Tag Archives: Griffin Reinhart

Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Prospects

Edmonton Oilers: Strudwick and Button Compare Evan Bouchard to Griffin Reinhart

This just in! According to former Oilers defender Jason Strudwick and ex-Flames GM Craig Button, Evan Bouchard can now begin to be compared to failed 4th overall pick Griffin Reinhart… Wow! Just when you think Button couldn’t dig himself into that hole any further, Strudwick hands him a new shovel…

Forgive me, this post is going to be a bit jambled. I had a lot of quotes to use and had quite a bit to say but I’ll be honest, the organization of the post is f*cked… But it is what it is. I just want to get this out to the masses and you fine folks can do with it what you will.

No new trade rumors to report btw. Zuccarello is the reported target at the moment.

On to the ridiculousness!

Jason Strudwick: A guy like Griffin Reinhart. He could do it in junior but once you get to the NHL you have to have some snap. You gotta get there and get there quick. Griffin was never able to raise that. Is that kind of a fair comparison to maybe what a guy that was never able to get that bar up high enough to play at that quick tempo. It doesn’t mean you’re skating fast, it means you’re doing things quickly. 

At first when I’d heard that there were Reinhart/Bouchard comparisons done on Jason Gregor’s show, I didn’t think it would’ve been coming out of Strudwick’s mouth.

Reinhart’s career best point total in junior was 36 points in 2011-12. Bouchard has already had an 87 point campaign and is on pace for 90 points this season… He also has an actual NHL goal to his name, something that the Reinhart boy has yet to achieve, but I digress.

Do you remember back in 2014, there were some rumblings that the Oilers should trade the 3rd overall pick for Griffin Reinhart? Jonathan Willis wrote on it at the time and what I was shocked to find out was that Craig Button was one of the pundits that was also advocating that trade.

Bob Stauffer had two guests on his show bring up the subject recently – TSN scout (and former NHL G.M.) Craig Button and the Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson. Terry Jones wrote about the possibility in the Edmonton Sun, and David Staples riffed on that in a follow-up piece on the Journal’s website.

The Oilers did eventually trade for Reinhart but if I had to choose between this proposed deal and the one that actually happened, I’ll take losing out on Barzal, Chabot, Boeser, etc. instead of Leon Draisaitl anyday.

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Craig Button: Jason, it’s a perfect, perfect description and it’s a really good example about Griffin. Griffin was a smart player, and I love the term “snap”. You use a great phrase and one that I totally agree with, “getting there quickly”. Getting there quickly with the best opportunity to make the best play, not to make a survival play, not to make a play, “Oh boy! Now I’m stuck, I’m gonna fire it off the glass”,,, It’s about giving yourself the opportunity to make the best play. Like I said, the NHL is fast. It’s fast offensively, it’s fast defensively. It demands you not only play fast but you gotta think fast. It’s developmental, he (Bouchard) doesn’t have an inherant weakness in his hockey sense or an inherant weakness in his skating. He’s just got to play faster and get his pace up. That’s true of 99% of young players trying to enter the league. It’s not unique to Evan, it holds true to 99% of the players trying to get into the league

Griffin Reinhart couldn’t survive at the NHL level because he couldn’t skate at that level! He was being compared to Colton Teubert for crying out loud! As a result of his poor skating, of course his pace and tempo were affected. I mean who uses Griffin Reinhart as a comparable to Evan Bouchard?

I asked a veteran OHL scout about what Button’s comments and he had this to say,

Button is a f*cking moron. I honestly ignore everything he says. Bouchard plays with great pace and tempo. He also slows things down and can play a patient game. Defensive intensity is an issue. Just kinda floats defensively but transition game and offensive game are elite. 

You can see he’s trying a bit harder defensively. Certainly whacking guys more, trying to pin guys up against the wall more. He needs to hit the gym to get bigger and stronger that will help him too. AHL is perfect for that.

His first step is a bit slow but once we gets going he’s fine. Part of it is reads too. When he gets the puck he’s immediately looking to make a pass with head up. I dunno, Button is f*cked.

Bottom line is, you can’t teach some of the sh*t he does with the puck offensively. That shot is so hard and accurate and he is a good skater despite what people think especially in transition game. IQ is very high, poise is there. He has a lot of tools just needs to continue to get stronger and work and efensive game. But what defensive prospect at age 19 doesn’t?

I really want to know how Button came to the conclusions about this list of 50 best-affiliated players and it was addressed in the show as well.

The list of the 50 best nhl affiliated players is about who today factors into that category of best players who are affiliated with their team. It’s not about potential, there’s another hundred players who have lots of potential, Evan Bouchard included amongst them.

You look at a player and you look at what players have to do, I like Evan Bouchard, I think he’s got lots of capability but I know one thing that’s essential to success at the National Hockey League level, and that’s a pace and tempo that Evan Bouchard has to improve. It has to be much better.

You evaluate over a period of time. This isn’t a static operation for me, it’s not an evaluation that I just look at him once. I’m looking at it over time and Evan’s a really good prospect but when I look at it and I do it, it’s not about points.

