We have now reached the NHL's quarter mark. For most teams, this is a fairly good time to judge what the rest of the season may look like. There are still 60 games left to the season though, so truly anything could occur. There already have been a couple surprises in both conferences, and a couple disappointments. In the East Washington, Philadelphia, and Montreal lead, whilst in the West it is Detroit, L.A., and Colorado leading. Montreal and Colorado have both surprised most, as both were pegged to be in the playoffs, not leading their divisions. For Montreal, beating out the likes of the Bruins and Sen's has been impressive. The Avalanche's have beaten out a highly touted Canucks squad, in a tough division as it is. The NHL's current basement dwellers include the Flames, Devils, Oilers, and Islanders. For the Flames and Devils, the season thus far has been one massive disappointment. After some major off season acquisitions, both squads have floundered. Big free agent signings; Olli Jokinen and Ilya Kovalchuk have been just plain atrocious. As for the Oilers and Islanders, its mostly understandable as to where they sit in the standings, being that both are in full rebuild.
Striking Oil?
It has been a rough start for the young Oilers squad. Going just 5-10-4 in their first 19 games. The kids have been decent, but nothing out of this world. Jordan Eberle has stayed fairly consistent, with 12 points so far, though he hasn't scored in 6-7 games. Taylor Hall has had a slow start, but seems to be finding his game. On any given night he can literally take over. He has to be better in his own end, but he is coming along. MPS has been the biggest disappointment thus far. He has shown some difficulty in getting used to the smaller rink and North American style of play. It shouldn't be too long before he gets comfortable and starts to put some points on the board. As for the rest of the team, Ales Hemsky has really turned his game up a notch lately, with 4 of his 15 points coming in the last 2 games. Ryan Whitney has been a stud for the Oil on the back end, though he doesn't have a goal yet, he leads the team in points with 17 assists. On the other side of things, the recent healthy scratch, Gilbert Brule, has struggled mightily, so has Andrew Cogliano. Together the pair have amassed a measly 3 goals, 3 assists, and are a minus 18. Just plain brutal. Not only that, but the Oilers defense, with the exception of Whitney and Theo Peckham, have are a combined minus 27. (Peckham and Whitney are the only "plus" defensmen, being plus 2 each). Shawn Horcoff and Dustin Penner have each been decent, but maybe not as effective as the Oilers need them to be. With their recent efforts and finally a win against the Ducks, it looks like the Oilers might finally have worked out, at least, some issues. Light at the end of the tunnel? Wait and see....
Burning Out
My my, how the mighty have fallen. As I eluded to in my last post, the Calgary Flames have really begun to struggle. So monumental are the Flames struggles that they now find themselves in 26th place for the whole NHL. That's 14th in the West, just 3 points of the Oilers, who even now have a game in hand. Before Christmas hits, we may very well see a last place Flames team, in the West anyways (sorry Islanders but apparently even your broadcasters are tired of watching). It is absolutely nuts to think of how far the Flames have fallen, or may fall. General manager Darryl Sutter is on the very cusp of losing his job, the writing is being written on the wall as we speak. There is no way, in this world, that he will survive this. Bringing in Alex Tanguay and Olli Jokinen, both for a second time, is proving to be one giant epic fail. As for the Phanuef trade, we clearly know who won out.... Ian White has already been traded to the 'Canes, while Matt Stajan has only one goal in 18 games. Niklas Hagman has just 11 points in 20 games. Lets not even talk about the Steve Staios trade, only a giant thank you is in order from all Oilers fans. Martin Marincin should turn into 10 times the defensman Staios ever was. The future isn't much brighter in cow town either. Mikael Backlund has struggled to compete in the NHL, with only 5 points, the Flames highest touted rookie isn't panning out all too well.
50 in 50?
That's the question being asked around the league. Steve Stamkos, as of tonight, now has 20 goals in 21 games. Can he do 50 in 50 or less? If he keeps the pace he is on right now, its highly likely. Will he? Considering the ebb and flow of the NHL, one would have to go with no. Players get hot, then they go cold, they score in bunches, then go stagnant for a while. Sure I believe Stamkos will hit 60, maybe even 70 goals (which hasn't been done since Teemu Selanne/Alexander Mogilny circa 1992-1993), but posting 50 in 50? Highly unlikely. It sure will be fun to see how close he can get. I also thought it might be cool to see if we can mathematically try to predict what could unfold. Through the first 21 games, Stamkos has registered a goal in 14 of those 21 games. He has 4 games in which he has scored 2 or more. He has two hat tricks. So two 2 goal games, and two 3 goal games. So considering he has another 29 games till 50, we can pace him for 3 more hat tricks, and 3 more 2 goal games (ya I know, 5 hat tricks in the first 50 games of the season, highly unlikely). That puts him at 35 goals. After that he had ten 1 goal games. So that would put him on pace for another 14 goals (scoring only 1 goal in 48% of his games). All that said, that only puts him at........49 goals in 50 games!! The crazy thing is, if he were to keep his pace, he would end the season with a whopping 79 goals!! That includes a season total of 8 hat tricks, 16 multi-goal games, and registering at least 1 goal in 55 of 82 games. It would be the highest single season goal total since Brett Hull registered 86 goals in 1990-1991.
Favorite Teemu moment:
Favorite "Stammer" moment:
GO OILERS!!
-Sporer
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
A New Era in Blogging
*Hands clapping, fans whistling, cheers reigning down*
*Takes a bow, shakes some hands, kisses a few babies*
Yes, yes. One sexy son-of-a-bitch is about to enter the room… Smith is back! And he’s got more opinions, advice and anecdotes than before! Let’s dive right in…
Sporer wrote about, ‘how to re-build a franchise’… And, I couldn’t agree more with the notion that you need to draft well; however, let’s not confuse this with Pittsburgh and Washington. When you finish dead last, like Washington, and Ovechkin is the clear-choice, franchise-defining once-in-a-decade-player, it doesn’t take rocket science to know who to draft (they also got Mike Green in that same first round). As for Pittsburgh, let’s remember, they didn’t even PLAY A SEASON to get Crosby… They won the Lockout Lottery. Again, it doesn’t take a genius to draft ‘The Next One’. And if you look at their next 3 years, they drafted: Jordan Staal #2 (common, he’s a 3rd line checker), Angelo Esposito (Sporer’s favorite Quebecor) & in 2008, they didn’t
have a 1st round pick. Ovi & Crosby are franchise changers, players who you can build your team around and even build A LEAGUE around; Taylor Hall is not in the same class as those two. So, I don’t think those are the franchises we need to be compared too.
In fact, I don’t think we should be compared to any franchise! Because, I DON’T THINK WE ARE RE-BUILDING PROPERLY! Off the top of my head, the three young teams what come to mind, that re-built correctly are: Chicago, LA & St Louis. Why? Because, they drafted from the back-end!!! Look at the past 10 champions & their blue line (aside from Carolina & TB): Lidstrom, Pronger, Neidermayer, Gonchar, Keith, Stevens, Bourque, Blake, Foote, and Rafalski. Does Edmonton have any of those players now? DO THEY HAVE ANY IN THEIR FARM SYSTEM?! No.
Chicago drafted: Seabrooke, Keith & Barker (traded to MIN for cap issues).
