On Nov.28th, famed Oilogosphere icon Allan Mitchell aka Lowetide made this prediction on his morning show,
This next couple of weeks is going to be very important for the Edmonton Oilers for lots of different reasons.
Number one, they’re very close to being in a playoff spot but now what you wanna do is you wanna get there because if on December 26th you wake up and you’re in 3rd place in the Pacific and you’ve got a two point lead over the 4th place team, it’s not an assurance you’re going to make the playoffs but you’re in it; and at that point or sooner, I expect the Edmonton Oilers are going to make a trade.
BOOM SHACKA LACKA! (OG NBA Jam fans will remember that)
Now, I haven’t heard any rumblings from those that I hear from but Lowetide has started out well here and the scenario he paints makes a lot of sense. I wonder, however, what might happen if they’re more than two points ahead of the 4th place team or even in second place in the Pacific if they’d still go ahead and make a trade.
Let’s continue with more of LT’s prediction now because this is where things start to get good.
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… and it’s going to be for a scoring right-winger. It’s likely going to be for a player who can play with RNH and move up and also be a part of the PP. I said on my blog today Bill Guerin, well he’s not out there. 25-year-old Bill Guerin, if he does exist, he’s not coming via trade in the middle of the season.
Bill Guerin was a beauty back in the day and it’s a shame he didn’t spend more time as an Oiler.
So LT reckons the Oilers will go after a scoring right-winger eh? I’d love to know what teams are looking to rid themselves of that kind of player this season and no doubt, this is the kind of player that might make some nice scratch.
Earlier in the year, you might’ve guessed that the Rangers would be auctioning off their best players to the highest bidder but they’ve been solid so far. Same with the Ducks but they’re fighting for the Pacific Division lead right now and probably aren’t looking to shake that roster up so much.
Lowetide didn’t stop. He had more to say on the topic,
The Edmonton Oilers need a piece there. I guarantee Ken Hitchcock has already identified it. We’re going to find out how much pull Hitchcock has because as a coach he sees what he has, he sees what he doesn’t have and now he knows what he needs and I bet you he’s already asking for it.
It’s my understanding that Hitch has a lot of pull. I mean just look at how quickly Jesse Puljujarvi was brought up and how fast Chris Wideman was brought in. Plainly put, Chiarelli is at the coach’s beck and call.
He didn’t come here to finish in 10th place in the conference. He didn’t come here to finish just outside the playoffs. He came to make the playoffs and you need that piece.
Right-handed shot. Powerplay guy. Rugged enough and fast enough to play the Hitchcock system. That player’s on the way.
I believe this as well. 66-year-old Ken Hitchcock is living a dream right now and there’s no way in Sam’s green Hell than he’ll let it turn into a nightmare. There’s so much on the line for him it’s not even funny.
I wrote a post over at The Hockey Writers pontificating on where or not the Oilers and Blues would get together on a deal involving Vladimir Tarasenko. It was not long after Elliotte Friedman had made mention of how the Blues have not always been happy with Tarasenko’s play since he signed the big deal.
I would be flabbergasted if Peter Chiarelli found a way to acquire Vladimir Tarasenko. He’d be a near perfect fit for what the Oilers are looking for but at what cost, right?
Mitchell had his thoughts on what the price might be to acquire this missing piece,
The first round pick is going.
Puljujarvi doesn’t have the kind of value that people think he does nor does Kailer Yamamoto and you’re not trading Evan Bouchard. So it’s the 1st round pick.
If the Oilers could get away with sacrificing the 1st round pick in the 2019 draft lottery protected and bring in that volume shooting righty, that would be some magic.
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This is all fine and dandy that we’re talking about the Oilers going out and picking up a right winger for Nuge’s line but there’s just one thing. Where would that leave Jesse Puljujarvi?
You could move RNH to left-wing and Leon to center on the 2nd line and leave Pulju there and that would be a pretty damned good line, right? Then the new guy could go up to McDavid’s line but then you’d be left with Alex Chiasson playing the off-wing with Connor or on the 4th line.
The other option would be to move Jesse to the Spooner line but if you’re going to do that, you might as well trade him or send him back to Bakersfield. I imagine the newly acquired Valentin Zykov will feature on that line at some point too.
Two other players that might get left out in the cold here are Jujhar Khaira and Drake Caggiula. Caggiula had Drew Doughty in his pocket the other night and I think he’s a player that the Oilers should try to hold on to. As for Khaira, I love how he uses his strength to protect the puck and he’s been showing flashes of brilliance but on the other hand, he’s been wildly inconsistent this year.
My guess would be that Jesse and the 1st rounder would go out in exchange for the player that Lowetide is describing and from the picture LT is painting, he could be talking about the following players,
Brendan Gallagher (MTL) – A right-shot local boy who shoots like there’s no tomorrow, plays massive TOI on the PP, is rugged, and can finish. What’s not to like?
Josh Anderson (CBJ) – Big frame. Will fight anybody. Can skate, shoot, hit, pass, etc. Might be the closest thing to Bill Guerin in 2018 that the Oilers can get their hands on. He’s also on a cheap deal but would Columbus part with him?
Travis Konecny (PHI) – I have Konecny on here because I feel like Philly is going to blow things up. I like this player because he’s quick and the Oilers don’t have a lot of quick players per se. He also draws a lot of penalties.
What I did was look for volume shooters who play RW, are a right-shot and spend a bit of time on the PP. An unforeseen bonus that popped up was that none of those players have clauses that would prevent their current teams from moving them.
I don’t know if I’d pay Puljujarvi AND a lottery protected first round pick for anybody aside from Brendan Gallagher on that list though.
What do you think about Lowetide’s prediction? Let us know in the comments below and enjoy the Oilers/Golden Knights game tonight!
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I thought my previous post on the mainstream media’s comments on Jesse Puljujarvi was a lot. Yesterday I woke up to TWICE as much and now I’m going to bring that to you but I think today I’ll just post the most debatable points that the pundits made. I’ll save you (and me) some time.
Before I do that I just want to touch on Jesse and let you know what I’m thinking with regards to his situation at this very moment.
