All posts by Zach Laing

NHL

Oilers vs Flames – One last BOA in the Old Barn

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TALE OF THE TAPE:

Game: Edmonton Oilers (30-42-7, 67 pts. 4-6 in their last 10) vs Calgary Flames (32-40-6, 70 pts. 4-5-1 in their last 10)

Location: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta

Time: 8:00 PM MT

Where to find it: TV: CBC – Radio: 630 CHED

Edmonton Oilers Preview:

As the Oilers and Flames are set to take the ice at Rexall place for the final time, many fans are reminiscing over the historic battles the two teams shared on Edmonton’s ice.

Tonight, the Oilers look to put that behind them as they prepare to play in their first game since Monday night. The way the end of the season has been set up for Edmonton has been less than favourable. With only three games in a week and a half, the team has had some time to get healthy for the last few games.

Adam Pardy returns to the lineup tonight, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is closing in on his return after suffering a concussion.

“It’s interesting,” said McLellan [on the teams long downtime]. “We whined and bitched about not having it and now we’re talking about having it. We had a rhythm going. Every second night for a month and a half we had that rhythm. We were able to rest. We were able to get a couple players healthy or at least healthy enough to play. We had two really good practices. How will we start, will we be rusty? I hope not. I don’t think there’s any reason why we should be. I think this is a good approach for us because if you happen to be lucky enough in the playoffs and win early and wait for another team to play, you’re usually taking four or five days off and you’ve got to be ready to play again. We’re trying to create those moments I guess, without being in the playoffs.”

 

The team can’t look to take any nights off despite the fact they are near the bottom of the league. These games the Oilers play between now and the end of the season will be important as it affects the way the team could look going into next season.

Zack Kassian, Iiro Pakarinen, Luke Gazdic, Adam Cracknell, Adam Pardy, Jordan Oeterle and Adam Clendening are all in need of new contracts, according to General Fanager.

Until next year, Calgary…

Predictions for tonight:

  1. Oilers win 5-2.
  2. McDavid scores a hattrick.
  3. There will be over 50 minutes in combined penalties tonight.

Flames Preview:
This is the final game the Flames and Oilers will play at Rexall Place, where Edmonton has a 54-43-9-6 regular-season record against its provincial rival. Calgary is 1-5-0 in its past six games and is coming off road losses to the Anaheim Ducks (8-3) and Los Angeles Kings during a midweek trip. “Just all around, it’s been a tough year for us in our own division,” forward Mikael Backlund said after the loss to the Kings on Thursday. Frolik (upper body) is out, but is expected to return when the Flames host the Kings on Tuesday. Gaudreau returned Thursday after missing two games with an upper-body injury. Goalie Joni Ortio, who made 26 saves against Los Angeles, is expected to start. Calgary reassigned defenseman Brett Kulak to Stockton of the American Hockey League on Friday; he played two games in March.

— NHL.com

Line Combos and Starting Goalies:

Oilers (Cam Talbot):

Taylor Hall – Leon Draisaitl – Nail Yakupov
Patrick Maroon – Connor McDavid – Jordan Eberle
Lauri Korpikoski – Mark Letestu – Zack Kassian
Adam Cracknell – Anton Lander – Matt Hendricks

Andrej Sekera – Mark Fayne
Jordan Oesterle – Griffin Reinhart
Darnell Nurse – Adam Pardy

EDM Injuries: Oscar Klefbom (leg infection), Andrew Ference (hip), Eric Gryba (knee), Benoit Pouliot (shoulder), Brandon Davidson (knee), Adam Pardy (hand), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (concussion).

Calgary Flames (Joni Ortio):

Johnny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Hunter Shinkaruk
Lance Bouma – Mikael Backlund – Joe Colborne
Micheal Ferland – Sam Bennett – Josh Jooris
Derek Grant – Matt Stajan – Brandon Bollig

TJ Brodie – Dougie Hamilton
Mark Giordano – Deryk Engelland
Jyrki Jokipakka – Jakub Nakladal

Any ideas on how to improve my game previews? Send me an email at zjlaing@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter.

