Category Archives: Breaking News

Beer League Hero, Breaking News, Edmonton Oilers, NHL

BREAKING Oilers News: Oulu Karpat Announce Puljujarvi Signing

There it is folks and just as Puljujarvi said it would happen. The former 4th overall pick for the Edmonton Oilers has signed for the year to play for his old Finnish club team, Oulu Karpat.

Nothing like some 1 am Oilers news to get wake you up!

Jesse has an out in the deal that will allow him to return to the NHL before December 1st. That date is important because if he doesn’t sign with an NHL club before that, he’d be unable to play in the NHL for the entire season.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anybody as he did state that he’d be choosing where he’d play by September.

I feel like this is the best option for everyone and that’s for a couple of reasons:

  • It’ll give everyone time to cool off and let cooler heads prevail.
  • If Puljujarvi is lighting up the SM-Liiga that could bring in better offers and allow the Oilers to get the deal they’ve been looking for since Holland took over. It also might entice Holland to negotiate a better deal with Puljujarvi himself.

And contrary to reports that interest in Puljujarvi is “tepid, at best”, there is interest among at least four Eastern conference teams I’ve been told. I do wonder if GMs are waiting for the dominoes to drop amongst the numerous high-end RFAs that have yet to sign…

It’s weird, regarding Jesse playing over in Europe, I read this over at the Cult of Hockey not too long ago,

However, I can confirm that at least as of yesterday…no such offer has been forthcoming, nor has there ever been a negotiation. And to be fair to Karpat manager Harri Aho, he didn’t say there had been. But it is surely a coincidence that Aho should make any comment at all. After all, Aho’s son Sebastian Aho is property of the Carolina Hurricanes. And the ‘Canes are one of several clubs thought to be interested in Puljujarvi. How about that, hey?

No disrespect to Kurt. I think recently people think that I’ve really been laying into him personally and that’s not the case. He’s only reporting what he’s been told. So if anything, I’m laying into his source. That quote above, it seemed odd to make that proclamation so early in the summer, but hey, things change all of the time don’t they? But the tone over at the CoH towards Jesse has been awfully slanted until very recent.

My feeling is that Mr. Leavins’ quotes have been getting some traction in Europe and I wonder if those in Finland have not taken to kindly to this sort of coverage of one of their native sons.

“If” it seemed more likely that Jesse Puljujarvi could find a landing spot in Europe, then that would conceivably make it harder for Oilers G.M. Ken Holland to wait on a trade that holds a greater return for his club.

By this sentiment, the pressure is on Oilers GM Ken Holland?

I don’t believe that to be the case at all. As I said earlier, there are a few scenarios that might facilitate a trade, but from those sources that I’ve talked to on both sides of the Atlantic, Jesse is as happy to play in Finland as he would to play in North America. He’d obviously like to be showing what he can do in the NHL, but he’s fine waiting things out until a situation he deems acceptable appears.

The timing of both story and comments are more than curious. What’s that called again, when you pretend to hold better cards in your hand than you actually have?

Oh my, how the tables have turned after only one hand has been played.

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Breaking News, Edmonton Oilers, NHL

Breaking Oilers News: Craig MacTavish Leaving Oilers to Coach in the KHL

It has begun folks. The Purge.

According to Igor Eronko, a journalist that covers Russian hockey for Sport Express, the Oilers SR VP of Hockey Operations, Craig MacTavish has signed on to coach Lokomotiv of the KHL for the next two seasons.

I’ve said previously that the word that was passed on to me was that there was a slight chance Craig MacTavish could stay on and run the Oilers AHL team but I guess after meeting with Ken Holland, the new GM thought it would be better for the two parties to go their separate ways. I do wonder if that means Keith Gretzky will be given MacTavish’s old job as overseer of the Oilers’ AHL team as that is something I’ve also heard from sources in the past?

I do expect to hear others leaving the club as Ken Holland puts his stamp on it. The more prominent names I’d figure to be heading out include Bob Green, Scott Howson, and Duane Sutter. Maybe that happens closer to June. 30th mind you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0QpAJM1zeI

Save for a stint coaching in the AHL, MacT had been with the Oilers since 1999! Hellva run I say. It’s too bad they couldn’t seal the deal in ’06.

In Locomotiv, they’re getting a man with a decade plus of coaching experience. MacTavish will join up with former Edmonton Oiler Anton Lander.

So good luck to the last man to play helmetless in the NHL!

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Beer League Hero, Breaking News, Edmonton Oilers, NHL

Oilers Claim Colby Cave, More Moves to Come?

The Edmonton Oilers have claimed forward Colby Cave off of waivers from the Boston Bruins. If you’re asking yourself who the hell this guy is, join the group. Joseph Gambardella has been sent back to Bakersfield and Kailer Yamamoto is set to be taken off of the IR, so is this the full court press that Ryan Rishaug was talking about?… Doubt it, but I think this might be the first shoe to drop…

Cave is 6’1″ and 200 lbs. He primarily plays center and is a left-hand shot. He started the year in Providence of the AHL and put up 18pts in 15 games before moving up to Boston. In 20 games for the Bruins he has 1 goal and 4 assists.

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Here are some reports on the player:

Dobberprospects.com:

Cave has a powerful shot and plays a sound two-way game. While he will likely never break through as a point producer in the NHL, he could find a home as a role-playing forward, capable of the occasional offensive outburst.

