Tag Archives: Brandon Davidson

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

Oilers Live Podcast, Davidson Trade Part Deux, and Today’s Latest Trade Speculation

A few nights ago I was on the Oilers Live Podcast with Sean from theoilknight.ca and we talked about a plethora of things including:

  • the Oilers to date and why they are where they are and who’s to blame.
  • Their developmental system (or lack thereof)
  • Erik Karlsson and where he might end up
  • Pat Maroon and the recent rumors on his destination including one city nobody has thought of yet.
  • All the latest Oilers trade speculation.

You should head over to Mike’s website and also subscribe to his podcast as every week he’s got either a handful of Oilers die hard fans being interviewed or bloggers/journalists who cover other NHL teams. His latest before the one I was on was with former Edmonton Oiler Jason Strudwick and it was a beauty!

BRANDON DAVIDSON TRADED AGAIN!

So far Brandon Davidson has been an excellent source of “income” for Peter Chiarelli. Last year at the trade deadline Davidson was dealt for David Desharnais, who in turn provided the team with some excellent veteran leadership and a critical OT goal in the playoffs vs. San Jose and Now Chiarelli has acquired a 2019 3rd round pick for the defenseman from the New York Islanders.

I think it’s an awesome trade. Anytime you can turn a waiver wire acquisition into a 3rd round draft pick, you’re doing something right.

Would I have preferred to keep him? Hell yes! I really have enjoyed Davidson’s effort and impact on the team since being selected off of the waiver wire but I do understand that he’s a dman with value, he’ll never be anything more than a bottom pairing defender in the NHL, and that by dealing him Chiarelli opened up another roster spot on the 50-man list.

How do you think everyone else reacted to the deal?

https://twitter.com/OilersWizard/status/967533897129984000

https://twitter.com/Oceanstormprint/status/967532434840469504

Those are the AGAINSTs. The way I see it, unless Davidson would’ve brought back a 1st rounder or a top pairing right-handed powerplay specialist, the trade was going to be a fail in their eyes anyhow.

Here are some FORs:

https://twitter.com/puckmarks/status/967487954103906304

Let’s look at some of the analytics bloggers Twitter opinions on the trade.

https://twitter.com/dellowhockey/status/967495873616891904

Lordy that is a lot of tweets. So, I think, as usual, the fanbase is divided on the deal.

Look, the Isles get a nice depth dman and the Oilers get another asset to which they could use, and Chiarelli said he would prefer to do this, to try and obtain a near-NHL ready prospect at the draft. Another thing he could do is use it to try and move up in the draft this year.

One more positive, the Oilers are 1-0 in the post-Davidson era 🙂

LATEST ON THE TRADE FRONT

I suspect now that Rick Nash is a Boston Bruin that Pat Maroon will be going to Tampa Bay. I mean I guess the Bruins could pick Maroon up to if they wanted to really go for it.

Who might the Lightning give up for the Big Rig? Who knows to be honest but here are a few names to let percolate in your head bone:

  • Vladimir Namestnikov
  • Anthony Cirelli
  • Matthew Peca

If I recall correctly, Winnipeg is in on Letestu and Maroon and you can add Mike Cammalleri to that list. Putting up 10 pts in the last 10 games tends to put you on the radar of other teams this time of year and if Davidson can bring a 3rd rounder, Plekanec can get the Habs some solid prospects, and Nash can bring in 4 pieces for the Rags, surely Maroon, Letestu, and Cammalleri will net the Oilers 1, if not two, acceptable young players who will have a chance to show what their worth down the stretch.

I’m hoping that Chiarelli clears some roster room up at this deadline too.

Winnipeg is in “win-now” mode more than ever right now. The iron is hot and they NEED to strike. But you know what? St.Louis is awfully quiet right now… The pundits are tossing Jake Allen’s name out there… Do the Oilers and Blues get together on a deal? It’d have to be a money in, money out type of deal though. St.Louis is right up against the cap at the moment.

