating up most of the right D minutes and Komisarek has picked up the rest so Franson has nowhere to play (according to Cox http://thestar.blogs.com/thespin/2011/11/the-trade-that-hasnt-helped.html).
If that is the case, it may be possible to pick him up cheaply and see his play improve simply by playing him in his natural position. That said, you don't give up a struggling 22 year old lottery pick for a player like Franson, who at best looks to be a botom pairing D.
Renney is not cutting it. At all. 'Nuff said.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteBelanger and Jones are so Dominate on the PK. they are 4.35GA/60 better than league average. they rank 2nd and 3rd for large minutes pk guys.
ReplyDeleteRight now Smyth-Horc-Eberle/hemsky are getting crushed by the tough. All over 3.40GA/60
Horcoff 15th worst
Smyth 25th worst
Eberle 40th worst
Hemsky 45th worst
So no do not sit Belanger and Jones.
Lou: I heard some guy got killed in New York City and they never cracked the case.
ReplyDeleteSteve Sax: But, there are hundreds of unsolved murders in New York every year.
Lou: You just don't know when to shut up, do you Saxy boy?
Even if everyone is healthy this team is waayyy too easy to play against.
ReplyDeleteGet Hemsky off that line. Even Smyth must be wondering what the hell happened to Hemmer. I like what Matheson said, put him in the PB just based on compete(lack of). Plug in Eager. Sounds like lunacy? I think it's worth a try. Big guy, good wheels and nice hands. Eager seems to catch alot of shit around here but he is not part of the problem.
Belanger can be bumped to the 4th line to play with Petrell and Jones .. Gagner is there as well. Thats a really good 4th line.
And for the love of the Oil drop get that Swede line together for 5 games and lets see what the hell they can do!!!!!! I can't think of a sole reason Renney won't even try this. Paajarvi will light up and they would be filling the net.
Good to see the boys get hammered last night. That is one of the worst performances I have witnessed. Other than Lander and the 4th line for moments, it was all around horrific.
The team started out well, and after they scored those first 2, it seemed like they just panicked and started to scramble. To me, that sounds like the symptoms of youth and inexperience. If they score the first goal, or don't allow that 2nd one, I think it's a totally different game.
ReplyDeleteAlso, it seems like the clock has struck midnight and Khabibulin has turned back into a pumpkin.
I wasn't worried when Barker got hurt, but with 3 others injured, I think we need to bring in another body. 3 farmhands and Peckham is downright scary as a bottom 4.
I don't really see the point in taking Hemsky off the 94-10 line except maybe in an effort to get another line going, because I don't think there's a problem with Smyth-Horcoff-Hemsky as a line.
O Sather, where art thou!??!
ReplyDeleteAHL Barons tweet...
ReplyDeleteStopped by #OKCBarons practice. No Omark, Chorney, or Teubert on the ice.
My initial reaction is to do the Blame the Coach thing.
ReplyDeleteHowever, another, more rational part of me recognizes that a weakness in one position (defense) can really cause other parts of the team (forwards) look bad. As forwards seek to overcompensate for problems on defense, as they struggle through the neutral zone due to poor breakouts, etc, it affects their entire game.
There is also some expected streakiness (RNH, Eberle, etc.) and some key players struggling to play well after an injury (Hemsky, Gagner).
I suspect that the Tre Kronor line would be awesome - for about two to three games. The combination of adrenaline from playing with fellow Swedes and the fact that other teams wouldn't 'know them' would be keys. After 3-4 games, the thrill would die off, other teams would be up to speed on their tactics through watching video and they would start to appear exactly what they are - two developing players and a talented, but limited 25 year old.
I am not saying that it shouldn't be tried, but its probably not the magic solution.
Ah, to hell with it - Fire Renney already! Where is MacT these days, he would know what to do with this crew!
Be prepared for this to get ugly.
ReplyDeleteNo offense, No PP, Goaltending gone south, young team, devalued trade chips, and a depleted D-corps = 8 game L streak.
Hemsky isn't 100% right?
7GP - 0G, 4A, 6SOG
Yes, there were some unsustainable percentages before, but how can it change this quickly?