LA drafted: Hickey, Doughty, Toubert, Derek Forbert (#15 in 2010) & traded for Jack Johnson.
St Louis drafted: Erik Johnson, Pietrangelo, Rundblad & already had success with Barrett Jackman winning the Calder as a Dman.
Where is Edmonton’s stock-piling of Dmen; and, not just ‘Dmen’, but 1st-round-quality-NHL-Dmen? There is none; none on the team and none in the system and none coming through the pipe line… It’s safe to say that Edmonton has completely ignored their back-end. Chicago, LA & St Louis are all set for 10 years and are already top contenders in the West (say thank you to Montreal for dropping a gem into your lap, St Louis). To make things even worse, I don’t even see an end in sight… in a 2 year span (2011-13), Edmonton is going to have need to re-sign Gagner, Cogliano, Eberle, MPS, Hall, Omark, Penner, Hemsky, Brule and their entire 4th line. I’m sure you can make the numbers fit because, you don’t want to lose any of those forwards (minus Cogliano), but where is the money for the Dmen?! How can you re-sign everyone (at a pay INCREASE) and still sign talent for the defense?! You can’t. Edmonton is going to have to make some tough choices in the future. And we haven’t even discussed their goaltending needs (which, to rub salt in the wounds, LA drafted Quick & Bernier, STL signed Halak & CHI has already won a cup, so they’re off the hook). It just adds to the old saying… Offence wins games, defense wins championships.
Now, on to other NHL topics…
Sean Avery. Wow. Seriously, the guy continues to amaze me. I wonder if, you took an internal poll of NHL players, how many would want him out of the league? Why doesn’t someone just two-hand him on the wrists or skate over his Achilles? Take the 5-game suspension and be known as the ‘The Guy Who Got Rid of Avery’. I wonder if, you took an internal poll of NHL players, how many would be against that? And how many would shake the hand of the man responsible? I’m just sayin’…
Steven Stamkos. Wow. I gotta say, I did not think that this was a guy who could carry a team on his back because, he didn’t need too with Vinny & Marty there, but is he proving the world wrong. Snubbed for 2010, the guy is pissed and he’s taking his anger out on every goalie in the league. The guy is on pace for 145+points.
Since the shoot-out, there are only 2 active players to have a 100% scoring average and take more then one shot. Answer is at the bottom. Also, Edmonton, as a team, is 4th all-time with 80 shoot-out goals scored. That’s pretty impressive, in the clutch.
NHL.com listed its Top 10 Trades of All-Time
http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=380611
It also listed its all-time Greatest 6 players (by position)
http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=384554
Give me Hasek from 1994-1999 over Roy & Brodeur any day, any series, any period, any event.
Hall of Fame 2011 cases include: Dave Andrychuk, Tom Barrasso, Pavel Bure, Doug Gilmour, Eric Lindros, Kevin Lowe, Sergei Makarov, Joe Nieuwendyk, Adam Oates & Mike Richter. I’m going to go with…
1. Nieuwendyk – 3 rings with 3 different teams
2. Bure – 50 goals every year
3. Barrasso – 2 cups with Mario & Co.
4. Richter – 1994 Cup & 1996 World Cup upset
5. Makarov – Russian phenom
6. Lindros – changed two franchises (was traded for Forsberg)
7. Oates – best set-up man, ever?
8. Andrychuk – all-time leader in PPG
9. Gilmour – If Don Cherry could vote 1,000,000 times, Gilmour would get in no problem
10. Lowe – 5 cups in EDM & 1 in NYR, rode on Gretz’ & Mess’s back for years…
Should Calgary trade Iginla?
One word if you do: Ballsy. Iggy is a stud: comes out for Team Canada when he can, is always good for 30 goals & 75pts, hes a leader, he drops the gloves and doesn’t break his hand (Souray) and he’s a good guy. This seems more like an emergency button the Sutter’s would push when their backs are up against a wall and there is nothing else they can do, so they push the Iginla button and blow up the whole thing. The rumor going around was: Iginla to LA for Braydon Schenn & a high pick. Trading him within the West means, you have to play him 4 times a year, ballsy. It’s an interesting debate as to whether you trade him or not. He’s your franchise guy and seeing what trading your franchise guy can do to a team, look no further then the Oil. Smyth (face of the franchise) & Pronger (the actual franchise player) were essentially traded for: Nielson (playing in the KHL), O’Marra (played 3 NHL games), Lupul (who turned into O’Sullivan, who signed in Carolina), Smid, Plante (4 NHL games), Nash (0 NHL games) & Eberle (4th in rookie scoring, but 5th last with a -6). It’s took early to tell with Eberle, but we basically got a bunch of AHL players & a 5th Dman.
So, what did we learn? Make sure you’re getting fair value for Iggy. As for my own opinion, I don’t think you can trade Iginla. If the Sutter’s do trade him, it’s only to save their jobs, and I’m sure the media and fans would have their heads served up on a silver platter.
More trivia: only two former Hartford Whalers for currently still playing in the NHL. I didn’t know either of them played for Hartford. Answer at the bottom.
All Star voting is in full swing, and it got me thinking… Who is Edmonton’s all star? I guess its Ryan Whitney by default… It’s like picking, the best of the worst. At least the Isles have Tavares, sheesh.
And you know what? All this talk about rebuilding… Detroit doesn’t rebuild, they reload. Blam. No veteran goaltending? No problem! Meet Jimmy Howard, he has them 1st in the West. NIk Lidstrom is 40? No worries, they have Jon Ericsson & Nik Kronwall, not to mention their top 2 prospects are also Dmen.
Trivia Answer #1 – Mike Santorelli, FLA (3 for 3) & Logan Couture SJS (2 for 2)
Trivia Answer #2 – Chris Pronger & Jean-Sebastien Giguere.
Cheers.
-Smith
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
How to rebuild a franchise....for Dummies (or Flames fans)
Trouble in Cow-Town? You bet! The Flames currently sit just 3 points ahead of the Oilers for last place in the west. Considering the hype, and the expectations going into the 2010-2011 season, this is an epic fail for the boys down south. Listening to radio talk shows, there is even talk of trading Jarome Iginla! That's when you know that the proverbial "shit" has hit the fan. The Flames future isn't much brighter either. They do not have either their 2nd or 3rd round picks for the 2011 draft. They now belong to Toronto and Edmonton respectively. So even to bomb on the season would not be as helpful for the Flames. So in watching what the Oilers have done over the past couple seasons, and what they are doing now, I thought I'd try and give my arch rivals a few helpful tips on what to do...
Clean House
Get rid of all the aging overpaid veterans, rid yourself of the pieces that don't fit. Steve Staios was a horrible pickup for a 3rd round pick, he needs to be rid of. At $2.7 million, he just isn't worth the seat in the press box. Same goes for Cory Sarich at $3.6 million. The Ian White trade doesn't even make much sense. Bringing in more older players such as Kostopoulos and Babchuk is a step in the wrong direction. Thank God Daymond Langkow is injured, but when he comes back, that's another $4.5 million for at best a 2nd line center. It could be a situation where they either hope he retires, or they might look into buying him out. Get rid of Nik Hagman, Ales Kotalik, and Olli Jokinen. They are all overpaid and under producing. If you can keep Alex Tanguay for under $2 million this off season, do so. The hardest part about all of this is that the Flames farm system is pretty dry of high end talent.