You’re not going to find a bigger supporter for Jesse Puljujarvi who doesn’t live in Canada or Finland than myself (and maybe another, I think she knows who she is) but I can see that this young man is struggling. He’s struggling with his teammates, his coaches, and a game he very dearly loves and that he’s SO so good at playing. I do not believe that he has the right support structure in Edmonton for him right now though.
As far as I know, he’s rooming with the Koskinens and if that is indeed true, it is a good place for him because he needs the camaraderie of a fellow countryman. Someone with whom he can relate to. Mikko Koskinen was also a touted young prospect that didn’t pan out at the pace he was expected but I’m not 100% certain that even big Mikko alone can help Jesse.
He needs the support of the Oilers leadership core. He needs Connor to go to bat for him. He needs Milan to sit beside him on the bench and offer words of encouragement or let him know where he could’ve done something better. Leon should be offering to set some time aside to work on some things with Jesse after practice and make an effort to work towards developing a potentially deadly partnership. Could Darnell take him out on the town and show some off-ice togetherness?
It’s so very apparent that the coach wants nothing to do with him and that he’s exhausted efforts in an attempt to communicate with Pulju and that makes me feel disappointed.
But on the other hand, it’s also incumbent on Jesse to take the first steps in asking for help. He’s a timid fellow which is fine but he still has to make that effort to go to his leadership group or his coaches and ask them to show him what he needs to do to make things easier for all and then work on those things.
I want the best for Jesse and I want the best for the Edmonton Oilers. That said, there’s something I’ve learned over my years following the team and that is that players will come and go and not to get too attached no matter how much you like the player. If Jesse or Leon or God forbid, Connor gets traded I will feel down but I’ll also feel relieved for him and I’ll wish him good luck on his new team. The same way I did with Nail Yakupov (or maybe the same way you did watching Ryan Smyth or Taylor Hall) and others who I’ve enjoyed watching play for the Oilers.
But if the Oilers were to meet an ex-Oiler that I really liked during his time in Edmonton in the playoffs or the Stanley Cup final, I’ll be cheering for the Oilers. No questions asked.
Let’s see what the pundits had to say about Pulju yesterday. I think you’ll be very interested in Brian Burke’s comments.
FRANK SERAVALLI (TSN)
That sound you hear is me banging my head off the desk repeatedly for the next hour trying to sort through this because I’ve said and I’ve been on record for time and time again with you (Lowetide) last week, Jesse Puljujarvi needs to play more not less. He needs to have more consistent shifts with upper echelon talent instead of playing with guys like Ryan Strome for most of the game.
This is not a guy you can just throw in there (the top-6) for spot duty with the big boys. You need to have him play, that’s the only way his game is going to become remotely more polished.
DARREN DREGER (TSN)
I get the feeling that they’re just trying to exhaust every scenario with Puljujarvi because I think that there’s been enough in his play to show them that there’s a really good player that’s just waiting to break out of this guy. They can’t coax it out of him on a consistent basis.
The question I always ask, and I’ve asked it of the Edmonton Oilers – not recently, but perhaps in the off-season – is at what point do you get where you go, ‘Alright, we’ve seen enough to know that maybe he’s not going to be the player that we hoped he would be when he landed in our lap on the draft floor.’
Well, that’s not an indictment on the player or the organization – sometimes that stuff just happens, so at what point are you better to use him as a tradeable asset? And at least in the off-season, the message that I got back was – they wouldn’t even discuss it with me. It was like, ‘We’re not trading Puljujarvi.’ They just didn’t want that narrative out there at any point.
And look, 10 games from now, 15, 20 – whatever the timeline is in this regular season – we might be signing a completely different tune because he’s playing with that consistency that everybody is searching for. (source)
RYAN RISHAUG (TSN)
Not only is he not creating offensively and having positive things happen for him offensively on a given night but he’s starting to make mistakes and do things that are costly and the Oilers are at a pivotal point in their season where they can’t be developing a player on the fly in the games against this kind of competition.
There are two conversations here, two different focal lengths. How do you feel about Jesse Puljujarvi being scratched tonight and that (above) would be the answer to that question. Completely different conversation, how do you feel about Jesse Puljujarvi’s development and the way the organization has handled it from draft day to this point?
Rishaug on Accountability
I think coddling him to the point to where when his play dips to unusable status, I think you need to hit him with a natural concequence and I think you need to let him get right back on his horse and see how it goes.
If it comes to the point to where they’re considering doing it again, send him to the American Hockey League. Enough is enough.
Rishaug on Expectations
The organization expected this player to develop quicker and you can tell by the way they handled him. Straight to the NHL out of the draft then they realized it might be a little early, sent him down, then after some success brought him back and then last season they did their best to believe he was a full-time NHL player and for tiny little portions here and there he was. Still poured in 12 goals last season but the base has not been built in Puljujarvi’s game and the coach does not trust him enough to use him enough to justify having him here.
A Reasonable Comparison?
We’ve seen this with other players, I mean Adrian Kempe is a good example. 16 goals in 81 games last season, drafted a few years ago and 1 goal in 9 games this year. Down to the minors he goes. Drafted as an offensive player to be an offensive player and hasn’t been and so down to the minors he goes and this might just be where it lands. Let’s see where Puljujarvi rebounds.
BRIAN BURKE (SPORTSNET/HNIC)
Remember Henrik Sedin? He didn’t put up any meaningful numbers until his fourth year after he was drafted. Remember Daniel Sedin? Same thing. Remember Markus Naslund? So you gotta be careful.
And I can tell you, it’s very fashionable to criticize the Edmonton Oilers and say Puljujarvi is a bad pick. We all had him there. We all loved him. We all think he’s going to be a player.
I’m telling you, the Calgary Flames had those guys in the exact same spots or close to, within one or two. We had Puljujarvi, we loved him, absolutely loved him. So did every other team. So if the Edmonton Oilers blew that pick, a lot of other teams would’ve done the same thing. Peter Chiarelli got offers for that pick so teams could leapfrog Edmonton and take Puljujarvi.
Burke on Trading Young Players
You’d better not be too impatient because the best trade Pat Quinn ever made, he made a ton of great trades, was when he got Markus Naslund from Pittsburgh for Alex Stojanov.
LOUIE DeBRUSK (SPORTSNET)
This is a young man who’s still trying to find his own way and if I was speaking to my own son I’d say control the things you can control, don’t worry about the things you can’t.
