Tag Archives: Mark Spector

Around the Oilogosphere, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

Around the Oilogosphere – April 15th Edition – Rattie Signs! 10 Things to Watch This Summer, Who’s Calling the Shots with the Oilers? NHL Rumors galore!

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Have you been enjoying these Oilers-less playoffs so far? I know that it’s hard to watch this year when our team is out of it but I’ve been impressed with the Vegas/Los Angeles series so far and I’ve been having a helluva time watching Tampa manhandle Hall’s devils.

Now, if you read my tweets you’d probably think I hate Taylor Hall. I don’t. I think that he’s a supreme talent and very entertaining to watch, I just don’t want to see his teams win. And I think that goes the same for Jordan Eberle and the Isles even though they could possibly be the most exciting team in the league to watch (for now). It’s great that they are having individual success but I simply won’t be cheering for them to win and why should I?

See, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s less about the players and their teams and it’s more about the Oilers fans who bitch and moan every single day about the Oilers trading away Hall and Eberle and sh*t on their own team that they apparently love. I simply don’t get the crying over spilled milk aspect of Oilers fandom.

If Taylor Hall does win the Hart this year I hope he gives Devils’ goalie Keith Kincaid the majority of the credit because without Kincaid’s ridiculously good performances at the end of the regular season, Hall could’ve scored twice as much and the Devils wouldn’t have made it into the playoffs.

Did Todd Have a Hand in The Trades? 

What if Todd McLellan had more to do with trading Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle that you think? Think about it. It wasn’t Chiarelli that moved Hall, Eberle, Yakupov, etc off of McDavid’s wing…

If that indeed was the case, that McLellan gave the green light on trading those players, would you still view him as the good ‘ol western Canada boy that takes responsibility for his team’s record?

*Side note: Just because you say you’re sorry and take responsibility for something doesn’t make it any less bad that it happened. We heard McLellan take responsibility so many times during the year that, for me at least, it lost its luster. That being said, I think he can pull things back together and I’m willing to give him that chance.

Front Office Clusterf*ck

I was listening to the Jason Gregor Show the other day and Jason Strudwick was talking about the recent Mark Spector article that ripped into the old Oilers and their “Red Wine Summits”. And he had a theory that that article was a message being sent by Peter Chiarelli to those above him to back off.

I can buy into what Strudwick is saying here. I think that in Boston Chiarelli had a huge problem with Neely, Sinden, and Sweeney trying to run his show which ultimately led to him dealing Tyler Seguin and I believe he tried to secure his power within the club by demanding he be the president of hockey operations and the general manager when he was brought on by the Oilers.

This will not end well, pro-Chiarelli and anti-Chiarelli fans can agree. If there is some sort of Royal Rumble going on within the power structure of the Oilers management/ownership/coaching staff, it’s only to get worse from here unless somebody goes because you can’t have a GM who’s been promised full autonomy in his contract being undermined by the coach and the cronies upstairs.

The Assistants

Speaking of coaches going places. Bob Stauffer pontificated recently on Jay Woodcroft being sent to Bakersfield to coach that team after they let Gerry Fleming go and there’s been lots of talk about Ian Herbers either going back to the University of Alberta to coach or to the AHL. Dean Millard, on Twitter, said that he got a DM from a man in the know that told him that Jim Johnson will be guy Todd McLellan chooses to sacrifice…

So that’s all three assistant coaches gone (possibly) which could lead the Oilers to hire a guy like Dave Tippett and/or Manny Viveiros and I think eventually that would allow the Oilers to move Tippett right into the head coaching role with Edmonton decided the time was right.

With Tippett, the Oilers would get a defense-first coach and that’s something I think the team needs. They’ve got to get away from trying to recreate the Oilers of the 80’s and create their own identity. And Manny Viveiros would run the PP (This past season he had the Swift Current Broncos PP running at a 29% clip).

There’s no guarantee that an excellent coach like Tippett would even consider an associate coaching position with the Oilers but we’ve seen it before with Lindy Ruff and Davis Payne.

This is a great article on Dave Tippett’s coaching style. Worthy of a few of your minutes in my opinion.

Oilers News

Edmonton Sun – Edmonton Oilers: 10 things to watch this off-season – What should we be watching up to the NHL draft, in free-agency and in training camp? Who’s going, who’s coming in? Here are 10 things to watch for before next season.