Breaking News, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Zach Laing

TSN Insider Trading: Oilers showing interest in NCAA star G Alex Lyon, Yakupov to stay after all?

TSN’s men who know it all, Bob McKenzie and Pierre LeBrun, just had a few interesting things to say about the Edmonton Oilers and what is going on with the team. Here is the link.

To save you some time, here is the gist of what they talked about:

  • LeBrun: The Edmonton Oilers would listen to offers for the No. 1 overall pick should they win it. He mentioned the Oilers obvious need for some help on defence and “generally speaking” the team wants to make some important changes to the core as well as the team in the offseason.
  • LeBrun: Around the deadline, the Oilers were low-balled on offers for Nail Yakupov. No surprise there. Yakupov’s value is about as low as it could be right now, however LeBrun mentions the Oilers would be glad to have him back next year. The team is looking for a young player that can play in our NHL lineup.
  • McKenzie: The Oilers are glad with both Laurent Brossoit and Cam Talbot however they do want to test the UFA G market. He mentioned they were hard in on UMass-Lowell G Kevin Boyle but to keep an eye on Yale G Alex Lyon. He currently has 12 teams interested, and show narrow it down to about three and make a decision next week. A return to Yale is possible, but doubtful.

*adjusts collar*

Okay, that’s a lot to digest. First off let’s start from the top down shall we?

No. 1

This is something I have pondered myself for sometime and I think it makes sense. There are a number of teams out there that would be able to field legitimate offers for this pick given the abundance of defenseman whose names have been suggested. Ideally, if the Oilers would move the pick I would imagine the other teams first rounder would have to be included, as well as a high-level defenceman. Personally I wouldn’t want to move out of the top ten of this years draft, and I don’t think the Oilers would want to move out of there either.

I’ll revisit this after the draft lottery.

#YakCity

As LeBrun mentioned, the Oilers don’t want to give him away for scraps even though teams are trying to buy low. Let’s not forget that he was a number one overall pick, and the consensus amongst the major scouting agencies. I have long been a fan of Nail as well as his game, but at the end of the day he needs to play in a top six role to succeed. Is that something the Oilers see as a fit? He could get a long-term shot if the team decides to move on from Jordan Eberle this summer.

At the end of the day, I can see a fit in Edmonton for Nail but if the right offer comes around I don’t see the Oilers hesitating to pull the trigger. Should the Oilers have a chance to draft Patrik Laine or Jesse Puljujarvi, how would that impact the team’s decision to move Yakupov or Eberle?

Are you Lyon?!

No, I’m not lying. Alex Lyon could be the real deal – at least his NCAA career suggests it. In his three seasons of NCAA hockey, he has been the Yale Bulldogs starter each year.

Freshman year (2013-2014): 30 GP, 2.41 GAA, .918 sv%

Lyon was named the Ivy League co-rookie of the year as well as the team rookie of the year. His 796 saves were good enough for seventh in Yale’s history.

Sophomore year (2014-2015): 32 GP, 1.62 GAA, .939 sv%

In his second season as a starter, he led the nation in GAA, sv% as well as shutouts (7). All three of those are school records. That season, 12 of his games played came against teams with offenses ranked in Div. 1’s top 20, and in those games he stopped 93% of shots faced, and recorded three shutouts. Lyon was named one of five finalists for the Mike Richter award as the nation’s top Div. 1 goaltender.

Junior year (2015-2016): 31 GP, 1.64 GAA, .936 sv%.

His third season was highlighted by being named a finalist for the Mike Richter award on top of being named a top ten finalist for the Hobey Baker award as the nation’s top NCAA player. He set the school record for career wins that season by hitting the 50 win mark. The previous record sat at 43 wins, which he broke in a 3-0 shutout win against RPI. That shutout also broke the school record with his 13th shutout (now at 15).