You know what’s going to happen right? All three of those guys will head to teams that we never even thought of.. lol.

I was having a conversation with a buddy of mine at hockey last night and he suggested Josh Ho-Sang in return for that draft pick Davidson got the Oilers…

What do you think?

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

Oilers Now at 49 Contracts, Trades Are In The Works

There’s nothing sweeter than dropping a 7-spot on the Calgary Flames during the late game on Hockey Night in Canada eh? Adding to that sweetness was,

  • Pulju getting two goals (nearly three)
  • a shorty from Letestu (who has 9pts over the past 15 games)
  • ANOTHER goal from JJ Khaira (7pts in his past 8 games)
  • Eric Gryba rebounding to get 2 assists and going +4
  • Kris Russell having TWO good games in a row there. He had 6 blocked shots! When Brodie put that puck in his own net I yelled, “VINDICATION!”
  • The Oilers chasing Mike Smith from the net
  • Special teams for the Oilers were a tad better. Would like to get more PP goals for though.
  • The game was in Calgary and the Oilers did it without their no.1 goalie and their top 2 (arguably) defensemen… Making it double-sweet that the Oilers won it.

A stat that was kind of interesting to me given the status of the game at hand was that the Oilers only had 9 hits to Calgary’s 14. You’d have thought there would’ve been WAY more hitting, right?

On the other side of the coin though, there were some disconcerting happenings…

  • Draisaitl and Strome were the only forwards NOT to get a point. Benning and Auvitu went pointless as well.
  • Laurent Brossoit’s near-historic meltdown in the third which has probably landed him either on another team shortly or in the minors once the Oilers find a backup to trade for.
  • A shorty against and a PP goal against does nothing to help the Oilers ongoing special teams struggles.
  • Speaking of reffing… Two powerplays for Edmonton to Calgary’s six?… How is it that teams are simply not getting the calls vs. the Oilers? It’s mind-boggling if we’re being honest and I have to wonder if Peter Chiarelli has called Steven Walkom to have a chat with him about the standard of officiating during the Oilers games?

OILERS ADD WALKER AND DAVIDSON

Peter Chiarelli has gone out and added some speed and glue to the bottom-6 and another left-handed bottom-pairing defender which tells me a couple of things,

  • The players whose spots Walker and Davidson might be playing in are on notice.
  • The team may very well be going the whole taxi squad thing.

On Saturday night, the “healthy” scratches were Anton Slepyshev, Ryan Stanton, and Nathan Walker. Now we have to add Brandon Davidson to that list right? I’d venture a guess that Ryan Stanton will be heading back to Bakersfield.

Just an aside, but is anybody else shocked that Buffalo, Arizona, and Florida passed on Davidson? Maybe there’s something about Davidson that the Oilers looked over though. He couldn’t find a way to overcome 3 AHL dmen and a teenager in Montreal and to me, that’s a bit of a yellow flag. Not a major concern because we don’t know what the deal was with Julien and/or Bergevin. We do know he’s a great locker-room guy that was well-liked before he was dealt for David Desharnais last year and that will help.

So who is going to come out of the lineup vs. Philadelphia on Wednesday?

Eric Gryba would be your first inkling, no? The Flyers are on a ridiculous 10-game losing streak (hopefully they can break that vs. Calgary this week) and usually they play a typical Flyers-like game. Heavy. So would Gryba be a better fit then? Davidson has the size and he’s a much better skater though. I probably still lean Davidson here but is that how you reward a player for a good bounce-back game? Tough call nevertheless.

How about the forwards? Who comes out if you want to see Walker, Aussie Oiler?

Right off the bat, I know exactly who I’d take out. Drake Caggiula for sure.

Chiarelli is not happy with his performances at all and I’d be surprised if he isn’t the guy dealt for a backup goalie. I mean, Caggiula CAN play much much better than he is and he doesn’t have to play on Connor’s wing to do it. He’s quick, he’s tenacious, and he can score… But he simply isn’t. Now, do we chalk that down to the sophomore slump or is there something else?

