Category Archives: Rumors

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

Edmonton Oilers Trade Talk: Karlsson, Barrie, McLeod v. McLeod, and More!!!

This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!

The latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation comes from all of the internet’s top sites like Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, and The Daily Goal Horn just to name a few!

If you’re short on time but want to keep up with the day’s Oilers news, you’ve come to the right place!

Give us a follow on the socials!

GM11: Devils vs. Oilers

Who to Watch for New Jersey
  • #63 Jesper Bratt – This guy is en fuego! Four goals and four assists in his last half dozen minus one and only on 14 shots no less. 
  • #41 Vitek Vanecek – The big Czech netminder is playing very well at the moment sporting a 3-1-0 record on the year. His SV% is probably something that could improve (.903) but his GAA is just an ass hair over two. With a good performance tonight, he could steal one for the Devils. IF he’s starting that is. 
  • #86 Jack Hughes – Obviously Hughes is the main star of the show with this club but I hear time and time again from Bob Stauffer (Oilers PxP colorman) that Jack’s not as good as he’s hyped up to be. The former no.1 overall pick has three points in four games against the Oilers and is getting better and better every year. In his last give matches, he’s tallied seven points and I wonder if tonight might be the night Jackie Boy crams it down Stauffer’s cramhole.
Who to Watch for Edmonton
  • #13 Jesse Puljujarvi – The Bison King’s chances are coming and that’s key. If he was just going out for a skate each night, there’d be cause for concern, but he’s getting into the right positions consistently and on top of that he’s become a hitting machine. Guess we can thank Evander Kane for harping on him for that. I also want to point out that he’s got a PDO of .911 right now and that tells me that he’s just a tad unlucky so far. Maybe when Coach Woodcroft realizes he’s better suited for the top-six than Yamamoto, some of his more traditional stats will improve.
  • #2 Evan Bouchard – Tonight will be a big test for Uncle Evan. The Devils have a plethora of different styled attackers and they shoot and shoot and shoot. It will be of the utmost importance that Bouchard’s passing is on point as well as his shot blocking ability. 
  • #91 Evander Kane – He’s said to be a streaky scorer and he netted himself quite the hatty last game out. If it’s true that he scores in bunches, it would make sense to bet on his name hitting the scoresheet tonight. 

BLH’s Thoughts: This game has the potential to be a helluva barn burner. The Devils have only shot fewer than 36 times ONCE so far this year and that was against the Colorado Avalanche and they won that game 1-0. New Jersey plays an insanely aggressive style and it’s working for them so far.

Now, I don’t know if it will work for them against Edmonton, mind you. The Oilers have a very potent counter attack with McDavid and Leon leading the way, but I think tonight’s game is going to be a throwback to the 80s. I mean, look at NJ’s bottom six,

  • Sharangovich (3g/3a) – Mercer (4g/2a) – Boqvist (1a)
  • Wood (2g/2a) – McLeod (1g/3a) – Bastian (1g/2a)

(In brackets are their stats in their last five games)

Good Christ, if the Oilers bottom six were scoring like that the local media would be creaming their pants with the dynasty days comparisons. Instead, Edmonton’s top-six is breaking the bank as usual. 

I want to say that Edmonton can win this because their defensive game is better but NJ has held their opponent’s shots to no more than 25 this season… That said, during the Oilers recent 5-game winning streak they’ve won four of those games whilst giving up 35 or more shots. So… We’ll have to see on this one because the Devils are on their own 4-game heater. 

As I write this the starting netminder hasn’t been named but I’m hoping it’s Stu Skinner because he’s played way better as of late. I’d rather give the Dallas game to Campbell to be honest. I feel like him being a former Star might give him some added motivation. 

Lowetide

  • The NJD have a higher goal share than Edmonton at five-on-five, and score a higher number of goals-per-60 at five-on-five than the hometown Oilers. New Jersey has 10 skaters posting more than 1.50 pts-60 at five-on-five, some rugged types and some finesse types, and they’re in a groove, too. NJD goaltending is a half bubble off plumb, that may be the difference should the home team win tonight.