The Cult Of Hockey – Edmonton Oilers need a few value contracts, and they may have just signed one in Ty Rattie’s one-year extension -They are an essential aspect of the Salary Cap Era, where there are only so many “big dollars” to go around, and the cracks need to be filled with small ones.

The Cult Of Hockey – Coaching changes are imminent behind the Edmonton Oilers bench – I strongly believe that Todd McLellan will be back behind the bench, to begin 2018-19, but that the men standing in suits around him will look very different.

The Cult Of Hockey –  Palace intrigue at Oilers HQ grows over future of Todd McLellan and others – It looks like the Oilers will go down one of two roads, either getting rid of one or more assistant coaches or getting rid of Todd McLellan and all the asst. coaches presumably.

The Hockey Writers – Oilers Must Avoid Panic Move – Chiarelli’s trading track record is there for all to see and when we combine it with the pressure of the moment, the situation has “panic move” written all over it.

The Hockey Writers – Takeaways From Chiarelli’s Press Conference – Heading into the NHL Draft Lottery on Apr. 28, the Oilers hold the ninth-best odds and have a five percent chance of winning the lottery. Regardless, there are going to be fans clamoring for Chiarelli to be fired this summer. It’s not going to happen.

Oilersnation – Who is calling the shots? – We know that’s going to happen. What I’m wondering, regardless of who publicly pulls the trigger, is who is actually calling the shots?

NHL RUMORS

NHL Rumors: Edmonton Oilers – Chiarelli, Rattie, Nugent-Hopkins, Defensive Needs and Potential Targets

NHL Rumors: Dallas Stars and the Florida Panthers

NHL Rumors: Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres

NHL Rumors: Ilya Kovalchuk – No Agreement In Place With The Rangers, But He Could End Up There

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Around the Oilogosphere, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Prospects, Rumors

Around the Oilogosphere – April 13th Edition – Spector VS The Old Boys Club, Klefbom Trade Options, Oilers KHL Targets, and many NHL Rumors

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I feel bad for a lot of Oilers fans who frequent Twitter. There are so many that are incredibly jaded and/or entitled. Sometimes I have to sit back and ask myself, when will these folks get their break? When will the hockey gods look down on them and give them their due for being so patient and understanding?

I mean so much has been earned and then ripped from the hands of Oilers fan’s hands. It’s a wonder as to why so many stick with the team even though they sound like they hate the Oilers.

If there was just one reason. One reason at all that Oilers fans could be happy about, I wonder what it could be?

Moving on…

The KHL is going to be ripe for the picking this summer and I believe that the Oilers will be targeting some players from that league. My hope is that they bring Vladdy (Hockey) Tkachev back. I watched him, Leon, Yakimov, and Nurse take on the U of A in the Oilers/Golden Bears prospects game a few years back and he was on another level with regards to skill, patience, and hockey IQ.

There’s a Czech keeper named Pavel Francouz who’s been putting up some fairly decent stats over in Russia the past few seasons and I’ve heard he’s looking to come over to the NHL as well.

But here’s the rub… I’m not sure how good their English is and we all know that if they can’t speak English well that probably means they won’t get a lot of TOI if Todd McLellan is running the bench. Right, Jesse?

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OILERS NEWS

Sportsnet – Oilers being held hostage by voices of their past – There are voices in Edmonton. Voices who bear Stanley Cup rings from the Oilers glory years, many of them don’t believe McLellan should be the Oilers head coach. Others would have him remain as a coach, but want to install at least one of their own to help him out.

Edmonton Sun – Edmonton Oilers need to reduce number of starts by goalie Cam Talbot next season – The Oilers won’t say how many games they would like Talbot to play, but 60 should be the max if they don’t want to burn him out before the playoffs,

Cult of Hockey – Why I am OK with Peter Chiarelli returning as Edmonton Oilers GM – Mostly it’s because I saw all kinds of coaching issues with the team last year and believe that is the main issue in the team’s weak showing.

Oil on Whyte – Oilers to Sign Goalie Out of KHL – Will the Edmonton Oilers visit a non-traditional market to find themselves a goaltender to back up Cam Talbot in 2018/19?

The Oil Knight –  Say hello to your next Edmonton Oiler – Now if we assume the Oilers won’t be getting a Top 3 pick and don’t move down in the draft it is unlikely they will get an NHL ready winger at #9 so finding that puck moving Defenceman should be priority #1 even if he isn’t ready for 2-3 years down the road. Why? Well for one…

Oilersnation – Pick Bait – It may be poor asset management to move a pick that will become an exempt asset for a player that will need to be protected. While you contemplate that, I’m going to lay out the only three options I see making sense for the Oilers.