Draft Needs
So if the Flames decide that they will go on with the full rebuild, they would probably be selecting in the top 5 overall. That's good for them, so is the fact that the top 10 ranked players right now, are mostly Centermen and Defensemen. The Flames could really do with both, but preferably a Centerman. If the Flames could somehow get their hands on a Sean Couturier, Jonathan Huberdeau, or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. It would be massively beneficial to them. Acquiring another 1st rounder would be quite a feat, but reacquiring a 2nd and 3rd round pick, or picks, would also help a ton. Its really hard to start building for the future when you cant draft depth. The Oilers took Tyler Pitlick, and Martin Marincin in the 2nd and 3rd rounds respectively. Pitlick looks like he could be a nice addition to the Oilers roster in a year or two, and he has size. Marincin went #1 in the CHL import draft to Prince George and is excelling there. Plus he is 6'5" and weighs just over 200lbs. This is why a rebuilding team needs those picks. Drafting well and making the right moves also falls back to good management.
Shedding the Sutters
If the Flames ownership group were any smart, they would have got rid of the Sutter brothers a season ago. Now it has just gone too far. The team has suffered the effects of mismanagement and sub par coaching. The exclamation point for Darryl Sutters management campaign, was the bringing back of Alex Tanguay and Olli Jokinen. Both originally discarded due to lack of production, and yet, they were resigned this last off season. So far, Tanguay has looked better, but still not worth the trouble of being brought back. Jokinen on the other hand, has continued the terrible play that has plagued him ever since he left Florida. On the coaching side of things, Brent Sutters coaching style just has not seemed to fit well with the Flames. He truly hasn't had a ton of success at the NHL level and might be best returning to his Red Deer Rebels. His defensive style just wont work in the high flying Western Conference. Some of the Flames best players seem to have suffered the effects of his coaching system as well. The best example might be the Flames captain, Jarome Iginla. Whose production has slowly worsened since Brent gained control of the Calgary bench. I'm sure that at some point before this season ends, one of these two front office pieces will be discarded.
Hump Day Hammering
Enough with the Flames talk. I'd much rather delve into the Oilers beating that occurred tonight. Listening to 630 Ched after the game, I was slightly distressed at the amount of fans calling in wondering why the Oilers are sucking so bad. I'd like to point out the 1st years for two teams. In Sidney Crosby's first season with the Penguins, the team finished dead last in the east with just 58 points. Not only that, but the Washington Capitals, with a rookie Alex Ovechkin finished just ahead of them with 70 points. The Blackhawks did a little better with 88 points to finish 10th in Pat Kane, and Jonathan Toews' first years. The point is, this team is going to lose a bunch of games this year. They wont make the playoffs. There will be a point this year though, when this team will go on a rip. They'll go for 5 or 6 games, and you will see the flash. The flash of what is to come. These last four, five games have been miserable, but its just a matter of our guys finding their confidence. When you get blown out 7-1, 6-2, 8-2, and 5-0 in a span of 5 games, your confidence isn't very high. Trust me Oilers faithful, it will come, and be sure to be watching when it does...
-Sporer
Clean House
Get rid of all the aging overpaid veterans, rid yourself of the pieces that don't fit. Steve Staios was a horrible pickup for a 3rd round pick, he needs to be rid of. At $2.7 million, he just isn't worth the seat in the press box. Same goes for Cory Sarich at $3.6 million. The Ian White trade doesn't even make much sense. Bringing in more older players such as Kostopoulos and Babchuk is a step in the wrong direction. Thank God Daymond Langkow is injured, but when he comes back, that's another $4.5 million for at best a 2nd line center. It could be a situation where they either hope he retires, or they might look into buying him out. Get rid of Nik Hagman, Ales Kotalik, and Olli Jokinen. They are all overpaid and under producing. If you can keep Alex Tanguay for under $2 million this off season, do so. The hardest part about all of this is that the Flames farm system is pretty dry of high end talent.
Draft Needs
So if the Flames decide that they will go on with the full rebuild, they would probably be selecting in the top 5 overall. That's good for them, so is the fact that the top 10 ranked players right now, are mostly Centermen and Defensemen. The Flames could really do with both, but preferably a Centerman. If the Flames could somehow get their hands on a Sean Couturier, Jonathan Huberdeau, or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. It would be massively beneficial to them. Acquiring another 1st rounder would be quite a feat, but reacquiring a 2nd and 3rd round pick, or picks, would also help a ton. Its really hard to start building for the future when you cant draft depth. The Oilers took Tyler Pitlick, and Martin Marincin in the 2nd and 3rd rounds respectively. Pitlick looks like he could be a nice addition to the Oilers roster in a year or two, and he has size. Marincin went #1 in the CHL import draft to Prince George and is excelling there. Plus he is 6'5" and weighs just over 200lbs. This is why a rebuilding team needs those picks. Drafting well and making the right moves also falls back to good management.
Shedding the Sutters
If the Flames ownership group were any smart, they would have got rid of the Sutter brothers a season ago. Now it has just gone too far. The team has suffered the effects of mismanagement and sub par coaching. The exclamation point for Darryl Sutters management campaign, was the bringing back of Alex Tanguay and Olli Jokinen. Both originally discarded due to lack of production, and yet, they were resigned this last off season. So far, Tanguay has looked better, but still not worth the trouble of being brought back. Jokinen on the other hand, has continued the terrible play that has plagued him ever since he left Florida. On the coaching side of things, Brent Sutters coaching style just has not seemed to fit well with the Flames. He truly hasn't had a ton of success at the NHL level and might be best returning to his Red Deer Rebels. His defensive style just wont work in the high flying Western Conference. Some of the Flames best players seem to have suffered the effects of his coaching system as well. The best example might be the Flames captain, Jarome Iginla. Whose production has slowly worsened since Brent gained control of the Calgary bench. I'm sure that at some point before this season ends, one of these two front office pieces will be discarded.
Hump Day Hammering
Enough with the Flames talk. I'd much rather delve into the Oilers beating that occurred tonight. Listening to 630 Ched after the game, I was slightly distressed at the amount of fans calling in wondering why the Oilers are sucking so bad. I'd like to point out the 1st years for two teams. In Sidney Crosby's first season with the Penguins, the team finished dead last in the east with just 58 points. Not only that, but the Washington Capitals, with a rookie Alex Ovechkin finished just ahead of them with 70 points. The Blackhawks did a little better with 88 points to finish 10th in Pat Kane, and Jonathan Toews' first years. The point is, this team is going to lose a bunch of games this year. They wont make the playoffs. There will be a point this year though, when this team will go on a rip. They'll go for 5 or 6 games, and you will see the flash. The flash of what is to come. These last four, five games have been miserable, but its just a matter of our guys finding their confidence. When you get blown out 7-1, 6-2, 8-2, and 5-0 in a span of 5 games, your confidence isn't very high. Trust me Oilers faithful, it will come, and be sure to be watching when it does...
-Sporer
Monday, November 15, 2010
Damage Control?