BLH’s Thoughts: As one of LT’s commenters noted, “Take the over!” and I agree. 

Trade Rumors

Spector’s Hockey
  • TORONTO STAR: Kevin McGran observes the San Jose Sharks are “already in selling mode”. He points out Erik Karlsson is looking like his old self as an elite puck-moving defenseman and “looks as if he’s auditioning for a trade.”
  • THE ATHLETIC: James Mirtle suggests the Leafs could need a trade to snap out of their current tailspin… Mirtle suggested Arizona’s Jakob Chychrun or Anaheim’s John Klingberg as possible options. Others included Columbus’ Vladislav Gavrikov, New Jersey’s Damon Severson or Arizona’s Shayne Gostisbehere.
  • THE ATHLETIC: Arpon Basu reports the Montreal Canadiens will face a delicate balancing act of managing their surplus of forwards this season. They’re currently carrying 15 forwards but will have to move one of them once defenseman Joel Edmundson returns from injury.

BLH’s Thoughts: Edmonton’s been watching the Habs lately and I remember Bob Stauffer bringing up Jake Evans’ name over the summer in reply to somebody asking him about Tyson Barrie getting traded. Add that to how Stauffer was talking about the Oilers making a couple of “subtle” additions this year, a forward in the $2M-range (as Evans is) and a defenseman making around $3M (this is Carson Soucy out of Seattle), and you can see how Edmonton and Montreal might be able to help each other out.

Another thing, Ken Holland is well known for going after big name vets. Do you think that Erik Karlsson would fall under that category? Expensive add if he could in terms of money and assets, but at the same time… This is Erik Karlsson we’re talking about. Could you imagine a 3v3 OT featuring McDavid, Draisaitl, and him? 

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

Edmonton Oilers Talk: Oilers Looking at $2M Forward and $3M Defenseman According to Stauffer

This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!

The latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation comes from all of the internet’s top sites like Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, and The Daily Goal Horn just to name a few!

If you’re short on time but want to keep up with the day’s Oilers news, you’ve come to the right place!

Give us a follow on the socials!

Gm 10: Predators (3-5-1) vs. Oilers (6-3-0)

Who to Watch for Nashville
  • #84 Tanner Jeanot – He’s twinkled the twin thrice in his last five and he’s second to only Nino Niederreiter in goals scored for Nashville. 
  • #9 Filip Forsberg – 33 shots in his last five games but only one goal… The ketchup has to start flowing at some point here and Rogers Place is as good as any to get out of scoring slump. 
  • #59 Roman Josi – He’s not scoring at the pace he did last year, but he’s still one of the league’s elite NHL dmen and very much worth your eye tonight. 
Who to Watch for Edmonton
  • #36 Jack Campbell – He’s getting schooled by the understudy so far… Soupy’s gotta get it going here. He’s faced the Preds three times in his career allowing eight goals with a 2-1-0 record. 
  • #25 Darnell Nurse – Nashville’s forwards will give him a good challenge tonight as they really are a mix of different styles. I feel like he’ll have something going with Neiderreiter and/or Jeanot though. Those two wingers are very physical. Maybe we’ll see a scrap. 
  • #29 Leon Draisaitl – He’s owned the Preds (stat below) in recent years with a 4-goal game and a 3-goal game plus a plethora of others with multiple tallies. 

BLH’s Thoughts: There are quite a few Predators forwards who’s scoring has absolutely dried up recently and if I know the hockey gods like I do, there’s a good chance some of these guys are going to bust out of those droughts tonight. That’s simply the magic of playing that Oilers at home. They love helping other teams out like that. Also, if there’s a rookie looking for his first NHL goal, chances are he’ll get it in Edmonton. 