As for Anton Slepyshev, I love the guy because he doesn’t play the traditional Russian style. He’s got more sandpaper to his game and isn’t afraid to muck it up on the wall but he’s a guy that also has to be scoring and isn’t. I’d say he’s also a candidate to be used to bring back a netminding upgrade on Brossoit.

My initial reaction on the addition of Nathan Walker was that the Oilers had just added a younger Matt Hendricks and just as the Oilers dressing room lost a huge personality when Hendricks was let go, the Washington Capitals have as well.

Caps fans were NOT HAPPY that the team let Walker go on waivers. That right there should tell you all you need to know about the kind of player he is. He’ll be liked in Edmonton.

So will Nathan Walker be the Conor Sheary that Craig Button was talking about? I’m not so sure. He’s more waterbug that speed demon and that might just help us even more. Meaning he might be able to draw a few more penalties with his playing style and Lord knows the Oilers could use a few more of those players.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbmV6MHSURo

49 OUT OF 50 CONTRACTS

In normal circumstances, teams don’t want to be so close to the maximum contract allotment because it gives them very little wiggle room IF they want to make a trade. So right now any deal that Chiarelli makes will be made from behind the 8-ball a bit. I think he could probably find a team to give him a draft pick for Anton Slepyshev and that kind of trade would alleviate the pressure or another way would be to find a team that would take a Lowetide special (3-for-1). But how many teams are going to be doing the Oilers any favors, right?

As for the players on the way out, I believe that Chiarelli has to move some of those AHL players he signed. The Bakersfield Condors are NOT doing well and these AHL vets are simply taking up spots that could be used for the Oilers prospects.

50-man list courtesy of Lowetide

The problem moving said AHL vets is finding a team who’d take them. The Oilers do have a solid chunk of cap space on hand and they could use that to take back an unsavory contract from another team in exchange for two or three of the blue-colored players above. At this point, I’d say that’s his best bet if he wants to create some room on the list…

A COMPITENT BACKUP

Everybody and their dog knows that Peter Chiarelli is now on the lookout for a goalie upgrade. We’re not going through another promising season with bad goaltending. So who is all out there that the Oilers have the remotest chance of trading for?

  • Chad Johnson (BUF) – The Sabres are eating shit right now and I can’t see them making a huge run for the playoffs. He’s got a career .913 SV% and right now it’s sitting at .883. Was effective for Calgary last season.
  • Calvin Pickard (TOR) – This was exactly the reason why the Maple Leafs got Pickard. Now they can ask a premium for him.
  • Garrett Sparks (TOR) – Sparks, Pickard, and a stacked Toronto Marlies are having a helluva time in the AHL this year.
  • Michael Hutchinson (WPG) – Is doing very well in the AHL right now and Eric Comrie got the call-up over him when Mason went down… 9-1-1 .951 Sv% 1.73 GAA.

There are others like Neuvirth in Philly and Grubauer in Washington but my question is, do you go for an older veteran backup OR do you find a younger one that is just better than Laurent Brossoit?

Let me know in the comments below!!

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

Is This A Viable Trade Option For the Oilers

Sportsnet’s Montreal Canadiens reporter Eric Engels put out an interesting tweet recently and it perked my ears because it could have an impact on who is an Edmonton Oiler next week.

Now look, I’m not saying that the Oilers are going to make a trade this early in the season, I think that’d be a bit of overkill, but I do wonder what happens if the defense shits the bed again on the weekend, don’t you? An in-house solution will not cut it but do you think that one of Mark Streit, Joe Morrow, or Brandon Davidson would shore up the D in exchange for a player that might score a few goals for Montreal?

An in-house solution will not cut it but do you think that one of Mark Streit, Joe Morrow, or Brandon Davidson would shore up the D in exchange for a player that might score a few goals for Montreal?