The Oilers have just finished their road trip from hell. Serious. Its been brutal, sure they won in Chicago, but losing 7-1 in Raleigh, 6-2 in Detroit, a tough 4-3 OT loss in New Jersey, and finally an 8-2 beating in New York. One would start to question weather this is a good environment for the new Oiler rookies to be developing in. It would be one thing if they were losing close-er games, but being blown out every couple games can't exactly be helpful in the growing process. The Oilers seem to have a 5 year plan in mind. Ok thats good, so what year are we now? I'd say we are already in year 2. Last season was year 1, as we bombed and grabbed Taylor Hall, with Eberle and Paarjarvi already in the system.
I would compare this years Oilers to the Chicago Blackhawks, circa 2007-2008. They won the Stanley Cup 2 seasons later. 2007-2008 marked both Patrick Kane's and Jonathan Toews' emergence into the NHL. The Hawks team at the time already featured a young up and coming defense corps. Also, a good mix of veteran leadership and a sprinkle of decent young players were involved. In net things were eerily similar, with Nik Khabiboulin minding the twine, of course then 4 years younger then the current version on the Oilers roster. That year, the Hawks finished tied for 9th, with 88 points (with the Oilers), just 3 points out of the playoff picture.
This was the first time in 7 seasons that the Hawks had finished above the .500 mark. Their forward corps looked like this:
Patrick Kane-Jonathan Toews-Patrick Sharp
Jason Williams-Robert Lang-Martin Havlat
Andrew Ladd-Dave Bolland-Dustin Byfuglien
Adam Burish-Yanic Perrault-Rene Bourque
Compared to the Oilers current forward corps:
Taylor Hall-Shawn Horcoff-Ales Hemsky
Dustin Penner-Sam Gagner-Jordan Eberle
Magnus Paarjarvi-Andrew Cogliano-Gilbert Brule
Zach Stortini-Colin Fraser-Ryan Jones
*highlighted in red are rookies
Of course it is hard to compare as we haven't seen what the Oilers current lineup have accomplished over 82 games just yet, but with math, we can calculate what they are on pace for. True, not exactly accurate, but it gives a number. An obvious difference right away is the average age difference. Currently, the oldest Oiler forward is Shawn Horcoff (32). Whereas, the 07-08 Hawks possessed (at the time); Robert Lang (37), Yanic Perrault (36), and Craig Adams (did play over 50 games) (31). Possibly another major difference and helping hand, was the skill in the faceoff dot, with one of the best (Yanic Perrault), and Robert Lang both lining up. Which that in turn probably helped the younger centers learn. The Oilers on the other hand, rely heavily on one man; Shawn Horcoff. Of course comparing the Oilers current rookies to Toews and Kane might be an overshot, but Kane and Hall are both 1st overall picks, and Paarjarvi and Toews are both top 10 picks (Toews at 3 , Paarjarvi at 10).
Possibly the biggest separating factor for these two teams is the defense. The Hawks had already been working on theirs, which now has become one of the most formidable in the NHL.
Duncan Keith-Brent Seabrook
James Wisniewski-Brent Sopel
Cam Barker-Andrei Zyuzin/Jordan Henry
compared to this years Oiler defense:
Tom Gilbert-Ryan Whitney
Kurtis Foster-Ladislav Smid
Theo Peckham-Jim Vandermeer/Jason Strudwick
So lets not kid around., Keith and Seabrook are a franchise D pairing. Ryan Whitney, not a stud. Tom Gilbert, not a stud. Kurtis Foster and Ladislav Smid are 3rd pairing defensemen on most other teams, and although Theo Peckham has had a strong showing, he is also basically a 3rd pairing guy. As for Vandermeer and Strudwick, they shouldn't be playing in the NHL. Compare that to Keith and Seabrook (team Canada champs 2010), Cam Barker was highly regarded, he's fallen a bit, but id still take him over the Oilers last 3-4 Dmen. Brent Sopel is an absolute warrior, so is James Wisniewski, neither are highly skilled, but they work their tails off. If anything, this is where the Oilers need the biggest improvement.
So the Oilers need to definitley start tweaking things, because that offseason, the Hawks added; Chistobal Huet, and Brian Campbell, ya sure both are over payed, but they both played integral parts to what the Hawks were to become. In the Hawks second year, they also saw a few players from within make the step up; Kris Versteeg, Troy Brouwer, Colin Fraser, and Ben Eager all had impacts on the 08-09 Hawks roster. To me the Oilers need to be somewhere similar when this season finishes. I'm not hoping for playoffs, but I am hoping for competitiveness, enough to get them close-ish. Of course the needs are very apparent (a veteran faceoff specialist/penalty killer, and a 3-4 shutdown defensman). Oh well, Christmas is around the corner....
Oh and before I forget, Sean Avery is a scumbag piece of dog feces:
I would compare this years Oilers to the Chicago Blackhawks, circa 2007-2008. They won the Stanley Cup 2 seasons later. 2007-2008 marked both Patrick Kane's and Jonathan Toews' emergence into the NHL. The Hawks team at the time already featured a young up and coming defense corps. Also, a good mix of veteran leadership and a sprinkle of decent young players were involved. In net things were eerily similar, with Nik Khabiboulin minding the twine, of course then 4 years younger then the current version on the Oilers roster. That year, the Hawks finished tied for 9th, with 88 points (with the Oilers), just 3 points out of the playoff picture.
This was the first time in 7 seasons that the Hawks had finished above the .500 mark. Their forward corps looked like this:
Patrick Kane-Jonathan Toews-Patrick Sharp
Jason Williams-Robert Lang-Martin Havlat
Andrew Ladd-Dave Bolland-Dustin Byfuglien
Adam Burish-Yanic Perrault-Rene Bourque
Compared to the Oilers current forward corps:
Taylor Hall-Shawn Horcoff-Ales Hemsky
Dustin Penner-Sam Gagner-Jordan Eberle
Magnus Paarjarvi-Andrew Cogliano-Gilbert Brule
Zach Stortini-Colin Fraser-Ryan Jones
*highlighted in red are rookies
Of course it is hard to compare as we haven't seen what the Oilers current lineup have accomplished over 82 games just yet, but with math, we can calculate what they are on pace for. True, not exactly accurate, but it gives a number. An obvious difference right away is the average age difference. Currently, the oldest Oiler forward is Shawn Horcoff (32). Whereas, the 07-08 Hawks possessed (at the time); Robert Lang (37), Yanic Perrault (36), and Craig Adams (did play over 50 games) (31). Possibly another major difference and helping hand, was the skill in the faceoff dot, with one of the best (Yanic Perrault), and Robert Lang both lining up. Which that in turn probably helped the younger centers learn. The Oilers on the other hand, rely heavily on one man; Shawn Horcoff. Of course comparing the Oilers current rookies to Toews and Kane might be an overshot, but Kane and Hall are both 1st overall picks, and Paarjarvi and Toews are both top 10 picks (Toews at 3 , Paarjarvi at 10).
Possibly the biggest separating factor for these two teams is the defense. The Hawks had already been working on theirs, which now has become one of the most formidable in the NHL.
Duncan Keith-Brent Seabrook
James Wisniewski-Brent Sopel
Cam Barker-Andrei Zyuzin/Jordan Henry
compared to this years Oiler defense:
Tom Gilbert-Ryan Whitney
Kurtis Foster-Ladislav Smid
Theo Peckham-Jim Vandermeer/Jason Strudwick
So lets not kid around., Keith and Seabrook are a franchise D pairing. Ryan Whitney, not a stud. Tom Gilbert, not a stud. Kurtis Foster and Ladislav Smid are 3rd pairing defensemen on most other teams, and although Theo Peckham has had a strong showing, he is also basically a 3rd pairing guy. As for Vandermeer and Strudwick, they shouldn't be playing in the NHL. Compare that to Keith and Seabrook (team Canada champs 2010), Cam Barker was highly regarded, he's fallen a bit, but id still take him over the Oilers last 3-4 Dmen. Brent Sopel is an absolute warrior, so is James Wisniewski, neither are highly skilled, but they work their tails off. If anything, this is where the Oilers need the biggest improvement.
So the Oilers need to definitley start tweaking things, because that offseason, the Hawks added; Chistobal Huet, and Brian Campbell, ya sure both are over payed, but they both played integral parts to what the Hawks were to become. In the Hawks second year, they also saw a few players from within make the step up; Kris Versteeg, Troy Brouwer, Colin Fraser, and Ben Eager all had impacts on the 08-09 Hawks roster. To me the Oilers need to be somewhere similar when this season finishes. I'm not hoping for playoffs, but I am hoping for competitiveness, enough to get them close-ish. Of course the needs are very apparent (a veteran faceoff specialist/penalty killer, and a 3-4 shutdown defensman). Oh well, Christmas is around the corner....
Oh and before I forget, Sean Avery is a scumbag piece of dog feces:
Monday, November 8, 2010
Save of the year.
This is the save of the year. Hands down.
Big win by the Oilers last night, apparently they like playing in the "Madhouse". Should be a decent road trip since they now have some momentum going into Raleigh. Dubnyk should also get a start either in New Jersey or Detroit, Im thinking itll be against Detroit, letting Khabiboulin get the second night. Shawn Horcoff is listed as day-to-day with a leg contusion, could even play against Carolina.
-Sporer
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
A new Season, A New Hope
Its been awhile, and we here at Smith Sporer Hockey apologize for such a long lapse in our posts, however, a new NHL season is upon us, and posts will be written. Not only that, but it seems as though this will be quite the juicy season for articles and issues. So without further adieu here goes post #1 for the 2010-2011 season. Enjoy!
As an avid Oiler fan, I must express what every Oiler fan must be feeling these days, EXCITEMENT!! The Oilers boast 3 of the NHL's newest and more highly skilled prospects, and no they don't play in junior or on the farm team, but don the copper and blue. Ya sure, we will lose a bunch of games, but man alive is it ever fun to watch the human highlight reel Jordan Eberle scoring those epic goals each night. Not only that, but watching Taylor Hall and Magnus Paarjarvi fly up and down the ice is like watching a Mclaren take off. These kids are GOOD, very good. Oiler fans should be pumped for the future of this team. As of right now, Eberle, who is the oldest of the three, leads all NHL rookies in scoring, but Paarjarvi is right behind him, and Hall truly not far behind. Hall shouldn't stay back for too long, after getting his first and second goals in just as many nights, it seems as though the Hall Express may have taken off.
League Parody
Right around the league there seems to be a sense of parody, where anyone can beat whomever on any given night. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Los Angeles Kings lead their respective conferences. The New Jersey Devils are sitting in last place, after signing the most coveted Free Agent of the off season in Ilya Kovalchuk. Not only that, but the Buffalo Sabres are right behind them, and in the west, Calgary, San Jose, and Anaheim all sit out of the playoff picture. The Colorado Avalanche are really proving that last year was no blip in the radar as they sit atop the NorthWest Division for the time being. Montreal has proven themselves to be a pretty serious threat in the east as they sit in 2nd place. The parody was really shown in how the Maple Leafs began their season. They sat on top of the eastern conference for the first half of the month surprising everyone. No only that, but the ever surprising Nashville Predators went undefeated until early last week. The exclamation point on all the parody, was the Oilers, Blackhawks game on Friday night. The 2nd place team taking on the last place team, with the Oilers coming out with a huge 7-4 win! Be ready hockey fans, this season is setting up to be a real head scratcher.
As an avid Oiler fan, I must express what every Oiler fan must be feeling these days, EXCITEMENT!! The Oilers boast 3 of the NHL's newest and more highly skilled prospects, and no they don't play in junior or on the farm team, but don the copper and blue. Ya sure, we will lose a bunch of games, but man alive is it ever fun to watch the human highlight reel Jordan Eberle scoring those epic goals each night. Not only that, but watching Taylor Hall and Magnus Paarjarvi fly up and down the ice is like watching a Mclaren take off. These kids are GOOD, very good. Oiler fans should be pumped for the future of this team. As of right now, Eberle, who is the oldest of the three, leads all NHL rookies in scoring, but Paarjarvi is right behind him, and Hall truly not far behind. Hall shouldn't stay back for too long, after getting his first and second goals in just as many nights, it seems as though the Hall Express may have taken off.League Parody
Right around the league there seems to be a sense of parody, where anyone can beat whomever on any given night. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Los Angeles Kings lead their respective conferences. The New Jersey Devils are sitting in last place, after signing the most coveted Free Agent of the off season in Ilya Kovalchuk. Not only that, but the Buffalo Sabres are right behind them, and in the west, Calgary, San Jose, and Anaheim all sit out of the playoff picture. The Colorado Avalanche are really proving that last year was no blip in the radar as they sit atop the NorthWest Division for the time being. Montreal has proven themselves to be a pretty serious threat in the east as they sit in 2nd place. The parody was really shown in how the Maple Leafs began their season. They sat on top of the eastern conference for the first half of the month surprising everyone. No only that, but the ever surprising Nashville Predators went undefeated until early last week. The exclamation point on all the parody, was the Oilers, Blackhawks game on Friday night. The 2nd place team taking on the last place team, with the Oilers coming out with a huge 7-4 win! Be ready hockey fans, this season is setting up to be a real head scratcher.Cracking Down on Fines and Issuing Head Shots
So the NHL decides to start cracking down on head shots with their new punishment and discipline system. With that, they have practically created a bigger issue. What is a head shot? The Hjalmarsson hit on Pominville? Shane Doan didn't seem to think his was. So truly, which one was the epitome of what the NHL is trying to stop? Doan got 3 games for his hit, whilst Hjalmarsson got 2. Here are the two hits. In my opinion, Hjalmarsson's was actually fairly clean, while Doan's was crystal clear a head shot, and he should have gotten more games.
If anything, Hjalmarsson should have gotten an interference penalty. Other then that, I thought it was a good play, but Pominville went into the boards funny. Doan should be ashamed of his hit, it was very dirty, and the fact that he argued it and didn't think it was that bad, makes me lose some respect for such a respectable guy. Either way, Ive seen a few Oilers get their bells rung with no penalty, so in my opinion this whole new hits to the head crackdown is ridiculous.
Aside from the head shots, how about some of the other fines and suspensions being handed out, or more importantly the actions that have brought them on...James Wisniewski's hand gesture, Mike Cammaleri's slash, Briere's crosscheck, and a few "hit to the head" fines. The fines are ridiculous for one, especially when a guy like Tom Gilbert (making $4.25 million per season) gets fined only $2500. Its like getting a $5 speeding ticket. The Wisniewski "hand gesture" was pretty awesome, especially considering it was directed at Sean Avery. I'm sure every Dad who was watching the game had a good chuckle before telling his 5 year old son that what he just saw was very bad...