OILERS PODCASTS

Oilers YYC – Episode 42: Chiarelli/Nicholson Press Conferences

Cult of Hockey – The Cult’s “Chiarelli Hints at Coaching Changes” Podcast

 NHL RUMORS

NHL Rumors: Ottawa Senators – The Draft, Erik Karlsson, and the Coaching Staff

NHL Rumors: St. Louis Blues and the New York Rangers

NHL Rumors: Detroit Red Wings – Youth Injection, Mantha, and the Rebuild

NHL Rumors: Dallas Stars and Jason Spezza … Buffalo Sabres and Chad Johnson

NHL Rumors: Toronto Expansion, Senators, Blues, Sabres, Islanders, Stars, Hurricanes and Rangers

NHL Rumors: Bereglazov, Koskinen, Shestyorkin, Hutton, and the Panthers

Friedman | Summer will tell tale of rebuilding Rangers

McKenzie | O’Reilly would be absolute godsend to Canadiens

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

19 Games to Set Up the Oilers for 2018/19 + The Reason Pontus Aberg NEEDS to Play More!

During last night’s Oilers/Sharks game I was pleased as punch to see Edmonton kicking the snot out of San Jose in the 1st period. I thought we might have something here… And then the hit.

Look, the play was moving quickly but that’s no excuse to the clown in stripes with his eyes fixated right on the play in question. It’s no wonder the NHL’s stars are openly mocking the refs and throwing their equipment at them on the ice. It’s BS.

The other thing that was BS was the lack of a response from the Oilers after the incident occurred. Where was Matt Benning’s backup? At least one of Klefbom, Draisaitl, Rattie, or Cammalleri could’ve bull rushed Kane…

I remember a lot of this during Taylor Hall’s days as the de-facto “leader” of the Oilers. I didn’t like it then and I don’t like it now. To me, it displays a lack of togetherness on the club despite what I’ve been told by those I’ve talked to who are VERY close to the players.

Just quick I want to talk about the goals that came after the Kane incident.

First off, it’s a team game and so everybody can take a slice of the blame pie but did Cam Talbot have a chance on any of the remaining goals?

  • Sharks 2nd goal from Braun was tipped by Lucic.
  • Sharks 3rd goal went off of Sekera’s leg.
  • Sharks 4th goal was a roof daddy special but Talbot was out of position anticipating the pass across.

Maybe the 4th goal Talbot could’ve done a better job but I have a hard time faulting him for the first two. I’d say get outta the way Milan on #2 and Leon, you gotta do a better job containing Meier so he doesn’t walk out and get a clean chance on net for goal #3.

If really feels like the other teams are scoring at least 1 flukey goal a game vs. Edmonton this year. I think the Oilers should fire Peter Chiarelli because of that… What?!

Milan Lucic is leading the team in posts hit this year, right? How much would have that turned the course of the game had he scored on that wide open cage?

Anyways, that game is over. Now to look forward to the remaining 19…

This is what I want to see from the Oilers to play out the season:

  • Keep Leon and Connor away unless it’s an absolute imperative that they must be reunited.
  • Put Nuge on Connor’s LW because we need to see what Strome and Khaira can do down the middle. If all three perform well in their given assignments, that will do a few things:
    • It’ll give the Oilers a scoring LW instead of having to trade out for one.
    • It’ll give the Oilers their bottom-6 centres.
    • It’ll give the Oilers a chance to simply focus on re-signing players instead of having to focus on acquiring new ones.
  • Good, consistent performances from the players who are underperforming this year. Those include:
    • Matt Benning
    • Drake Caggiula
    • Oscar Klefbom
    • Zack Kassian
  • For Puljujarvi to go on a nice scoring run to show everyone there’s a player there. Maybe the addition of Pontus Aberg helps that?
  • Connor McDavid’s march to the Art Ross should be fascinating as well
  • But don’t discount Leon Draisaitl’s ongoing assault on the scoring charts. Can he make it into the top ten despite having an “off” year?

