Tag Archives: Johnny Gaudreau

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

(11/12/20202) BLH Trade Rumors and NHL Speculation feat. Pettersson, Kane, Gaudreau, Hoffman, and More!

Speculating from an Edmonton Oilers fan’s perspective, BLH comments on the latest NHL rumors featuring players such as Elias Pettersson, Patrick Kane, Johnny Gaudreau, Mike Hoffman, and more!

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The News and Rumors

  • Georges Laraque: Suggested that the Canadiens could offer up Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Cole Caufield, and a 2021 first-round pick for Kane who the Blackhawks would actually retain salary on.

BLH’s Thoughts: There are some rumors going around that a player’s trainer said that Kane could play elite hockey until he was into his 40s and still be an effective player playing at 50. The Chicago winger is 31yrs old now, I imagine the Habs would love to get him for another 19 years for three high-end prospects. 

Reckon Kane would be a big fan of the taxes in Quebec?

Laraque is also saying that Marc-Andre Fleury wants to come to Edmonton even though the Oilers are on his 10-team no-trade list (allegedly)… 

Wait. Is this just a stunt to get more eyes on him because he’s looking to have an exhibition bout with Mike Tyson?

  • Tracey Myers (NHL.com): “I’m sure there are many Philadelphia fans who would love to see Gaudreau wearing a Flyers jersey; he was born in Salem, New Jersey, about 40 miles south of Philadelphia. But if I’m the Flames, I’m not ready to send Gaudreau anywhere yet.”
    • “I know the Blues found enough offense when Tarasenko missed all but the first 10 games of last season after having shoulder surgery. But if a player like (Mike) Hoffman is available, why not try to sign him to replace at least some of Tarasenko’s production?”

BLH’s Thoughts: Look, Johnny Guadreau will be traded before his next contact expires. Book it. The rumors are getting heavier as his deal nears expiry and Calgary needs a shake-up now that the team belongs to Matthew Tkachuk. 

The funny thing is, the Flames are going to trade Gaudreau and then Tkachuk is going to leave after his deal is up. Calgary will go from two elite LWers to zero! 

Go Oilers Go! 

  • The Athletic: On Elias Pettersson, “The young Canucks superstar will play out the final year of his entry-level contract during the 2020-21 league year, and thereafter will likely be exorbitantly expensive. His second contract is going to be complicated and is something of a cap management atom bomb that the club will have to work around in seeking to upgrade their supporting cast.”

BLH’s Thoughts: Just watching Benning and the Canucks ownership pinch the pennies with their coach is enough to grab a lot of popcorn in anticipation of the Pettersson negoations. Vancouver is going to have to walk away from three or four really solid NHL players to get their franchise man under contract and I don’t see him taking any “hometown” discounts either. 

  • Swisshockeynews.ch: According to Expressen’s podcast ‘Sanny and Svensson’, Carl Soderberg is looking for a well-paid deal in Switzerland. There’s also interest from Sweden, however. Malmo would be interested in bringing him home.

BLH’s Thoughts: Bob Stauffer (630CHED) has been talking about some European NHLers staying in Europe and avoiding the big haircut, escrow, and deferred portions of their paycheck for this upcoming shortened season. I always thought he was talking about Mikael Granlund but Soderberg fits the bills too I suppose. 

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BLH Trade Rumors: Oilers, Sabres, Flames, Leafs, Wild, etc.

Oilers Most Likely to be Traded This Season

Jonathan Willis reckons that the Oilers have at least three players who are solid candidates to be traded this season. Matt Benning, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Kris Russell, in Willis’ opinion, are the likeliest options to be moved due to the fact that Benning is both useful and expendable, Russell being a reliable veteran presence with to offset a team going through a youth movement, and Puljujarvi’s growing value due to age (21) and how well he’s performing for Karpat in the SM-Liiga. (The Athletic)

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BLH’s Thoughts: I have a feeling that there will be a trade in the new year but I’m not sure if it will feature any of these players. Should the Oilers continue on the pace they’re currently on, I don’t think they’ll want to sacrifice their veteran defenseman going into the post-season. If anybody gets moved, it’s Puljujarvi, but there’s a part of me that wonders if Holland is playing the long game with him in hopes that he can get the big Finn to change his mind and return to the Oilers. 

Teams Who Need an Early Season Trade

Lyle Richardson recently blogged about five teams who could use a trade to shake things up because their campaigns have started off in a rather pedestrian manner.