So basically, Lyon is a stud in any facet you look at. His scouting report c/o Elite Prospects gives you a look into what type of a goaltender he is:

Very technique-oriented goalie that combines quick reflexes with sound positional play. Superior core and lower-body strength exhibited through quick cross-crease pushes and smooth lateral movement. Quick glove hand that doesn’t get beat very often. Isn’t very scrambly and accurately predicts where the puck is going to hit him and where it will be redirected to if he doesn’t hold onto it. Analyzes odd-man situations well and is always a step ahead. [EP]

All in all, it should be interesting to see where he ends up and if he signs with the Oilers. Knowing what I know about him, I would be hard pressed to imagine the Oilers not being all over him. With 12 teams supposedly showing interest, it will be interesting to watch this unfold over the next week or so.

Do you have a question for us! Click the pic and ask us anything! We’ll read it out on our pod and answer it too!
NHL

Oilers vs Ducks Preview – Nail wants out, Maroon returns to Anaheim

TALE OF THE TAPE:

Game: Edmonton Oilers (30-41-7, 67 pts. 4-6 in their last 10) vs Anaheim Ducks (41-23-10, 92 pts. 4-4-2 in their last 10)

Location: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta

Time: 7:00 PM MT

Where to find it: TV: SNW – Radio: 630 CHED

Edmonton Oilers Preview:

 

Last night, it was released in the media that Nail Yakupov had asked for a trade from the Edmonton Oilers prior to this year’s trade deadline. This news didn’t come as a huge shocker, as it was quite apparent that the Oilers would look to move on from him this offseason.

While it may have not been a formal request for a trade, the Oilers did grant Yakupov’s agent Igor Larionov permission to seek other options. Larionov later said there were “six or seven” teams about Nail Yakupov.

It’s all foggy right now. I’m in a blur. As I had wrote on twitter last night, it’s disappointing to see a situation like this to occur. It’s never in anyone’s best interest for these trade talks to come out in the public but yet here we are.

After Nail had a fantastic rookie season that saw him produce 17 goals and 14 assists for a total of 31 points in the lockout shortened 2012-2013 season, I thought we were in for a treat.

Here came in with elite offensive talent with a rifle of a shot and the ability to fly around the ice. A few coaching staffs later, Nail could find himself on the out. Should a trade come, I hope Nail the best. He is a great young man and I am sure he will find his way in the NHL soon.

When the Oilers came into this three game California road trip, I thought that if the team were to go .500 and play tight in the games I would consider that successful. Heading into tonight’s matchup with the Anaheim Ducks, taking them to overtime would all it would need to take to make my hopes come true.

The Oilers undoubtedly struggled Saturday night against a high-powered LA Kings roster that is bound to make a deep playoff push. Now tonight, the team faces much of the same squaring off against a Anaheim Ducks team nipping at the heels of the LA Kings for the Western Conference lead.

Tonight, the Oilers hope can take down the Ducks with Cam Talbot behind the net. In three career games against the Ducks, he is 0-2-1 with a 2.01 GAA and a .939 sv%.

On top of that, Patrick Maroon will play his first game against his former team. Since his acquisition at the trade deadline, he has been a catalyst for the Oilers scoring 11 points in 12 games. Things have really clicked for the Big Rig in Edmonton since his arrival. His big body play has allowed for Connor McDavid and Jordan Eberle to get more space on the ice.

This was apparent during the games against the Sharks and the Kings in which he was able to score five points against those big teams. The fact that the Anaheim Ducks ate $500 000 worth of his $2 mil contract make this deal all the more sweet.

I wish there was an entire team of Patrick Maroons. That would be awesome. #SwoonForMaroon

Predictions for tonight:

  1. Maroon continues his point streak, notching 1G and 1A against his old team.
  2. Taylor Hall and Leon Draisaitl, who have slowed down as of late, accumulate for 3 points tonight.
  3. Cam Talbot doesn’t get the shutout, but he plays above his head like normal and keeps the Oilers in the game all night long.