Funny thing with Jesse, he’s “only” scored 11 goals and 14 assists in 74 games to date but did you know that by the time Phil Kessel had played 70 games, he only had 11 goals? Did you know Jakob Voracek only scored 9 goals in his first 80 games or that Matt Tkachuk had only 13 goals by game 76. Even Marian Hossa took more than 66 games to score 15 goals.

This is a 19-year-old man-child growing up in front of our eyes. He’s not McDavid and he’s not Leon but he’s going to be a force for this team someday. Book it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0H7LfylDeY

Bloody kid almost fluffed it too… I wonder when he’s going to do something about that twig of his… Seems like it’s more a hindrance than a tool of scoring destruction. Good to see the Grinnin’ Finn smiling again though!

Now sometimes I make the mistake of heading over to Hockeybuzz to read Matt Henderson’s BS and something usually sets me off. Well, today it happened.

In addition to questionable standard scoring stats, Aberg has been challenged to maintain decent possession numbers relative to his team. He was at the bottom of Nashville’s forward group in Corsi, Fenwick, Shots, and Scoring Chances. All the shot metrics. All of them! 

What Henderson didn’t tell you is that Pontus Aberg was near the top of Nashville’s team (and the whole league for that matter) for goals for % (GF%) and high-danger goals for % (HDGF%).

Even higher than Connor McDavid has for Edmonton.

Aberg’s GF% was 62.96% (6th best LWer in the NHL) and his HDGF% was 69.23% (4th best LWer in the NHL). Those numbers are for LWs who played more than 390 minutes and at 5×5 and they’re courtesy of naturalhattrick.com.

If I’m correct, what this means is that when Aberg’s line was on the ice nearly 63% of the goals were scored by his team and nearly 70% of the high-danger chances were converted into a goal for. 

And I’m not sure if Matty-Boy has noticed but the increased possession totals haven’t helped the team score goals let alone win games. As illustrated by the Minnesota Wild being 30th in the league in CF% and Chicago being 3rd.

It’s fine to be good in the shooting metrics but you can’t base your opinion of a player simply on shooting stats.

And one more number to help everyone feel better about the addition of Pontus Aberg. His sv% is 3rd in the NHL at 95.52% and what that tells us is the other team has a helluva time scoring when his line is on the ice.

Now I know that taking a player who’s played not even 60 games and trying to pump his tires isn’t the best use of statistics but it goes the other way too when you’re criticizing a player. His possession numbers are horrid, it’s easy to see that but… #smallsamplesize

So I’ll add Pontus Aberg’s impact in the final 19 games as one of the things I’m looking forward to watching.

Lastly, I was listening to yesterday’s Oilers Now and a few things jumped out at me.

  • Chiarelli had minimal offers coming in.

This coincides with what the Oilers GM said at his presser, that the market was pretty dry. Stauffer also said that Boston trading for Rick Nash hurt Maroon’s trade value and the return Vancouver got for Tomas Vanek killed it.

Was Peter Chiarelli aggressive enough at the deadline? Nobody can be sure but pushing on a closed door is a good way to get shot.

  • Stauffer said he knows for a fact that Tampa was “bird dogging” Maroon because of the questions he was being asked by other scouts AND seeing Tampa Bay’s AGM Pat Verbeek at the Oilers games.

This is interesting because the pundits said there was ZERO interest in Maroon from Tampa…

  • Stauffer also said there was action on Strome.

I’d keep an eye on this. Strome is still a young player and one that can toss up 15 or more goals a year. Could he be sacrificed to bring in an older player at the same price point? I guess that depends on how his final 19 games go, right?

I’ve come to really like Strome. He’s finally finding his stride in Edmonton and his work on the PK since going there full-time has been quite good.

  • Stauffer and Spector asked each other, would you do Klefbom for Barrie or RNH for Barrie?

Both said yes to offer A and no to offer B and I’m in agreeance.

I believe that a lateral move here wouldn’t hurt the team. To me, Oscar Klefbom is a solid 2-way defender but he’s the one with the value and he plays in a position that is a point of organizational strength for the Oilers. His contract is good, his age is good but he’s not making the impact that this team needs.

So if the Oilers could get Barrie for Klefbom, do it. If the Avs insist on Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the Oilers must insist on Barrie and the 1st round pick that Colorado obtained from Ottawa in the Duchene deal because that could very well turn into Jack Hughes aka Pat Kane v2 minus the dirtbaggedness.

  • Chiarelli also mentioned adding speed to his team, more spcifically w/regards to moving the puck.