I’m not a huge fan of Joe Morrow nor am I one of Mark Streit but Brandon Davidson I fancy a bit as a player that would fit in well with the Oilers on the short-term.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has long been on the Habs’ radar and Brandon Davidson did have a nice run as an Oiler previously. Not only that but he’can play the off-side, he can skate, and he can shoot. To add to that, he’s a player on the cheap at $1.45M (RFA this summer). And from what I’ve gathered, he didn’t have a great training camp nor is he having a good start to the year.

Davidson passes the eye test with regards to his fancies as well (Ha! See what I did there).

According to PuckIQ.com, in the 2016/17 season, he had a CF/60 of 55% and a CA/60 of 51.6%. His DFF/60 was 35.9% and his DFA/60 was 35.5%.

To compare that with say Erik Karlsson, the Swede’s DFF/60 and DFA/60 were 39.9% and 39.1% respectively or perhaps a more realistic comparison, Mark Pysyk, his DFF/60 and DFA/60 were 34.3% and 34.9% respectively.

FYI: Justin Schultz was no.1 amongst dmen with 500+ minutes TOI in DFF/60 with 49.3% and no.1 for DFA/60 was Colin Miller with a 27.6% score. Who would’ve thought?

Oh! If you’re wondering what DFF and DFA are, they’re dangerous fenwick for and dangerous fenwick against. Basically, it’s a stat that accounts not only for the amount of unblocked shots but it puts a weight on where the shot is taken. Meaning a shot from your own blue line isn’t as dangerous as one from the slot. You want you DFF high and your DFA low. Read about it more here.

Nuge for Davy straight across is absurd and we know that RNH is very well liked by the Oilers brass but what about Galchenyuk and Davidson for Nuge? Gallagher and Davidson for RNH? The Habs need scoring and it looks like Nugent-Hopkins has come to play this year. I’d like to throw in that Marc Bergevin’s job looks to be hanging by a thread at the moment and he might be willing to overpay…

I’ll be honest, I’d have a tough time parting with baby Nuge right now. I think he’s playing fantastic and even though there’s some controversy going on over at RW and D, I’m not sure I would trade the former 1st overall pick, especially for a band-aid solution. Don’t get me wrong, I love Brendan Gallagher and no doubt he’d be a fan favorite in Edmonton, I’m just not sure that’d be the right deal at this point in time. Also, adding another lefty to the back-end isn’t something I’m interested in either.

But let’s say Ottawa takes Edmonton out behind the tool shed and gives the Oilers a lickin’. For you, in your opinion, Do you think that the Oilers would HAVE to do something? 1-3 to start the year can soon turn into 3-7… And then the team is playing catch up, right?

Or would you be willing to weather the storm and give the team some time to shake off the cobwebs and get their shit together?

Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook/Twitter. Don’t forget to subscribe to our Youtube Channel as well!

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Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Trades

What a Colossal Waste

I’m glad I didn’t spend the day watching TSN’s and Sportsnet’s coverage of the trade deadline… Wow! What a shitshow the deadline has turned out to be. I’d suggest the NHL just go to something similar to what they have in club soccer and have windows at the beginning of the year and at the midpoint of the season but NHL teams barely make any trades in-season as it is, so that probably wouldn’t work. I mean if it wasn’t such a kick in the junk to the players, I’d be all for making it a big draft-like event where all the GMs pile into an arena where there are 31 tables set up for one weekend and it’s televised and you can see what deals are being offered and rejected. THAT would be fun to watch. Instead, we’re treated to questionable attempts at sketch comedy unless of course you have Ilya Bryzgalov… Kudos to Sportsnet for snagging that beauty!

So, who did the Oilers manage to bring in for their playoff run?

  • David Desharnais (C/W):
    Yesterday, we posted an article with a variety of reactions from local Edmonton media and bloggers here if you’d like to refresh yourself. Myself, I’m still on the fence because I haven’t made a point to watch a lot of Habs games in the past but from what I’ve gathered since Chiarelli joined the team, he likes hard-working character guys. Players who can fit into his team’s style and are excellent locker room additions. He’s got no time for egos.