Last games predictions: 

  1. Oilers win 3-2 in OT.
  2. Connor McDavid scores the game-winning goal.
  3. The Oilers come out and play a very physical game, and there are two fights in the game.

Ducks Preview:
Anaheim was off on Sunday and concludes a five-game road trip in Edmonton; they are 2-1-1 following a 4-3 overtime win against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday in which they were down 3-0 in the third period. “Everyone stuck together,” defenseman Hampus Lindholm told the Ducks website. “[Getzlaf] had a little speech in the locker room [after the second period]. He had good words for us to get us going. We came out and played the way we should’ve from the start.” Anaheim has the League’s best power play at 23.7 percent and scored the winner with the man-advantage in overtime. “Every time our power play goes onto the ice, I think they’re going to have a chance to score,” coach Bruce Boudreau said. “That’s a good feeling. … We knew we had the rest of the game on the power play, so we wanted to take our time and make the right play.” The Ducks have clinched a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and are three points behind the Los Angeles Kings for first place in the Pacific Division with a game in hand. Andersen started the past two games, so John Gibson could be in net.

— NHL.com

Line Combos and Starting Goalies:

Oilers (Laurent Brossoit):

Taylor Hall – Leon Draisaitl – Nail Yakupov
Patrick Maroon – Connor McDavid – Jordan Eberle
Lauri Korpikoski – Mark Letestu – Zack Kassian
Adam Cracknell – Matt Hendricks – Iiro Pakairnen

Andrej Sekera – Mark Fayne
Jordan Oesterle – Griffin Reinhart
Darnell Nurse – Adam Clendening

EDM Injuries: Oscar Klefbom (leg infection), Andrew Ference (hip), Eric Gryba (knee), Benoit Pouliot (shoulder), Brandon Davidson (knee), Adam Pardy (hand), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (concussion).

Anaheim Ducks (John Gibson):

Brandon Pirri – Ryan Getzlaf – Chris Stewart
Jamie McGinn – Rickard Rakell – Corey Perry
Andrew Cogliano – Shawn Horcoff – Jakob Silfverberg
Nick Ritchie – Nate Thompson – Ryan Garbutt

Cam Fowler – Korbinian Holzer
Hampus Lindholm – Josh Manson
Clayton Stoner – Shea Theodore

Any ideas on how to improve my game previews? Send me an email at zjlaing@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter.

Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Zach Laing

Oilers vs Kings Preview – Oilers must help LB to win

TALE OF THE TAPE:

Game: Edmonton Oilers (30-40-7, 67 pts. 5-5 in their last 10) at LA Kings (44-25-5, 93 pts. 6-3-1 in their last 10)

Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California

Time: 8:00 PM MT

Where to find it: TV: CBC – Radio: 630 CHED

Edmonton Oilers Preview:

After beating the San Jose Sharks in a huge 6-3 victory on Thursday night, the Oilers secured their first 30 win season since the 2011 – 2012 season when Tom Renney was behind the bench.

That season, the Oilers won 32 games, and finished the season with 74 points. Now with only five games to go before the season is finished, the Oilers sit with 67 points.

Tonight, the team looks to take on a Los Angeles team that has been been leading the Western Conference nearly all year. Laurent Brossoit gets the start tonight, and as it would be nice if he would be able to get some help from the offense:

In his five NHL starts, he has given up 15 goals, while the Oilers have only scored nine in front of him. This is not a knock against Brossoit by any means, but it shows the need for the team to play a tight hockey game in front of him. 

In order for the Oilers to come out of Los Angeles with two points, the team needs to play a tight hockey game. The Kings are simply the best in the west, and it has shown as they have beaten the Oilers in all four meetings this season. In the previous four games this season LA has outscored Edmonton 14 to eight.

In the past month since the last time the two teams met on Feb. 25, the Oilers have certainly become a different team after dealing Anders Nilsson, Justin Schultz and Teddy Purcell while acquiring Patrick “Big Rig” Maroon.