It’s about, okay, I’ve just watched him in a best-on-best tournament, I just watched him against his peer group as a 19-year-old defenseman and you factor that in. You factor in to what I’ve seen this year in London and so those all go in hand-in-hand in terms of the evaluation.

Ah… I think I’ve found the issue here. Button is upset about Bouchard’s performance at the World Juniors. It has to be. He’s based in Calgary for the most part and so I have to question how often he gets out to London Knights games.

I didn’t think Evan had a good tournament either but that didn’t force me to come to the conclusion that Gabe Vilardi, a player who hasn’t played a full season of hockey for 3 years now, is a better player for the Kings than Bouchard is for the Oilers.

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This isn’t about him not being a good NHL prospect…. Connor Timmins, last year as a 19-year-old defenseman, had the same exact developmental issues as Evan Bouchard and at the World Junior tournament, and I don’t just put this at the World Junior Touranment, but make no mistake about it; it’s a significant tournament when we’re talking about the best players outside the NHL and Connor Timmins excelled, Evan Bouchard fell far short of excelling at that tournament and I still think he’s got great, awesome potential but he needs work on his pace and tempo because if it doesn’t improve, he’s going to have a tough time playing in the National Hockey League. 

So Button goes on about Timmins here and how he had a good tourney and how Bouchard didn’t but Eeli Tolvanen was invisible for Finland for most of the tournament. Filip Zadina had 1 point the whole time!

But maybe we should use defensemen as a better comparable.

  • Quinn Hughes (USA) – 2 assists – ranked 8th
  • Evan Bouchard (CAN) – 3 assists – unranked
  • Noah Dobson (CAN) – 1 assist – ranked 18th

The person ranked 19th is Alexander Romanov. He has ZERO points for his KHL club but at least he lead the scoring at the world juniors for dmen.

I mean is Alexander Alexeyev really a better prospect for his club today than Bouchard is for Edmonton? C’mon Craig! Get your head out of your ass.

This is a report from Button that came out a few months before the draft in 2018 and he had some pretty glowing things to say about Evan Bouchard and had him ranked as high as 5th in the draft.

Funny, nothing about his lack of pace or tempo though…

Sometimes it takes me a little bit longer to get my senses about myself and my wits. I’ve watched Evan Bouchard for four years. The OHL Cup has been going on this weekend, I saw him first in midget. Three years in London, over 50 times in all different kinds of games, playoffs, events. I can only tell you this, after a while you just go, “Wait a second, he’s this good.” He’s not sexy. There’s not end-to-end rushes and flashes of brilliance but what there is is this great intelligence, this great ability to impact the game, great with the puck, and he reminds me of Hall-of-Famer Larry Murphy. I’m not saying he’s Larry Murphy but that’s the kind of game he plays. We’re talking about a guy that had 87 points, lead his team in scoring as a defenseman. – Craig Button (3/20/2018)

Has anybody considered that perhaps the reason that Bouchard appears to play slower is that he’s trained himself to do that due to playing so many minutes for London the last couple of seasons?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OqPvFQRX1s

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Latest on Oilers Trade Rumours re: Pat Maroon and OEL PLUS the Return of Ryan Robinson?

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HE’S BACK PT.1

I’m so so happy to see Adam Larsson back practising with the team. I think I can speak for the majority of us in saying we were all shocked when news came of his father’s passing and that for one day everyone could throw their support behind an Oiler.

I hope that when he plays his first game back in Edmonton he gets the biggest standing ovation Rogers Place has ever seen. The fans owe it to him.

HE’S BACK PT.2

Our favourite Edmonton Oilers vlogger, Ryan Robinson, came out of his self-imposed vlogging hiatus to let us know what he thinks has gone wrong for the Oilers this season.

I’ve really missed Robinson’s vlogs this season because I feel he really brings the fan’s perspective out into the open without slagging others in the process. In this post, I will include the vlog from YouTube (at the bottom) and some commentary of my own on his thoughts.

RUMOURS

According to Andy Strickland, Pat Maroon’s agent and Peter Chiarelli have spoken but it looks like an agreement on a contract won’t be happening and the Oilers will be trading the big winger. Which is probaby a better scenario for the Oilers anyhow, right? They need to bring in some fresh young talent on the wings and Maroon is the asset they are most willing to move to get that player.

Jim Matheson tweeted out yesterday that the Oilers want Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Was he reading my blog or seen one of my tweets recently? Weird. Even Jason Gregor was talking about it on his show yesterday with Jason Strudwick and Lowetide, specifically my proposed offer of Nuge and Klefbom for OEL.

I still think you do it and handle the contract after. He only makes $5.5M this year, so say he wants $7.5M a year for 7 years. Well since you dealt away $10M in Nuge and Klefbom, why not? It’s obvious that the Oilers are fine with JJ Khaira playing center and Ryan Strome can do it too. There, we fixed the problem fans have with RNH being a $6M 3rd line centre AND gave the team the elite PP dman it’s been craving.

Robinson’s vlog starts with him talking about one of the reasons why he stopped making his famous vlogs. He tells us a story about the game vs. Dallas where Cam Talbot got rocked for 5 goals and after the game, his wife, Kelly, posted a lovely picture of the Talbot family on social media. That’s not the issue, the issue came when someone commented on the photo basically telling Cam Talbot’s wife to pass on the message to Cam to get his head out of his ass and concentrate on hockey because his family will always be there for him.

What’s wrong with these fans? I’d be willing to put money on it that this guy isn’t a season ticket holder but a guy who sits on his sofa with a case of Kokanee and a bucket of KFC. Even if he was a season ticket holder, that is atrocious behaviour for a human being let alone a fan.

Pro Tip: When you comment on the socials or are talking about your team in the pubs, the things you say represent other fans as well. Just because you’re behind a keyboard or a smartphone, doesn’t make it okay for you to be an asshole. Be mindful of your language and the words you choose to use to express your opinion and realize just because you can say something doesn’t mean you should.

AN UNMITIGATED DISASTER

The Edmonton Oilers are going to join the Florida Panthers as two teams who have missed the playoffs 11 out of 12 seasons. It’s safe to say that Robinson is right when he says that this year has been an unmitigated disaster.

The main reason: There’s ZERO benefit to a year like this.

What we will be looking for as fans is if Connor McDavid can win the scoring title. Can Puljujarvi show us some of that offence we saw at the World Juniors a few years ago? How many games will Milan Lucic go before he scores a goal? Might Leon Draisaitl end up in the top-ten in scoring despite having a down year (according to some)?

Ultimately I’ll be looking for any signs of life from the team as a whole. There are 26 games left for the Oilers to show me, at least, that they don’t need a heart transplant (thanks, Georges!) and they are a team to be reckoned with. They’ve got quite a few Pacific Division matchups remaining and I want them to be the spoilers for Calgary’s playoff hopes.

RYAN ROBINSON’S FORENSIC AUDIT

Darryl Katz: Teflon

Bob Nicholson: Will he fire Chiarelli and hire Wayne Gretzky?

Peter Chiarelli: Regarding dealing away the younger players in Boston, Would you take years of a productive player or a Stanley Cup ring? When you start to exaggerate and omit facts, it doesn’t leave room for debate which is exactly what fans, “influencers” and sponsored Oilers blogs are doing right now.

Robinson goes into a few of the bad trades that Chiarelli made at this point in the vlog. The Reinhart trade and the Eberle trade. Let’s start with Griffin!

I still agree with the rationale behind those two moves. Back in the summer of 2015, the Oilers were desperate for young dmen that could grow with their core of players. And last summer they need to move out salary to protect themselves from a potential offer-sheet to Draisaitl. 

Contrary to popular opinion, the Oilers didn’t lose the Reinhart deal because Barzal has emerged as such a strong player. He’s a fantastic young player and he might even win the scoring title one day. He lost that trade becaues Reinhart turned into nothing! Both as a player and as an asset. He couldn’t establish himself on the Oilers roster and then he was claimed in the expansion draft. Barzal tearing it up just makes the trade look even worse. 

Same goes for the Eberle trade. Ironically, Eberle has been rejuvinated playing with Barzal! But the real problem for Edmonton was that Strome has been horribly mismanaged and remarkably unremarkable for long stretches. 

It took until the other night against Florida, game 55, for the Oilers to finally give Strome a shot on McDavid’s wing. And it took until a few games ago, I think game 52, for them to put him on the left half-wall on the PP for his one-timer.

THAT’S WHAT I THOUGHT HE WAS ACQUIRED FOR IN THE OFF-SEASON! He’s got a hard, accurate wrist shot and the Oilers haven’t take advantage of it. Why did it take so long? 

I’d like to also point out that when Chiarelli was hired there was this outcry for a strong possession team, to which he’s built.

Robinson really gets going in his next topic here.

HOW WILL NICHOLSON HANDLE CHIARELLI?

Nicholson has to be very careful in how he handles Chiarelli. Because of what Vegas has done taking everyone’s scraps and rising all the way to the top, I think that has given every manager league-wide a free pass for this season. 

If Nicholson does fire Chiarelli, what he needs to do is hire someone with experience, a good track record, and just like Chiarelli, zero ties to the Oilers old boys club. 

This is interesting because I thought that was what Nicholson did in the first place. Chiarelli has all three of those requisites listed unless you consider being part of Hockey Canada as something.

That’s where I’m a bit concerned. If Chiarelli gets the axe, does he simply dip into his Hockey Canada network and find someone?

TODD MCLELLAN

The thing with Todd is, he didn’t just forget how to coach overnight. He was nominated for coach of the year last season. The problem this year has been some horrendous decision making and a complete refusal to adapt on the fly. 

Early on in the year Todd publicly called out his best players, something that Don Cherry pointed out on Coach’s Corner as a poor choice. I couldn’t agree with that more. Do that behind closed doors but do not embarrass them publicly. As much as I do not like it, this is a different generation of player and they do not respond well to that kind of motivational tactic. 

A lot of people are asking of the players have tuned out the coaches and I think to a degree they have. Do you remember that “special” PP formation they used against the Ducks, the one that Kevin Bieksa commented on during the intermission? Basically, every player picked a corner and one guy stood in front of the net and they just held on to the puck for the majority of the powerplay? I think that was the players’ dig at the coaches.

I have said in the past that perhaps McLellan is not suited to run a team driven by young players because I’m not sure he knows how to ride out the waves that come with young players. He coached the San Jose Sharks for what, a decade? That team was headed by Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau, Dan Boyle, etc. Not 5 or 6 key players under the age of 24.

THE REFUSAL

Secondly, the refusal to break up Connor and Leon for so long did irreperable damage to the Oilers’ season. While several players were struggling with their confidence he just hung them out to dry. 

If I’m the coach and someone is struggling I throw them on McDavid’s wing, just to give them a boost and get them going. And the thing is, McLellan did this in the past. I remember him putting Yakupov and Pouliot on McDavid’s line but this season he’s just continued to beat a dead horse. 

WHOSE RESPONSIBILITY IS IT TO GET THE PLAYERS READY TO PLAY?

Also, the Oilers are never ready to play. They’ve given up the first shot of the game ten times. I mean, it must be a record but I don’t think anybody would bother tracking such an embarrassing and obscure statistic. They’ve also been scored on first 34 times. It is the coach’s responsibility to have the players ready to play. 

Preach it, brother! Amen! I’m surprised that they haven’t been axed already. But the Oilers are on a 5-game losing streak and you do have to wonder how long that streak goes before somebody is let go.

WHAT KIND OF TEAM DO THE OILERS HAVE?

A lot of people believe the Oilers are a big slow team. I think earlier this year Ray Ferraro said Chiarelli has built the Oilers to win in 2011 not 2018. The thing is the Oilers aren’t really a big slow team. 

Kassian is a great skater. Darnell Nurse is a fantastic skater. Draisaitl is a very powerful skater. Now that Gryba is in the minors they only have two slow guys, Maroon and Lucic. And they have perhaps the fastest player ever to play the game in Connor McDavid. 

Here’s the thing, what moves faster? Connor McDavid or the puck? 

I’ve said this many times before, it doesn’t matter how fast your players are if they don’t play with pace. Last year McLellan did a really good job of having the Oilers play a balance of finesse game but also a very physical game. This year he seems to have completely abandoned giving the players any offensive creativity and he’s in this routine of playing a cycle into the corner, back up to the point, back into the corner, trying to wear the other team down. 

I truly believe that the pundits that were saying the Oilers are slow this year were referring to quickness and not straight away speed. Meaning your Mitch Marner-types who are very agile on their blades. I think that when Drake Caggiula is on his game, he’s one of those players as he’s zippy and he hits anything that moves.

If you still believe that the Oilers aren’t fast enough, I guess I’d ask you what kind of goals are being let in by the Oilers this year? I’d also ask, what aspect of the game do you think the Oilers are slow in?

THE PART OF THE SEASON THAT IS INEXCUSABLE

To have Connor McDavid, the best player on the planet, running a powerplay that is 30th in the league is an absolute disgrace. 

It’s not even so much about the results, it’s about how non-threatening it is. The Oilers pass the puck about wildly around the perimeter and then they get it to Klefbom for the point shot and the problem is he never freakin’ shoots it! And when he does, he shoots it wide of the net because he’s hurt! I’m pretty sure he’s been hurt all year and yet, the coaching staff continually puts him out there squandering endless opportunities and also killing the guys confidence because he can’t get the job done. 

The Oilers could have a threatening powerplay IF players would shoot it. IF Connor, or anybody for that matter, would shoot the puck, regardless of if it goes in or not, that will back the dmen off. They’re looking for that cross-seam pass for the one-timer and the other teams know that so they cut it off and leave the point open because they know two things, either they’re not going to shoot it or they will but there’s no hope of it going in.

THE PK

What the Sam Heck is even going on here? It is the worst home PK of all-time! Of all the terrible teams that have played throughout the years, none of them come close to the travesty that is the Oilers home penalty killing. How many goals do you have to let in from the point before you realize that the L-shape or the diamond or whatever you want to call it doesn’t work. 

It’s not rocket science, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Play a tight box have active sticks, clear lanes so your goalie gets a clear view of the puck. And the reason that the PK is such an achilles heel is that the Oilers have some big strong players who can intimidate the opposition and they’re scared to hit anyone because they know they absolutely can not under any circumstances take a penalty because it will almost certainly end in a goal against. 

Unfortunately, the Czech press is the tactic that is used all over the league to combat how most of the PPs are being run in the league. Watch any team and I’ll bet you’ll see the same tactic used by that team as the Oilers use. The difference is this:

Their players are willing to get in the lane. They’re willing to do what’s necessary to stop a shot. Which leads me to this question, why aren’t the Oilers’ PKers willing to do this?

WHAT SHOULD THEY DO FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR?

I don’t really have a problem with them riding out the rest of the year and continuing with the same head coach and GM next season. Look at Colorado, they were absolutely awful last year, kept their coach and GM, they rebounded very nicely. 

But.

ACCOUNTABILITY

I preach accountability on this blog. Someone at some level within the organization needs to pay the price for this absolute miserable failure of a season and Woodcroft and Johnson don’t have a leg to stand on. They have ZERO justification for keeping their jobs. 

Earlier in the year, I reported that Chiarelli wanted to make a change with the assistant coaches but McLellan wouldn’t sign off on it and knowing how Chiarelli hangs onto his head coaches, he’s gone along with it. Well, I think that loyalty has shifted a bit because we haven’t seen improvement in the slightest amount from the special teams coaches.

I predict that Woodcroft and Johnson will be shown the door and at least one of the new assistant coaches will be the new head coach at some point in the next 12 months. Maybe that’s Darryl Sutter or Dave Tippet, Todd Nelson or Sheldon Keefe.

THE PLAYERS

Surprisingly, these are the only ones I have any sympathy for for a few reasons. 

First of all, did you know that the Oilers hit the post more than any team in the league? 

Secondly, the Oilers have lost every single coach’s challenge this season. 

Despite the Oilers having Connor McDavid, the fastest player in the league, the Oilers draw less penalties than any other team. 

Offside calls and goalie interference plays are 50/50 at best. The fact that the Oilers have been on the wrong side every time is awful luck. As for the penalty calls, I think that Connor McDavid’s speed has actually prevented him from drawing calls. Think about it for a second. 

McDavid blasts by the official, he gets hooked, held, or slashed but they’re so far behind at that point they can’t see it. And if they don’t see it, they can’t call it. 

Also, the Oilers have some bigger stronger players, they don’t go down easy. I can’t count the number of times Lucic got hooked or slashed and he didn’t go down. 

Is it not completely unbelievable that there are so many members of the Oilers fanbase that are this ignorant of how bizarre the results are going for Edmonton yet they still ask for Chiarelli’s head as if he’s responsible for these mad stats?

WHEN THINGS AREN’T GOING YOUR WAY…

Can you think of even one game this year that the Oilers won that they didn’t deserve to? 

Exactly! And what happens when you feel like you’re hitting the post all of the time and you know the you need to outplay the opposition in order to have a chance to win and you know you’re probably not going to get your share of calls or challenges and you know that you absolutely cannot take a penalty?

It begins to wear on you mentally. 

Why do you think that the Oilers have had so many games this year like the one against Nashville where they’re outshooting them 29-4 and let in a goal and everything falls apart. 

THE RESULT

The Oilers have completely lost all of their confidence and swagger that they had last year and the thing is, no amount of trades, free agent signings, or firings is going to bring that back. 

I wonder how the mob would react to this comment? I mean let’s say they fire Chiarelli, how many years are they willing to wait for the new GM to turn it around. Oilers Nerd Alert said that GMs should only get 2 years to show progress. I find that to be a tad harsh.

WHAT ABOUT LAST YEAR?

I know a lot of fans believe that last year was an anomaly but I have a hard time believing that when I see all those bizarre statistics surrounding the Oilers. 

So I know it’s hard and frustrating because you invest so much in the team but my advice is take a deep breath… 

I love the truths that Ryan Robinson throws out there. I’m sad that he’s not vlogging as much lately and I’d love to hear him on a regular podcast someday or perhaps his own radio show. He’s got the skills and he analyzes the game very well in my opinion. I guess there’s always next year 🙂

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What Was That Deadline Trade All About Anyhow? by Andrew Taylor

This piece is a pure speculation piece; I do not and never claim to have any insider info to back this up, and the point of this, first and foremost, is to provide you with some speculation that might entertain you.  

On June 18th through to the 20th the NHL’s newest franchise, the Vegas Golden Knights, will be holding their expansion draft.  They will be taking a player from each of the other 30 teams to fill their roster out and the Oilers will lose a player; I suspect the two most likely candidates are Jujhar Khaira or Griffin Reinhart.

While either will be a hit to the Oilers’ depth, I wouldn’t consider them to be detrimental losses.

Khaira, a forward, has played a total of 35 games and has amassed 3 points.  I really like his tenacity and he fits the Oilers new mold well, but he projects as a third liner at best right now.

And Griffin Reinhart had a really nice developmental year in the AHL this year but He’s looking like a 6th or 7th defenseman (somewhat unbelievable since he played such a key role in the Edmonton Oil Kings’ Memorial Cup championship).

I get that Peter Chiarelli gave up two picks for Reinhart, and Matthew Barzal may end up being a pretty good player, but since the Oilers acquired Reinhart he has played 27 more NHL games than the two players he was traded for combined.  The trade doesn’t look great optically but I’m not ready to call it a flat out loss by the Oilers.

Brandon Davidson made huge strides in his career last year chipping in 11 points while playing 51 games.  He was playing solid second pairing minutes (average 19:12 per game) and looked to be a valuable piece of the Oilers blue line going forward.  Looking back on last season though, while taking the events of this season into consideration, I would guess his “climb up the ladder” had as much to do with a questionable NHL defense corps as it did his development.

Of the 28 games Davidson played for Edmonton this season only twice did he exceed that 19:12 average time on ice, while also more often being a minus than a plus player while only tallying one assist. I think he is a solid depth defenseman but his 2015-16 season may have been a bit of a mirage.  Nonetheless, Las Vegas likely would have taken him in the expansion draft and now they can’t, at least not from Edmonton.

David Desharnais, of course, isn’t exactly a dynamo offensively at this point in his career though, and his faceoff wins percentage doesn’t scream of a solid third line centre on a cup contender.  His size definitely stands out, but not in the right way (only 5’ 7”).  It really didn’t make much sense, at least at the time.

So, What Was it All About? 

My theory: it was about trying to solve cap problems going forward.

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are likely lining up to be the Oilers top two paid players, and the issues their salaries are going to bring to the Oilers’ team cap situation are well documented.  Before we all have panic attacks maybe we should remind ourselves that having two centres that are as dynamic as they are is a good problem (see Pittsburgh Penguins for reference).  The need to shed some money is real though, and even with next year’s cap likely being manageable problems are on the horizon.  If approached properly the expansion draft could present to the Oilers an opportunity right now to solve an issue they will have in two seasons.

I believe the Oilers sacrificed Brandon Davidson in order to increase the chances of the Golden Knights agreeing to take Benoit Pouliot in the expansion draft more than they brought in David Desharnais to help with this season’s playoff run.  Keep in mind that Pouliot is a much better player than the numbers he put up this year would suggest.  But, he is a $4 million cap hit.  If he was getting $2 million I don’t think we’d be having any discussions about him, but he’s not.  It’s likely going to cost the Oilers something as a throw in; maybe their third round pick this year or maybe Reinhart or Khaira as well.

The issue isn’t that Pouliot doesn’t have a spot on the Oilers roster, it’s that his salary doesn’t have room under their cap.  Remember, the Golden Knights have plenty of cap room, need NHL caliber players (Pouliot is still an NHL caliber player despite his performance this year), and need to load up their prospects cupboards as quickly as possible if hockey in Sin City is going to work out.

In the next few years, I see there being some significant pieces added to the Oilers roster at the trade deadlines every year.  I believe they are on track to make a Stanley Cup Finals appearance in the next two years and sacrificing some future for a chance at the Cup might be a thing for them in the near(er) future.  I don’t believe that Chiarelli was under the impression that the Oilers were a small, underperforming centre away from being a legitimate cup contender this season.

Bottom line, I don’t think the Brandon Davidson for David Desharnais trade pulled off on February 28th of this season was “going for it”.

Give Andrew Taylor a follow on Twitter @drewtaylor1978!

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

Hamilton Rumour Update + G16 vs. New York

Earlier today I posted that the Oilers are in the mix for Calgary Flames struggling defenceman Dougie Hamilton. Well, I dug in a bit more with my source and the thought is that the Oilers are looking to send Calgary a package that would include Edmonton’s 2017 1st rounder, Benoit Pouliot, and Griffin Reinhart in return for the defenseman and Lance Bouma.

Now, to me, that all sounds pretty convenient right? Pouliot, when on his game, is a very valuable piece for the Oilers. A big body with great technical skill and strength but he can’t seem to shake off some bad mojo or something. With the penalties at the beginning of the year and that horrid own goal vs. PIT… Chia has traded him before, so I’m not surprised that he might be part of ANY deal the Oilers are putting together in their attempt to upgrade the D.

Griffin Reinhart, hurt at the moment with a back ailment, is someone I think that Chiarelli is looking to get away from as fast as possible. Those boots are simply not getting any faster and Griff is getting passed over at an alarming rate by Edmonton’s other, less prominent, prospects. Matt Benning and Dillon Simpson being two of the most recent ones but Jordan Oesterle is another that got some time ahead of Reinhart.

The Oilers 1st rounder will be in play every year as long as they are contending for a playoff spot. The team has found itself in a bit of a funk lately and, in my opinion, Chia is desperate to find that PP QB. Hamilton would be that guy, no?

**STATS**

(Man I hope I get these right, sometimes I fear that I’m reading these numbers all wrong…)

Dougie Hamilton, in his NHL career to date, has only played a shade over 560 minutes of PP time according to stats.hockeyanalysis.com over the past 5 seasons (2012-2016). He’s scored at a clip of 4.15 p/60 in that time frame at 5v4 and is ranked 30th AHEAD of PK Subban (31st), Duncan Keith (35th), and Roman Josi (54th). The highest current Oiler on that list is Oscar Klefbom at 58th with a 3.65 p/60 at 5v4.

Also, in that time frame, Hamilton is ranked 10th in the NHL for shots/60 with 14.90!!! Closest current Oiler, Oscar Klefbom at 53rd w/ 11.69 shots/60 with the 5v4 man advantage.

So if you’re that guy that says, “No f*cking way man! Hamilton is playing like shit this year. I’d rather have Justin Schultz than Dougie Hamilton and his inflated contract…”, don’t stop eating the yellow snow.

The Oilers could really use a guy like Doug Hamilton. Don’t forget, he’s coming off of back to back 40+ point seasons and he’s playing for the woeful Calgary Flames… They need his contract off the books as it’s bad for them but it’s decent for us IF that rumored return is true.

With all of that being said, do you, as an Oilers fan, think that a package of Benoit Pouliot, Griffin Reinhart, and a 1st round pick for Hamilton and Bouma is better that what other teams might be offering? I have a hard time believing so.

