December 21, 2019 /

2019/20 Edmonton Oilers GM39: Canadiens @ Oilers – 3P2W – Some Oilers Fans Just Don’t Get it

There’s a portion of the Edmonton Oilers fanbase that is so predictable. Earlier this season when Julius Honka requested a trade, what was the reaction amongst some Oilers fans? Ken Holland should trade Jesse Puljujarvi for him. What was the said when Josh Ho-Sang was sent home from the Islanders organization? Ken Holland should trade for him… By using Jesse Puljujarvi. When Brendan Perlini demanded a trade out of Chicago they were back offering up Puljujarvi…

Now that trouble Swedish Rangers forward Lias Andersson has let his team know he’d like to be moved, that group of Oilers fans are back!!!

If the Oilers wanted Andersson, they wouldn’t have backed out of a trade at the beginning of the month that would’ve seen them send Puljujarvi to the Big Apple. What I’m hearing about Andersson is that the skating simply isn’t where it should be. Kind of like Tyler Benson or Cooper Marody in a manner. Those players are very smart and technically sound but the quickness isn’t there.

That notable point aside, something more important to consider is the fact that Pulju has spent this season rehabbing his value and to my knowledge has done just that. His performances for Karpat in the SM-Liiga have been very good and his most recent appearance for the Finnish national team at the Channel Cup had Finnish pundits lauding his efforts there.

Lias Andersson is at the same point now that Jesse was when it was announced he would need season-ending surgery last year. His confidence is in shatters and he needs some time either overseas in the SHL or in the AHL. I don’t believe trading a player whose value is trending up for one whose value is trending down would be a good move. The Swede’s 5pts in 13 games for New York’s farm team isn’t helping his case either. Tack on a solid -9 in that time frame and I can’t see any teams wanting to bring him in.

In contrast, Puljujarvi has 28pts in 29 games for Karpat and five points in six games for his national team.

Ken Holland should be using his Finnish asset at the draft this summer to bring in a player who is an established top-6 goal scorer but is on a team that might have some salary cap issues. He’ll have to cap space to do it.

The holiday trade freeze is in effect right now, but that doesn’t mean that Holland can’t continue to grind. He’s been at it for weeks now and my feeling is that after Christmas we’re going to see some roster movement.

The Next Ten Games (31-40)

  • vs. LA Kings (11-16-2) – A pissed off Oilers team will make short order of the Kings in this rubber match. (WIN) WIN
  • vs. Buffalo Sabres (13-10-5) – No Dahlin for Buffalo but Jack Eichel is on a tear. Captain Jack will get his points but his team will not. (WIN) OT LOSS
  • vs. Carolina Hurricanes (16-11-1) – Carolina is too deep for this Oilers team plus Andrei Svechnikov is making a mockery of the NHL as a 19-year-old. (LOSS) LOSS
  • @ Minnesota Wild (13-11-4) – The Oilers seem to have trouble against teams like this for whatever reason. Immaturity in the club maybe? (LOSS) LOSS
  • vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (13-13-4) – The Leafs defense is soft like a Wendy’s Frosty but they’ve got the kind of offense that could really tear open the Oilers. It’s a toss-up for me but I’ll say Edmonton takes it. (WIN) LOSS
  • @ Dallas Stars (15-11-3) – Tough match-up for Edmonton here. Dallas already beat them once this year but that was when they were struggling. Now that they’re playing well, will the Oilers’ mindset going into this one be different? (WIN) WIN
  • @ St. Louis Blues (18-6-6) – Edmonton’s been performing very well against the league’s top teams. I don’t expect that to stop in St. Louis. (WIN) LOSS
  • vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (15-9-4) – The first game of a back-to-back at home and the Oilers are one up on Crosby’s Pens. Pittsburgh is going through one hell of an injury crisis mind you but as we’ve seen, the Oilers have failed to take advantage of these situations in the past. (LOSS) LOSS
  • vs. Montreal Canadiens (12-10-6) – I feel like the Habs usually give Edmonton a hard time when they come to town and their team is a lot better than their record tells us. (LOSS)
  • @ Vancouver Canucks (14-11-4) – I like the Oilers chances against Vancouver here and it’s the last game before the Christmas break. (WIN)

(Standings as of December 5th, 2019)

Three Players To Watch for the Canadiens

  • #6 Shea Weber – Who won the Weber/Subban trade now? The big man has six points in his last five games and is showing us just how good he can really be. It’s going to be a long night for the Oilers forwards.
  • #40 Joel Armia – Another Hab with six points in his last five games. He’s done a fine job of taking advantage of his chances lately. He’s a big player who protects the puck well, is a good skater, and has a wicked shot. If I had to project Jesse Puljujarvi, I’d say he’s probably trending to look something like Armia if not a shade better.
  • #90 Tomas Tatarrrrrr – The always dangerous winger. When Ken Holland was in Detroit, he flipped Tatar to Vegas for three draft picks which have turned out to be Robert Mastrosimone, Joe Veleno, and a yet to be picked player from the 3rd round of the 2021 draft.

Three Players to Watch for the Oilers

  • #93 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Nuge has to get it going. Coach Tippett threw him up on McDavid’s wing to try and get him going last night and nothin’… How bad was that hand of his that he had a “procedure” done on not too long ago?…
  • #19 Mikko Koskinen – He’s been very good this year and the Oilers could use some more of that magic tonight to keep the local Habs fans at bay.
  • #25 Darnell Nurse – Did not have a good evening vs. Pittsburgh and Edmonton needs him to get his passing game in gear. No more cannons cross-ice, ok?

The lines for tonight’s game haven’t been posted yet. Personally, I could see some changes taking place, and the line combos below are from last night’s game. Mikko Koskinen will be in net.

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CategoriesArmchair GM Beer League Hero Edmonton Oilers NHL Rumors

TagsEdmonton Oilers Jesse Puljujarvi Lias Andersson Montreal Canadiens NHL

Beer League Hero Written by:

I'm the Beer League Hero! I am from Camrose, Alberta but I make my home in Taipei City, Taiwan. I've been through the ups and downs and the highs and the Lowes, the Bonsignores and the McDavids, the Sathers and the Eakins but I'll never leave my Oilers, no matter what! They're with me until the end and then some. GO OILERS GO!