Tag Archives: Ken Hitchcock

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

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Why Hitchcock Was Watching Practise from the Stands.. Again

I woke up this morning to the news that the Oilers head coach was watching practice from the stands again and that Glen Gulutzan was running the show yesterday. This struck me as highly unusual behavior from a soon-to-be hall-of-fame coach. Why would Ken Hitchcock with all of his know-how and expertise all of a sudden start removing himself from the practices? Was it his choice? Did he really need to take a step back and see how the players were performing during the morning sessions because he thought it would be a good idea? Or is it possible that the players have already grown tired of his “schtick” and let the new management know?

I call BS… Why in the world would they be doing training camp drills this late into the season? I get that it was an optional practice but this isn’t the kind of normalcy that happens at a professional hockey club. In my opinion at least.

I contacted someone who is close to the franchise and has been around hockey for a very long time to see what they thought was going on and this is what I was sent back.

Sometimes a coach needs to be told to back off.

Whoa!

Now I know that Hitch is a pretty demanding coach when the cameras and microphones are off but one has to wonder how bad it is if he’s being told to let the assistants run the practices?

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I know that Kurt Leavins from the Cult of Hockey briefly spoke to this in one of his “9-Things” posts recently and this is what he had to say there,

I’m not on the bench. So I don’t know exactly how Ken Hitchcock is with his players, especially when they are losing. But I know enough about him to know that the veteran coach isn’t nearly as charming there as he is in front of a microphone. Look, there’s no question that the players are responsible for their actions or lack thereof. But when I see this club fold and lose leads, I immediately wonder what type of reinforcement they are getting from their head coach. There is a Senior Hockey mentality in some corners that the best thing for a player is to give them a good, hard kick in the ass.

Well, go to any coaching accreditation seminar today. Talk to the best young minds in the profession. The world has changed. There’s a very good reason why there are fewer and fewer Ken Hitchcock’s and John Tortorella’s in the league today. That act doesn’t work. I’m not sure how well it ever did. There’s an off-switch and young players who grew up in a different age in particular use it. I wonder how much of that is at work here? If you think for a second that Hitch’s outburst into the mics last night was the first time he’s said any of that stuff? I have some swamp land to sell you…cheap. (source)

In my whole life, I’ve never witnessed the head coach of a hockey team watch practice from the stands. It’s almost wrong to me but I guess Glen Sather used to do it back in the day. He’d watch from above while John Muckler sorted out the session.

I reached out to a couple of other folks who are my senior and have followed the Oilers since before I was born, these are their quotes,

  • “I do think the Hitch sitting up top in Edmonton was unusual.”
  • “Players sick of him maybe”

Now couple ALL of this with what Friedman said,

16. With Ken Hitchcock watching practice from the seats one day and then blasting the Oilers’ effort following Saturday’s 5–2 loss to San Jose, that there were rumours he’d had enough and would step down. That obviously didn’t happen, but it underlines how tense things are in Edmonton. (source)

Andy Strickland, a St. Louis scribe who’s covered the Blues for many years refuted this comment from Friedman yesterday on Twitter,

Now, if you can find me some proof of this, I’d be happy to say I’m wrong but it’s never been reported that I can find. Maybe this is true or maybe it’s an old friend sticking up for a mentor. It makes sense either way but how come nobody else is coming to Hitch’s aid?

Things are coming to a head here and the conclusions that I’m coming to are thus,

  • The players are tired of these old-school coaches. They’re calling the shots.
  • Hitchcock is tired hasn’t got it in him anymore. He’s not getting the support from above.

So everyone is tired. Tired of the BS. Tired of the losing. Tired of being tired…

I can’t say for sure if Hitchcock will be with the team for the rest of the year but I’m VERY confident in saying he won’t be part of the organization after this season.

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Edmonton Oilers: The One Thing That Would Put the Oilers into the Playoffs

The hockey gords are shining their lights on the Edmonton Oilers as they head into this three-game road trip that’ll see them play the Pittsburgh Penguins, Carolina Hurricanes, and the New York Islanders. You’re probably wondering to yourself how playing those teams could be an advantage to Edmonton, so let me tell you briefly.

  • Pittsburgh will most likely be without Evgeni Malkin after he tried to decapitate Michael Raffl last night. They are also 4-5-1 in their last 10 and have a defense that is not intimidating anybody. Stay out of the box though, PIT has the 6th best PP in the league right now (EDM has the 8th best).
  • The Islanders are a team I expect Edmonton to line-up very well against actually. Not a lot of superstardom on New York, just a lot of hard-working players. This is a system I could see getting take advantage of by Edmonton’s big names as I believe the rest of the roster can run with the Isles IF they can find a way to play the style of game Hitch is teaching.
  • The Hurricanes are surging right now but their goaltending is a major weakness and something I could see them really exploit. The might want to consider splitting up Draisaitl and Connor for this one though. IIRC, the ‘Canes like to have Jaccob Slavin out against McDavid as much as possible. It might even behoove them to go 97-29-93 against the Canes and try to dominate 5×5. I also expect Puljujarvi to have a good game as he’ll be playing one of his BFFs (Sebastian Aho)

The One Thing

I have a belief that successful teams have something (or multiple somethings) that their oppositions loathe coming up against. Be that strong 5×5 scoring, a deadly PP, a stifling PK, unbeatable goaltending, or a punishing brand of physical hockey.