Omark may not have been on the ice due to injury?
ReplyDeleteHoly smokes! You mean a team of 18-21 yr olds is going to be streaky? Who knew?
ReplyDeleteIts just one of those games. Anytime you lose 3 D and let in the first 2 shots you are going to be in for a long night.
Guys should not be going to the pressbox, they should be going to OKC to get some easier at bats.
I'm not in love with some of Renney's decisions but there is only so much blame that can be lumped on the coach.
ReplyDeleteHemsky has been terrible so far this season. He's supposed to be our best player and he has barely shown up. Between his constant injuries and his inability to give a shit lately, I wonder how much value the guy has going forward.
Teddy Peckman looks like an AHLer out there and if he doesn't pull out of this funk, the team would be better off playing Plante or Teubert in his stead.
Khabi wasn't going to keep up the pace he had been on, whether it's the D failing him (it is) or he's reverting backing to norm (it appears so), this team will be very lucky to be .500 when December comes around.
Wow! Hemsky is making Gagner look quick and feisty.
ReplyDeleteshanetrain - It looks like Omarks injury was to his knee...Sonofa..
ReplyDeletewell that figures
ReplyDeleteSwede Outlet claims Omark is out for 6 weeks with an ankle fracture.... Link
ReplyDelete"Operation Fail" hah... I like it.
ReplyDeleteOilers recall Chorney and Teubert...Link
ReplyDeleteChorney and Teubert recalled.
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of the trouble with the forwards scoring can be attributed to how bad the defense is.
ReplyDeleteWhen was the last time you saw a forward get sprung for a breakaway or a partial break by a long lead past from a defenseman?
Has it happened a single time this year?
It happens to the Oilers and it happens in other games I watch but it never happens for the Oilers. Some of this can be attributed to coaching and the emphasis on the system and some of this has to be on having defenseman without any real offensive skills.
Wasn't Shaone Morrisonn on waivers earlier this year? Isn't McCabe still a UFA? I'd be making calls on both of those players right now if I were Tambellini.
ReplyDeleteSo how come Chorney can't be plucked a 2nd time from another club? Some of ths waiver stuff is confusing.
ReplyDeleteIceberg ahead!
ReplyDeleteSteady as she goes, gentlemen.
Franson is garbage. He was a byproduct of Trotz air-tight system.
ReplyDeleteHe is poor mans Souray offensively, without the toughness and even worse defensively.
Obviously you don't trade Gagner for Franson but Gagner really does need to go.
Hemsky too.
I think you could move those two for a good D, call up Omark and Harty and be better team.
Oddly enough, the stars seem to be aligning for the Oilers and they may get to see the type of team they want to be sooner rather than later.
ReplyDeleteWith Hemsky coming off his injury as a non-factor (we’ll probably hear in the next few days his shoulder needs another rest), and Gagner and Omark hurt, they have an opportunity to ice a bigger, more determined, physical line-up without hurting the feelings of the above mentioned players (and their fans).
RNH-Hall-Eberle
Horcoff-Smyth-Jones
Lander-MPS-Hartikainen
Belanger-Petrell-Eager/Hordy
RaWbbie said...
ReplyDeleteO Sather, where art thou!??!
Friday, November 18, 2011 9:18:00 AM MST
Ok....WWSD? Hemsky press box for one/two. Break up the kid line for one/two. The d lines up based on injuries to Sutton/Whitney/Barker/Potter.
Game against Chicago lines?
Hall Horcoff Jones
Smyth RNH Eberle
Eager Lander Pajarvii
Gagner Belanger Petrell
Back down to Dallas with regular lines.
Hall RNH Eberle
Smyth Horcoff Hemsky
Gagner Belanger Pajarvii
Eager Lander Jones
If you prefer Lander out over Petrell, which I don't think makes much of a difference...
Pajarvii Gagner Jones
Eager Belanger Petrell
Regardless...this is a marathon, not a sprint.
For the Chorney question, he is not subject to waivers when being called up, but when he is sent down, he will be.
ReplyDeleteI think it's an interesting(good) decision to call him up instead of Plante. As maligned as Chorney is, he's a better player than Plante and it does demonstrate that the team, even with injuries, wants to have the better players with the big club, and is worried less about waivers later.