Draft Class of 08
Steve Stamkos, Drew Doughty, Tyler Myers, Erik Karlsson, Michael Del Zotto, Jordan Eberle, Tyler Ennis, and Josh Baily. All players who are making big impacts on their respective teams. All 2008 1st round picks. Not only that but a few later round picks have made their presence known this season: Derek Stepan (51st overall by the Rangers) scoring a hat trick in his first game. Jason Demers (186th overall by San Jose) had a big season for the Sharks last year and should be an important part of the team this year. Don't forget other 1st rounders currently in the NHL; Alex Pietrangelo, Luke Schenn, Zach Bogosian, Nikita Filitov, Cody Hodgson, Zach Boychuk, and Colin Wilson. Steve Stamkos has had a blazing beginning to the season with 19 points in just 10 games! Tyler Myers is an absolute stud and the NHL's next Chris Pronger. Eberle and Ennis will probably be battling it out for the Calder trophy this season, while Del Zotto and Karlsson have become integral parts of their teams defense corps. Josh Bailey is leading a surprising New York Islanders cast without a lot of their star players. All I'm trying to say is, Draft Class of 08, your not bad....
Well I better stop or else I will eat up all the juicy things to talk about so far, and Smith will have nothing to talk about. Don't worry though, this season seems like it will have plenty of fun topics to come, and maybe a few cinderella stories....Go Oil
-Sporer
If anything, Hjalmarsson should have gotten an interference penalty. Other then that, I thought it was a good play, but Pominville went into the boards funny. Doan should be ashamed of his hit, it was very dirty, and the fact that he argued it and didn't think it was that bad, makes me lose some respect for such a respectable guy. Either way, Ive seen a few Oilers get their bells rung with no penalty, so in my opinion this whole new hits to the head crackdown is ridiculous.
Aside from the head shots, how about some of the other fines and suspensions being handed out, or more importantly the actions that have brought them on...James Wisniewski's hand gesture, Mike Cammaleri's slash, Briere's crosscheck, and a few "hit to the head" fines. The fines are ridiculous for one, especially when a guy like Tom Gilbert (making $4.25 million per season) gets fined only $2500. Its like getting a $5 speeding ticket. The Wisniewski "hand gesture" was pretty awesome, especially considering it was directed at Sean Avery. I'm sure every Dad who was watching the game had a good chuckle before telling his 5 year old son that what he just saw was very bad...
Draft Class of 08
Steve Stamkos, Drew Doughty, Tyler Myers, Erik Karlsson, Michael Del Zotto, Jordan Eberle, Tyler Ennis, and Josh Baily. All players who are making big impacts on their respective teams. All 2008 1st round picks. Not only that but a few later round picks have made their presence known this season: Derek Stepan (51st overall by the Rangers) scoring a hat trick in his first game. Jason Demers (186th overall by San Jose) had a big season for the Sharks last year and should be an important part of the team this year. Don't forget other 1st rounders currently in the NHL; Alex Pietrangelo, Luke Schenn, Zach Bogosian, Nikita Filitov, Cody Hodgson, Zach Boychuk, and Colin Wilson. Steve Stamkos has had a blazing beginning to the season with 19 points in just 10 games! Tyler Myers is an absolute stud and the NHL's next Chris Pronger. Eberle and Ennis will probably be battling it out for the Calder trophy this season, while Del Zotto and Karlsson have become integral parts of their teams defense corps. Josh Bailey is leading a surprising New York Islanders cast without a lot of their star players. All I'm trying to say is, Draft Class of 08, your not bad....Well I better stop or else I will eat up all the juicy things to talk about so far, and Smith will have nothing to talk about. Don't worry though, this season seems like it will have plenty of fun topics to come, and maybe a few cinderella stories....Go Oil
-Sporer
Monday, March 29, 2010
And here we go...
So with the season wrapping up for the Oilers, and still 5 points away from the organizations worst season total of 60 points in 92-93. That draft year the Oilers drafted 7th overall. They took Jason Arnott. Not bad for their worst season. This year, the Oilers will pick 1st overall (barring the draft lottery which they have a 50% chance of winning). There are two possible candidates as it stands. Windsor Spitfires power winger Taylor Hall, and the Plymouth Whalers star center Tyler Seguin. Here is a breakdown of each player.
Taylor Hall:
Number: 4
Position: LW
Shoots: L
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 185lb
Born: November 14, 1991 Kingston, ON
40 Goals 66 Assists 106 Points
Tyler Seguin:
Number: 9
Position: C
Shoots: R
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 186lb
Born: January 31, 1992 Brampton, ON
48 Goals 58 Assists 106 Points
Either way, the Oilers will be getting an All Star player. To me, for the Oilers, Seguin is the more optimal pick. He is a center, which the Oilers need an All Star center pretty bad. He also isn't small, being 6'1" and 186lbs before even bulking up for the NHL. He is slightly younger then Hall, but that's fine. Another reason I'd give Seguin the one-up, would be because he plays on a team without much else for talent. While Hall is surrounded by talent (Cam Fowler, Ryan Ellis, Greg Nemisz, and Adam Henrique). So with all that said, you never know, they may even go off the board and take the now #3 rated pick in Cam Fowler, if they really want a defensman. With that said, let us consider the Oilers lineup, season end (take away UFA's, keep RFA's).
Dustin Penner Shawn Horcoff Ales Hemsky
Robert Nilsson Sam Gagner Gilbert Brule
Ethan Moreau Andrew Cogliano Ryan Potulny
Zach Stortini Marc Pouliot Patrick O'Sullivan
Ryan Whitney Tom Gilbert
Sheldon Souray Ladislav Smid
Taylor Chorney Theo Peckham
Nikolai Khabiboulin
Jeff Deslauriers
Those that are RFA's over the summer are highlighted in red. UFA's over the summer are:
D- Aaron Johnson
D- Dean Arsene
D- Jason Strudick
RW- Fernando Pisani
C- Mike Comrie
C- Ryan Stone
So minus the RFA's and UFA's, the Oilers total cap hit (as per nhlnumbers.com) is: $41.82 million.
At the draft, the Oilers will add a top 6 forward. They will also, most likely, get the injection of Jordan Eberle, and Magnus Paarjavi-Svensson. Thats 3 top 6 forwards that they will have to make room in the lineup for. Here is a possible lineup combo:
Svensson Horcoff Hemsky
Penner Gagner Eberle
Cogliano Seguin Brule
Moreau O'Sullivan Nilsson
Stortini Pouliot Potulny
Whitney Gilbert
Souray Smid
Chorney Peckham
Khabiboulin
Deslauriers
Either that, or they will have Seguin play on the farm, or with his OHL club again. As for Eberle and Svensson, there may be a good chance of them playing on the farm as well. Moreau's spot on the team is in contention, and there is a good chance he may not be here next September, same for Nilsson, Pouliot, and Horcoff. Horcoff is kinda untradeable though, so pretty much count him one the team for next year, barring a miracle. Penner, Souray, and Hemsky are being talked about as good trading chips on draft day, as the Oilers would love to grab at least another top 5 pick. There certainly aren't any guarantee's as to who will be in the opening lineup next year, but count Gagner, Brule, Whitney, Gilbert, Deslauriers, Eberle, Horcoff, Smid, and possibly Svensson as probables.