Right now I think there’s some expectation there from Jesse’s perspective where he’s thinking he has to do more and in reality I think he has to do less in the sense of basic down the game.
I would tell him to be the hardest working guy on the line each and every night. Go out there and make it known that you are the guy that is working the hardest on the ice.
DeBrusk on Mindsets and Consistency
When you’re a dominant player like Puljujarvi was in his younger years, big physical specimen, bigger than most of the guys he was playing against. He could manhandle, drive through, he was like a bulldozer going through the middle of the ice. I saw so many highlight reel videos of him just kinda dangling through people, blowing past guys getting off that wrist shot and getting a goal. Different animal here in the NHL and he’s still finding that out but he has it in his ability to do it because we saw that speed. It’s a matter of doing it consistently.
Here’s the other thing, when you have that mindset as a top-rated guy it’s sometimes hard to go back to the ‘Let’s put the work boots back on and drind this out’ type of an attitude.
If you want to play with better players make sure you’re playing harder than those guys are playing and everybody will want to play with you.
LOWETIDE (TSN 1260)
The organization has handled this player poorly. Puljujarvi has far too much skill to give up on, or trade for 10 cents on the dollar. His game has been broken. It might be time to repair and rebuild in Bakersfield. This time next year the Oilers won’t be able to send him to the AHL without waivers. For Oilers fans, the blame game (player, coach, general manager) is less important than unlocking Puljujarvi’s considerable talent while he is an Edmonton Oilers winger. What is best for his development should be the only consideration. (paywall source)
What do you think after reading this group of hockey analysts’ opinions on Jesse Puljujarvi? Let us know in the comments and also tell us what you’d do with him?
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It seemed like everyone was talking about Jesse Puljujarvi yesterday on Oilers talk radio or in the blogosphere. I counted 7 different personalities commenting on him and I’m going to share what each of them said for you and then you can decide if you believe they are talking out of their aces or what they’re telling us holds water.
If I missed anybody please let me know! Buckle up because this is a long-form post this morning.
**I started writing this post early in the morning Edmonton time (late night Taipei time) and now that I’ve awoken here in Taipei I can see there’s a shite ton of posts on this with much more opinion. But I’ll be honest, I’ve not got the time to go through all of that. So I hope what I’ve presented to you is of value and if possible, I’ll put out a part 2 if the messages have changed. – BLH**
Veikko. "Deserves more"? I believe in Jesse. But he has to EARN currency with his teammates and the coach. Puljujarvi remains a work in progress and needs to better understand the nuances of the NHL game. Patience! https://t.co/fR9xH67IZk
Merriam-Webster defines the word nuance as “a subtle distinction or variation”.
“EARN”
“CURRENCY”
What the f*ck is Bob talking about? How in the world is Puljujarvi supposed to “earn currency” on the 3rd line and the 2nd PP unit when neither line really gets enough TOI to make a noticeable impact on the game? Maybe someone will tell us below.
Here’s what the several different pundits had to say about Jesse Puljujarvi yesterday on Oilers talk radio or the blogs.
BOB STAUFFER (OILERS NOW)
Everybody’s just gotta relax here. But I personally don’t believe that Puljujarvi should be on the 1st unit PP and based on his play over the last three of four games, there’s no way you can play him with McDavid and frankly, I think the best spot for him is to play him with Strome and Lucic on the 3rd line. Give him matchups against 3rd defense pairings, give him 2nd unit PP time.
He has to learn the nuances of the North American game.
There’s something there with the player but it’s not happening so far and for those of you who have revisionist history that say “Well, the Oilers took him too high.” Guys were ready to block slapshots in the nude when Puljujarvi fell to Edmonton at four. The Oilers had him ranked 3rd on their board. They did not have PL Dubois ranked in their top-4 because they had Sergachev ranked 4th and they thought they were going to get Sergachev at the draft. You can argue they should’ve had Tkachuk ranked higher. Fine. I personally like Tkachuk, I understood the concerns with him. His skating was a little bit of a concern, the fact that he was playing with a broken ankle in the Memorial Cup that year, I liked a lot about what Matthew Tkachuk brings.
But in terms of Puljujarvi, I don’t think he should be handed front-line opportunity and I still think the Oilers need to be patient.
The only way I’d consider trading him is if you got another really good young prospect back. Would you trade him for Anthony Mantha from Detroit who’s minus 12 in 9 games this year and has got one goal? He’s 24. He scored 24 goals last year. Would you do a deal like that?
CRAIG SIMPSON (HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA)
I go back and I’ve said it I think many times to you (Stauffer) and about different players, I’m a firm believer in taking responsibility as the player and you can sit in an armchair and say he’s not getting this chance and he’s not getting that chance.
You have a chance everyday, everyday at practise, every single game, to show that you’re ready to play and make an impact and the difficulty of becoming a really good everyday NHL player is that consistency factor. Can you do it night-in and night-out? it doesn’t always mean that it’s scoring goals and I’ve said to you (Stauffer) before and I heard you talking about Hemsky and I’ve relayed a number of stories talking about helping him as a rookie trying to understand what we’re trying to get out of you as a player.
It’s not about cheating and trying to score goals, it’s about how you have to play to have success to stay in the lineup, to play bigger minutes and the goals will come on the heels of that.
I’ve just said watching Jesse in the American League, I just found at some point you have to take that responsibility of being hard everyday and being an impactful player and being impactful doesn’t mean scoring a goal.
Being impactful means playing with that energy and drive every game, getting in on the forecheck and you turn pucks over. Can you make some plays? Can you forecheck hard and play a couple consecutive shifts in the offensive zone?
All of those little things will build up that currency you’re talking about for Puljujarvi and I’m a firm believer when you start on a consistent basis playing that way everyday, the goals will come and the offense will come on the heels of that but I think a lot of times guys expect the offense to be there without putting in that work
JASON GREGOR (TSN 1260)
Part 1:
I’ve said this all along. I wouldn’t even have Puljujarvi in the NHL.So that to me is on the organization not on Puljujarvi. I’m not upset at Puljujarvi as a player. At all. Do I think he’s NHL ready? No, I don’t. Do I think that’s a bad thing? Not at all. Because the majority of 20-year olds in the world aren’t ready. They’re just not.