    So I’m curious to see how Desharnais fits into this Oilers squad. I believe he will replace Drake Caggiula in the lineup and will most likely play a mentor-like role for Caggiula. I support this notion and the timing is just right as I feel the college kids (Benning, Caggiula) are starting to hit a wall as the season moves on.

    I believe that Desharnais will be an option for bottom-6 centre. I’m not necessarily convinced he’s a better candidate for important faceoffs than Hendricks, Letestu, or even Khaira. In my opinion, he’d look good with Benoit Pouliot on his left wing and Anton Slepyshev on his right IF he’s drawing in at centre. If he’s coming in on the left wing, then, I’d like to see him on Letestu’s wing with Kassian on the right side.

  • Justin Fontaine (RW):
    The former Bonnyville Pontiac (AJHL) has tallied 30 points in 50 games for the AHL’s Hartford Wolfpack this season. In the previous three seasons, he has racked up 68 points in 197 games playing for the Minnesota Wild.

    Fontaine replaces Taylor Beck, who was having a stellar campaign for the Condors but some feel he was getting in the way of Jesse Puljujarvi’s development by taking more of his ice time be it 5×5 or on the PP. Fontaine is an excellent option for the Condors 2nd-line RW.

  • Ryan Mantha (D):
    We posted an article waaaaaaaay back in December telling you that the Oilers were looking at this hulking OHL overager and what do you know, he actually signs with the team! I’d actually been tipped off on this signing but was told to keep it on the down-low. Lucky for me at that time, there were some other factors that helped point us in the direction that hinted at Mantha signing with Edmonton.

    For me, there’s nothing wrong with this signing at all. The captain of the Niagara Ice Dogs is really starting to develop nicely is emerging as the top overage defenseman in the OHL. I like players who are leaders on their junior teams. I like big defensemen who can put up offense and in this day and age, I like right-handed defensemen. Mantha checks all of those boxes.

    Lastly, I really dig the idea of him joining the Condors once his OHL season is over. Bakersfield could use a righty who can possibly put some points up on the board.

And who left the organization?

  • Brandon Davidson
  • Taylor Beck

I’m not surprised one bit that the Oilers didn’t buck up and bring in some of the higher profile players rumored to be available. I know that they were in on some goalies but as I said over and over with Halak, the Isles just wouldn’t budge on the contract thing. If they’d decided to eat some of his salary, we might be adding his name to the list of players acquired by Edmonton.

That being said, PA Parenteau for a 6th rounder? That’s a bet I’d be willing to make. And who foresaw Andrew Ference’s contract being dangled out there? Would Radim Vrbata be an Oiler right now if Ference’s contract had been moved?

In the end, I’m stoked to have an older player available for the Oilers as they go into the final leg of this epic playoff drive. I don’t have high expectations for him though. We say that he could be a Derek Roy-like acquisition for the Oilers but don’t hold your breath. Desharnais wasn’t having a great season before he came here and now he has to acclimatize himself to a new team, a new system, a new conference, and a new city. There are a lot of roadblocks in his way but I still have faith in him to try his damnedest while he’s a member of the Edmonton Oilers.

What do you think of the 2017 NHL trade deadline for the Oilers? Did Chiarelli do enough to give these boys a chance at the 2nd round of the playoffs this year? Let us know in the comments below!

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Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Trades

Reactions to the Desharnais/Davidson Trade

1 Comment

Brandon Davidson being traded surprised nobody but it was who he was traded for that has shocked some. Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli is creating quite the reputation when it comes to making deals for players that nobody, not even my sources, had expected the Oilers to have interest in.

I’m 50/50 on the deal. I don’t think Brandon Davidson is as good as some folks believe (most of those folk being of the analytic persuasion) but I also don’t think that David Desharnais was the droid Chiarelli was looking for, just the one that was there. Desharnais was def. not acquired for his talents on the dot. I really believe it was because he’s strong on the puck, good in the corners and he’ll be a good short-term mentor for Drake Caggiula. And I really dig that. Chiarelli really wants his kids to succeed and so he’s surrounding them with high-character players who play the game the right way and have the right attitude.