Richardson cited Eric Francis, Darren Dreger, James Mirtle, and Elliotte Friedman who all commented on potential trades between the Calgary Flames and the Toronto Maple Leafs that included names like Tyson Barrie, Travis Hamonic, and TJ Brodie. (source)

BLH’s Thoughts: Are any of those players really going to make a real difference for either team. Calgary’s stars are shooting at ridiculously poor percentages and the Leafs simply need a shakeup. Hopefully, the firing of Mike Babcock brings that because I feel like the playoffs are better with Toronto in them. Even if they only last one round. 

Then the man behind Spector’s Hockey moved on to a trade proposal from ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski where Puck Daddy threw out the idea of a Tyson Barrie plus sweetener to Pittsburgh for Justin Schultz.

BLH’s Thoughts: That sweetener would have to be a helluva player I’m thinking. I get that Jultzy has had some injury problems but what if Tyson Barrie is no better in Pittsburgh than Toronto? I just feel like Sheldon Keefe might have better luck with Barrie if he gets some time with him. From an Oilers point of view though, Tyson Barrie would look good on their blue line as a rental…

It’s widely known that the Buffalo Sabres have a surplus of defenders on hand and are looking to make a trade. Richardson suggests that there could possibly be a deal to be made centered around defender Rasmus Ristolainen where the Sabres would send him to Vegas for one of Jonathan Marchessault or Reilly Smith.

BLH’s Thoughts: Interesting proposal. Not sure about Marchessault moving but Smith for Ristolainen is an intriguing idea. 

Wild GM Gauging the Market

Directly from Richardson’s main site, there’s a bit talking about what the Minnesota Wild are up to. Elliotte Friedman has reported that Bill Guerin is working overtime to assess the market on his roster.

It’s been rumored Wild forwards Kevin Fiala, Ryan Donato, and Joel Eriksson Ek are available. They probably don’t have much value in the trade market. Fiala and Eriksson Ek have shown some improvement of late, but likely not enough to entice a lot of interest. (source)

BLH’s Thoughts: As an Oilers fan, Kevin Fiala would be a player to keep an eye on. In my opinion, he would be a great addition to the Oilers middle-six forwards. If we’re talking Puljujarvi though and I’m Ken Holland, I would try to take advantage of the fact that Minnesota’s first-rounder from this past draft, Matthew Boldy, is having a real tough go in his first season at Boston College with only 1 goal in 11 games. I’d be finding out what the price is for Boldy AND Fiala. 

Team Canada Names Coaching Staff for Spengler Cup

The Team Canada coaching staff for the upcoming Spengler Cup has a familiar feel to it for Oilers fans. Former head coach Craig MacTavish, ex-teammate and hall-of-fame defender Paul Coffey, as well as Vegas Golden Knights Director of Hockey Ops Misha Donskov will guide the Canadians through the annual tourney that will run from Dec. 26th-31st this year.

BLH’s Thoughts: I don’t really have any feeling for this tournament to be honest. But it seems like MacTavish and Coffey are really trying to get back into the coaching game. I wonder if Seattle will be keeping a close eye on one or both of them? 

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Game 2: Flames v. Oilers – Tkachuk You!

Game 1 of the 2016/17 NHL season for the Oilers proved to be successful on the scoreboard, I loved seeing the Oilers put up seven versus the Flames and on the whole it was a very entertaining game but there were some pretty glaring issues that need to be shored up if the Oilers are going to make a significant push for the playoffs this spring.

Amongst them:

  • Special Teams
    • What is wrong with this team on the power play? Honestly. It’s not even Jay Woodcroft that we can blame right now because his record is pretty damn good.

      For years the Oilers haven’t been able to get things going on a regular basis on the PP. Last year for a bit when McDavid was healthy it was clipping along at a healthy rate but IIRC I can only remember two coaches really getting something out of the Oilers power play regularly, Ralph Krueger and Todd Nelson…

    • Why is it that the team can get 6 chances with the man advantage but only fire off 3 shots?… Is it shot confidence or did the Flames really shut down the shooting lanes that well?
    • Allowing short-handed goals… There’s nothing more frustrating that allowing one shorty let alone two and Connor McDavid isn’t going to be there every time to bail the team out when this atrocious sin is committed. Calgary’s PK unit is very tenacious and effective albeit but my feelings remain the same.
  • Goaltending
    • Cam Talbot CANNOT make a habit of letting in 4 goals a game. This isn’t the 80s and these aren’t the boys on the bus. He has to make timely saves when required. That Chaisson goal was bloody terrible, right? The Frolik goal shorthanded was no beauty either.
  • Jordan Eberle
    • If he didn’t score that empty netter, I don’t think I would’ve noticed him all game. He was pretty invisible out there, to my eye at least.