We saw a no.3 pick, Dylan Strome, play in the minors last year, why can’t an Oilers 20-year-old play there? It’s not Siberia. It’s not the end of the world if he plays there and if you’re Jesse Puljujarvi, sure it would suck at first to go down to the minors, I get it.
He wants to be playing, he wants to be scoring. You can’t tell me it’s fun and you can’t tell me his confidence is where it should be at this stage of his career. It just isn’t. He’s not making many plays.
So, me personally, I’d send him down there and I’d play him on the top line and I’d play him a ton. I’d play him on the PP, I’d play him on the PK, and if he makes mistakes, I’d put him right back out there because it’s the American League and that’s what it’s for. It’s for developing players. And you have a full-on strategy and you sit down with Jay Woodcroft and you say, “Jay, we’re playing him this many minutes a night because he needs to get his confidence back and it might take some time. Deal with it.”
Part 2:
It’s never about a coach liking or not. Everybody has different things that they look for. I think there’s a lot of fans who love Jesse Puljujarvi, they like his attitude, they like that he hitches rides from Oilers fans, and he’s just a down-to-Earth good kid. What’s not to like? I totally get it.
But you want him to develop. You want him to be an NHL player who could be a difference maker for you in the future. Could be a complimentary top-6 forward. Probably that’s the minimum you’d like from Jesse Puljujarvi.
Is he showing anything right now that says he’s close now? What’s wrong with a stint in the American League?
I think the organization has to get over this stigma that they have with the, “Oh geez, we can’t send anybody down there…” And the thing is they already sent him down. He’s been down there for parts of the last two seasons. So he’ll survive. He’s not gonna wilt at all. He could do it. I totally think he could do it.
Because if it continues and when Ty Rattie and Caggiula and those guys get healthy, I don’t want Jesse Puljujarvi playing on the 4th line. And if the other guys are doing more then they deserve to play because the no.1 important thing for the Edmonton Oilers this year as an organization is to win games. That’s the no.1 important thing and at the same time you have to figure out how to develop your players.
Easy Solution. Play the guys that give you the best chance to win here and if you can develop Puljujarvi and he gains his confidence and he can give you a better chance to win next year, that’s what I want. Because right now, the way he’s played, he’s not doing enough to really impact games.
There are ways to help the team win without getting points and you’re not seeing a lot of that from Puljujarvi. A) He’s not playing a ton of minutes. He’s not doing a lot and he’s a young player.
So I would definitely give him a stint in the American League and I wouldn’t look at it as a negative. I’d sit down and have a mature conversation with him and say “Jesse, we need to get your confidence up. We know your confidence isn’t high. We think you’ve got a lot of pieces that could make you an NHL player but you gotta be playing and you’ve got to be playing a lot. We want you to be on the PK.”
Because look at Jesse Puljujarvi, look at his stick length and everything. Wouldn’t he be a good penalty killer? He could be a guy who could be in your top-6, your PP and your PK. Why not? Let him try it in the American League.
Part 3:
Puljujarvi is a player who doesn’t look confident making plays. He doesn’t look confident thinking the game. He’s also only 20 years of age. I don’t expect him to be ready.
So, for me, I think the Edmonton Oilers got to wake up, grab a clue, and send him to the minors. Shane Doan went down his third year after playing two full seasons in the NHL and Puljujarvi has been 10 games in the AHL last year, 39 the year before. Wouldn’t be the worst thing for him.
Yeah it sucks for your ego short-term but I’ll tell you, if you could talk to Jesse Puljujarvi as a 30 year old and if that meant that going down to the minors for 40 games when he was 20 allowing him to have a ten year NHL career making millions of dollars. He would gladly take it.
RAY FERRARO (TSN)
When I watch Puljujarvi, I see some really good things and then I see some and he looks like a timid kid.
Why don’t they send him down? There’s a couple of reasons I can think, one is cover your ass a little bit. You’ve got another high draft pick and it looks like a failure when the other three guys ahead of him in the draft are already playing in the NHL and they’re producing. Maybe that’s some of it. Some of it maybe that they feel like they can keep a close eye on his development while he plays sporadically in Edmonton.
I know as a skilled player or a player that was supposed to produce, it’s really difficult to have the confidence to make a play when you know that if you make a mistake you’re going to lose your spot, you’re going to lose your ice, you’re going to sit for five or six minutes. So you make the safe play all the time.
When I watch Puljujarvi, I think he’s just trying to survive. He’s not trying to produce. I mean he’s trying to score but he’s not trying to produce, he’s trying to survive.
You mentioned 40 games, I think that’s a mistake. If you’re going to send him (to the AHL), commit to sending him. We’ll see you when we see you. You’re going to tell us when you’re ready by being in the American League and being too good for that league.
LOWETIDE (TSN 1260)
I don’t think anybody wants Jesse Puljujarvi to fail. I don’t think Todd McLellan does, I don’t think Peter Chiarelli does, I don’t think any fan wants Jesse Puljujarvi to fail. In fact, I think most people would be delighted because of the strength of his personality and the type of player he could be, to see him succeed.
And I think he will, I just don’t know if it’s going to be in Edmonton.
Last night was a microcosm of Jesse Puljujarvi’s career in Edmonton. He starts on the 2nd line and he ends on the 4th line, which was a disaster. The line itself was giving up goals left, right, and center.
The two right wings in trouble today are Zack Kassian and Jesse Puljujarvi and I’m not ever going to give up on this guy and you have to be patient.
BRUCE McCURDY (THE CULT OF HOCKEY)
He’s really fighting it and you know he scored one point on the year and mind you it was a very important tying goal in the 3rd period in Winnipeg that ultimately laid the table for a two point win for the Oilers in a game they were trailing but he’s had a lot of things go wrong. He’s taken some bad penalties, some questionable line changes, some of his defensive coverage has been a little suspect and he’s playing like a player, frankly, without a lot of confidence.I don’t think he’s got a lot of confidence from his coach at this point either and that can be a concern.