On defence, the Oilers swapped Vishnovsky for Whitney, not a bad deal at all, especially moneywise. Whitney is bigger and plays a tougher game. Souray could be on the block, especially on draft day. Smid and Chorney should be in the lineup opening night. As for Peckham, a trade, or free agent signing could very easily have him playing on the farm again. The Oilers resigning Aaron Johnson is the most probable move on defense, as he has showed up pretty good for them down the stretch.
In goal, the Oilers will have a goalie battle on their hands. With the veteran Khabiboulin coming back from injury, youngster Deslauriers has shown pretty good, but will have to fight to get games. Khabiboulin should get the nod, at least for 60% of the games, but who knows, maybe we will see a split, though those never really work out. Dubnyk, barring any moves, will be Oklahomas starter.
The team will be a young, exciting one, hopefully ridden with rookies. They could show up and be really good, or have major growing pains, either way, Oiler fans should be in for some exciting, fast, upbeat hockey, but be prepared for lots of rookie mistakes!
-Sporer
Taylor Hall:
Number: 4
Position: LW
Shoots: L
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 185lb
Born: November 14, 1991 Kingston, ON
40 Goals 66 Assists 106 Points
Tyler Seguin:
Number: 9
Position: C
Shoots: R
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 186lb
Born: January 31, 1992 Brampton, ON
48 Goals 58 Assists 106 Points
Either way, the Oilers will be getting an All Star player. To me, for the Oilers, Seguin is the more optimal pick. He is a center, which the Oilers need an All Star center pretty bad. He also isn't small, being 6'1" and 186lbs before even bulking up for the NHL. He is slightly younger then Hall, but that's fine. Another reason I'd give Seguin the one-up, would be because he plays on a team without much else for talent. While Hall is surrounded by talent (Cam Fowler, Ryan Ellis, Greg Nemisz, and Adam Henrique). So with all that said, you never know, they may even go off the board and take the now #3 rated pick in Cam Fowler, if they really want a defensman. With that said, let us consider the Oilers lineup, season end (take away UFA's, keep RFA's).
Dustin Penner Shawn Horcoff Ales Hemsky
Robert Nilsson Sam Gagner Gilbert Brule
Ethan Moreau Andrew Cogliano Ryan Potulny
Zach Stortini Marc Pouliot Patrick O'Sullivan
Ryan Whitney Tom Gilbert
Sheldon Souray Ladislav Smid
Taylor Chorney Theo Peckham
Nikolai Khabiboulin
Jeff Deslauriers
Those that are RFA's over the summer are highlighted in red. UFA's over the summer are:
D- Aaron Johnson
D- Dean Arsene
D- Jason Strudick
RW- Fernando Pisani
C- Mike Comrie
C- Ryan Stone
So minus the RFA's and UFA's, the Oilers total cap hit (as per nhlnumbers.com) is: $41.82 million.
At the draft, the Oilers will add a top 6 forward. They will also, most likely, get the injection of Jordan Eberle, and Magnus Paarjavi-Svensson. Thats 3 top 6 forwards that they will have to make room in the lineup for. Here is a possible lineup combo:
Svensson Horcoff Hemsky
Penner Gagner Eberle
Cogliano Seguin Brule
Moreau O'Sullivan Nilsson
Stortini Pouliot Potulny
Whitney Gilbert
Souray Smid
Chorney Peckham
Khabiboulin
Deslauriers
Either that, or they will have Seguin play on the farm, or with his OHL club again. As for Eberle and Svensson, there may be a good chance of them playing on the farm as well. Moreau's spot on the team is in contention, and there is a good chance he may not be here next September, same for Nilsson, Pouliot, and Horcoff. Horcoff is kinda untradeable though, so pretty much count him one the team for next year, barring a miracle. Penner, Souray, and Hemsky are being talked about as good trading chips on draft day, as the Oilers would love to grab at least another top 5 pick. There certainly aren't any guarantee's as to who will be in the opening lineup next year, but count Gagner, Brule, Whitney, Gilbert, Deslauriers, Eberle, Horcoff, Smid, and possibly Svensson as probables.
On defence, the Oilers swapped Vishnovsky for Whitney, not a bad deal at all, especially moneywise. Whitney is bigger and plays a tougher game. Souray could be on the block, especially on draft day. Smid and Chorney should be in the lineup opening night. As for Peckham, a trade, or free agent signing could very easily have him playing on the farm again. The Oilers resigning Aaron Johnson is the most probable move on defense, as he has showed up pretty good for them down the stretch.
In goal, the Oilers will have a goalie battle on their hands. With the veteran Khabiboulin coming back from injury, youngster Deslauriers has shown pretty good, but will have to fight to get games. Khabiboulin should get the nod, at least for 60% of the games, but who knows, maybe we will see a split, though those never really work out. Dubnyk, barring any moves, will be Oklahomas starter.
The team will be a young, exciting one, hopefully ridden with rookies. They could show up and be really good, or have major growing pains, either way, Oiler fans should be in for some exciting, fast, upbeat hockey, but be prepared for lots of rookie mistakes!
-Sporer
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
State of the Union....(how bad the Oilers are)
The Oilers knack for the worst luck in the league continues with Khabiboulin's recent DUI arrest. What an absolute horror story that contract has turned into. Horcoff is playing the worst hockey of his career, meanwhile earning a paycheck of $7 million. Sheldon Souray decides that since he is on the trading block, he might as well put himself on the IR as well, so much for wanting to help the team. Then to just place the cherry on top of the giant pile of shit the Oilers have amassed, Gagner goes down with a knee injury just as he is playing his best hockey all season. With the Oilers luck the way it is, MPS and Eberle will be on their way to training camp in August, and being on the same plane, it crashes and they die. *Fingers Crossed*. Anyways, gonna give you my "Stars Align" Oilers future lookout, and the "Hole gets Deeper" future lookout....
The Stars Align
With three days from the end of the Olympic trade freeze, til the trade deadline, Steve Tambellini will be a very busy boy. Dealing away both Ethan Moreau and Fernando Pisani, receiving a 3rd rounder and a prospect. Then he deals Sheldon Souray for a roster player and a prospect/pick (to WAS for: Alzner and David Steckel). Then in the most shocking deadline deal of all, Tambo sends Deslauriers, Cogliano, and Grebeshkov to Montreal for Carey Price and Ryan O'Byrne.
Post Trade Deadline Lineup:
Penner Gagner Nilsson
Potulny Comrie O'Sullivan
Steckel Horcoff Reddox
Stortini Pouliot Jacques
Visnovsky Gilbert
Smid Staios
O'Byrne Strudwick
Price
Dubnyk
Season ends, Oilers finish dead last. Win the draft lottery and have first overall pick. On draft day the Oilers send Lubomir Visnovsky to Carolina for the 3rd overall pick. The Oilers select Taylor Hall first overall. Then Boston selects Tyler Seguin, then the Oilers select Cam Fowler with their 3rd overall pick. Post Draft Lineup:
MPS Gagner Hemsky
Hall Horcoff Eberle
Penner O'Sullivan Nilsson
Steckel Potulny Stortini
Fowler Gilbert
Smid Staios
O'Byrne Strudwick
Price
Khabiboulin
With all the trades the Oilers have made, they bring their total cap hit to $31.2 million. They use the leftover money to resign Sam Gagner to a 6 year $20 million deal (cap hit of just over $3 million). Then they sign Carey Price for a 4 year $14 million deal ($3.5 million per year). They sign Jason Strudwick to one more year at $.700 mill. They sign Ryan Potulny to a 2 year 3 million deal (1.5/year). Now they sit at $40.23 million before free agent season.