      I believe this is a player that could be moved depending on where the Oilers sit come trade deadline time and performances from himself and others on the team. If he’s going to be anonymous during games and only show up from time to time, then what good is he?

      I know… It’s only been one game. Wait ten and then make your call.

GAME 2 – Flaming Redemption or Will Edmonton Take Two?

CALGARY FLAMES EDMONTON OILERS
Gaudreau/Monahan/Versteeg Lucic/McDavid/Eberle
Tkachuk/Bennett/Brouwer Pouliot/Nugent-Hopkins/Kassian
Ferland/Backlund/Frolik Maroon/Draisaitl/Puljujarvi
Bouma/Stajan/Chaisson Pitlick/Letestu/Lander
Giordano/Brodie Klefbom/Larsson
Hamilton/Jokipakka Sekera/Russell
Wideman/Engelland Nurse/Gryba
Elliott Talbot

Three pretty obvious changes for the Oilers are Zack Kassian moving up to the 2nd line, Anton Lander drawing in for Anton Slepyshev, and Eric Gryba coming in for the injured Brandon Davidson (more on that later).

I’m not sure if Sleppy coming out is more on him and his performance in game one than the Oilers wanting to get a guy in that can take some face-offs and help on the PK a bit more, both of those things being areas where Lander is actually quite good at. Don’t ask the guy to score though…

The Flames are countering by taking the cement-footed Nic Grossman out and replacing him with skilled Finn Jyrki Jokipakka. The also decided to pair up their defenceman like a regular NHL team.

WHAT DO I WANT TO SEE?

  • Adam Larsson and Oscar Klefbom continue their dominance on the back-end as one of the NHL’s emerging top pairings.

    Did anybody else expect to see Larsson’s nasty side? He can lay the body if need be and I LOVE THAT!!

  • “Tell Merrill to swing away.”  = More shots on net from Puljujarvi! If you shoot it, goals will come.
  • Kris Russell/’Rej Sekera have another good game. I thought they looked tight in game one and weren’t liabilities at all. Weird what happens when you add NHL defensemen to the roster.
  • Nuge have a big bounce-back game. He was not great last time out at all. Give me more Nugey!
  • A goal from Milan Lucic.
  • Leon Draisaitl NOT peter out in the 3rd period.
  • Somebody fill-in Matt Tkachuk like a Mac truck.

MATT TKACHUK

So a lot of the radio call-in shows are asking today, What should the Oilers do about Matt Tkachuk?

I believe there are three roads to take with regards to a player that has more or less disrespected your team in the manner Tkachuk did on Wednesday night.

  1. Similar to how Darnell Nurse had to answer the bell last year after turning Roman Polak’s face into ground meat, perhaps Matt Tkachuk should have to have a one-on-one meeting with one of the Oilers enforcers.
  2. You start taking liberties with the Flames’ star players. Zack Kassian gives zero f*cks and will do whatever is asked of him. Tyler Pitlick likes a good stiff check. You don’t think Milan Lucic, Pat Maroon, Darnell Nurse, or Eric Gryba will break a stick over some kidneys if the chance arises?

    Tkachuk’s teammates will let him know loud and clear to cut it out if the Oilers start reciprocating the rookie’s actions.

  3. The other method of dealing with these players, and the one you always here in minor hockey, is you simply beat him on the scoresheet.

Look, this is Tkachuk’s MO. He plays on the line and he crosses it from time to time. Should he have to pay for his actions, absolutely! How that punishment is carried out will be determined by the players wearing orange, white, and blue.

I say get it out of the way as early in the game as possible, don’t let him carry on and take advantage of more opportunities.

GAME DAY PREDICTION

I like the Oilers to win this one as well. Had the flames not scored those two shorties, the Oilers would’ve beat them even worse. Will it be a resounding win? I don’t believe so. Johnny Gaudreau is a bloody beast at home and I expect the line match-ups to work very much in Calgary’s favor (Good luck 4th line and 3rd D-pairing). This should be a much closer game that the previous installment of the BOA but then again the Flames are starting Brian Elliott again… Game on Biatches!

