A lot of talk about the Oilers and Milan Lucic tonight and rightfully so I imagine. The big $6M winger is having a poor back end to the season, no poorer than David Backes, Rick Nash, Brandon Saad, or Nick Foligno’s full year mind you but that’s beside the point for some Oilers fans.
Not a peep did we hear from this faction of the Oilers fanbase while Milan was playing well before Christmas. But since then I don’t know if I’ve heard one good thing said about Lucic from the folks who are feeling like this is “justified criticism”.
I will take this time to remind you to be careful about what you say online. You might believe that the players don’t read the socials or the blogs but you’re wrong. They do and the people around them do. These are humans and words affect them.
I mean this is a player on your favorite team (assumingly) and you want to talk trash about him? There’s a fine line that’s being walked when you take that route. And all of this for 3 months of slumping? Something tells me this kind of criticism has less to do with the player and more to do with the GM.
“Daddy, why won’t good players come play in Edmonton”
“Well son, it’s because there’s a portion of the fanbase that is a relentless tire fire if the team isn’t winning and even then you’re lucky to get a peep or positivity out of them. Oh and it’s cold in Edmonton and the team has to do a lot of traveling when they go out on the road compared to teams in the Eastern Conference.”
And one more thing, this is more specific to Lucic, take the time to think about what he’s gone through since choosing to come to the Oilers. Take the time to read about his father’s tragedy.
Depression is no joke and about 40% of people who have it pass it down. The other 60% is dependent on other circumstances like the environment a person lives in and I can assure you the environment for a professional athlete can be a toxic one.
Lay off Lucic. He knows how his year has gone and you’re not being helpful or original for that matter by bringing it up constantly. Try being more helpful instead of kicking him when he’s down and putting your boots on his neck. Think about how you’d like to be treated if you were having a tough time doing the thing you loved.
OILERS NEWS
The Cult of Hockey – Craig Button blasts Edmonton Oilers for failure to properly develop Jesse Puljujarvi – This in from Craig Button, talking to Jason Gregor of TSN1260 radio about the Edmonton Oilers handling — or mishandling — of Jesse Puljujarvi.
The Cult of Hockey – It’s Worth it For the Edmonton Oilers Not to Tank, But There’s a High Price Attached – True fans want their team to win, but they also sometimes put on that general manager’s hat where they carefully assess the value of draft picks.
Oilersnation – The McBlender – I think most people who watch the Oilers this season have been frustrated or confused by the amount of line juggling we’ve seen from Head Coach Todd McLellan.
Lowetide – Union City Blue – As upset as one might be about last night’s game, and it was the 44th loss so you should be used to it by now, this club had their chances.
Beer League Heroes – It Was a Hockey Trade – In the end, though the simple fact was we needed a right-handed top pair defenceman very badly. The off-ice stuff might have made it easier to justify the supposed low return. Maybe other NHL GMs heard things from friends of friends of friends like we all have. Quite frankly it’s naive to think they didn’t. Even without the noise Hall wouldn’t fetch a Subban, Seth Jones, Karlsson, etc etc. That’s just dreaming.
NHL NEWS AND RUMORS
Fan Rag Sports – McKenzie Shares Gut Feeling on Tavares Free Agency Potential – The John Tavares free agency storyline has been unfolding for years now, but with only months to go until the franchise center can leave the only NHL team for which he’s played there is seemingly more and more momentum to that very notion.
Fan Rag Sports – Friedman explores dynamic between Islanders and Tavares – The John Tavares free agency storyline has been unfolding for years now, but with only months to go until the franchise center can leave the only NHL team for which he’s played there is seemingly more and more momentum to that very notion.
NHL Rumors: 2018 NHL Free Agents: Scraping The Barrel
NHL Rumors: Detroit Red Wings and the New York Rangers
NHL Rumors: Datsyuk, Peters, Holland, Brickley, Panthers and Blackhawks
NHL Rumors: Kings and Dergachyov … Where John Tavares Could End Up
NHL Rumors: Maple Leafs, Canucks and Hurricanes
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