Free agent season begins with the Oilers dipping into the KHL and signing Jaromir Jagr for a 2 year $8 million dollar deal ($4 mill/year). They also sign Nashville defensman Dan Hamhuis to a 3 year $11.5 million deal (3.8 mill/year).
Post Free Agent Season Lineup:
Jagr MPS Hemsky
Hall Gagner Eberle
Penner Horcoff O`Sullivan
Steckel Potulny Stortini
Fowler Gilbert
Hamhuis Smid
Alzner Staios
Strudwick O`Byrne
Price
Khabiboulin
Dubnyk
Cap Hit:~$50 million
The Oilers then sign MPS, Eberle, Fowler, Hall, all to entry level deals. Same Lineup as above. 2010-2011 season begins.
"Hole Gets Deeper"
After the Olympic trade freeze, the Oilers are unable to find any takers for some of their veterans, trading away only Ethan Moreau for a 5th rounder. They finish dead last at seasons end, however lose the draft lottery to Boston. Boston then selects Taylor Hall 1st overall, and the Oilers take Tyler Seguin.
Post Draft Lineup:
MPS Gagner Hemsky
Penner Seguin Eberle
O'Sullivan Horcoff Pisani
Potulny Cogliano Brule
Stortini Pouliot Nilsson
Visnovsky Souray
Gilbert Grebeshkov
Smid Staios
Strudwick
Khabiboulin
Desaluariers
Before the free agent season begins the Oilers manage to sign Gagner to a 6 year $24 million deal. They also sign Cogliano to a 4 year $10 million deal. They sign Potulny to a 2 year $4 million deal, and Deslauriers to a 3 year $3 million deal. Gilbert Brule gets a 3 year $6 million deal. Cap hit now sits at: $55.725 million. Pisani retires.
The Oilers then sign Pouliot, Jacques, Stone, and Dubnyk to 2 way deals and send them all to Oklahoma City. They Release Grebeshkov, Strudwick and Comrie.
Post Free Agent Season lineup and Cap Hit:
MPS Gagner Hemsky
Penner Seguin Eberle
O`Sullivan Horcoff Brule
Nilsson Cogliano Potulny
Stortini
Visnovsky Souray
Gilbert Chorney
Staios Smid
Peckham
Khabiboulin
Deslauriers
Cap Hit: ~$55 million
The Oilers then sign MPS, Eberle to entry level deals, and assign Tyler Seguin to Oklahoma City.
-Sporer
The Stars Align
With three days from the end of the Olympic trade freeze, til the trade deadline, Steve Tambellini will be a very busy boy. Dealing away both Ethan Moreau and Fernando Pisani, receiving a 3rd rounder and a prospect. Then he deals Sheldon Souray for a roster player and a prospect/pick (to WAS for: Alzner and David Steckel). Then in the most shocking deadline deal of all, Tambo sends Deslauriers, Cogliano, and Grebeshkov to Montreal for Carey Price and Ryan O'Byrne.
Post Trade Deadline Lineup:
Penner Gagner Nilsson
Potulny Comrie O'Sullivan
Steckel Horcoff Reddox
Stortini Pouliot Jacques
Visnovsky Gilbert
Smid Staios
O'Byrne Strudwick
Price
Dubnyk
Season ends, Oilers finish dead last. Win the draft lottery and have first overall pick. On draft day the Oilers send Lubomir Visnovsky to Carolina for the 3rd overall pick. The Oilers select Taylor Hall first overall. Then Boston selects Tyler Seguin, then the Oilers select Cam Fowler with their 3rd overall pick. Post Draft Lineup:
MPS Gagner Hemsky
Hall Horcoff Eberle
Penner O'Sullivan Nilsson
Steckel Potulny Stortini
Fowler Gilbert
Smid Staios
O'Byrne Strudwick
Price
Khabiboulin
With all the trades the Oilers have made, they bring their total cap hit to $31.2 million. They use the leftover money to resign Sam Gagner to a 6 year $20 million deal (cap hit of just over $3 million). Then they sign Carey Price for a 4 year $14 million deal ($3.5 million per year). They sign Jason Strudwick to one more year at $.700 mill. They sign Ryan Potulny to a 2 year 3 million deal (1.5/year). Now they sit at $40.23 million before free agent season.
Free agent season begins with the Oilers dipping into the KHL and signing Jaromir Jagr for a 2 year $8 million dollar deal ($4 mill/year). They also sign Nashville defensman Dan Hamhuis to a 3 year $11.5 million deal (3.8 mill/year).
Post Free Agent Season Lineup:
Jagr MPS Hemsky
Hall Gagner Eberle
Penner Horcoff O`Sullivan
Steckel Potulny Stortini
Fowler Gilbert
Hamhuis Smid
Alzner Staios
Strudwick O`Byrne
Price
Khabiboulin
Dubnyk
Cap Hit:~$50 million
The Oilers then sign MPS, Eberle, Fowler, Hall, all to entry level deals. Same Lineup as above. 2010-2011 season begins.
"Hole Gets Deeper"
After the Olympic trade freeze, the Oilers are unable to find any takers for some of their veterans, trading away only Ethan Moreau for a 5th rounder. They finish dead last at seasons end, however lose the draft lottery to Boston. Boston then selects Taylor Hall 1st overall, and the Oilers take Tyler Seguin.
Post Draft Lineup:
MPS Gagner Hemsky
Penner Seguin Eberle
O'Sullivan Horcoff Pisani
Potulny Cogliano Brule
Stortini Pouliot Nilsson
Visnovsky Souray
Gilbert Grebeshkov
Smid Staios
Strudwick
Khabiboulin
Desaluariers
Before the free agent season begins the Oilers manage to sign Gagner to a 6 year $24 million deal. They also sign Cogliano to a 4 year $10 million deal. They sign Potulny to a 2 year $4 million deal, and Deslauriers to a 3 year $3 million deal. Gilbert Brule gets a 3 year $6 million deal. Cap hit now sits at: $55.725 million. Pisani retires.
The Oilers then sign Pouliot, Jacques, Stone, and Dubnyk to 2 way deals and send them all to Oklahoma City. They Release Grebeshkov, Strudwick and Comrie.
Post Free Agent Season lineup and Cap Hit:
MPS Gagner Hemsky
Penner Seguin Eberle
O`Sullivan Horcoff Brule
Nilsson Cogliano Potulny
Stortini
Visnovsky Souray
Gilbert Chorney
Staios Smid
Peckham
Khabiboulin
Deslauriers
Cap Hit: ~$55 million
The Oilers then sign MPS, Eberle to entry level deals, and assign Tyler Seguin to Oklahoma City.
-Sporer
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