In the past, we might’ve said that for the Oilers it was simply having Connor McDavid in the lineup that would scare the other team but I don’t feel like that’s the case anymore. I think teams with mobile defenses find a way to minimize his effectiveness a bit easier now than they did before. So you shut down him and you basically shut down the team, right?

At this moment in time, the Oilers big threat is their PP. It’s 8th in the NHL right now but that’s not enough for a team that appears thin. I think there’s still part of this team that can intimidate physically but for whatever reason, refuses to engage in games like that. Sure there are a lot of hits (officially) but none that are the kind that really rattle the other teams.

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After the bye week/all-star break, the Oilers were playing so well for portions of the games vs. Philly, the Habs, as well as the Wild. They had the hunger back but minor breakdowns lost them those matches and I think every time that happens the players that are still on the team from the blown lead vs. Anaheim in the 2016 playoffs get flashbacks and they fold.

So for this team to get back into the post-season, they need to get on a run and bring something to the ice that scares the shit out of the other team. That could be McDavid going supernova. That could be Koskinen/Talbot getting hot. Maybe something as simple as running the tables on the faceoff dot or outshooting their opponents (for once).

Their coach is grinding on them and they’ve got to use that emotion that’s building up inside of them from his coaching style and take it out on the other team. He’s got a plan for them and they’ve got to execute it. All they’re required to do is eat some humble pie and get it done for 30 games.

If they can do that and go 3-0-0 on this road trip and then take 2/3 on their next homestand, they’ll make it in. Is that a realistic scenario… Probably a bit of a reach. But I’ve got faith in the boys that they’ll get their heads out of their asses here at some point.

Why Can’t They Win At Home?

I have a theory that the Oilers get rattled easily while playing at home this season. The crowd, the size of the market, the media… The fishbowl.

It’s a lot to take in for a professional hockey player. I don’t believe that they’re not interested in winning and have checked out for the year. I think they’re going the other way to be honest. The players are over-analyzing everything whilst playing in Edmonton. They grip the sticks too hard and when they go down a goal, they go down for the count.

I don’t think letting in the first shot of the game has helped as much as it’s happened either. But, can you imagine how hard it is to play at Rogers Place? If you make a mistake, Hitchcock is all over your ass. If you blow a PP, the crowd is all over your ass. If you lose the game, the media is all over your ass. And it’s not just the local media anymore, the national media is getting hold of this debacle too.

If a roster the likes of Vancouver’s and Minnesota’s can be this close to a playoff spot (or in one), there’s no reason the Oilers can’t make it in.

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Will There Be A Deal This Week?

Bob Stauffer let it be known on yesterday’s edition of Oilers Now that Mark Spector would be joining the Oilers on the road. Not often he does that, so I’m expecting the Oilers to make a move or two in order to get Andrej Sekera back into the fold. Spec has to be there to cover it.

I can’t be sure as to who might heading out but it wouldn’t shock me if one or more of the players in this group weren’t an Oiler next week, Alex Petrovic, Matt Benning, Zack Kassian, Tobias Rieder, and Kyle Brodziak.

I feel like after all the deals are done, we’ll see an influx of players come up from Bakersfield. William Lagesson, Caleb Jones, Patrick Russell, Cooper Marody, and maybe even Tyler Benson are candidates to join the team due to their stellar play this season. I’d add Shane Starrett to that group as well depending on what happens with Cam Talbot (or Mikko Koskinen…).

Bringing Seksy Back

I watched Sekera play in their latest match-up vs. San Diego and he most definitely was in beast mode. But I want to caution you. Don’t get too excited. He’s playing AHL quality opponents, so he’s going to look better by default. I’d also attribute that to a bit of adrenaline going through his system as he has to he feeling so happy to be playing again. That will wear off and when it does, how will he look then? Even with that adrenaline bump, he doesn’t look faster than his AHL opponents and that’s concerning to me.

When Rej gets back to playing for the Oilers, he’d better be paired with someone that can skate (Caleb Jones?) or else he’s not going to be of much help (on the ice) I fear.

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Edmonton Oilers Rumor: Cam Talbot Demands Out

The Edmonton Oilers had that game in the bag, but just as they had the two points virtually locked up versus Philadelphia and Montreal, the wheels completely fell off. Again. The difference being they didn’t even walk away with one point last night.

It really is a bloody miracle that the Oilers are so close to the 2nd wildcard spot AND the bottom of the Western Conference. That can’t be making interim-GM Keith Gretzky’s job any easier.

CAM TALBOT DEMANDS TRADE

I was watching the game and messaging with one of my sources last night and before the game was out, I got this message,

Talbot is done. He just requested a trade. Heard it happened about 10 mins ago. Went up to Keith. He wants out.

Not that this message coincides with the tweet below from TSN’s Ryan Rishaug but it certainly points to a VERY frustrated goalie. A netminder who at the beginning before he was acquired by the Oilers said he didn’t even want to go to Edmonton…

It’s just the repeat story of another goaltender who’s come to Edmonton with arrows trending up only to watch his stock plummet after two or three seasons with the team. To an extent, we could say Talbot has joined the likes of Devan Dubnyk and Laurent Brossoit. But it’s hard when you’ve got one of THE most mentally fragile teams in the league in front of you not doing you any favors.

Last night, Talbot was playing fine until the 3rd period. Then it all fell apart. I think some blame can be laid at his feet (the Kane goal), but for the most part, the defensive breakdowns from the players in front of him (Darnell Nurse for at least two goals last night) are the cause of this apparent trade demand.

I’ve liked Cam Talbot since he joined the Oilers. He and his wife Kelly have been good citizens in Edmonton this whole time and as a person, I don’t think I could find a fault in him, but there are some things about his game that have driven me nuts throughout his tenure with the team,

  • All the times the first shot of the game went in?
  • How many times he got/gets beat glove hand hight…

How in the world does a professional goalie not fix these aspects of his game from one season to the next?

What do you think Cam Talbot was saying to Ken Hitchcock here?

It was said when he was hired that Hitch is hard on his goalies and there were questions as to how long Talbot/Koskinen would be able to put up with it. One of my sources said this about it,

Hitch and Talbot dont get along.

Dallas got sick of him. That’s why this year he was an advisor by title. In reality? They told him to get the fuck out and go home.

Later in the evening after things had cooled down I was texting with a friend of the blog and we were wondering if Hitchcock’s “act” had already worn thin with the players?

Word around the organization is that he won’t be brought back. This experiment isn’t working and the team needs coaches who can get their message across more effectively with this new generation of players.

Even Bob Stauffer is circling around the subject recently on his show. Yesterday, he said if he were Hitchcock he’d try to bring as much positivity to the team as possible right now.

I’m of the belief that they’ll aggressively pursue Connor McDavid’s old coach from Erie, Kris Knoblauch, this off-season to replace Hitch. How many coaches will that be in the last 10 years for the Oilers? We know it’ll be Connor’s 3rd in 5 years when it does happen. Not good…

https://twitter.com/thupka1982/status/1093026004774219776

Hitchcock himself even sounds heartbroken these days during his post-gamers. Last night’s didn’t even hit a minute long. He got a question about his thoughts on the game and then the blown goalie interference call, then it got shut down. Even a man as experienced as himself doesn’t have the answers to what ails this team and now it seems like the roster is in full revolt.

It really is an absolute mess right now and I don’t think anybody knows what direction to go in.

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Edmonton Oil Drops: How Did Darnell Nurse Fare as a No.1 Defender?

We’re two games back from the Oilers’ bye week/All-Star break and Edmonton hasn’t managed to win a game yet. They’ve gone into both matches with a lead in the 3rd period only to lose it and then give up the 2pts in OT. Hey, getting one point is better than none, especially now, but this team has to find a way to stay calm and collected in the third and hold onto these leads.

Truth be told, I’m starting to 2nd guess Hitchcock right now. I was absolutely jacked during his first month, winning AND losing, but now he’s starting to repeat himself during post-gamers saying things like “that was the best 3rd period we’ve played in a long time”. I swear he says something like this every post-game.

It’s not just the things he’s saying, I’m not enamored with how he’s deploying the players either. Who sends Chiasson out in OT simply because he’s right-handed and the faceoff was on the right-side? Nuge was the right guy to have out but I’m still waiting for Jesse Puljujarvi to get his shot in OT. The guy would boss all that open ice. #FreePulju

It’s my belief that the Oilers are looking at a GM/Head Coach combination of Kris Knoblauch (assistant coach in Philadelphia) and Kelly McCrimmon (assistant GM in Vegas) going into 2019-20. I’d be fine with that and if Hitchcock wants to stay on as a hockey ops advisor, I think that would be fantastic too.

My good friend Ryan from edmontonoildrops.ca has another post up regarding Darnell Nurse that I want to show you! Check out a snippet below and then click the link at the bottom to see the full post!