Maroon has come into the Oilers lineup and been a dynamic force on the ice. He plays the exact style of game that complements the likes of Connor McDavid and Jordan Eberle whom he has been playing with consistently as of late.

His three-assist performance against the Sharks Thursday night just shows his ability to play in a top-six role. He has got to be elated. 

When the Oilers came into this three game California road trip, I thought that if the team were to go .500 and play tight in the games I would consider that successful. 

Quotes from oilers.nhl.com.

Predictions for tonight:

  1. Oilers win 3-2 in OT.
  2. Connor McDavid scores the game-winning goal.
  3. The Oilers come out and play a very physical game, and there are two fights in the game.

Kings Preview:
Forward Vincent Lecavalier practiced Friday after he missed a 4-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday with an undisclosed injury. There was no update provided on forward Kris Versteeg (foot), who has missed the past three games. The Kings have lost three straight since they clinched a Stanley Cup Playoff berth last Saturday. Los Angeles leads the Pacific Division by three points over the Anaheim Ducks, who have a game in hand. “These are games that we could have separated ourselves a little bit,” forward Jeff Carter told the Kings website. “We’ve got to get going here, we’re running out of games, you can’t get to the playoffs and then flip the switch, so we’ve got a lot of work to do here in the next couple weeks.”

— NHL.com

Line Combos and Starting Goalies:

Oilers (Laurent Brossoit):

Taylor Hall – Leon Draisaitl – Nail Yakupov
Patrick Maroon – Connor McDavid – Jordan Eberle
Lauri Korpikoski – Mark Letestu – Zack Kassian
Adam Cracknell – Matt Hendricks – Iiro Pakairnen

Andrej Sekera – Mark Fayne
Jordan Oesterle – Griffin Reinhart
Darnell Nurse – Adam Clendening

EDM Injuries: Oscar Klefbom (leg infection), Andrew Ference (hip), Eric Gryba (knee), Benoit Pouliot (shoulder), Brandon Davidson (knee), Adam Pardy (hand), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (concussion).

LA Kings (Jonathan Quick): 

Tanner Pearson – Anze Kopitar – Dustin Brown
Milan Lucic – Jeff Carter – Tyler Toffoli
Dwight King – Nic Dowd – Trevor Lewis
Kyle Clifford – Nick Shore – Andy Andreoff

Brayden McNabb – Drew Doughty
Jake Muzzin – Alec Martinez
Rob Scuderi – Luke Schenn

Any ideas on how to improve my game previews? Send me an email at zjlaing@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter.

Edmonton Oilers, Zach Laing

Oilers vs Avalanche Preview – Oilers look to take advantage of injured Avs

1 Comment

TALE OF THE TAPE:

Game: Edmonton Oilers (29-38-7, 65 pts. 6-4 in their last 10) vs Colorado Avalanche (37-31-4, 78 pts. 6-4 in their last 10)

Location: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta

Time: 7:30 PM MT

Where to find it: TV: Sportsnet West – Radio: 630 CHED

Edmonton Oilers Preview:

74 down, 8 to go.

After shutting-out the Vancouver Canucks 2-0 Friday night, the Oilers look to take advantage of a team that will be without Matt Duchene, Nathan MacKinnon and Eric Gelinas tonight.

Like the Oilers, the Avs are currently getting hit with the injury bug which is less than ideal for a team competing in a tight race for the playoffs with the Minnesota Wild. Tonight, the Oilers have a chance to stall their efforts, and their playoff hopes.

While Todd McLellan and the coaching staff haven’t been talking to the players about playing spoiler, Zack Kassian realizes the opportunity ahead.

“If we’re not making the playoffs, we might as well take down teams trying to make the playoffs,” said Oilers winger Zack Kassian. “It’s one of those things where this time of the year it’s tough to find things to get motivated for, but at the top of the list is ‘be the spoiler’ and take that dream from other teams.”