Bring me the Nakladal, right?…

The Rags

Expect the unexpected, right? That’s what I’ve been preaching so far this season and I’m going to go with it again. I say the Oilers are going to win this one tonight. I think they’re going to buckle down that defense and put a stranglehold on the Rangers offense much the way Conor McGregor did to Eddie Alvarez the last night.

*Just as an aside, the best part of that fight was at the end when everyone thought he was going to apologize for being a dick to all the fighters. I wonder if we’ll see him leave the UFC altogether and head to WWE?*

The Oilers only task is to not let in any goals in the first 5 minutes nor the last 2 minutes… And Lucic had better smash someone tonight, the fans want to be entertained 🙂

What do you think about the Hamilton rumour? Let me know in the comments below!

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Armchair GM, Edmonton Oilers, Kosmic Burrito

The Choice

The Choice

This is quite possibly the biggest and most important decision that the Edmonton Oilers will have to make before the season starts.

The choice between Griffin Reinhart and Brandon Davidson. Now I could very well have thrown Darnell Nurse’s name in the mix also (who doesn’t like a good three-way?). But I have a feeling that the Oilers are already so high on him that he sticks with the team. Unless of course, he has an absolutely dismal training camp. Which I just don’t see happening, not with him being a year older, more experienced, bigger, meaner and nastier. Now I’m not saying that Davidson or Reinhart won’t be coming in more experienced or better, themselves. Not at all, it’s just that, I believe that Nasty Nurse is already invited to the party just based on his high-profile prospect status, and his draft pedigree. Plus, Chiarelli loves him some mean and nasty. I also believe that Chiarelli will be giving Reinhart every opportunity possible to right the “trade”! But Nurse, in my opinion, is all but guaranteed a roster spot.

Which brings us onto these two, Griffin Reinhart and Brendan Davidson. Now if it was up to the fan base to call the shots, it would be a no-brainer. Davidson in, Reinhart out. Brendan Davidson won over the fans hearts with his hard work in his surprising, out of nowhere, breakout season. Plus, who doesn’t love a good ol’ underdog/comeback story? Rudy, Rudy, Rudy!!! Griffin Reinhart, on the other hand, has been unfairly chastised since the day Peter Chiarelli traded for him. So if all of the armchair GM’s had it their way, Reinhart would be soaking up the California sun in Bakersfield. Or even playing for a different organization if some people were in charge lol! But that’s the thing, we’re not the ones making these tough decisions.

I was speaking with Walter Foddis over at the BLH office water cooler (@waltlaw69 is one of our fantastic, analytics-driven writers here at BLH), and he had this to say, “…Davidson was our best defensemen on some metrics…”. I don’t know about you, but I find that pretty interesting, and it also speaks volumes about the type of player that the Oilers have in Davidson. Reinhart himself is also a very interesting prospect. Whom Peter Chiarelli was hoping to be more game ready when he gave up a king’s ransom to acquire him.

So I decided to take a look at each player individually and then compare the two. Now Davidson obviously spent a lot more time in the big show than Reinhart, so we’ll use what available information that we have for both.

One thing I should note, and this also something that I find particularly interesting. Griffin Reinhart was drafted in the 1st round of the 2012 draft, 4th overall to be exact. Brandon Davidson, well he was drafted in the 6th round of the 2010 draft, and 162nd overall. Sheesh…not much of a difference there, huh? Only a matter of 158 draft spots, you know, no biggie.

Alright, let’s start with Griffin Reinhart…

Griffin Reinhart

Griffin Reinhart was acquired via trade by the Edmonton Oilers on the 2015 draft floor. Peter Chiarelli traded the 16th and 33rd picks in the 2015 draft to the New York Islanders to acquire Reinhart. The trade has been criticized, scrutinized, and chastised since the moment it took place. For example, that 16th overall pick turned into Matthew Barzal, a fantastic young, up and coming player. Who a lot of Oilers fans would’ve much rather seen in the system, instead of Griffin.

Now myself, I think that it’s more than fair to examine the trade, pick it apart, etc… But what I don’t think is fair, is the constant bashing of Reinhart himself. It’s not as if he orchestrated the trade all on his own, and it was Chiarelli who made it worse for him by saying that he expected Reinhart to step right in and be in the starting lineup.

I believe that there is a great 2nd or 3rd pairing defender here, just waiting to break out. Remember there’re no two prospects who develop the same, everyone is different. Also, we all know that defenders seem to take a tad bit longer to hit their stride, so patience people, he’ll get there. In fact, I’m predicting that barring any injuries, Reinhart will take a major step forward this year, book that sh*t!

Alright, let’s take at the player himself, and see why he deserves to be in the starting lineup come October. Now Griffin isn’t a flashy player, never has been, and honestly I don’t think that he ever will be. But what he is, is a steady stay at home presence who can make a fairly decent first-pass. He’s never been a big point producer, in fact, his best offensive output came in his 2nd full season in the WHL playing for the Edmonton Oil Kings. In that season, he played 58 games and scored 12 goals and ended up with 36 points. Not too shabby at all. But he hasn’t been able to translate that success into his NHL game yet, nor has he been dominant at the AHL level. I’m not saying he’s a pylon, not at all. He just hasn’t found what works for him in the NHL. But like I said earlier, there’s definitely a player there.