All that said, the Oilers and Leon Draisaitl especially have f*cking roasted Nashville in their last eight matches against each other with Edmonton going 7-0-1 with Leon scoring 17 times in those games. I mean, McDavid is as hot as ever (16pts in his last 7) and Nuge has 11pts in his last six! You would like to think that this should be a scheduled win for Woody’s boys but I wouldn’t bet my neighbor’s cat on that just yet because we all know about this club’s tendency to play to the level of their opponents… 

I think if Edmonton ends up losing, it’ll be their defense and goaltending that lets them down. However, I am very excited to see if Niemelainen is in the lineup because I would like to know who lays the first big hit, him or Jeremy Lauzon. 

 

Trade Rumors

Oilers Now
  • Bob Stauffer – “I think the Oilers have two more subtle kind of moves at some point during the year. One for a forward, one for a defenseman. The forward maybe sub-$2M and the defenseman Sub-$3M. The team that’s got the D has got to eat half the money on the D.”
    • “Carson Soucy… Nudge nudge wink wink. Sub-$3M/yr defenseman from Irma, Alberta. I’m watching Seattle… If Soucy’s a + two years in a row, that has me intrigued. Even if he’s in a 3rd pairing role with Barrie if Niemelainen can’t grab it here.”

BLH’s Thoughts: Man, I’m tired of hearing about Soucy. Can’t the team aim a bit higher and who cares if he’s from Irma. Why does that make any difference? Stauffer’s a proud Albertan, so I guess I can see the narrative he’s spinning there. 

Subtle moves can be made at the bottom of this club’s roster, but it needs one left-shot 2nd pairing defenseman. Somebody in the same category as Cody Ceci. Meaning, a blueliner who can sub-in on the first pair when Nurse goes down. Right now the Oilers do not have this player. Next season they might have that in Broberg but the dreamy Swede can’t stay healthy right now and it’s too big of a risk to through him into the deep end like that with the expectations where they are of this team at this point in time. 

As for the soon-to-be-UFA forwards (this year or next) who might be targets for the club, Carolina’s gritty uber-grinder Jordan Martinook would be sweet and he was already on waivers this year. Bill Guerin over in Minnesota is going to need to clear some cap and I wonder if Evander Kane’s BFF Ryan Hartman would be of interest to the Oilers? Yakov Trenin of the Nashville Predators, who we’ll see tonight perhaps, is a tank and I remember his name coming up last season. Also, Blue Jacket’s winger Eric Robinson, another tank who can skate like the wind but his fancies are awful. 

Speaking of awful adv. stats, Travis Boyd (ARI) is a right-shot forward who’s tallied 5pts in 8 games for the Coyotes so far this year. If 4th line centers are on Ken Holland’s “to acquire” list, should he be considered?

I don’t know, I think it’s really going to depend on who gets moved out and if I had to guess, it’ll probably be Puljujarvi. So, in that scenario, does Holland look to replace him with a similar styled player but a tad more affordable? They’re not going to replace how JP tilts the ice for anybody sub-$3M, but who knows if that’s going to be a point of concern. 

Holland tends to telegraph his moves through the media. So I suppose just keep an ear out to what Stauffer says seeing as he’s the club’s mouth piece. 

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

Edmonton Oilers Talk: “He suggested the Edmonton Oilers as a suitor…”

This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!

The latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation comes from all of the internet’s top sites like Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, and The Daily Goal Horn just to name a few!

If you’re short on time but want to keep up with the day’s Oilers news, you’ve come to the right place!

Give us a follow on the socials!

Oilersnation

NHL Notebook: Vancouver Canucks acquire Ethan Bear, Devan Dubnyk retires and more
  • Former Edmonton Oilers defenceman Ethan Bear was dealt Friday being shipped from the Carolina Hurricanes to the Vancouver Canucks.
  • Devan Dubnyk has officially retired from the NHL and is entering the world of broadcasting.

BLH’s Thoughts: Bear should have a solid chance to show what he can do with the Canucks since Quinn Hughes is out for a few weeks but he’s on his third club now and the chances are running out.

Before he was moved out of Edmonton (pre-covid), there were rumors of conditioning problems apparently and if you’re a hockey player who’s challenged in that manner, being sent to a team that is coached by Rod Brind’Amour has to be a special kind of nightmare. 

Now, it’s only fair that me mention that Bear caught covid and dealt with a lower-body injury before the playoffs last year. Either way, he couldn’t find a way to break into the Canes’ lineup and there’s no shame in that because it’s a deep one.

Maybe Vancouver will be different.

GM8: Oilers vs. Flames

Who to Watch Out for on Calgary
  • #91 Nazem Kadri – Eight points in his previous half dozen minus one plus he’s definitely going to play a massive factor in throwing Edmonton’s star off their games. 
  • #11 Mikael Backlund – Calgary’s 3C has been shooting like crazy in his last five, 23 times to be exact, yet, he only has two goals to show for it. 
  • #4 Rasmus Andersson – In his last five games he’s accrued as many assists as the average human has fingers on one hand and knowing his history, he’ll be driving the Oilers’ forwards nuts.  
Who to Watch Out for on Edmonton
  • #18 Zach Hyman – Hyman has three goals and four assists in his last five and these rivalry games where the foot soldiers thrive. This guy is an elite foot soldier. 
  • #2 Evan Bouchard – Four points in his last handful of games and we’re finally seeing him hit his stride. He’ll be tested by the Flames’ intense forecheck tonight, though. 
  • #37 Warren Foegele – I think he breaks the goose egg tonight. He’s been playing a really aggressive game lately and his line as a whole has been giving opposing teams fits in their own end. 

BLH’s Thoughts: Jason Strudwick was mentioning on Ryan Rishaug’s podcast that if Jack Campbell doesn’t start that there’s going to be a goalie controversy. To me, that’s a bunch of poppycock. Campbell’s contracted for five more years and I would imagine he’s checked his ego at the door because he’s in it to win it, no? I’m hoping Woodcroft starts Skinner tonight seeing has the last time these two teams met, it was the young netminder who came in to relieve the aforementioned Campbell and thrived in said appearance no less. 

I like Edmonton’s chances in this game but they’ve got to score first. Calgary always seems to find a way to shut their opponents down after scoring one or two so it’ll be incumbent upon the Oilers top six to bury one early and the Oilers’ big boys are on fire at the moment. 

Now, the game is the late one on Hockey Night in Canada tonight, who will end up being the main attraction when all is said and done, the netminding, the scoring, or the refs?

Trade Rumors

Spector’s Hockey
  • SPORTSNET: Mark Spector doesn’t see the Chicago Blackhawks’ surprisingly good start to this season will deviate management from its rebuilding plans.
    • As for Toews, Spector believes teams will line up for his services at the trade deadline. He suggested the Edmonton Oilers as a suitor as Toews would provide depth at center among their middle-six plus former teammate Duncan Keith works in their front office.
  • SPORTSNET:In his latest “32 Thoughts” column, Elliotte Friedman reports Jakob Chychrun remains a couple of weeks away from rejoining the Arizona Coyotes… The New York Islanders could be a suitor. However, Friedman wonders if it would make sense for them to part with draft picks right now.
  • With blueliners Mattias Samuelsson and Henri Jokiharju sidelined by injuries, Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams could be examining the trade market to see what’s available.
  • TSN:Pierre LeBrun reports what he’s heard from other teams around the league is the San Jose Sharks have let it be known they’re willing to listen to offers for pretty much everyone on their roster except perhaps for Tomas Hertl.

BLH’s Thoughts: Spector said on Oilers Now that he was told by Chicago GM Kyle Davidson that they would not be deviating from the plan even if the Hawks good form were to continue. 

Now, regarding Edmonton and Toews, there are some whispers around the league that Toews has really lost a step and if that’s true, the price to acquire him should come down significantly. If you’re the Oilers, that’s probably music to your ears but at the same time how much has his form deteriorated and would it really be in your team’s best interests to move a Puljujarvi, Yamamoto, or Foegele in order to trade for him?

If the Sharks are having a firesale, would it make sense to bring in local lad Noah Gregor? He’s got the wheels and he brings some sandpaper to the rink. Personally, I think he’s a better option than Mattias Janmark but perhaps it would make more sense to wait until we see what Tyler Benson looks like when he returns from injury. Still though, I value Gregor.

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

Edmonton Oilers Talk: Oilers Focus Switching from Patrick Kane to Jonathan Toews?

This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!

The latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation comes from all of the internet’s top sites like Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, and The Daily Goal Horn just to name a few!

If you’re short on time but want to keep up with the day’s Oilers news, you’ve come to the right place!

Give us a follow on the socials!

Oilers Now

Bob Stauffer and Mark Spector Discuss Jonathan Toews
  • Bob Stauffer – “Would you have any time and I’m going to give you a range of what I think the value would be on Jonathan Toews. Obviously you’d need to have a second team to assist in brokering the trade with Chicago eating… It’s funny at one time, I would’ve said “Yeah… I don’t know.” but I don’t think the cost would be a first rounder. It might be a couple second rounders and it might be a fifth or a sixth to get another team involved in a three-way on the deal to retain some of the money and you’d have to send a contract back in the $2.5M-$3M range to Chicago. Would you have any issues at all moving a couple of second round picks to bring in a guy like Jonathan Toews?
  • Mark Spector – You know what? I don’t think I would… You got to think a lot about the cost because I think I’m signing a rental unless before I make the trade I’m talking to Jonathan Toews and his agent and seeing if he’s going to sign here… Two second rounders for a rental, that’s a lot. However, this is it for the Oilers. It’s time, they’re here now. The good news is you’re not giving up a first round pick which I like. 

BLH’s Thoughts: Spec goes on a bit of a rant comparing the potential addition of Toews to the Oilers to when they acquired Duncan Keith and how good that was for everyone involved and then Stauffer starts in on how the real dollars involved would see the third team eating about 200k at the deadline which is the equivalent of a 5th/6th round draft.

Another one of Spector’s big points for bringing in Toews was that they could move him to the 2nd line and push Draisaitl up with Connor, but Spec also made note of Toews recent health history too. So there’s that to consider. 

Bob brought up Foegele’s and Puljujarvi’s names using their contracts as examples of the money that’d have to be moved out but making sure to point out that the second year on Foegele’s contract might dissuade other teams from taking that on. So read between the lines there. 

Edmonton is going to use Puljujarvi to bring in a big name this year. I’ve been saying it all summer while all the pundits were out there claiming that he could be moved during training camp or before the season starts… Nope. Holland needs Jesse for this trade be it for Toews, Kane, Klingberg, or whoever. 

Now, my question is, will he move Kailer Yamamoto too?

Personally, I’ve wondered if Killer’s the guy Chicago would rather have seeing as he’s American and they’ve already got Yamamoto family friend Tyler Johnson over there PLUS, the Hawks aren’t exactly brimming with organizational depth on their RW. 

Now, the other thing is these two GMs have been talking for a long time on and off. So, where there’s smoke, there’s fire, right? For me, I’ve got a bit more faith in Ryan McLeod than Spector does and if one has to choose between Kane and Toews, I think it’s obvious you take Kane. However, that being said, Ken Holland MUST address the defense as well and if that means moving Pulju, Yamo and a swath of draft picks, so be it. Whatever it takes to be able to say that the Oilers are going into this year’s post-season as the Western Conference favorite over Calgary and Colorado. 

I don’t know. I think it’s worth a try to use Yamamoto to pry Toews out of Chicago. Kyle Davidson is a ridiculously young GM (34yrs old) and Ken Holland has been around the block a few times. The Oilers GM could really lean on Davidson here and if Toews and Kane get snapped up by somebody else, will Edmonton look at Max Domi and his 65% faceoff percentage? Could they attempt the impossible and acquire Seth Jones?

GM 8: Oilers vs. Blackhawks

Who to Watch for Chicago
  • #13 Max Domi – He’s playing center on Chicago’s 1st line with Patrick Kane and Andreas Athanasiou and dominating the faceoff dot at the same time winning over 65% of his draws to date. 
  • #88 Patrick Kane – It’s just daft not to name the best American-born player of all-time here. If Chicago scores tonight, his name will hit that scoresheet. I don’t think Edmonton has the defense to be able to contain him right now. Do you think Niemelainen tries to wallpaper him and gets gif’d?
  • #5 Connor Murphy – This guy gives McDavid and Draisaitl fits every time the Oilers and Hawks play. I wonder if the additions of Hyman and Kane change that, but either way, Murphy knows how to get under the skin of Edmonton’s mega stars and seeing how Leon was reacting to every little poke the Blues gave him last night, he could be targeted by Chicago.
Who to Watch for Edmonton
  • #91 Evander Kane – Kane has only scored two goals this year but he’s shot the puck 34 times in total and I don’t believe that will stop anytime soon. This is a game that Kane could really light up with his fists too… 
  • #56 Kailer Yamamoto – Yamo hasn’t a point in his last five games and has only been able to accrue a single assist on the campaign so far even though he’s been stapled to Connor McDavid’s wing. If he can’t find a way to get on the scoresheet against this lowly Chicago team, one has to think changes are in store. He might have a bit more pep in his step if he gets to hangout with friend/mentor Tyler Johnson before the game. 
  • #55 Dylan Holloway – I don’t know if he’s a go tonight or not. He was skating on his own this morning for a while, but if he is, he’s going to be buzzing. 

BLH’s Thoughts: So… Here we are again facing a team that the Oilers SHOULD beat but as we are well aware, this team tends to play to the level of their opposition. In addition to that, this is the hind end of a back-to-back and some might have this ticket written down as a scheduled loss, but I reckon the only way Edmonton loses tonight is because Chicago’s goaltending stands on its head. They’ve got Jujhar Khaira playing on their 2nd like for Christ’s sake. Jarred Tinordi, who’s probably a 2nd or 3rd pairing defensemen in the AHL, is on their 2nd pairing and Jack Johnson is on their 1st pair according to Daily Faceoff!!! 

Jay Woodcroft’s boys need to come away from this with a win. A loss would be so disappointing. 

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

Edmonton Oilers Talk: If You Think Puljujarvi is Playing Well, You Don’t Know the Game Says Rishaug

This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!

The latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation comes from all of the internet’s top sites like Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, and The Daily Goal Horn just to name a few!

If you’re short on time but want to keep up with the day’s Oilers news, you’ve come to the right place!

Give us a follow on the socials!

The Jason Gregor Show

Rishaug/Gregor on Puljujarvi/Yamamoto/Foegele/Holloway
  • Ryan Rishaug – “I mean, let’s face it, those two need to be contributing, those two need to get going or Dylan Holloway’s not going to be on the 4th line for very long. Once he’s back and he’s an option for them, you could give him a look in place of… Certainly in place of Yamamoto and certainly on the 3rd line in place of Puljujarvi. Holloway, when he comes back, he should push those guys I would think.”
  • Jason Gregor – “Well, he will for sure because right now Yamamoto’s fighting it. Jesse Puljujarvi’s fighting it. Warren Foegele’s probably been the best of those three but he’s not a right winger naturally. Now, he can play the right side, but I don’t know if they’ll suddenly put him up there because then you’d have Yamamoto and Puljujarvi, one of them, playing the left side on the third line. So I don’t know if that’s really there. 
    • “Right now I see a lot of people arguing, “Yamamoto… Puljujarvi…” I do find it somewhat entertaining that those who were the staunchest Puljujarvi supporters are now claiming that Yamamoto’s not Finishing well playing with McDavid and I’m like, “Hmm… It’s almost like that was one of the criticisms for Puljujarvi for the longest time…” Because if you actually look at Yamamoto’s analytic numbers, they’re actually fairly strong. So, the hypocrisy there is rather comical for me. 
  • Rishaug – Well, listen, there’s value in numbers… I’m not one to dismiss that, but I think if you look past what’s right in front of your face and dig into numbers as a way to confirm something that your heart is telling you… I just… You have to look at what you’re seeing. There’s nobody who knows this game, that can watch these games and say that Puljujarvi is playing with confidence, playing well, and being generally effective. Nobody would say that that watches the game right now. Now, he’s not the only one and there are other guys that are struggling but he can’t handle the puck. He has no confidence handling the puck and I’m sorry, that’s just too crucial a skill in this game to have. You have to be able to grab the puck and skate with it and make plays and Puljujarvi’s really dramatically struggling with his hands right now. And so is he doing some good things? Yes. He’s digging some pucks out on forechecks and he’s had some really nice looking backchecks. He’s doing what he can, but you cannot watch these Oilers games right now and think “there’s a guy who’s playing with confidence and is on the right side of it.” He’s just not right now and they’re trying to give him the space to work through it, but he’s not and so I’m not really that interested in the numbers right now because what’s right in front of my face is painting such a clear picture. I don’t need numbers to confirm or deny anything that’s going on in Puljujarvi’s game. He’s a player that has next to no confidence and cannot handle the puck and make plays right now and it’s showing on a shift-by-shift basis. Is he working hard? Yes. Is he trying to do other things? Yes. But it just is what it is right now and they’ve got no choice but to keep giving him at-bats and letting him try to work through it. 
  • Gregor – Yeah, he is what he is. He’s a 3rd line guy that can create some chaos in the offensive zone and just doesn’t have a lot of finishing ability right now.