Providencebruins.com:

A grinder who gets most of his scoring from hanging out in front of the net, he is a good two-way center that will do what it takes to win games at either the AHL or NHL level.

Causewaycrowd:

“I always think defense first,” said Cave. “If coach needs me to take a key face-off, or block a shot or two in the D-zone, or even put together a few goals here or there – it’s one of the things I really take pride in, that 200-foot game. I really want to make myself a complete player.

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Beer League Hero, Breaking News, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Trades

BREAKING: Oilers Trade Wideman to Panthers for Petrovic

Well, a shoe has finally dropped. Edmonton Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli has made a move to try and shore up the defense a little bit while the Oilers wait for Oscar Klefbom and Andrej Sekera to return from the IR

The Oilers have had Petrovic on their radar for a long time now. I think Chiarelli probably overpaid for Petrovic but he had to get rid of a roster player as it was.

The Edmonton native wasn’t getting a lot of traction in Florida this season but I’m glad to have him on the roster as he’s a definite improvement on Matt Benning.

One thing I like is that his contract is off the books at the end of the year. That will be very helpful next summer.

I would not be surprised one bit if Benning’s time is coming to a close with the Oilers now. Not only because he hasn’t been playing well this year but because Edmonton need to clear his contract off the books before Sekera is activated. If I recall correctly, they’re near $2 million into Sekera’s IR cushion. They could also move any other player who makes around that much or more as well, meaning Kassian, Spooner, or Caggiula.

Petro is a tough SOB and plays a very honest game. I would say his game is limited offensively though and I’m weary of his puck moving ability. Ken Hitchcock will like him though as he’s got an industrious work ethic.

Chris Wideman, we hardly knew ya. I would’ve like to have seen him in some more adventageous deployment but it is what it is. He didn’t fit into what Hitchcock was doing here and that’s too bad. Perhaps he’ll have more luck with the Panthers.

https://twitter.com/AdamsOnHockey/status/1079452228514004992

I tend to agree here with Mr.Adams. The defense will look very nice once it’s all put together.

NOW to tend to the forwards…

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Breaking News, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

Edmonton Oilers: It’s Time for Seks and Would Philly Be Interested in Cam Talbot?

You’ve probably seen the tweet sent out by Oilers Now host Bob Stauffer entailing the return to the ice for defender Andrej Sekera, right? I’m as shocked as you are but that said, Stauffer did mention during the pre-game show vs. the Kings that Sekera had been skating back in Edmonton.

This is outstanding news! I’m very curious about the timeline but he must be closer than not if he’s taking part in Ken Hitchcock’s practices.

Now, I think it’s safe to say that we should be tempering expectations as any normal human being coming back from major knee surgery AND a torn Achilles tendon would be out of commish for years let alone months. We shouldn’t expect ‘Rej to come back in his 2016 form and the way I look at it is by remembering players like Sergei Gonchar and Andrei Markov and how well they played after they returned. Gonchar had some mobility issues but Markov seemed to come back alright.

Here’s to hoping that Andrej Sekera can come back somewhere in the middle and that he’s brought along properly by the Oilers meaning a conditioning stint in Bakersfield and 3rd pairing minutes to start.

Philly Needs a Tender!

After giving Ron Hextall his walking papers, interim GM (I guess?) Paul Holmgren said this during his media avail this morning,

That HAS to be music to the ears of Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli because as far as I’ve been told, the Oilers have been listening to offers on Cam Talbot for some time now.

Now you might be asking yourself why Philly would want Talbot? Well, at the moment they’ve got Calvin Pickard and Alex Lyon tending the nets as Brian Elliott and Michael Neuvirth are on the IR.

Philly has a shade over $7M available in cap space right now and the Oilers simply need a backup goalie and someone to alleviate the pressure on their own cap. Talbot makes $4.16M per year so they could easily absorb that.

So I propose the Oilers send Talbot to the Flyers for one of Pickard, Lyon, or Elliott and a draft pick or a prospect.

Puljujarvi and Chiasson to the Top Six!

It’s about time! Oilers coach Ken Hitchcock said that he’d accelerate Jesse’s progression and put him in the top-6 within the month and he’s done so. This is very exciting for me because I feel like Puljujarvi simply hasn’t had the confidence of his coach since he joined the Oilers.

An interesting quote from the book published way back in 2004 entitled “Simply the Best” provides us a very interesting insight into Hitchcock,

I have learned in coaching that even though the player is not playing his best at the time, if you instill confidence, then he will. When things aren’t going as well as they should, good coaches stick with the players.

I know that it’s only been one game since Puljujarvi was recalled but this is his chance to finally break into the top-6 and stay there. His team needs him, his coach has complete faith in him, and he HAS to seize this opportunity and hold on for dear life.

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Here are the lines for tonight’s matchup versus the Dallas Stars.

Last comment, do not be surprised to see the Oilers shite the bed tonight. They do not perform well the first game back after coming home off a road trip and if we use a couple more narratives that have backfired on Edmonton recently, Dallas will be without top defenceman John Klingberg and they’ll have their backup, Anton Khudobin, in net.

I watched Dallas vs. Edmonton last season and it was a great back and forth game. If I’m not mistaken I think Matt Benning scored the GWG and Jamie Benn was quiet but Radulov was in beast mode.

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