I assume Chiarelli is talking about his defenders.

This has been one of my major pet peeves this season. Slow puck moving from the defense and I’m surprised that the coaches haven’t altered their gameplans because of it. Have the forwards come down and gather the puck if the defenders can’t pass it fast enough or rush it up the ice.

Whatever he does, it’s sure to divide the fanbase even further. lol

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Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Stanley Cup Playoffs

Oilers/Ducks: The Big Question Going into Game 2

Who really won the Adam Larsson trade?

Ha! I’m just kidding but I’ll touch on the hysteria that was caused when Adam Larsson scored two goals for the Oilers in game 1.

The real question is, How badly is Connor McDavid hurt?

The reason I bring this up is because the panel at Hockey Night in Canada was talking about it briefly during the 2nd intermission if I recall correctly, and then even more briefly during April 27’s Oilers Now! segment w/ Elliotte Friedman.

If you want to skip right to the McDavid conversation, jump to 5:58. I’ll quote some of it below too if you can’t be bothered.

Stauffer – “They brought up the question of McDavid’s health just based on Anaheim’s ability to shut him down. So if you could just clarify, and I know you didn’t specifically state it, but what did get said?”

Friedman – “It was Nick Kypreos and Ron MacLean who were really talking about it, but I didn’t disagree. They showed some video last night of McDavid and he didn’t have, and even Craig Simpson said it during the broadcast, and Simmer I think is really perceptive. He didn’t have “the burst”. We didn’t see him unload the speed and some of that you’ll look at and say, “okay, it’s Anaheim that’s preventing him from doing that.” But the one that really stood out for me is, there was a breakout, I think it was the 2nd period, but they were looking at him… (There’s a part there that I can understand, the audio isn’t great and there’s pucks being shot in the background, I don’t think it’s important to the context of the quote though.) He just didn’t have the burst.

You know, what’s the best breakout the Oilers have? You pass it to Connor and he goes and it just didn’t happen a lot last night.

He took that big hit from Manson, he took that big crosscheck from Sorensen in the last series, and there were a couple of shots of him pulling his equipment or his rib area. And sometimes, you know Bob, in our business it becomes a bit of the Zapruder film, like what are we looking at here? But it was just weird. It wasn’t the Connor McDavid we know.

So we were all wondering if there was something bothering him and I’m sure we’ll find out if it’s true at some point.

So that’s 5:58 – 7:42, and right after Friedman stops talking there, Stauffer breaks into talking about the JFK assassination and therefore ends the conversation of McDavid being hurt. I thought it was an odd way to go about it anyhow.

I didn’t think much of this as I watched the game but after I heard this from Friedman and Stauffer, I thought back and something did come to the forefront of my mind, and what I remembered thinking is why wasn’t McDavid bringing up the puck during the powerplay?

It was Leon Draisaitl that was lugging the puck into the Ducks zone time after time, right? I guess I just thought it was part of the game plan because of Kesler’s shadowing of McDavid but now when I think back, what Friedman said is right. Why wasn’t McDavid holding down the Turbo button?

I can believe this. Klefbom looked like a ghost on the bench during the game where he sat for the 3rd and Draisaitl has been hacking up a hairball during pre and post game interviews for some time now. Pat Maroon is looking a shell of his regular season self and Eberle has gone back into a shell.

Therefore, I believe that McDavid IS dealing with some sort of injury that is holding him back from hitting warp speed. I hope that it’s a short-term thing though and it mustn’t be that bad because Connor was at the optional skate yesterday morning.

But as Elliotte Friedman said, we’ll find out soon enough.

Mark Spector Hates Women and Taylor Hall! What the F*ck Are You Talking About?!!

You’ve read the piece that Spector penned after game one I’m sure and if you haven’t yet, you’ve been exposed to the reactions on Twitter.

I like Spector, he tells us how it is and he doesn’t give a shit if you like it or not. He doesn’t care if you followed the Oilers in the 80’s or if you’re a new fan nor does he care if you are male or female, a cat or a dog, but this article got some panties (or boxers or granny undies or whatever your preference ladies) in a bunch.

Here’s one specific Tweet that lit the hockey world on fire:

https://twitter.com/imfleming16/status/857583513964609536

That part about hockey MEN really pissed off a lot of people and I can see why it would but good lord people! Can we stop playing the victim card here?

“Oh my god, he didn’t say people. He’s a sexist!”

Have I got that right? Or do you actually believe that he’s trolling the entire female portion of the hockey-loving population?

Then I read this article from Megan Fowler entitled, “The Never Ending Breakup”. I’m not sure why I did that. Not that blogs devoted to Taylor Hall are a bad thing but I think Fowler takes it to a near stalker-like level.

“Taylor Hall is the boyfriend you can’t get over because even though you made excuses for why you broke up with him, you know deep down that he’s the best you’ve ever had and the guy you replaced him with is good, but not great. There’s lots of fond memories, and maybe a little regret about the breakup because you know in your soul you made a mistake and no amount of justifying things will make it better. The fact of the matter is that you broke up with him; he wanted to be with you forever and instead of letting him come to grips with no longer being part of your life, you keep reminding him of how much better you are without him. In doing so, however, you draw attention to your lingering affection for him. It hurt your feelings when he said he wasn’t going to pay attention to you anymore, because all you want is for him to look your way. He might actually miss you but he’s never going to admit it, especially not when you constantly drag his name through the mud and compare him to other, lesser, partners you’ve had.”

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It’s a bit much isn’t it? The part where an actual scribe like David Staples, Mark Spector, or Kurt Leavins can’t write an article about the Adam Larsson for Taylor Hall trade and them being in favor of it because it means Fowler will write a rebuttal because she feels they’re taking pot shots at her boy is ridiculous.

Anyways, I’ve gone off on a tangent here. Fowler’s favorite player is Taylor Hall, good for her. But how many articles entitled, “Farewell, My Prince” or “An Open Letter to Taylor Hall”, does the Oilogosphere have to endure?

Coming soon, The Taylor Hall Fan Fiction Collection…

She “covers” the Edmonton Oilers folks…

And of some folks weren’t mad about the “Hockey Men” part, Maybe this little ditty did it for them:

Somebody wondered aloud, forgive me as I can’t remember where I read it, if Hall had crossed Spector somehow and this is his way of getting back at him. Sounds like a long shot but I could believe it.

The problem I find from the Spector article are thus:

  • Show me where he’s wrong?

Hall’s Oilers couldn’t make the playoffs and Larsson’s have. The Oilers traded a skilled winger for one who is hard AF and actually does embody everything that the old Oilers lacked. Nearly every team has this sort of player on their defense and I don’t mean almost every team in the NHL, I’m talking nearly every team in pro hockey. Are all of those people that run those teams wrong? If you think so, check your ego at the door, son.

  • “Edmonton got what they needed, and the price was well worth it.”

Can you say with a straight face after the season Larsson and Hall have had that the Oilers did NOT need a player like Adam Larsson and that the price was right? Can you tell me the last time a top-pairing defenseman was dealt for a 53pt LWer?

  • “The stats geeks still hate the Hall trade. The reason? Because their craft isn’t far enough along at this point to quantify the qualities in Larsson’s game that makes Edmonton better.”

Are the analytics types mad because he used “stats geeks” or because the old dinosaur is calling them out or because he’s right and the likes of Henderson, Mirtle, and Berkshire haven’t found a way to tell us what it is that Larsson has done to make the Oilers a better TEAM with statistics?

Well he must be right to some extent because he’s getting a lot of mockery handed his way and in my short time on this plain of existence I’ve learned that if you’re getting made fun of for something you believe, it must be putting some fear into those who are mocking you or why else would they even engage you? Put downs and bullying are one sure way of telling someone you don’t understand or are afraid to.

The bottom line is not whether or not the Oilers would’ve made the playoffs with Hall, it’s that for whatever reason, everything fell into place after he left and I think that pisses off a lot of hockey influencers because they can’t figure out why. The numbers tell them that this team with Hall would be substantially better and only minimally worse without Larsson. I feel bad for you if you’re stuck in the black hole that contemplates what the Oilers would be with Hall right now. He’s a wonderful hockey player (truly) but ineffective on a Chiarelli/McLellan led hockey team but hockey can be a mysterious beast sometimes and there are instances where some things can’t be explained logically.

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Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL

I Didn’t Want to Write This But…

1 Comment

As we sit here on the morning of Wednesday, December the 7th and digest the fact that the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League are sitting in 1st place of the Pacific Division, a portion of the fan base still feels the need to bitch and whine and moan about one player. The funny thing is, now that some light has been shed on that player by some pretty smart hockey minds leading to a prominent hockey voice within the oilogosphere to head down the road of conspiracy theories in an attempt to justify his failed witch hunt upon one, Kris Russell.