It is really funny in a sad sort of way how the baseline performance for Hemsky is set at about a PPG and anything else apparently sucks.
ReplyDeleteGeniuses everywhere I tells ya...
I'd try this.....assuming 89 is out with injury.
ReplyDelete94 93 14
91 10 28
4 57 83
55 20 37
If Omark isn't hurt he would be heading back with Tuebert and Chorney to let 83 watch a couple from upstairs and rest that shoulder which must be at about 60% based on how he has looked.....But seems like he is hurt so it would then be Harski or Cornet.
Just curious LT, do you consider Gagner an actual NHL player?
ReplyDeleteLMHF
ReplyDeleteIt's about a previously established level of play.
Regardless of his poor production Hemsky's level of play has been off. Now, I'm assuming the main reason is he's not 100%.
Which is terrible news as his shoulder was supposed to be healed, but it appears this might be as good as it gets.
SK - He's rusty and underweight; and considering how the rest of the team is playing, he hasn't been terrible. There are people though, and apparently many of them, who will keep this up until he's right around PPG, then just say he's playing "okay".
ReplyDeleteStandards are out of whack with players like him.
For the Chorney question, he is not subject to waivers when being called up, but when he is sent down, he will be.
ReplyDeleteNo, he was brought up on emergency recall due to injury, he doesn't have to pass through waivers again.
Ah, I missed the part where it was on an emergency basis.
ReplyDeleteI stand corrected.
With Hemsky it’s not all about points.
ReplyDeleteThe Oilers need Hemsky to be a dynamic, commanding presence who can draw and then rise above the level of other team’s shutdown players.
Hemsky used to be able to lift the team when it needed it, even if it just meant backing down the other team’s defense for a couple of shifts in a row to turn Moe around.
If he can’t do that now he just becomes another passenger on a team with too many in its recent history.
LT: stop bringing up the errors stat!!!;)
ReplyDeleteTy: well done.
As for the rest, Oilers stand on the edge of a cliff right now; no doubt about that. Four losses in a row all by multiple goals and now the D's getting thinner with the club's best rearguard spending more time chirping Hall on Twitter than you know actually playing NHL games. And the guys the Oilers just recalled aren't likely world-beaters or fellows who are ripening off the vine down in the A.
So, Hawks monkey the Oilers tomorrow night and it's five in a row and the players here have gone through so many years of being the league's laughingstock that it's easy to mentally throw up your hands and say, "yep, here we go again."
Then you go for a guaranteed loss night in Dal; the next night you are in Nash. Then another guaranteed loss night in Minny.
Seven losses in a row and the season's likely over.
So, what can be done?
On the defense, likely nothing and that's the truth. 44's play has fallen off a bit lately - at least to my eye - so he's back to being a 5 or 6 option and 24's taken another step backward and 58 needs a babysitter.
Up front there's still a few things to be done. You could put 89 with 94-10 and leave the kids alone and go 91-57-83 on a third line just to try something - Anything - to get a third line going.
Then 55-20-28 on the fourth line.
There's still a few cards to play up front if Renney would stop being so stubborn but it might be all for not unless 6 comes back very soon and some of 24-33-44-58 take big steps forward
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI've said it before, but I'll say it again; Chorney's a decent Dman. He's right where he should be on our depth chart, but many teams would consider him a valuable option for callup after injury as the Oilers obviously do. If he ever gets a little confidence, I bet he moves up the depth chart and sticks in the big league. I don't know why he doesn't get any love. I was happy to see we got the opportunity to reclaim him. Great tools, reasonable big league potential.
ReplyDelete@ Ashley
ReplyDeleteHold on, when we start calling Chorney decent, I know we're in a dark spot right now. Chorney better than Peckham, sure, but a piece of driftwood is better than Peckham at this point.
Cogliano 19 games 4G 2A +2
ReplyDeletePenner 14 games 0G 2A -2
I would not have guessed that in September.
Chorney has excellent skills. He's fast, he handles the puck well, and he's a reasonable passer. The problem is that he makes bad decisions.