KURT LEAVINS (THE CULT OF HOCKEY)
I like Jesse Puljujarvi lots. But some sure look at the kid through rose-coloured glasses. He is making a lot of rookie mistakes that are causing problems. Late Saturday, the club needed to maintain the pressure on a Nashville team that had played the night but Puljujarvi took a lazy hooking penalty. Against Boston it was that blind pass up the middle. Poor work along the wall against Winnipeg cost his club zone time (but he finished strong). In Boston, we saw bad line changes. Look: Players of Puljujarvi’s maturity will make mistakes. But when it happens to other players (and it absolutely does), I hear calls for benchings. (source)
Leavins also dedicated an entire post to Jesse Puljujarvi here. A very balanced point-of-view in my opinion.
So while the opinions are different there are similar underlying messages we’re hearing here from former NHL players to pundits alike. There’s something there with Jesse Puljujarvi worth saving and it’s incumbent on the Edmonton Oilers to do the right thing for his long-term development.
I think that Jesse will be scratched for the game versus Washington and I’m completely fine with that. If he’s struggling, give him some time off to watch the game from above. You never know what he might glean from it. Besides, when I was growing up prospects used to get scratched all of the time, it was no big deal. The vets got to play.
That said, the prospects used to come up through the minor system until they were ready to play too…
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Another long-form today folks. Set some time aside.
When listening to Oilers talk radio or reading different Oilers blogs and the topic is about Jesse Puljujarvi you’ll hear a lot of “Don’t get me wrong, I like the kid but…” talk or “He’s got lots of potential but…” and I have to wonder why that is. Why is there always a “but”?
In the last two weeks, we’ve heard Bob Stauffer basically threaten Puljujarvi’s career as an Oiler by saying if he didn’t get any traction this year with the club he’d be getting said traction it elsewhere.
We’ve also heard Edmonton sports media folks like Reid Wilkins question Jesse Puljujarvi’s long-term upside in favor of Kailer Yamamoto’s… I mean after 9 professional hockey games you’re taking Yamamoto long term over Puljujarvi because you think he’s got that “extra spark”?
The Oilers have had plenty of players with that “spark” in the past that have come and gone… And what does that “extra spark” mean anyhow? Is that Yamamoto’s style of play? Is it his exuding confidence during interviews? Maybe it’s because his English is a tad better than Jesse’s?
It pisses me off that this always happens in Edmonton. The media find their guy and just rag on him until they’ve got a large enough swell from the fanbase that the GM has no choice but to give in.
Well, the Oilers had better not give in on this kid. He was a gift from the hockey gods and this is only his first contract in the NHL. I always have thought that these young guys should be given at least two 3-yr contracts and have them both seen through until making a final decision on the player unless it’s painfully obvious that they aren’t NHL players like Niinimaki or Bonsignore, right?
Could you imagine if the Oilers had given up on Ryan Smyth after his first year or if the Bruins had thrown the towel in on Joe Thornton after his rookie season?
Look, even though later in the post it might seem like I’m doing this but I don’t want to make this a Kailer vs. Jesse thing because they are both outstanding talents that the Oilers would be good to hold onto at all costs. Kailer is going to set up a lot of goals for the Oilers in the future and Jesse is going to score a lot of goals.
I will put some heat on the Edmonton media though because I think they’re not supporting Puljujarvi like they should be.
Most recently I was listening to the Jason Gregor Show from July 13th and Gregor wasn’t the host, it was former Oilers defenseman, Jason Strudwick. Well, in segment three of the show he had Lowetide on and they started discussing “compete” around the 20-minute mark…
Before we get going I just want to say that I like Strudwick more than I like a lot of the pundits that cover the Oilers. He reminds me of Ostreicher from American Pie a bit. But I’m simply critiquing what he’s said in that segment. I’m not trying to take shots at him, I’m just offering a take on his words and those of Lowetide’s. It’s a wonderfully insightful segment, I just think there are a few holes in their statements.
“I want people that compete, people that can try all over the ice.” – Strudwick
Fair enough, I’d like each player to go balls out for 82 games a year too but as a player himself, he knows that he’s not going to get that from all the guys on the bench 100% of the time. Injuries and slumps slow the best of players down.
“Competing isn’t restricted to your 4th liners or to your 7th defencemen or your backup goalie or that gritty RWer Justin Williams that plays you know, he’s a special game 7 guy. It’s guys that wanna go and get the puck and compete for it and when I’m looking at the Oilers roster I think they have some. I think they have some guys that can find some more and some guys we don’t know if they are or not because they aren’t doing it on a consistent basis.
For instance, I’ll give you Jesse Puljujarvi…” – Strudwick
Okay… Here we go on Jesse.
Before folks were complaining about his “processor” and now it’s his work ethic…
At what point are folks just reaching to find things to talk about this summer? I mean I’m happy we’re not talking about Lucic but shouldn’t we be talking about what Todd McLellan can do to get the best out of Jesse? Why not put a bit of pressure on the coach instead of hanging it all on a just turned 20-year-old?
Strudwick has played with a plethora of skilled yet unmotivated players in his days, so it’s safe to say that he might know a thing or two about players who illustrate excellent work ethic but when I think about a “lazy” player, I think about Patrick O’Sullivan. Is that where we are with Jesse?
“Jesse Puljujarvi to me, he is a guy that needs to be complete compete more often and that just, it should be a given because when Todd McLellan stands on his bench and he looks down in front of him and if I were him and I looked over to Jesse I’m like, “OK, what has he got tonight? First shift, he’s not going? Okay, that’s tough luck”, that’s not good enough. You gotta have guys that are on it all the time.” – Strudwick
As I said above. It’s unrealistic to think that you’re going to get 100% effort from all your boys 100% of the time. The NHL season is long, it’s hard, and just because Puljujarvi is 19 doesn’t mean he’s invincible. In fact, last year was his first real NHL season and that’s not easy for a 19-year-old but he managed to find a way to score 12 goals in that time and it’s completely possible he could’ve scored 20 had he spend the whole year in Edmonton and was afforded PP time.
It’d be nice if Strudwick or Gregor could get one of Puljujarvi’s old coaches on the show and ask him what they think of the former MVP of the WJHCs’ “complete compete”… I bet you they’d hear a different message…
The folks from Finland that I’ve talked to have said to me that Jesse needs some time to get acclimated to a new level and his surroundings but once he’s comfortable, he dominates.
We’re talking about a young man who left his family to live on his own in another city to play hockey at age 13!!! And we’ve got media members questioning Puljujarvi’s maturity and work ethic? You’ve got to be kidding me.
“I think you find for the most part Connor has that, Nugent-Hopkins will do that, we saw Strome get better at that as time goes on; Kassian we seen it in the past, we hadn’t seen it enough last year, I think Brodziak will bring that, Drake better bring that, Ty Rattie has no choice but to bring that or he’ll bring it right back down to the minors, Jujhar Khaira I think can bring that.” – Strudwick
So top-6 centres and bottom-6 grinders are the guys that have that “complete compete”? Shocking.
I know Strome is a bit of an outlier here because he floats throughout the lineup and Rattie is on the top line because he performed well with 97/93 at the end of last year but why wasn’t Lucic included in that group? Where was Leon’s name? Does Aberg or Reider get a mention here or do they lack that “complete compete” too?
If compete means winning possession then how can Puljujarvi be so bad when his possession numbers surely tell us the opposite. I mean compared to a buzzsaw like Drake Caggiula, whose compete is rarely in question but possession numbers are, how can you come to the conclusion that Puljujarvi lacks “complete compete”?
Just because Caggiula is McLellan’s pet doesn’t make his effort anymore existent than Puljujarvi’s.
Now this is where Lowetide chimes in and look, I don’t want to give the impression that I’m shitting on LT. He’s a hero of mine and for whatever reason recently he’s been saying some things that have put me off a bit that I don’t understand.
“When I see Puljujarvi I see a guy that has all the tools to just manhandle people, even if he’s not trying he’s a big kid and he doesn’t even have man strength yet so is that something you can… Because sometimes I think the personality of a player is to be, I’ll use the word ‘docile’, it’s not what I really mean but ‘less aggressive’ and can you coach that into a player or is he what he is?” – Lowetide
Is Alexander Barkov an aggressive player? What about Anze Kopitar? Is Patrik Laine physically assertive? What about Mikko Rantanen or James Van Riemsdyk?
Since when does an introverted personality equate to success on the ice and why would a hockey coach want to try and change a player’s personality? Was Jesse Puljujarvi drafted because the Oiler saw him playing in a different manner than he does today? When he won the MVP of the World Juniors, did we hear a lot of raving about his physical game?
Here is a list of the last 10 WJHC MVPs, how many of them are busts at the NHL Level?
2018 – Casey Middlestadt
2017 – Kiril Kaprizov
2016 – Jesse Puljujarvi
2015 – Max Domi
2014 – Filip Forsberg
2013 – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
2012 – Yevgeny Kuznetsov
2011 – Brayden Schenn
2010 – Jordan Eberle
2009 – John Tavares
“See for me though, last fall, Yamamoto won the job from Puljujarvi and Yamamoto stayed because he won more battles and Yamamoto is 5’7″. He should’ve been going down to junior like after the 2nd game of the pre-season but he kept doing things and he kept winning those little battles in the offensive zone and by ‘battles’ he came out with the puck, he wasn’t physically knocking anybody off but the idea of winning the battle means you win the puck and I just wonder, because I look at Puljujarvi and I mean, some guys run into him by accident and they hurt themselves. So, if he had that mindset a little more or went in there with that as the first option when he headed into the corner I think he could be more effective but I don’t know, we’ve seen big guys, you mentioned Colborne a minute ago, he’s 6’5″ I think; those guys don’t play big.”
Anton Slepyshev was sent down the night before game 1 on a rehab stint and Todd McLellan was still wearing his Draisaitl/McDavid combo hard on. So the idea that Yamamoto “won” the job over Jesse Puljujarvi is overstated in my opinion. Yes, Yamamoto had 7 pts to Jesse’s three but in my opinion, the Oilers had the option to send Jesse down to the AHL that they didn’t have with Yamamoto.
Even LT himself said Yamamoto should’ve been sent back to Spokane after gm 2 of the pre-season. So if that’s the case, did Yamo really earn it or were the Oilers in a bit of a bind due to injuries and a flexible contract belonging to Puljujarvi?
And did Yamamoto score his 5 goals because he took the puck off of someone?
Goal vs. Carolina bounced off his leg
Goal vs. Vancouver was a one-timer from the left circle
Goal vs. Vancouver was an empty-netter
Goal vs. Calgary was all Draisaitl, Yamo picked off a pizza and made Dougie Hamilton look like a rookie.
Goal vs. Winnipeg he basically kicked the puck in the net.
So he didn’t score those goals in the pre-season vs, other teams’ pre-season squads because he was outworking them in the corners. To his credit it though, he was in the right place at the right time.
“I think in that 2016 draft we’ve heard the Oilers really liked Sergachev but I bet they liked Tkachuk too. And I think when Puljujarvi fell to them they took him because they had him at three and you follow your list, right? But do you think they’d done their due diligence on Puljujarvi?” – Lowetide
There’s a lot of right in this quote but there’s also a little wrong. The Oilers were drafting in the top 5. Do you really think that Edmonton failed to do their homework on Jesse Puljujarvi, a player that had been on the radars of NHL scouts as a top 3 pick since he was 16 years old?
McKeen’s, in their 2015 NHL draft preview had this to say about Puljujarvi who they ranked 3rd behind Auston Matthews and Jakob Chychrun:
A north-south threat who excels driving outside defenders and exploiting a heavy shot and swift shooting release. Plays a subtle power game, succeeding with a steady tenacity and compete level. Excels as a forechecking torpedo, dishing out forceful hits and winning battles down low. Pushes back defenders when driving the net ferociously with speed. Not a flashy skater, yet smooth in turns, generates deceiving power,
Misses some east/west agility as well as some balance at top speed. Not the most graceful in startup but makes up for it with a long, dynamic stride. Not a pure puckhandler, misses some in-close control, and can labour with passing accuracy. Makes up for it with his strength and power advantages. Still adding strength to tall yet rangy frame.
Projects as an elite finisher, one who uses size and strength effectively while utilizing an elite shot in prime scoring areas.