Now, before I get into this elongated diatribe, Russell has been hot garbage the last few games when paired up with Adam Larsson and that has done nothing but stoke the fires over at Camp Poopy Pants but as we know, hockey has its peaks and its valleys.

It’s my understanding that all of this really got going when Jim Matheson wrote about the Oilers possibly having an offer on the table for Kris Russell in the 3-4 year range (IIRC), and somebody took offense to this and wrote some pieces over at Oilers Nation regarding Russell the Love Muscle. Part 1 of those blogs included a shit ton of stats and numbers that painted the Oilers new #4 in a non-flattering light. You cannot argue with those numbers because they are, after all, factual, but it’s not fair to the target audience of the composition if the writer can’t show the other side of the coin.

What followed was a piece most recently by Mark Spector, and I believe this was the straw that broke the camel’s back for some. Now they aren’t happy with Chiarelli  because… Reasons.

https://twitter.com/SportsnetSpec/status/806361421823021056

I am not advocating that the Oilers re-sign Kris Russell for anything more than 1 year if they do indeed decide to bring him back. I’m of the belief that there will be better players available and by re-signing him, that puts a huge dent in the team’s ability to pick up that right-handed powerplay quarterback to which this season is a perfect season to be buying low. Check out the numbers on Tyson Barrie and Sami Vatanen, or even Travis Hamonic and try to disagree with me.

We move on to the dirty stuff now… If you want to skip this part, you can scroll down a bit and there are some interesting “facts” about Kris Russell that are actually in the positive.  Oh, there’s some BOLD language in this post. So you’ve been forewarned. And it’s kinda long. Good Luck! May the Russell be with you!

IS PETER CHIARELLI BEING TAKEN FOR A RIDE?

“Black Box Analytics” Get used to that term because that’s where amateur bloggers and statistics aficionados will be taking you. Taken from Mr.Henderson’s blog over at the highly-respected hockey trade rumors site, Hockeybuzz, we are gifted this definition of black box analytics:

Some firm has generated these numbers and presenting them with (we assume) some analysis to go along with it. We do not know their process. We do not have access to the numbers. We cannot test the numbers because they are hidden from us. We do not know what kind of analysis is being done, by whom, and for what profit.

Wait! That’s not a definition! And how noble of Mr.Henderson to be so protective of the Oilers’ financial well-being. God forbid a company make a profit! Off of the Oilers no less!!

A black box is any device whose workings are not understood by or accessible to its user. (source)

All I read from Henderson’s quote is a severe amount of insecurity. “We do not know their process. We do not have access to the numbers. We cannot test the numbers because they are hidden from us. We do not know what kind of analysis is being done. by whom, and for what profit.”

I don’t know why he keeps saying “we” when it should be “I” and boo f*cking hoo. You don’t know something. Welcome to the club. The fact of the matter is that this one blogger is losing his shit (and his credibility) because he’s gone to ridiculous lengths to come to a very public and questionable conclusion that is slightly flawed but he cannot gain access to the information that may justify the outcome of his research or give him insight into where he IS wrong (which at this point, he’s so convinced that he isn’t in the wrong that he’s talking about black box analytics). It’s ignorant and arrogant.

SERIOUS PSA

So kids, in this case, when there’s SOOOOOO much you cannot do or do not know; you go and talk to the people with the information you want (or need in this case) OR you start to do your own analysis. YOU go and track the player, YOU write down your findings, YOU share your new research results with the online community and open them up for critique because you want that. You want to know where the faults lie within your research so that you can find the true answer.

WHAT WE DON’T DO

Don’t be a little bitch and go down conspiracy theory road because you’re too encumbered by “life” and for sure don’t try to sell yourself to the public that you’re some sort of authority or influencer on the topic if you’re not willing to go the extra mile! And especially, this one is key, don’t post your conspiracy theory on a well-known hockey rumors website. If you’re so convinced, put it up on a respectable platform like Oilers Nation 🙂

It all stinks of desperation and I’m surprised it has come this far.

COULD HENDERSON BE RIGHT?

OF COURSE, there’s a possibility that everything Mr.Henderson is claiming is true but that is no more a possibility than Kris Russell being the worst dman in the history of the NHL. Why? Because it is so bloody apparent that Henderson has an agenda and, at least to me, this is his way of expressing his displeasure towards Peter Chiarelli for trading his favorite hockey player, Taylor Hall.

