Nothing new on the Jesse Puljujarvi front eh? I know during Mark Spector’s spot on Oilers Now yesterday that he didn’t think that the Finn would be dealt this week and thus speculated that this bit of drama would extend into the summer. Host Bob Stauffer disagreed.

But we did have a bit of news coming out of Switzerland! It’s being reported that the Oilers will be signing a gentleman by the name of Gaëtan Haas from SC Bern in the Swiss league. He’s a right-shot centre who can fly! According to Bob Stauffer, he’s also quite efficient on the faceoff dot and he projects to be the Oilers third line centre.

Here’s his brief scouting report from EliteProspects.com,

Gaetan Haas is an offensive center, who plays a reliable and smart two-way game. An excellent skater, who reaches very good top-speed and can make end-to-end rushes. Has soft hands and strong puck-skills. Haas sees the ice well and can play the point on the Power Play, distributing the puck using his excellent vision. He leads by example by competing hard for the puck, doing solid backchecking and not being afraid blocking shots, rounding out his solid defensive game. Haas can lead a team’s shutdown line. (by Rafik Soliman, November 2015)

Stauffer had spoken to some questions about Haas’ “compete” level, but if we’re going by the report above (it’s nearly four years old mind you), it sounds like his intensity level is fine.

Why don’t we watch a clip of the 27-year-old in action?

Not bad. He’s got some quickness to his game and can certainly shoot the puck well and from those highlights, he could be an option on the 2nd unit PP. I guess the one thing with these Euro signings that we have to ask is, how well will they do on the smaller ice surface and the more aggressive style of play?

Coinciding with how long Stauffer has been hinting at the Oilers signing someone out of Europe is this report from back in May saying that Haas had received an offer from one NHL club. Previously, the Calgary Flames were watching him.

Speaking of signing players, the Edmonton media is REALLY putting the push on for Brett Connolly eh?

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Would have to think Brett Connolly makes a lot of sense for the Oilers. Lots of experience, cup winner, 52 goals last 3 seasons, Western Canadian. Ideal complimentary goal scoring winger for either McDavid or RNH.

— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) June 25, 2019

If you take out Brett Connolly’s name and replace it with Milan Lucic, how thick is the irony?

Yes, this player did have 21 goals at even strength last year for a powerhouse Washington Capitals team. So would it be safe to say he was probably not getting the other team’s best defense trying to stop him? Let’s figure it out!

According to PuckIQ.com, Brett Connolly’s 2018./19 TOI broke down like this:

• Gritensity (Bottom 6 TOI) – 256.9
• Middle (Middle 6 TOI) – 429.7
• Elite (Top Line TOI) – 305.6

I think it’s pretty accurate to report that he spent most of the time playing away from the opposition’s best players but did he perform the best in this role?

Opposition	CF% Rel	DFF% Rel
Elite	6.30	6.20
Middle	-0.40	-2.33
Grit	-1.20	-2.83

CF% Rel – Shots on goal, missed shots on goal, and blocked shot attempts relative to teammates
DFF% Rel – “Dangerous” unblocked shots (shots determined to be the equivalent to a 29ft wrister) relative to teammates

So from the metrics above, we can see that Connolly actually did quite well when lined up vs the league’s best and got gradually worse as he was played vs average and below average opposition. That would be a plus for the Oilers, right? He would’ve been the best right winger on the team last season in this regard.

I’m not really sold on Connolly myself and I wonder how his numbers would react to playing in the West with the kind of travel the Oilers do? Would he be able to replicate his shooting percentage from last year? Adding to that, players that have come from the Eastern Conference to play for Edmonton haven’t always done well and then we have to consider the contract… The other thing that can’t be forgotten is the expansion draft is coming and will Connolly be looking for protection in the form of a Lucic-like contract, no-move clauses and all?

If the Oilers were to sign him, I would like to see him signed for the reported $3Mx3 but I cannot see him doing that at all. I don’t care if he is from Western Canada, he has to be looking at some of these deals being signed and laughing a $3M per year offer off the table.

My top-ten list of preferred free agent signings looks like this:

• Joonas Donskoi (SJ) – RW – Perfect middle 6 fwd who can help on the PK.
• Petr Mrazek (CAR) – G – Excellent back-up option and aged right.
• Alex Chiasson (EDM) – RW – Loved his hustle and fearlessness last season. Bit slow though.
• Brandon Tanev (WPG) – RW – Annoying waterbug Edmonton has been lacking forever.
• Pat Maroon (STL) – LW – A better option than Lucic AND he’ll fight. Chirp game solid.
• Ryan Hartman (DAL) – W – Solid bottom-6 30pt player. Good buy low option.
• Derrick Brassard (COL) – C – Great middle-6 option down the middle. Might be out of EDM’s price range.
• Daniel Carr (VGK) – LW – Brendan Gallagher-lite. Too good for the AHL.
• Brandon Pirri (VGK) – W – Also too good for the AHL. Scores in bunches but disappears.
• Mario Kempe (ARI) – W – High engine, smart down low. Not much of a point producer though.

What about you? Who’d you like to see the Oilers sign?

2019 Oilers Draft Review from Max and Keith

Philip Broberg

Keith: If we’re dialing in on specifics, Broberg begins the conversation of “offensive defensemen.” While Bowen Byram put up ungodly numbers, this season, what separates Broberg from Byram is his skating and puck rushing abilities. Between the two, Byram can be flat-footed, at times, especially in his own zone. The same can’t be said of Broberg, who is an elite skater with top-end speed. Will quarterback the play both in 5-on-5 and power play situations, alike. And with an underrated shot and playmaking abilities, it’s enticing to think what Broberg could become when running with speedster like Connor McDavid or Ryan McLeod.

Max: With the 8th pick, the Edmonton Oilers took Philip Broberg. Broberg is a powerful two-way defenseman whose combination of size and speed got him taken at this spot. His straight-line speed is unmatched by any other defensemen in the class and his hands are impressive for a 6’3” d-man.

Raphael Lavoie

Keith: Seen as a bubble first-round talent, I had Lavoie going early on day 2 and that’s how things panned out. His offensive gifts and size are very enticing, and it’d be hard to pass on those intangibles at this point in the draft. What I think scared off scouts from pulling the trigger in the first-round was Lavoie’s lack of a well-rounded game and maybe some mental focus issues, as well. I didn’t get a chance to watch many Halifax games, this season, and the few I did I wasn’t overly impressed by Lavoie. I see what he can become, but as of right now, he’s just that – a pet project that needs work. Really good piece of playdough to mold.

Max: At 38 Lavoie is a steal. His production in the QMJHL, especially in the playoffs, was staggering. Lavoie is a great puck possession player who, like Kakko, is a hard guy to take the puck away from. His solid skating foundation also allows him to be effective offensively along with his shot. The problem with Lavoie and the reason he fell is that he’s seen as a low ceiling player. Lavoie isn’t going to be a star in the NHL. His outlook is a 3rd liner and anything else is unlikely.

Ilya Konovalov

Keith: As I suggested in one of the final draft mailbag’s we conducted, here at BLH, there were three goaltenders that stood out to me, in this class, as a step above the rest: Spencer Knight, Dustin Wolf, and Ilya Konovalov. A double-overager, Konovalov performed incredibly well, this season, in the KHL, posting an unreal 1.89 GAA and .930 SV% in 45 games played. While the Oilers have both Olivier Rodrigue and Stuart Skinner in their pipeline, it may be the change of management and coaching that led to this decision – where Rodrigue and Skinner may be seen as picks under the old regime that may-or-may not pan out.

Max: With the 85th pick the Oilers made my favorite pick of their class. Konovalov has had a stellar season with Lokomotiv in the KHL last year. He put up a .930 Sv% as a 20-year-old on a very large workload. Konovalov put up similar numbers to that of Igor Shestyorkin and Ilya Sorokin when they were his age. His issue is that he’s only 6’0” tall, but other than that there are few issues in his game. If he pans out than Edmonton could have their starter.

Matej Blumel

Keith: Blumel was a shining light in the USHL, and made the most of his opportunities after returning to Waterloo as an overager. An effective two-way forward, with a very nice shot, Blumel was ranked by most scouting services, on average, right around 100, so this pick isn’t a reach it’s a reality. On the international stage, Blumel has been a contributing factor for the Czech Republic, and with a commitment to U. Conn, next season, will be paired up with fellow countrymen Jachym Kondelik and Tomas Vomacka – and I suspect, if he settles in comfortably, he could have a very good 2019-20 season.

Max: In the 4th round and on you’re pretty much just using lottery tickets. At pick 100 they spend one on an overager who was just over a point per game in the USHL. Blümel is a Czech national heading to UConn in the NCAA. They’re historically a very good program for European prospects. Blümel put himself on the map with a strong World Jr. A Challenge.

Tomas Mazura

Keith: The Oilers double-down on Czech-born prospects by taking Mazura at #162. He took a big step forward, statistically, from the 2017-18 season, finishing with 1.46 PPG in 37 games played. For my own projections, the USHS-Prep league is a great place to develop, but takes a hit when evaluating the level of competition when compared to the USHL and CHL. Committed to Providence College beginning in the 2020-21 season, it’ll be interesting to see where Mazura plays, next season. A nice fit might be the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL. As for the player himself, the Oilers are getting a creative playmaker with really intriguing size.

Max: Mazura is a player I haven’t really heard anything about. He wasn’t a player that was supposed to be drafted but the Oilers take him at 162 anyway. He had a strong season at Kimball Union, a US prep school. He’s committed to play with Providence in the NCAA in 2020-21.

Maxim Denezhkin

Keith: This could be a swing-and-a-miss or a homerun when all’s said and done. Really undersized forward that put up average numbers in the Russian junior league (MHL). So you might be thinking, why would the Oilers draft him? Well, when you’re 5’10” – closer to 5’9” – and you put up ANY points, it’s intriguing. His upside is more promising than his downside when you look at the little parts of his game like his willingness to attack down the middle of the ice and play with his heads up. This will take some time, and we might have a career AHLer, here, but if you can get the most out of him I think Denezhkin could be an effective bottom-6 role player.

Max: I’ve never heard of this guy so I’ll keep it quick. Played with Lokomotiv in the Russian jr. league. He had an ok season and got a shot in the KHL playing one game.