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How Did Nurse Fare as a 1D?

Oscar Klefbom is set to return from injury against the Flyers on Saturday. When Klefbom went down, that created an opportunity for Darnell Nurse to take over as the team’s #1 defenceman. I wrote an article about how we were about to find out what we have in Darnell Nurse at that time. His level of success during Klefbom’s injury is a strong indicator of just how high his ceiling is because he is nearing that magical 300 NHL games played number, which is usually when you know what you have in an NHL defenceman.

We can’t say that coach Hitchcock held Nurse’s minutes back at all. The strategy was not to distribute the minutes more evenly amongst the entire D group. He averaged 26:50 in ice time per night during that stretch. He played in all situations. In addition to leading the defence group in even strength ice time (as he did when Klefbom was healthy), he took Klefbom’s spot at the point on the top powerplay unit, and he continued to play on the penalty kill as well.

How did he do? Click here to head to Ryan’s website to find out the metrics in which Nurse excelled and performed poorly in and if Darnell Nurse has the potential to be a no.1 defender in the NHL at some point in the future. The answer might shock you.

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Edmonton Oilers Opinion: Chiasson Should NOT Be in the Top-6 by @EdmOilDrops

The Oilers have fallen to 4-2-1 under Ken Hitchcock with their loss to Dallas on Monday. In those 7 games, the Oilers have scored only 12 goals in regulation time (1.7/game). In 20 games under Todd McLellan this season, the Oilers scored 54 goals during regulation time (2.7/game). Many were expecting the Oilers to score fewer goals under Hitchcock, but this is ridiculous. Secondary scoring was a concern before the coaching change, but it has dropped off considerably in Hitchcock’s tenure thus far.

Hitch’s first move was to create “The Identity Line” featuring Kyle Brodziak, Zack Kassian, and the struggling Milan Lucic. The idea was to get Lucic playing a more simple and physical game by pairing him with players that have similar styles. McLellan had Connor McDavid paired with Leon Draisaitl at the time of his departure, and Hitchcock didn’t deviate from that. However, he changed McDavid’s usage by double shifting him late in games, especially during games in which there was minimal special teams play. McDavid has been given shifts with a rotating cast of wingers playing on an otherwise scarcely used 4th line. Hitch has said that you have to have two 3rd lines if you plan on winning in the Western Conference. That’s a fancy way of saying that you need every line to contribute something to the game. That hasn’t been what the Oilers forwards have been delivering to their new coach so far.

1.7 goals per regulation contest isn’t going to get the job done on most nights. That’s asking an awful lot of the defence and goaltending, which has inarguably been quite good under Hitchcock so far. The Oilers have allowed 16 goals in regulation time in those 7 games, but 3 of those have been empty netters… 13 non-empty net goals against in regulation time in 7 games (1.85/game) is great!


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The Oilers powerplay has gone 4/17 under Hitchcock (23.5%), which is pretty good… but that accounts for 1/3 of their offence in regulation time under Hitchcock! At even strength, the Oilers have 8 goals in regulation time in 7 games (1.14/game). 1.14 goals per game at even strength isn’t going to cut it. I addressed Chiarelli’s plan for this season in my last article. He is banking on guys who are either nearing or at their peaks to produce some offence for the Oilers. There is offence to be had on this roster beyond McDavid, Draisaitl, and Nugent-Hopkins. It’s up to the coach to get the most out of the players that he has by putting them in positions to succeed. I have loved almost everything about what Hitchcock has done in Edmonton so far, but I don’t think that he has found the best line combinations yet.

Three of the top 6 forwards are set in stone: McDavid, Draisaitl, and Nugent-Hopkins. That leaves 3 wing spots available in the top 6. Those spots are currently being occupied by Drake Caggiula, Jesse Puljujarvi, and Alex Chiasson. 9 of Caggiula’s 10 points this season have come at even strength, which is the best total by an Oiler not named McDavid, Draisaitl, or Nugent-Hopkins. He has been surprisingly effective this year. He has been feisty in the offensive zone in creating turnovers, and he has shown that he has decent hands. I’m alright with Caggiula being in the top 6… for now. Hitchcock has taken responsibility for Puljujarvi’s development, and he has claimed that Puljujarvi will be in a top 6 role within a month (quote from Puljujarvi’s call-up prior to the game in LA). It’s clear that Hitchcock plans to have Puljujarvi in the top 6. I’m also good with Puljujarvi being in a top 6 role because he’s not going to learn anything playing under 10 minutes per night with guys that don’t suit his style of play.

My problem is with Chiasson. Yes, Chiasson is 3rd on the team with 11 goals; but…

Click HERE if you’d like to read why Alex Chiasson shouldn’t be in the Oilers top-6.

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