BLH’s Thoughts: To me, it sounds like Rishaug is talking out both sides of his mouth here with Pulju. He’s saying he’s not playing well and he’s not playing effectively but at the same time he’s “doing some good things” and “he’s working hard”. 

See, I don’t really know what Rishaug expects out of him. If Jesse has two goals but still appears the same on a shift-to-shift basis as Rishaug is seeing him as, does the evaluation change? “Oh he’s got a couple goals but…”, do you know what I mean?

Him saying that the eye test confirms his thinking is also lazy too because I’m a tad surprised that this is actually the case. Pulju is playing more physically assertive, he’s aggressive, using his body to his advantage AND he’s still making great defensive plays at both ends of the ice. But. That’s to my eye and I guess if that’s the case, I don’t know anything about “The Game” according to Rishaug. 

Has there been any consideration made to the idea that Jesse doesn’t receive a lot of passes going through the neutral zone so that he can carry the puck a little bit. In fact, I think there’s a clause in Darnell Nurse’s contract that says if he passes the puck to Jesse it will result in an expulsion from Connor and Leon’s clique.

To add to that facetious notion above, there’s the possibility that Pulju’s been instructed not to hang on to the puck as well. Maybe Coach Woodcroft has said to him, “When you get the puck, take a quick peek and if nobody’s open, chip and chase.” Because, after all, Jesse’s chase game is elite. 

See, I just don’t see Puljujarvi as struggling with confidence right now. He’s playing much better than he was at the end of last year in my opinion. He’s going to the right areas to get the chances, is he not? And what do they say about scoring chances? It’s better to be getting them than not because it means you’re doing the right things on the ice, or something to that effect. 

So now we’re at a point where Yamo’s sitting in Jesse’s old spot and the movie hasn’t changed with regards to production and Gregor is saying he finds that the JP supporters getting on Killer for that is hypocritical and entertaining. For me, they’re just clapping back at all those who gave Jesse shit in previous years. It’s not hypocrisy, it’s just the other side saying, “What do you call this?” and it’s a back and forth within the fanbase that has grown tiresome I feel. 

How long until Kailer’s favor with Connor and Leon is lost? I mean, I’ve been watching him this year and he’s not been as impactful as previous seasons. He still goes out there and hits and gets in the muck, but opposing defensemen are having ZERO problems removing the puck from him and his 150lb frame cannot produce a decent enough shot to trouble NHL goalies. So even when he is gifted with a 10-bell chance, it’s wafted towards the netminder. 

Going forward this year, Jesse can play left wing, He’s done it already this year. So when Hollywood comes back, they can shift things around a little bit. I don’t know if there’s an appetite to alter that 3rd line mind you, but the roster is flexible. 