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Post-Game Report: Oilers vs Calgary (10/12/2016)

Game result: Oilers 7-4 Calgary

Apparently it was “80s Night” over at Rogers Place for our first ever NHL game at the new barn. What a racket! 11 goals! What era even is this? So there were a whole lot of things to like about this game, and some head-scratchers. Let’s go through them in point-form because it’s too late to worry about complete sentences:

Things that were awesome:
– Chiefly, Captain Connor showing up for 2G-1A-3P in his first game of the year is a pretty damn good look at what’s to come for his sophomore season. CANNOT wait to see it unfold
– Maroon getting the first goal in Rogers Place was really cool. He was so stoked on it. Love this guy
– Kris Russell was really good. Guys. Can someone direct me to the nearest bakery serving humble pie? I was shitting on this guy as much as the rest of them because of how awful he is from a fancystats point of view, but he really shone tonight with 2 assists and several solid defensive plays that directly saved very likely Calgary goals. (In case you weren’t confused enough yet, his all-situations Corsi For on the night was 41.67%, and 5v5 was 48.28%. Apparently he is cursed on paper.)
– Larsson looked pretty good, too. Poised. Doesn’t panic. Klef needs to settle in a bit still, I think, but when he does, these two will be mint together
– Here are some more misleading stats since we’re on it: Larsson had a 34.38% all-situations Corsi For on the night, but could you tell by watching? I sure couldn’t. Could’ve been because he played 47% of his TOI against the Gaudreau/Monahan line, as per WheatNOil on Twitter (https://t.co/GqjIhEuD8r). He also started 75% of his shifts in the defensive zone. Leaning on him heavy already, I like it
– Poolparty got his 1st NHL goal on a beauty snipe under Elliott’s wide-open right arm. That’s nice. :] He also lead the team with a ridiculous 76.19% Corsi For rating in all situations, which came back down to earth a little bit at 5v5 with 58.33%, but still really good for the rookie’s first game in the bigs
– Brandon Davidson single-handedly saved, at least from what I saw, 3 sure Calgary goals. Some went off a well-positioned skate, some off his stick, some from getting his body in the way of a player in front of the net. BDavey is just so good and so solid, and that leads me into the other part of the night…

Things that sucked a little:

– So Tkachuk Jr is kind of a shithead, hey? He straight up slew-footed BDavey and he never returned for the 3rd. Still awaiting word on his condition/timeline for return. Fingers crossed it was precautionary. This kid just has no luck
– The Oilers allowed two pretty sloppy short-handed goals there in the 2nd, in what was just a classic #HereComeTheOilers 2nd period. I’d like to know the statistical metric that describes how we’re just so bad in the middle of games when we can start and end so strong
– Talbot was not the sharpest. He did stop 37 shots, but let 4 in for a .902 SV% in his first start of 2016-17. I mean, it’s no Brian Elliott .778 SV%, but we know he can be better. I chalk this up mostly to opening night/new building/don’t screw up this game of all game jitters
– Lucic played just okay. He sure made his presence felt early on when the Calgary goon squad figured they could throw McDavid around without repercussion, so that was good of him. But he gave up a really bad 2-on-1 opportunity and actually accidentally knocked one of those Calgary shorties in. So it’s just a matter of finesse at this point for him, I think. I hope.

Anyway. Numbers and analysis aside, we won 7-4 and start the year on a good note, and almost as importantly, Calgary starts the year on a lame note and that feels just as good if I’m honest.

Edmonton Oilers, International, Michael Sifeldeen, NHL

McJesus and the World Cup Promised Land

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(I’ve got a copy of The Hockey News’ World Cup preview magazine in front of me as I write this, so if you’ve got a problem with any of the stats I’m quoting, take it up with them.) Ok, perfect. While the hockey world tries to figure out if they give a shit or not about the World Cup of Hockey, I’m sitting here looking at the rosters and immediately coming to the conclusion that Team North America is the team to beat, and then also seeing quickly after that no one who matters agrees with me. So, now, I’m going to go over a few key World Cup facts and figures here, and inject a healthy dose of bias and starry-eyed opinionated commentary to try and pull you firmly onto the Team NA bandwagon with me. Many of our more naysaying readers may be saying nay right now to Team North America’s chances of winning this tournament, and I’m going tell them, in as many words, why they’re dead wrong. Ready? Let’s do it.