ReplyDeleteHe's the archetype on the relative importance of decision making versus talent for NHL defensemen. It's why defensemen only get better with age while the scoring ability of forwards peaks very early.
This means that on the one hand there is hope. However that depends on the great unknowable, why he makes bad decisions in the first place?
The problem with Chorney is that he's too small to play a defensive role and he doesn't contribute offensively at the NHL level at all.
ReplyDeleteHe's plucked. Maybe he will suddenly find some offensive touch. Who knows. I sure as heck wouldn't count on it.
Here's the problem with Chorney:
ReplyDeleteNHL career: 58 games played -30
AHL Career: 146 games played -50
Not a good sign at all.
He was only -1 last year on OKC in 46 games so that's a bit better but I think he's far from being a d-man that will stick in the NHL.
Those were some mighty horrible NHL and AHL teams though - I don't think it's a good metric to focus for determining a player's potential.
ReplyDelete... not implying that I think Chorney has any.
ReplyDeleteI had too much to dream last night
ReplyDeleteMaybe time to ship quantity for quality.
ReplyDeleteJeff Carter. Maybe? If he costs Gagner and Omark I think i'd be fine.
LMHF
ReplyDeleteThat may be true for some fans.
Hemsky has been playing for 2 weeks and practicing for at least a month. How much longer does he need to shake the rust off and get in shape?
Yah he hasn't been terrible as compared to the rest of the players, but compared to his previously established level of play he's been below that by a noticeable margin, but showing slow improvement.
Some people will say oh he's not the problem and there's some truth in that, but if he's not consistantly one of this team's top 3 players then this team won't win a GD thing.
I reckon his shoulder still aint right and maybe never will be. Considering his injury history that's a big blow to this team's future wether they are trading him or resigning him. Depressing...Sighh
If you're going to blend up the lines, I would go something like this...
ReplyDelete4-10-14
91-93-83
94-20-28
55-57-37
Right now Ryan Smyth is the only guy consistently delivering offense. I also feel that he's the easiest guy to play with on the roster.
4-10-14 have history and success. Maybe RNH can get Paajarvi and Hemsky going a little.
I think Gagner is as good as gone. He's clearly inferior to RNH at this point and he doesn't win draws. He might have better offensive chops than Horcoff and Belanger but his shortcomings don't make up for the small difference in offensive ability. There really isn't room on the wings for him either with Hemsky around (even if he's been lousy lately).
How is this team not scoring? I know they're not generating enough shots but there is skill there.
Also I think the 4th line is getting 3 mins of ice too much. I would like to see them closer to 7 or 8 mins a game.
ReplyDeleteThose 3 mins/gm need to go to the Hall/Eberle/Hemskys. Your best players need to play. 3 scoring lines is a myth in the NHL.
Renney
ReplyDelete-MRI today for Sutton-no word on Harry Potter either "sprain" and doctors are looking at it today
Gregor tweeted the lines earlier today-Woodguy should be happy.
94-93-14,
4-10-28,
91-89-83 and
16, 20, 57, 37 and 55 rotating on 4th line"
Before you start lambasting Chorney for not being good enough, consider the teams he's played for, and their collective stats:
ReplyDelete2008-09
Springfield Falcons 68 PG -29 (TEAM 80GP -285)
Edmonton Oilers 2 GP -4 (TEAM 82 GP +/- 0)
Conclusion - Marginal AHLer, not NHLer
2009-10
Springfield Falcons 32 GP -20 (TEAM80GP -337)
Edmonton Oilers 42 GP -21 (TEAM 82 GP -291)
Conclusion - Better AHLer, bad NHLer, like the rest
2010-11
Oklahoma City Barons 46 GP -1 (TEAM
80GP +23)
Edmonton Oilers 12 GP -5 (TEAM 82GP -212)
Conclusion: Decent AHLer, Still not a good NHLer
2011-12
St. Louis Blues 2 GP 0 (TEAM +6 OVER 2 GAMES)
Oklahoma City Barons 4 GP -1 (TEAM WAS EVEN IN 2W 2L - 4 GAMES CHRONEY WAS IN)
Conclusion: Respectable AHL and NHL numbers - may be option at either level*
Many of these numbers are small smaple sizes, so they may be a little suspect. It's easy to see the balck hole of teams he's played on - a big part of those numbers are the team as a whole, and shouldn't be blamed on him alone. There's also a trend that as his team improves, so does his +/- over the last 4 seasons.
He's not going to save the team, but he's a reasonable option for 6/7 D-man. He's not the problem.
flamingpavelbure said...
ReplyDeleteMaybe time to ship quantity for quality.
Jeff Carter. Maybe? If he costs Gagner and Omark I think i'd be fine.
Omark out for six weeks....it would have to be a different ineffective forward.
What do you guys think about these for line combos:
ReplyDelete94 - 93 - 83
91 - 4 - 14
57 - 10 - 28
55/16 - 40 - 37
#1 - Gives Nuge veteran skill to play with.
#2 - Gives Hall a chance to use his speed more with a shift to the middle, and Magnus a chance to score with better line mates.
#3 - solid checking line with some protection for Anton
Hammer is redefining soft and disInterested. Turn the puck over at the blue line or get the zone and go straight to the corner and wait for the others to get you the puck. Of he is our best player then wow do we suck. He floats at the best of times in between dynamic shifts. Now, he just floats.
ReplyDeleteTrade Hemmer? Almost no value given his shoulder MUST be really bad and every GM knows Tambo and the Oilers don't have a clue what 'injured' actually means.
Damaged goods.
George B: Some teams do take deferred payments. Montreal got Pouliot somewhat 6 weeks later.
ReplyDeleteYay! Renney puts 91-89-83 together. Woot! I really think those 3 will compliment each other. 83 carries the puck, 89 can dish or shoot and 91 has to commit to getting into shooting positions like he did with 23 late last year.
ReplyDeleteI think I kinds understand what he's doing with the other lines, but 4-10-28 might drown a little against the toughs.
I think he moves 94 to 93-14 as 94 doesn't need the puck until its below the red line, 93 - 14 carry the puck and pass it well, 94 helps keep possession down low as well as jams up the front of the net.
4 needs the puck and 10 plays well without it and 28 goes to the net without the puck better than anyone not name 94 or 56 on this team. That line will have 4 attack, 28 clean garbage and 10 keeps it from being a jailbreak the other way.
Interesting.
With the D they have to work with, all forwards better come back and not leave the Ozone until another forward has the puck. Its gonna be ugly.
So, do you keep 5-77 together or spread them out so there isn't two pairs getting pounded?
I think I keep them together, play them 26 min until 6 gets back and put together 33-58 and 24-41.
Wow is the D thin.
Skinny Minney looks at the Oilers' D and thinks it needs to eat a sandwich.
They don't make reading glasses strong enough for an old fart like me to read the fine print of waiver rules, but my understanding is that Chorney did in fact clear waivers. When Oilers got him back from St. Loo I'm sure I heard mention that every other team passed which is why Oilers were able to send him down. I'm not sure if the second time around it was just teams who were behind St. Louis in the pecking order, because the others had already passed on Chorney, but over the two events all of the teams except St. Louis passed on him, and obviously the Blues tacitly did the same.
ReplyDeleteSo he's available for recall without having to clear again, and I believe the Oil may have a 30-day period where they're free to send him in either direction. He's not subject to recall waivers cuz his AHL salary is below the magic number of $105K. He accepted his qualifying offer which in his case was a two-way deal for $735,000/$62,500.
But by all means, CBA experts feel free to correct me on any of that stuff; I have just a layman's grasp of some of the more technical language.
Also,
ReplyDeleteI think 83 will be relieved to not have to play with 10 and 94.
Remember when 83's dad was quoted about 83 not having anyone to pass to?
I like 94 and 10 a ton as hockey players, but neither of them have ever been accused of having a good shot. Both 91 and 89 can shoot the puck.
Bruce: Well, I think on recall waivers, you have priority on retaking your player (claimed) if he goes to the AHL. Other teams aren't necessarily consulted (I believe).
ReplyDeleteBruce,
ReplyDeleteI was reading good ol' section 13 (I think that's the section number for waiver rules) today.