Last year for Bakersfield he put up 10 points in 30 games, which is good for .333ppg. Also, he was a solid +2 in those games. That’s not bad for a defenseman who wasn’t really brought on to be a big producer. Reinhart’s bread and butter is his defense, let’s not forget.

So how did he do though playing for the actual Oilers? Well, it definitely wasn’t as well as his showing on the farm, he did play 29 games and put up a single assist. He also had 20 penalty minutes to go along with a -6 rating. Ok, so the offense definitely wasn’t there but he did grind out 62 hits and blocked 46 shots. That to me is a sign of who Griffin Reinhart is, and will become. He averaged over 2 hits per game, and well over a block per game. Also, once he gets more confident in his game, we’re going to see that nice first-pass of his start to show up.

But he’s steadily becoming a solid, stay at home force on the backend. As he grows his game, and uses that big body of his more, he’s going to become the defenseman that forwards hate to see between them and the net. If we could see more hits, more blocked shots, a steady first-pass, and some work on his foot speed. Then I think people might actually cool down on the trade, and appreciate the player we received.

His Corsi For % was 46.9(CF) last year, and his Offensive Zone Starts % was 52.7(oZS). So yes, there’s definitely room for improvement there. He definitely needs to improve his possession numbers, and I believe that you’ll see that this year, as his confidence grows.

Another good thing going for Reinhart, is that he does have experience playing the right side of the “D”, which is still a giant, epic glaring hole for the Oilers. So all in all, what is it the Oilers need? To stop bleeding goals, right? So how about a giant defenseman that blocks shots, hits bodies, and is working on a decent first-pass. Not only that, he’s only going to hopefully get better from here. I mean, we all know about the famous hockey bloodlines of the Reinhart family by now, right?

My final take is that we have a solid, stay at home defenseman who isn’t afraid to lay his body on the line. He also hasn’t lived up to his potential yet, so I believe the best is yet to come. Something also tells me that Reinhart may have a bit of a “chip on his shoulder” this year. So I have a feeling that we’re going to see a much feistier, and hungry version of Reinhart this year, considering all of the competition in the “leftorium” (thanks LT!).

Brandon Davidson

Brandon Davidson…Brando…Marlon Brando? The Godfather? Brandon Davidson is The Godfather? My mind is blown! But seriously, what is not to like about possibly the biggest surprise of the ‘15/16 season? Out of nowhere, Davidson came in and was a complete ray of hope for the Oilers. Fans really attached themselves to Davidson’s underdog story and heart & soul style of play.

For an Oilers team that has, for the most part, struck out after the first round of the draft. To have a player of Brandon’s calibre emerge from the sixth round is a Godsend to a defensively starved organization.

So who is Brandon Davidson, and what kind of damage did he do last season. Well for starters, he played 51 games and averaged 19:12 minutes per game. To go along with that, he scored 4 goals and finished with 11 points. That’s some decent production ladies and gentlemen and to top it all off, he finished with a +7 rating on the Oilers defense. Then you throw in the fact that he had a 52.1CF% (wow!) with only a 49.3oZS%, yes people, there is a really awesome player here. Don’t forget he had 74 hits and 92 blocked shots in those 51 games.

So what we see here, is a very solid two-way defenseman that also possesses a nice first pass, who is very competent and trustworthy. Brandon is also 25 years old, so he’ll be just coming into his prime. Davidson demonstrates a high hockey IQ as well and rarely seems to be caught out of position.

One thing that I’d like to see more of from him, is his shot from the point. There were times last year when Davidson let a howitzer fly, and if he could take that and focus on the power-play. Then the Oilers PP Quarterback issues may be answered.

Personally, I see a lot of positives with Davidson, and boatloads of potential. I mean, to have a 52.1CF% on the Oilers D….well, that’s facking magical! Let’s see, strong possession metrics, solid offense, he’s not afraid to put his body on the line, and great two-way play.

“The Choice”

Well, it honestly seems like a complete no-brainer to me, but obviously, Brandon Davidson deserves the spot in the lineup over Reinhart. What he showed last year, was an absolutely beautiful breakout campaign. The best part about it is the fact that it came out of nowhere, and was totally unexpected. Whereas Reinhart came over with a ton of expectations, and well, he didn’t quite deliver as hoped. But as I mentioned earlier, there’s a fantastic, solid player within Griffin that is waiting to break out. I already said to “book it”, that he takes a major step forward this year. I personally believe it is going to happen, as long as he keeps blocking shots, works on his first pass, and works on being more physical.

Then we have a solid defenseman finding his way probably sooner than later. Davidson on the other hand, he’s a bonafide NHL defender in the NOW! And a damn good one! Which is why I choose him. Plus, Walter was right when he said that Davidson was our best defenseman in some metrics (holy understatement Walt!), check this shit out:

Well folks, that wraps up this post. Are y’all getting pumped for the World Cup or what? I know I’m super stoked to watch McDavid dangle through Team Canada, and light the lamp!

Stay tuned, and stay weird!!!!

You can follow me, chat with me, and trip with me on Twitter @kosmicburrito

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