Pulju should be in the top six and not because I’m a fan of Jesse, but because I think he serves the team better there. It pushes players down to roles where they can have a better chance to succeed? Ask yourself this, if Yamo is still dealing with an upper body problem, should be he going out and facing the other team’s best players? Wouldn’t it make more sense to have him on the third line where he can get a bit more room and rebuild that confidence thus allowing the Oilers to try out yet another elite 3rd line combination? 

Well, that’s all fun to think about but at the same time, if Jesse’s going up and Killer’s going down (or not), that puts Holloway on the 4th line because with how Foegele is playing, you can’t have him on the bottom rung. 

So what do you do? Ken Holland has a deep forward group but his defense is struggling a tad… Maybe there’s a trade on the horizon in November? That’s not when Holland usually does his business, it’s usually in February or March, but this team can’t afford to be a .500 club with all of this talent.

GM 7 – Oilers vs. Blues

Three Players to Watch on St. Louis
  • #4 Nick Leddy – Last time these two teams played I remember all the pundits saying how well Leddy did against McDavid and I was shocked because every coach who’s played against 97 that has had Leddy on their roster has used him to try and shut Connor down. Look for it again tonight even more seeing as STL has last change. 
  • #90 Ryan O’Reilly – ONE goal this season so far. ZERO assists. NINE shots on net. And the Edmonton media is up in arms about Puljujarvi and Yamamoto not producing. One thing you can always bet on is a player breaking out of a slump against the Oilers.
  • #50 Jordan Binnington – 3-0-0, 1.23 GAA, .953 SV%… He’s having an excellent start to the year and a lot of that has to do with that great defensive hockey the Blues are playing in front of him. 
Three Players to Watch on Edmonton
  • #97 Connor McDavid – He’s going to be flying tonight just because he’ll have a burr in his saddle thanks to Leddy shutting him down last time out. He’ll want to correct that and attempt to take over the team lead in scoring from Leon at the same time. 
  • #93 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – The Nuge started slow but absolutely blew up production-wise more recently. He’s looking like he’s got a bit more pep in his step and the seven points he’s scored to date reinforces that. I like that he’s really getting in the muck too. Although, it would be nice if he could do something about his work on the draws. 
  • #74 Stu Skinner – Stuey gets the start tonight. Deservedly so, I might add. It’s one game only so far, but his GAA is under 1.70 and his save percentage is sitting up around .940. The local lad is developing nicely under Woodcroft. Now, imagine how well he’d do with a championship caliber defense in front of him… 

BLH’s Thoughts: I liked Edmonton’s chances tonight. They’ll feel a bit energized getting out of the fishbowl and giddy as this is their first road trip of the year. I reckon they won’t let the Blues turn off their offense like last time out and I predict they will have control of their special teams this evening. Meaning they’ll spend more time out of the penalty box than in it. 

What’s the over/under on the Oilers media as a whole using the term “puncher’s chance” in the next 24hrs? 

Trade Rumors

Spector’s Hockey
  • SPORTSNET:ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski appeared on the Jeff Marek show last week where the future of Patrick Kane was among the topics of discussion.
  • TSN: Darren Dreger reports that the Vancouver Canucks aren’t about to hit the panic button over their poor start this season. However, he feels they’re getting “dangerously close to having to put everything on the table.”
  • NHL.COM: During an appearance on the “Cam and Strick” podcast on Tuesday, former NHL head coach Barry Trotz said he’d be intrigued by the notion of coaching an Orignal Six franchise if the opportunity presented itself.

BLH’s Thoughts: Vancouver kind of shot themselves in the foot extending a guy max term who has had thoughts of leaving instead of their captain… I don’t get the feeling Pettersson and Boeser want to be there and I wouldn’t be surprised if Quinn Hughes has entertained the idea of asking out. What about Andrei Kuzmenko? Is he having a bit of buyer’s regret after passing on Edmonton?

If Rutherford does go the rebuild route, there’s not better time than now with the generational talents coming in the draft and he’d have no shortage of suitors if he put Horvat, Pettersson, Boeser, and even JT Miller on the block. Although, do you trust that organization to get the job done?

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