This quote from The Hockey News 2016 Draft Preview should shed some light on Puljujarvi’s “questionable” compete:
“Puljujarvi will never shortchange his team in effort. But while he’s hugely competitive, he’s far more than just a high-motor guy. Sometimes people see his competitiveness and activity, they get caught looking at that and forget what a good player he is.”
In fact, according to that issue of The Hockey News, some scouts said that you were just splitting hairs when deciding between Patrik Laine and Jesse Puljujarvi after Auston Matthews.
“Well when the Finnish GM of the Columbus Blue Jackets passed on him at three I was both very happy as someone who supports the Oilers and very scared because I’m like “What just happened?” – Strudwick
“There’s not that many people in Finland. This isn’t Russia where like you live on one side and I live on the other and I’ve never seen you play. Everyone speaks to each other. So did they do their due diligence? I’m not sure about that but I know that a GM that would know him VERY well chose to go with PL Dubois who has turned out to be, at this point, a better player than we see with Puljujarvi.” – Strudwick
Yes, the Blue Jackets GM is Finnish but it’s not like he was living in Finland and getting any more of a first-hand account on Puljujarvi than the other teams, right? If I’m not mistaken, isn’t Kekalainen on record saying that he was after a centre and that they’d been scouting Dubois for quite a while?
As if the Oilers hadn’t done their due diligence on Puljujarvi being in a lottery spot like they were. Seems like a bunch of revisionist rhetoric to me. Was Pelle Eklund busy at the time NOT watching Laine and Puljujarvi tear up the SM-Liigga?
“I think this is a big year for Puljujarvi. I’m a fan of his, I love the size… I just think he could be a really good hockey player. I just hope that he is because the pressure will be enormous. You think it’s bad now on this kid if he has another year where he struggles and they’re not going to be able to trade him for anything. I don’t even want to say what it might end up being but this is a big year for that kid” – Lowetide
LT is right, it’s going to be a big year for Jesse. If he hasn’t felt the pressure yet or got a hint of it 2nd hand from watching Milan Lucic go through what he’s going through, I’m not sure he’ll ever feel it. Actually, I’m not even sure he’s the type that actually feels pressure. He’s always smiling and picking his nose with his tongue.
That being said, I’ve heard Jesse is having full conversations in English now. He’s looking very fit. Like, might give Oscar a run for best abs on the team fit. He’s training up in Oulu with his BFF Sebastian Aho and I’ve heard he’s experimenting with some new skates and a new stick setup.
We’re in for a treat this upcoming season. I hope you’re ready for the PULJU SCREAM!
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This is long form today folks since it’s been quite a while since I wrote anything.
I’ve noticed since the season ended that there’s been an increasing number of not anti-Chiarelli sentiments from the media in Edmonton but definitely a lack of support for the Oilers GM and it’s getting on my nerves a bit.
Case in point. Yesterday on Oilers Now, Bob Stauffer said something to the effect after reading a text message to the show that he wouldn’t have made some of the moves that Chiarelli has made. He also pointed out that some of the moves he would’ve made probably would’ve have worked out. But what’s with the shot at the Oilers GM there? He’s usually a bit more calculated when he takes shots at the team. And look, that’s his opinion too, which is fine.
Then on Lowetide, LT and Young Tyler were discussing the Kunitz quote where through his agent he said that he wouldn’t play for a Western Canadian team because they wouldn’t win anything with their defence.
The quote isn’t the problem I have, it’s that somehow LT and Yaremchuk came to the conclusion that he was talking about the Oilers? WTF? Seriously now!
First off, that Kunitz tweet is shite because look at the Blackhawks defense and tell me that it’s better than any one of the defenses playing in Western Canada.
Secondly, can you explain to me how that Canucks defense is SO much better than the Oilers? After that, can you move on to tell me about the Flames defense that magically got them to the playoffs with the league’s highest goal scoring defender? When you’re done that, can you tell me how that defense got better in the off-season?
Thirdly, let’s count and see how many Oilers dmen played 75 games or more last season…
TWO!!
Two f*cking Oilers dmen played more than 75 games. Jesus Christ this is so infuriating. Darnell Nurse and Kris Russell were the healthiest Oilers last year. A couple of 2nd pairing dmen were charged with carrying the defense while others were out…
You really have to be down on the Oilers to come to the conclusion that Kunitz was talking about them. There’s enough negativity surrounding the team as it is, Would it be too much to ask if ONE of the personalities covering the team injecting some positivity into their point-of-view?
A couple of other things I’ve noticed is there’s a real reluctance to give Peter Chiarelli any credit when something good has been accomplished. Instead, the Oilers organization as a whole is praised… Babyback bullsh*t if you ask me. Get over your ego and do the right thing. You’d really hate it if you accomplished something significant in your life and your circle of friends got the credit.
That being said, Peter Chiarelli is basically the Oilers organization as it stands at the moment, so maybe I shouldn’t be getting so riled about that. Toe-mato, To-mahto…
Jon Willis: Why Does He Hate the Oilers?
That’s me being facetious but sometimes you have to wonder with his hot taeks.
For example, Willis was the first guest on Lowetide’s show yesterday morning and I will give him credit, he said he didn’t think that the Oilers were a slam dunk for the team that Kunitz was talking about and he referenced Vancouver and Calgary as other possibilities.
That’s enough credit for Willis though.
“I’m not as worried about the defense as I’m worried about the wingers”
Here we go!
Willis followed that gem up with a comment about him “knowing” last year’s problem was the defense but went on to contradict himself by letting us know that there were “just terrible circumstances” on that defense?
“There’s a really really really strong chance they’re going to be significantly better on D without doing anything”
Uh. Okay Jon. I agree with you there but let’s go back for a second, do you really know that last year’s problem was the defense or was it the overall health of said defense and how can a team prevent that sort of problem? Do you know any teams that could withstand losing three top-4 defenseman for major portions of their seasons and still be successful?
Pssst. It might’ve been special teams/coaching/goaltending. Pick one but don’t tell me that the portion of the roster most hit hard by the injury bug was the problem you knew about.
“I look at the wings and I don’t know if there’s been a solution offered there yet.”
Over the seasons we’ve been inundated with this message that now teams have to find “value contracts”. Well, what’s more value than what the Oilers have? Is Jon not convinced with what Nugent-Hopkins offered us in the latter portion of the season last year? Was Ty Rattie’s sample size too small? Maybe Kailer Yamamoto and Jesse Puljujarvi don’t pass the analytics sniff test.
Speaking of the Oilers bluechip RWers, how about this quote from Willis?
— B.L.H. (Edmonton Oilers Enthusiast) (@BeerLeagueHeroe) July 11, 2018
You don’t like the idea of throwing Puljujarvi or Yamamoto in the top-9? What in Sam’s hell do you smoke out there man? I get that neither of them is Panarin or Pacioretty but they are on those ever-important value contracts that you hold so dearly. Not only that but Puljujarvi has now played over two years in a top-9 role as a teenager and Yamamoto’s time in the NHL was also in a top-6 role.
These analytics guys don’t get it sometimes.
Obviously Moto and Pulju are in the position they’re in because the Oilers depleted their depth wing in order to pursue depth in goal, on defense, and through the middle with their centers. But I’ll tell you this much, I’d much rather have the depth down the middle. The spine is what makes a team strong.
More specific to Puljujarvi, I think a lot of people forget that he could’ve been playing junior hockey up until now had he been born in North America. He’s not had the easiest of transitions since being drafted by the Oilers and it doesn’t help when we’ve got guys like Stauffer and other folks working for the papers or radio saying that if he doesn’t get any traction this year, he might be getting it with another organization. BRUTAL! HE JUST TURNED 20!
But according to Reid Wilkins, Kailer Yamamoto has the higher long-term upside because he has “that spark”… Give me a break! It’s because Kailer is extroverted and quite confident whereas Jesse is introverted (until you get to know him according to a certain follower of mine) and the guys covering the team can’t get their sweet quote or soundbite from him.
One has to wonder if Puljujarvi was playing with McDavid or Draisaitl for the entire season would he have had higher numbers at the end of the year? Or if the coach had decided to implement him into the Oilers amazing power play, would his stats have jumped up?
Mark my words, if the Oilers give up on Puljujarvi, they’ll regret it more than any other trade that’s been made in the Chiarelli era. He’s a possession beast!
This is a list of players who Puljujarvi has had a better CF% and FF% than in their first two seasons:
Taylor Hall
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Patrik Laine
Steven Stamkos
Nathan Mackinnon
Johnny Gaudreau
Jack Eichel
I could go on but I’ll stop. Of course, we should never use just two metrics to judge a player by but being a possession-positive player from the age of 18 is incredibly difficult and I don’t think the people who have the biggest platforms are saying enough good things about Puljujarvi.
Pulju is going to break out this season. Pro-rated, last year he was on pace for 15 goals. I expect him to exceed that in 2018/19.
POULIOT AND HEMSKY
So Willis’ grand idea is that the if he were GM he’d like to see the Oilers go out and add 19 point man Benoit Pouliot and an ex-Oiler who has never been healthy as depth on the wings…
I’ve said many times before I’d prefer an older team to a younger one but this is ridiculous. Are you kidding me? Does Willis go on Lowetide’s show to intentionally troll the fanbase? He’s almost as bad as Button.
Actually, Lowetide made an astute suggestion in that the Oilers could wait until the new crop of players going to arbitration get sorted out there or perhaps the newly waiver eligible players come available in order to address their depth on the wings.
I’d say their bank account is looking scant though and Nurse is still without a contract. Willis did talk about a team looking to screw over the Oilers by offer-sheeting him to a 7 year deal with $7M a year as if that would be a bad thing for Edmonton… I love Darnell but I’m fairly certain he’ll never be a $7M/yr player…
FRANK SERAVALLI
Last week and into the beginning of this week I was on a tear with regards to what Frank Seravalli had said and I disrespected some people along the way. It wasn’t right and I apologized to those people in private and publicly on Twitter. But I want to get some things clear here.
I was actually more perturbed than upset that Seravalli had described the Lucic/Oilers relationship as “almost untenable”. I could’ve left it where it was but he had to go and take a shot at someone I respect and question his legitimacy as a journalist and it set me off.
The fact that Seravalli attacked Staples and not his story is probably all you need to know about the legitimacy of Seravalli’s claims. Anybody else wondering why none of the other media outlets IN THE ENTIRE WORLD haven’t picked up on this “untenable” situation?
I’m not. Because Frank is either lying or he’s exaggerating for effect. Max Pacioretty and the Habs are in an untenable situation. Erik Karlsson and the Senators are in an untenable situation. If things were that dire, we would be hearing about it.
I’m still waiting for an explanation as to how things escalated from “it’s a longshot” to “they have to trade him right now”. How it’s been explained to all of us is that what Frank says is fact. Take it to the bank! But I can’t get on that train because ever since he started covering the Lucic trade story he’s been all over the place.
June 7th on LT’s show Seravalli said that the “They’re (Oilers) pushing or at least doing their due diligence to try and move on from Milan Lucic if they can”
Then on June 14th Seravalli said, “I’d say it’s a bit of a longshot”, when asked about Lucic being traded.
On July 5th Seravalli said this, “The Oilers situation with Lucic is untenable and he must be moved, whatever it takes”
Then you’ve got him saying one week that the Oilers should go out and add some speed to the wings and after they grab one of the most sought-after speedsters on the market he says that the team is no better.
You know what? Frank, you’re no better.
I hope that he can get his shit together because he’s a young guy and for the most part I really like him. It’s just this latest take on the Oilers that has had me pissed off.
Re: Lucic, even Friedman doesn’t really know what’s going on but he’s not claiming to know something but refusing to reveal what that is.
I see a lot of "I think" and getting his information 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th hand which is never that helpful.
Last point on this subject I’ll leave to one of my favorite followers on Twitter.
worse than https://t.co/gEgfHyetfW keeps story alive in gen way but prevents it fr being disproven. absolute worst thing anyone calling themselves a journalist does it put out non specific innuendo&ask it be “accepted” as fact.btw how is hearing something akin to knowing true?
i deal in sources all the https://t.co/qZ88bchWc1 protect WHO told you but you reveal WHAT told.if someone says here’s a story, but can’t say I told you&can’t retell it but can say X has a problem(for ex)you run.B/c doesn’t pass journalism ethics101&you’re prob being set up.
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