I couldn't nail down the "clear once and you're cleared for the season" part (maybe speeds or others can chime in), but I know for sure that emergency recall makes the player movement waiver exempt.
When did 91 learn how to shoot? Here's hoping he learns to go to the tough areas and at least bang in the garbage and the backsiders...
ReplyDelete*crosses fingers*
the Smid-Gilbert pairing has been fine to my eyes throughout the storm
ReplyDeleteLT: I know that traditional plus/minus has been discredited to a large degree, but I am just old-fashioned enough to note the big shiny matching -7s that are on both Smid's and Gilbert's game logs for the past four games. And that fact, discredited though it may be, is enough to make me go, egads, that can't be good. Some of it's percentages and some of it's goaltending and random shit, but ultimately it is about outscoring, or should I say, being outscored.
It's the law of averages when the team is getting bled for 20 GA in 4 games, but 5-77 have been doing their share of the bloodletting and then some. Are they victims of bad team play, or are they paid-in-full contributors to the bad team play? Some of both, I daresay. As a big fan of both players, I will say I think their play has crashed out the last little while. I'm sure it's temporary, but it's tough to watch.
I don't know if David Staples tracks errors anymore, but this guy is the new Steve Sax.
Yes, David continues to track individual involvement in scoring plays both for and against; I always publish them when it's my turn to do the post game at the Cult of Hockey, cuz I honestly believe there is real solid information there.
Teddy Peckman has been heavily featured in our "Oilercentric summaries" of late. Last night he matched his -3 rating on the night with a trio of errors (one primary, two secondaries). If anything Staples was being kind; in my shadow errors project I tabbed Theo as The primary culprit on all three, a natural hat trick of errors as it were. Whereas Staples spread the blame around a little more evenly. :)
It's part of my job to rate the players after each game, and last night I felt compelled to give Theo the dreaded "1 out of 10" rating, which is code for "deserving of almost instant demotion". I give these out sparingly indeed, and last year it was a point of pride that in a majority of such cases the guy actually was demoted, or at least pressboxed, forthwith.
Unfortunately I don't think that is an option just now, as Theo was one of just three Oiler rearguards who finished last night's game with two arms and two legs.
His head, alas, is another question entirely.
Poor Howson. Dreger's take has seemingly moved from Carter not asking for a trade to something along the lines of concentrating on getting healthy and improving his performance but that its conceivable there maybe a trade later in the season.
ReplyDeleteWith that much smoke its hard to believe there isn't a fire and it won't be easy to trade a guy deemed expendable by a contender who immediately quits on his new team. Particularly with a 10+ year contract!
Carter is not the type of guy I would want to go to war with but given the relationship/past trading history you have to wonder if Samwise + ?? is something both parties could talk themselves into....
It's definitely possible that 83 will be happy to play with players other than 10 & 94 but I can't help but wonder if they aren't just as glad to see him go? When they were playing with 28, they were chipping the puck in deep and playing to strengths by cycling the puck and throwing it on net. Hemsky has been a turnover machine since he got back in the line-up. When he's not playing well, he has a penchant for drawing his linemates offsides at the blue line or overhandling the puck and getting stripped. I'm a big fan of 83 but this is the least interested and worst hockey I can remember out of him.
ReplyDeleteFIRE HEMSKY!!
ReplyDeletePboy,
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge Hemsky fan and I don't think a lot of 28 (besides his willingness to go to the net without the puck) and I think 28 fits with 10-94 better than 83.
94 thrives on getting it deep and working the boards and that's just not the best part of 83's game.
83 is great when he gains the zone with speed, draws defenders then dishes the puck to the open man.
spOILer,
I swear to god I've seen 91 hit the puck hard, and next to 10 and 94 he's Stamkos.
The game I saw on HNIC, Franson looked bad. Lost.
ReplyDeleteDon't want him. Doesn't fit.
Burke's playthings in the media (Dreger) are trying to boost his status.
Question is, if 83 is a bad fit with 10 and 94 FFS, who is he a Good fit with?
ReplyDeleteIt's the song that never ends,
it just goes on and on my friends ...