Team NA is not significantly smaller or lighter than the other teams

Here are the average heights and weights of all the teams competing in this tournament:

Canada: 6’2″, 207lbs
Sweden: 6’1″, 200lbs
Finland: 6’1″, 199lbs
USA: 6’2″, 210lbs (Jesus Christ, get out of here, Byfuglien, you’re screwing up the metrics)
Russia: 6’1″, 200lbs
Czech Republic: 6’1″, 205lbs
Europe: 6’1″, 204lbs

And finally, Team North America coming in at a very respectable average height and weight of 6’2″, 200lbs. The NA boys have an inch on 5/8 teams, and weigh the same as or more than three others. This is a non-issue at these averages.

Team NA is significantly younger than any other team

The average ages of the World Cup teams:

Canada: 28.7
Sweden: 28.7
Finland: 25.9
USA: 29.0
Russia: 27.0
Europe: 29.9
Czech Republic: 27.3

And again, we have Team North America coming in at a young, but respectable, 21.7 years old on average. This is an age range where most of the players have about two-to-three years in the NHL under their belts, so they’re not green rookies, and they are at the age where their speed and reflexes will almost certainly be at or near their career high.

Team NA is Faster Than Any Other Team, and It’s Not Close

McDavid, Eichel, Larkin, Gaudreau, Droin, MacKinnon… this team is obscenely fast. Tell me how the defensive monsters on the Canadian squad like Doughty and Weber, or the Americans’
Johnson or Byfuglien are supposed to exert their power over these kids if they’re too big and slow to even keep up with them? Which leads me to the next point…

Defensive Size and Grit Won’t Matter*

It’s important to keep in mind that this isn’t a typical NHL playoff series grind, and won’t even really be reminiscent of regular season games. This is a short tournament. There won’t be significant contact, certainly no dirty plays with an NHL season about to start and a KHL season already underway, and fighting is out of the question. So where exactly do the big, intimidating bodies of the other national teams have a significant advantage over the quickness and skill of the North Americans?

*(09/10 Post-pre-tourney CAN vs USA games update: … *Except* for the CAN/USA games, apparently. Jesus.)

Plus, the Team NA Defensive Lineup is Amazing in Its Own Right

Ekblad, Ghost Bear, Jones, Murray, Parayko, Rielly, and Trouba? Are you kidding me? You’re looking at the future of NHL defence right now, and these guys haven’t even entered the prime of their careers yet. They’re dynamic and intelligent, and they can eat minutes along with the best of ’em. I’m not even kind of worried about this aspect of the team.

Don’t Worry about Team NA’s Goaltending

I laugh really, really hard and obnoxiously every time someone says the goaltending of Team North America is going to be their achilles heel. Yes, I too am super concerned about rookie-playoff-record-15-game-winning-Stanley-Cup-champion Matt Murray and All-Star Game player and Ducks’ 23-year-old bona fide starter John Gibson.

Puh-lease. These guys are killer. Obviously they’re not a Carey Price or a Henrik Lundqvist yet (I spelled The King’s name right the first time, just so you know), but what does that matter in a tiny preseason tournament? We aren’t testing these guys over the course of a 60-start season.

That’s the root of the problem with most criticism levied at this squad: it presumes the need for a bigger sample size than is necessary or warranted for the format and length of the tournament. Is anyone arguing that, historically, experience and grit wins championships? Of course not. But for the glorified preseason exhibition series the World Cup is poised to be, traditional evaluative factors don’t apply. Team North America is going to skate circles around the competition. They’re going to score ridiculous goals and come up with whacky, inventive shit that will wins them games because they’re young and fast and skilled, and that’s what’s going to matter.

In Conclusion

I wrote the bulk of this piece before the first pre-tournament games had taken place, so let me just acknowledge how wrong I was about the whole “no dirty plays, etc” bit. Clearly I underestimated the classlessness of some of the American squad (*cough*Kesler you still suck*cough*). So let me amend part of my statements to say that, for the majority of the teams, this isn’t going to be an all-out war of who can play the most boneheaded and outmoded brand of hockey.

I stand by my overall assessment that the North Americans are going to win it all based on their skill and speed, because they’re never going to have to play the Americans, because the Canadians will dispatch them before the group final round.

Where North America will win.

Because McJeez/Johnny Hockey/Eich is the most ridiculous first line I’ve ever heard of in my life and I refuse to stop fanboying. Goodnight, and may god have mercy on the rest of the world’s souls.

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