I guess that’s one route to take but good luck. You’re going to need it.

WHAT DOES KRIS RUSSELL DO RIGHT?

Now, I’m sure “black box analysis” will be a new buzzword going forth because the people using it and believing in it will refuse to admit their ignorance and blissfully look the other way when they are shown up. We’ve got people like former Edmonton Oiler Brad Werenka, who works for a hockey analytics company called True Performance Hockey, who said this past week on Inside Sports with Reid Wilkins that Kris Russell was akin to that of Charlie Huddy or Randy Gregg back in the Oilers’ hay day. These defensemen have value.

From Wilkins’ show:

Wilkins: Can I ask you, is there a player like that in today’s game that’s a bit of an analytics star in today’s game like that?

Werenka: Well, there’s several defenseman, Kris Russell is one of those guys who scores very well because he does stuff that denies opportunities and takes chances away and one of those is obviously blocked shots. 

So even within the Twittersphere there are comments that support Kris Russell.

I could be wrong but having a dman who ranks high in 5×5 SV% should be good, no? We’d like our goalie to be saving the puck more often than not when Russell is on the ice, right? I don’t claim to be a stats guy and I could be reading Willis’ tweet all wrong though. I’ll leave it to you to let me know.

https://twitter.com/MikeKellyNHL/status/805875198985637888

Well this certainly HAS to be of some importance. The Oilers are 11th in the NHL in PK% (at one time they were 2nd). Do you think Kris Russell has had an impact on the Oilers PK?

https://twitter.com/MikeKellyNHL/status/805874972484837376

More than Connor McDavid? That’s insane but hey, why give that guy the puck if he’s so shitty, right?

https://twitter.com/hockeyanalysis/status/748872150036123648

https://twitter.com/hockeyanalysis/status/748872904763379713

Wanna know what that stat is this season @5×5, 200 min TOI? 12.2. Kris Russell relative to his teammates has a 12.2 goals for %. That is good for 28th in the NHL. That is a first pairing defenseman. It’s better than Drew Doughty, Erik Karlsson, Ryan Suter, M.E. Vlasic, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Brent Burns, Alex Pietrangelo, Victor Hedman, Duncan Keith, etc… So keep telling me how bad Kris Russell is. (source)

https://twitter.com/hockeyanalysis/status/805627781191180289

Yes, Mr. Henderson. When will it end?

BLH, DON’T YOU HAVE YOUR OWN QUESTIONS ABOUT RUSSELL?

I do have my own questions as to why Kris Russell has become such a point of debate amongst hockey fans, the first one included in the tweet below and the second following it.

https://twitter.com/TravisDakin/status/805202319537160192

So a player’s performance has nothing to do with the team’s record? If that’s the case, and I’m sure to be misunderstanding something, take McDavid out of the lineup and tell me that correlation doesn’t equal causation. Then enjoy your tasty bowl of frosted dicks.

And if Russell’s performances aren’t equal or at least offer a contribution to the Oilers results, what the fuck are we even talking about then? He’s the worst player by certain stats on this team, great. You’ve done the world an unthankable (I don’t think that’s a word) service by pointing our Russell’s flaws…

This team is first in its division and has been consistently in the top half of the Western Conference this season to date. IF you think you’re so smart, show me where Kris Russell is preventing the Oilers from winning better or more. Show me which player on the Oilers roster is better suited for the role that Kris Russell is filling.

We should know by now that teams take time to get on top. LA, Chicago, Pittsburgh, St.Louis, Washington, Anaheim, San Jose, Boston, Montreal, etc. They were all shit at one point or another and then they turned it around. Was it immediate? No. Was it gradual? Yes! Did their GMs make some questionable moves and miss out on some high-end draft picks, fuck ya they did!

I don’t even really know why these posts by Matt have got me all worked up but they have. I have no problem with wanting the Oilers to be better and I definitely don’t have a problem with questioning “the man” but I do not believe for one second that Chiarelli is doing a bad job. And the NHL standings tell me that the stamp that he has put on this team has been a positive one.

I am on #TeamChiarelli because he’s done just *that* much better than MacTavish, Tambellini, and Lowe…

Rant over. Weight off of chest. Have a good evening/morning/afternoon!

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