I actually thought that Derek Ryan was going to be the center acquired and when I talked to my source last night, I was told that the asking price was too high. An earlier round pick was the ask and that was simply too much. Bob Stauffer said as much on Oilers Now! yesterday in a segment with Mark Spector too. So it’s too bad about that.

The following reactions to the trade are those of the popular and respected media members/bloggers. Enjoy!

  • I don’t like the trade, not one bit, though that’s to be expected given I’m an Oilers fan and Davidson was one of my favorite players. That said, with Klefbom’s own offensive improvement and his relative inexperience at the NHL level, he’s a fine bet as well, as is Nurse, as is Matt Benning. The Oilers have a number of promising young d-men, which makes the trading of Davidson more palatable. But the Montreal Canadiens should be well pleased today. They have picked up a player who has constantly beaten the odds, constantly improved, and one who I believe will continue to do so on the Habs blueline. – David Staples, Cult of Hockey (source)
  • While it’s true that the Oilers were at risk of losing Davidson to the expansion draft this summer, the point of trading him so they don’t lose him for nothing was to acquire a forward worth protecting, or a prospect that would be exempt from the draft, or picks that they could use in future drafts. The goal should have been to replace Davidson with an asset that they would benefit them in the future. Instead they acquired Desharnais, who fills a need the Oilers have identified, but whose contract expires at the end of the year. So really they gave away an asset in the fear of potentially losing it, only to acquire an asset they’re going to lose for sure. – Sunil Agnihotri, The Superfan/CBC (source)
  • But fans wanted help for the power play and faceoffs, because the Ducks are going to kill the Oilers on the dot if they match up. Fans wanted a burly, shutdown centreman to take on Joe Pavelski, Ryan Getzlaf and Jonathan Toews, and Desharnais isn’t that guy.

    But Chiarelli said he doesn’t see the Oilers as a potential Cup winner and has, to his credit, acted accordingly. Without rock-solid conviction, he had no business going all-in at the deadline, given that it always involves mortgaging big pieces of the future. – Dan Barnes, Edmonton Journal (source)

  • This wasn’t the kind of trade that puts a team over the top, rather one that inserts a veteran player into the Oilers forward ranks ahead of a Drake Cagguila or Jujhar Khaira, two rookies who lack the experience of the 30-year-old Desharnais. – Mark Spector, Sportsnet (source)
  • The cost on the trade is dear. Desharnais and Davidson are of similar importance in terms of their position in the lineup, with the difference being that Davidson is both cheaper and under contract longer. On the other hand, with Martin Hanzal and Brian Boyle both already off the market, there just weren’t a lot of other centre options. – Jonathan Willis, Oilers Nation (source)
  • 30-year-old David Desharnais will slot in at 3rd line center, a hole existing whenever Leon Draisaitl has lined up at wing. Desharnais is small (5’7), but plays aggressively. He is above-average in the face-off circle (50.4% over his career). He has offence on his resume (60 points in 2011-12), although an injury has limited him to just ten points in 31 games this year. He also has 38 games of playoff experience, a genuine plus. He is also a pending UFA, so there is absolutely some risk involved in acquiring him.

    Yes, Brandon Davidson is a quality kid and a solid player. He is young (25), has size, is steady in his own zone and is a decent first-pass option with the puck. But lets call a spade a spade: Davidson is also a 7-8D on a Oilers organization that is heavy with left-handed shot defenders. So, the Oilers traded from a position of strength to fill a hole. It is quite possible Davidson would have been lost in the expansion draft. The re-emergence of Griffin Reinhart in the AHL since Christmas was no doubt a factor. – Kurt Leavins, Cult of Hockey (source)

What do you think about some of the reactions to the trade? Are you a fan of the deal? Let us know in the comments below!

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