Both Jordan Oesterle and Griffin Reinhart received high-praise from Todd McLellan after last Friday’s game that saw them play over 22 minutes each and blocked 11 shots combined.

Reinhart has looked consistently good in the six games since his recall from the Bakersfield Condors, which is exactly what McLellan and co. wanted from him.

Oesterle has been a pleasant surprise since his recall on Mar. 9. In his nine games with Edmonton this season, he has four assists. His play has been really solid and he has played with confidence. Who knows what the Oilers have here, but early indications show that he has some potential to play in the NHL.

Laurent Brossoit gets his fourth start of the season, and it’s a good night for him to get the green light. With the Avalanches two top scorers in Duchene and MacKinnon being out of the lineup the Avs will look to other guys to finish on the ice.

The Oilers are going to need to play a tight game in front of the Bross, and limit the shots he sees.

“We’d like to play tighter,” said McLellan. “When you’re talking about the Vancouver game, I think we addressed that after. We were sluggish, we weren’t sharp, we were sloppy, we found a way to win and Talbs had a large part in that. We’d like to play better in front of LB tonight than we did the other night and it’s as simple as that.”

McLellan hasn’t forgotten that Brossoit is still a young goaltender, saying “sometimes inexperience and understanding who the shooters are and how they score” is part of the challenge facing LB.

I think at this point in time he will certainly be battling for the backup position next season, but may benefit from more AHL experience. With Talbot securing the starting role for at least the next year or two, LB has the ability to take time and develop properly.

Let’s see what the boys can do tonight..

Quotes from oilers.nhl.com.

Predictions for tonight:

  1. Oilers win 3-2.
  2. Griffin Reinhart scores his first NHL goal.
  3. Leon Draisaitl scores the other two goals.

Last games predictions and results:

  1. Oilers beat the Canucks 3-0.
  2. Former Canuck Zack Kassian scores.
  3. CAM TALBOT SHUTOUT!!!!!

Well not bad! Cam Talbot and the Oilers shutout the Canucks 2-0, but Kassian didn’t get a goal despite some chances.

2/3 ain’t too bad.

Avalanche Preview:

There were no updates on forwards Matt Duchene (knee) and Nathan MacKinnon (knee), and defenseman Eric Gelinas (elbow) on Saturday. Colorado recalled forward Mikko Rantanen from San Antonio of the American Hockey League. Duchene missed a 4-3 shootout win against the Calgary Flames on Friday, and Gelinas and MacKinnon left that game. Coach Patrick Roy said Gelinas was out indefinitely and MacKinnon would be re-evaluated Saturday. Captain Gabriel Landeskog will return after a three-game suspension. Goalie Semyon Varlamov is expected to make his sixth straight start; he has won four of his past five games.

— NHL.com

Line Combos and Starting Goalies:

Oilers (Laurent Brossoit):

Taylor Hall – Leon Draisaitl – Iiro Pakarinen
Patrick Maroon – Connor McDavid – Jordan Eberle
Lauri Korpikoski – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Nail Yakupov
Matt Hendricks – Mark Letestu – Zack Kassian

Andrej Sekera – Mark Fayne
Jordan Oesterle – Griffin Reinhart
Darnell Nurse – Adam Clendening

EDM Injuries: Oscar Klefbom (leg infection), Andrew Ference (hip), Eric Gryba (knee), Benoit Pouliot (shoulder), Brandon Davidson (knee), Adam Pardy (hand).

Colorado Avalanche (Calvin Pickard):

Avs Lines tentative due to injuries.

Mikkel Boedker – Nathan MacKinnon – Blake Comeau
Mikhail Grigorenko – John Mitchell – Jarome Iginla
Shawn Matthias – Carl Soderberg – Andreas Martinsen
Cody McLeod – Jack Skille – Andrew Bodnarchuk

Francois Beauchemin – Erik Johnson
Nick Holden – Tyson Barrie
Eric Gelinas – Chris Bigras

Any ideas on how to improve my game previews? Send me an email at zjlaing@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter.