Tag Archives: Mike Green

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

2019/20 Edmonton Oilers Speculation: Mike Green, RNH, Puljujarvi, the NHL’s Latest Dunce Move, and MORE!

I have to be honest, previously I was under the impression that veteran defender Mike Green was more or less a lock to re-sign in Edmonton during the abbreviated off-season that will take place this year, but now, I’m not so sure and here’s why,

During Tuesday’s installment of Oilers Now, host Bob Stauffer stated that he thought Green’s current price point would be around $2M and I reckon that’s simply out of the Oilers’ price range. If the salary cap was going up, it wouldn’t be a problem.

I will say this though, I don’t think it’s a fait accompli that he doesn’t re-sign in Northern Alberta.

Last summer, Andrej Sekera (33), Braydon Coburn (34), Roman Polak (33), and Carl Gunnarsson (32) all signed contracts for well under $2M per season with new clubs (Sekera/Polak) or their existing ones (Coburn/Gunnarsson). If Edmonton is a place that the 34-year-old Green would like to continue his career, he’s going to have to do the same because they already have Matthew Benning on the roster and Evan Bouchard bubbling right under.

Maybe he goes the Mike Smith route and signs a team/cap-friendly deal stacked with bonuses? OR maybe he comes into Oilers camp on a PTO Jason Garrison-style and earns a contract? Then again, if I remember right, I think Calgary has three or four defenders who are free agents. Since Green has a place in C-Town, maybe he simply puts down roots there…

Buy FOUR masks and get 20% OFF right now(7/15/2020)! Click the pic above to get yours and help save humanity!

Edmonton Oilers Quick Hits

  • Word out of Russia is that Jesse Puljujarvi isn’t going to the KHL (that includes Finnish-based team Jokerit). My sources have indicated to me that he’s willing to continue his hockey-playing career in Sweden, Switzerland, and Finland.
  • If he does go to Sweden, Frolunda sounds like it could be a good option as it is one of the wealthier clubs in the country and they’ve got a reputation for developing good young players. Imagine Puljujarvi and Lucas Raymond ripping it up over there?
  • Rumour has it, Auston Matthews was nearly signed by Frolunda before choosing ZSC in the Swiss league during his draft year.
  • Bob Stauffer said yesterday that he could see Ryan Nugent-Hopkins making as much as $7M per year on his next deal and that there’s an appetite to see that come to fruition because of what the player means to the market.
  • Can we get some more broadcasters out of the Western Conference to vote on the Jack Adams, please? It’s a joke that Dave Tippett wasn’t even a nominee for this year’s coach-of-the-year award… What the hell did Bruce Cassidy and the Sundance Kids do to earn theirs?
  • John Tortorella and Alain Vigneault I can see, but Cassidy? Come on… Give me a break.
  • Speaking of awards, Leon Draisaitl is up against Nathan MacKinnon and Artemi Panarin for the Ted Lindsay, and to me, it’s Leon’s to lose.
  • Panarin shouldn’t even be on any of the awards ballots as a candidate. He’s a phenomenal player to watch but Zibanejad is the best player on that team.
  • Defenseman Calvin de Haan is out for Chicago now? My word… They’re not going to have much of roster to ice if this trend keeps on going. They just signed highly-touted defensive prospect Ian Mitchell, but I’m not sure if he’s eligible. I want to say no.

The NHL’s Latest Blunder

Can anybody tell me who is even more jacked to see an NHL hockey game because their team will be playing a regional rival in their exhibition match before the play-ins start?

This is the league, once again, putting the almighty buck ahead of the safety of the players… Surely, nothing could happen in a meaningless game of hockey, right?

Well, maybe the players need a game to get “the juices flowing”… As if every game between the Oilers and the Flames wasn’t a bloody slugfest this year that started with Matthew Tkachuk taking runs at Zack Kassian… I guess Jason Gregor forget about that yesterday…

I think there’s a legit concern when your team is facing one of the cheapest players the NHL has seen since Claude Lemieux was a regular in the league. So it begs the question, apart from financial motivation, what’s the point in having teams play their rivals? There’s so much more to lose than there is to gain, isn’t there?

Sure, injuries are part of the game and you don’t go on the ice with the notion of having to stay healthy floating around in your headbone. But what about suspensions? In a game where the intensity is heightened due to a series of prior games being transported straight out of the 80s to now and where you’ve got players who haven’t laid a body check in more than four months, what are the odds that someone gets overzealous and hits an opponent in a questionable manner? I think it’s a fair question to ask.

Now, do I love the idea of watching Calgary and Edmonton play? Of course, I do! Those games have been really entertaining recently. What I’m more concerned with is the team going on a deep run to the Stanley Cup Final. So with the Cup run in mind, I couldn’t give two sh*ts about an exhibition game against Flames. If the team needs to get loose and back into the swing of things, have them play Coyotes.

I’m being selfish on this one. I know. I just feel like the league is being careless.

Puck Racism

The sales are starting to trickle in with this design and I’m going to spam the hell out of it on my website and the BLH Hockey Instagram because I feel passionate about it and I feel like Hockey is Diversity deserves the proceeds that I’ll be donating to them.

So, please. If you’ve got an extra $20 lying around and you want to do a good thing for good people, click the pic down below and grab a t-shirt, a mask, a onesie, a tank top, or some stickers.

Hockey is Diversity is a German group whose aim is to draw attention to the ethnic diversity in society, which goes beyond the sporting borders in order to sensitize people interculturally. The diversity that has long been regarded as an enrichment in sport as a melting pot of people of different ethnicities, cultures, and religions should also be transferred to society.

Click the pic and help support this worthy cause! Portions of the proceeds will go to Hockey is Diversity!

Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Trades

2019/20 Edmonton Oilers GM63: Oilers @ Ducks – 3P2W – How Good Did Ken Holland Really Do?

That was some trade deadline for the Edmonton Oilers! Ken Holland played his cards close to his vest and made everyone think that he was going to maybe make one small move to tinker with the lineup and BAM! He comes away when all is said and done with a top-6 winger, some help in the bottom-6, as well as a veteran defender to help out with the PP while Klefbom is out. It makes me wonder where all those Oilers fans that were getting all pissy that Holland wasn’t making roster moves on their time were. Maybe they were sitting on their own hands feeling some shame…

Speaking of hands… I’ve got the BLH Instagram account all fired up! Been getting followed like crazy the last couple of days thanks to the trade deadline. If you’re on the “Gram”, head on over and follow us! I like to throw up some content over there that doesn’t reach Twitter and the website.

  • Tyler Ennis, another local boy comes home to help the Oilers! He’s going to provide some skill, speed, and veteran leadership to a locker room that will need it after the departure of Sam Gagner. This is a player that can move all around the lineup where ever he is needed, he’s positionally fluid like that. I believe this stint will be an audition for a contract with the team next year as there was interest in him over this past summer but he was more interested in going to Ottawa to play for DJ Smith.
  • Joel Persson was moved in a last-second deal to the Ducks for an ECHL goalie and a conditional 7th rounder. This deal was purely to move an NHL contract and get the team under the 50-man maximum as well as clear some cap space. Persson showed flashes here and there and both the NHL and AHL levels but he had trouble with keeping a consistent level of play over the course of the year. I think staying healthy was another problem.
  • Keep an eye on Kailer Yamamoto tonight. He got tangled up in the corner vs. LA and his ankle might be less than 100%. If he’s a no-go this evening, it won’t shock me.

Andreas Athanasiou

I’ve got a few things to say about this fella. Of all the players acquired yesterday, Athanasiou brings me the highest level of unsureness. Not because he’s having a bad year. Edmonton played the Red Wings earlier this year and he was making the Oilers’ defense look pretty bad with his speed, so I know there’s a player there. I think the doubt is stemming from a media narrative that is attacking his two-way game and a possible personality issue (more on that below).

The former London Knight plays a similar style to Taylor Hall in that he is a zone entry machine in my opinion. He loves to carry the puck through the neutral zone and into the opposition’s end as like Hall and also McDavid. Personally, I don’t think that he is a great fit for Connor’s wing. I think he’d be a better fit for Leon Draisaitl’s but good luck convincing Coach Tippett to break that line up right now.

I asked my friend SPR (The Oil Knight) who is, as you know, a big London Knights fan (where Athanasiou played junior) and a fan of the Detroit Red Wings, if I should believe what the media is saying about AA’s lack of a two-way game and selfish play and this is what he told me,

I think it’s been way overblown. He played on Detroit with guys like Glendenning and Nielsen a lot so he had to be the driver because they weren’t. It’s not like he was playing with Mantha and Larkin. Obviously he has ridiculous speed and can push the pace but I’m confident he can adjust to whoever he’s playing with in EDM. That being said, his style does remind me a bit of Taylor Hall’s in that he does attack you with a lot of speed. Would Hall and McDavid be a fit? I’m sure they could make it work. But, Draisaitl has proven he works so well with that type (Hall, McDavid), longterm that might be better option and put Nuge with Connor instead. AA is a top 6 guy, no doubt its gonna be fun to see him with McDavid tonight but dont be shocked if eventually he ends up with Leon.

So we’re on the same wavelength there. The fact of the matter is if he scores 30 goals for the Oilers in a given season, nobody is going to care how his defensive game is or if he’s a jerk.

The other thing going around is that Athanasiou played with Larkin a lot and I decided to look into which forwards he’s played with the most at 5×5 since joining the league. I just used players that had over 200 minutes with AA if possible.

  • 2015/16 (37gp 7g 5a) – Brad Richards (84:13), Gustav Nyquist (81:31)
  • 2016/17 (64gp 15g 8a) – Frans Nielsen (208:36), Thomas Vanek (200:37), Dylan Larkin (198:25)
  • 2017/18 (71gp 13g 14a) – Dylan Larkin (413:58), Tomas Tatar (239:30)
  • 2018/19 (76gp 21g 15a) – Luke Glendening (324:07), Frans Nielsen (294:13)
  • 2019/20 (46gp 6g 7a) – Valtteri Filppula (301:04)

You can come to your own conclusions but it looks to me that Athanasiou has played a lot of hockey with bottom-6 linemates. Now, is that to limit his line’s exposure defensively or were the coaches doing that thing where they put a skilled player with more defensive-minded vets to try and see if something will wear off on the kid? Something we saw countless times in Edmonton from Taylor Hall to Nail Yakupov to Jesse Puljujarvi to Linus Omark… It’s a weird habit NHL coaches have.

AA’s PDO is 0.916… That’s horrid. Ideally, you want something closer to 1.000, right? Anything down where his is tells me that it’s just not his year. Also, his SH% is hovering around 7.5% and he’s usually in double digits. To add to that his GF% rel is -11.6%. That’s… Uh…  Not great. I mean Detroit is a shitshow on an epic level this year and it’s obvious that Steve Yzerman is comfortable having a year or two like this before flipping the switch. Unfortunately, there are some good players over there that are having to sacrifice their stat lines for the greater good, Athanasiou being one of them.

One last thing, and it was something passed on to me before the Oilers traded him, that is the fear of Athanasiou’s personality clashing with a locker room that seems very tight at the moment. This is a legitimate concern but the saving grace is going to be one of the other players that Ken Holland brought in. Mike Green is going to be able to sit down with his new teammates and coaching staff and let them know everything they need to about AA. What gets him going, how he responds to certain communication tactics, any notable instances of immatureness and how to handle that. Green will be a very valuable asset in this journey with the enigmatic winger. All I can say is that I’m damned happy that it’s Dave Tippett and not Todd McLellan behind the Oilers bench right now.

Three Players to Watch for the Ducks

  • #49 Max Jones – A very strong power forward with some edge to his game. Jones can be a buzzsaw out there, but he’s also got the ability to play a skill game. If he pans out, he could be a top-6 winger for years to come in Anaheim. He’s a bit old school at times. Gotta keep your head up when he’s on the ice.
  • #34 Sam Steel – Highly skilled playmaking centre from Sherwood Park if I’m not mistaken. Spent all of junior tearing up the WHL for the Regina Pats and will someday be a no.2 center for the Ducks.
  • #2 Brendan Guhle – Was once a highly regarded defensive product for the Sabres. Injuries have slowed down his progress but there’s still time for him to recoup his career. He’s a tough two-way defender that might be trying to model his game after Josh Manson. Time will tell if he becomes that good or better.

Expect the lines below to change given Ritchie is no longer with the team. Maybe the player he was dealt (Danton Heinen) for slides right into his spot.

Three Players to Watch for the Oilers

  • #28 Andreas Athanasiou – The Oilers have the three fastest players in the league right now in McDavid, Nygard, and AA. I am curious however to see how Connor and Athanasiou mesh. They both like to carry the puck with speed and we know there’s only one player on this team with the green light to do that. I figure this was why Taylor Hall was ultimately moved off of McDavid’s line back in 97’s rookie year. Just because a player is fast, doesn’t mean he’ll be a good complimentary piece to McDavid’s wing. It does give Tippett some options though if Draisaitl’s line goes cold.
  • #27 Mike Green – John Shannon said that Green was brought in to run the PP and that makes sense to me. I don’t know why it’s taking so long for Coach Tippett to give the wheel to Ethan Bear but we might be waiting a little longer for the rookie defender to be the PP1 QB full-time. Is this addition akin to when Lowe acquired Jaro Spacek in 2006?
  • #63 Tyler Ennis – Ennis is an older version of Killer Yamamoto with maybe a bit less tenacity in his game. Small, skilled, great hands, and adds offense to the team’s bottom-6. Now, will Ennis be Samsonov or Desharnais here?

I’m not sure how safe it is to assume this, but I think Athanasiou will go right up with McDavid immediately and Ennis could be inserted onto the Sheahan/Archibald line whereas Mike Green most likely will play on the 3rd pair with Matt Benning as his partner. It’s the first half of a back-to-back so I’m thinking Koskinen gets the start and then Smith will get Vegas tomorrow.

The Next Ten Games (61-70)

  • vs. Minnesota Wild (28-24-7) – Edmonton is 0-2 against the Wild this year and it’s about time the Oilers beat Bill Guerin’s boys. (WIN) LOSS
  • @ Los Angeles Kings (22-34-5) – I have to say, the Kings are a dangerous team right now. They have nothing to lose and can spoil a lot of teams’ seasons. The Oilers have won 2/3 this year against their old coach but Connor McDavid might be back in this one. Keep an eye out to see if anybody out of the ordinary is sitting for this one because the next day is the trade deadline. (WIN) WIN
  • @ Anaheim Ducks (24-29-7) – Last time out the Oilers put up six on Dallas Eakins’ Ducks. I expect Edmonton to equal that this time around and who knows how the roster will look as this is the game that follows the trade deadline. (WIN)
  • @ Vegas Golden Knights (32-22-8) – The Golden Knights record might hover around Edmonton’s but I feel like this team is a bit better on paper plus this is the second game in a back-to-back. (LOSS)
  • vs. Winnipeg Jets (32-25-5) – Big Buff sank this team when he decided he wasn’t going to play but the Jets have stuck in the race the whole season pretty much. You have to love the heart! (LOSS)
  • @ Nashville Predators (29-23-7) – I think the Oilers can sweep the season series with Nashville. The Preds defense isn’t what it used to be and there seems to be a bit of a dark cloud floating over the team at the moment. Pekka Rinne has hit a wall too… (WIN)
  • @ Dallas Stars (35-19-6) – Edmonton and Dallas have each won one game-a-piece against each other this season so far. This will be the rubber match and I like Dallas here. (LOSS)
  • @ Chicago Blackhawks (26-26-8) – Going into Chicago to play the Blackhawks is never an easy task and the Oilers have always had a tough time winning in the Windy City. (LOSS)
  • vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (30-19-3) – Edmonton is 21-8-0 at home vs. Columbus all-time. It’s hard to argue with those numbers, right? On the other hand, John Tortorella has his team right in the running for a playoff spot in the East. This game should be a war of attrition to see who comes away with the two points. (WIN)
  • vs. Vegas Golden Knights (32-22-8) – I like Edmonton’s chances at home against the Golden Knights. History tells us they have a better chance at beating them in Edmonton than in Vegas. (WIN)

(Standings as of February 21st, 2020)

What does Kassian 3:16 mean to you? Click the pic above and get this design today!
Hey Flames Fans! Neal with it! Click the pic above and grab this beauty!
Grab this sweet Nintendo parody shirt! Click the image above!
Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

2019/20 Edmonton Oilers GM62: Oilers @ Kings – 3P2W – Latest Trade Rumors and Rumblings

The Edmonton Oilers have turned up the heat on this year’s trade deadline since we last chatted here. Last time around we were talking about Tyler Ennis and now some more names have come up, but let’s talk about this game tonight before we get into the rumors.

LA played last night, so they could come out flying and then peter out hard. It’ll be up to the Oilers’ defense to stand strong during the King’s push and for the forwards to take advantage of any opportunities afforded them early on. McLellan’s boys haven’t been scoring much and they got their only goal against the Avs on a penalty shot yesterday, so this could be a prime chance for Holland’s men to really get on LA and keep them down.

Now, Jonathan Quick played last night so I’d assume Cal Petersen will start this one and depending on how cynical you are, you might be happy about getting the backup or you might be a tad wary since the Oilers have made some pretty bad goalies look good in recent history…

I like Edmonton’s chances tonight but with that said, the Kings still have the likes of Drew Doughty and Dustin Brown playing for them and they aren’t the most honest of hockey players in the league. Knock on wood, I hope the Oilers come away from this one without any additions to the IR.

THE RUMORS

First off, I want to let you know that I’ve been posting a few more of the things I hear over at our BLH Instagram page lately. I feel like my website’s server has let us down a bit too much this year so I’ve been releasing some stuff on the IG platform. Please, head over there now and follow our account if you haven’t already!

I talked with my sources last night and finally had a nice long conversation so I can let you in on a bit more this morning.

  • Jesse Puljujarvi: Not too long ago Edmonton Journal veteran scribe Jim Matheson asked Oilers GM Ken Holland about Pulju and GMKH said that he wasn’t shopping him and nobody was asking. Well, I believe the reason for that is that the Oilers intend on trying to bring him back into the fold. The GM and head coach really want to work with him and on no less than three occasions this year the Oilers have sent representatives to Finland to speak with the young lad. Puljujarvi felt hurt from the last regime (Chiarelli/McLellan/Hitchcock) and that’s one of the main reasons he stayed in Finland this year aside from wanting to get his mojo and love for the game back. I’ve said this to many people who’ve asked, if there’s any person who could convince Jesse to return, it’d be Ken Holland and to add to that, I don’t think JP wants to spend another year in Finland. GMKH did say he wanted to go fishing in those waters in an interview with Bob Stauffer last week, did he not? “Those waters” being Europe. If you’re wondering what kind of impact he could have, look no further than that of Martin Necas’. I believe Puljujarvi could be a 30-40pt winger starting next year.
  • Anton Slepyshev: Speaking of players lighting it up in Europe. My source said he expects Slepy to be in camp next season. The 25-year-old Russian left because the management and coaching couldn’t get their shit together and now that the KHL will be implementing a salary cap next season there might be a solid exodus of players heading to NA, including Anton. It sounds like he’s fine with a bottom-6 role too.
  • James Neal: We heard Bob Stauffer and Sportsnet’s Mark Spector talking about Neal possibly going on LTIR to shake loose some cash and to avoid giving that 3rd round pick to Calgary from the Lucic trade last week on Oilers Now. Well, there’s some serious consideration being given to this option.
  • Tyler Ennis: This one is basically done barring the Sens backing out. Just a few more wrinkles to iron out. What I was told is that Ennis is possibly the player that will go up with McDavid if this deal goes through. Personally, I’m not sure if that’s a good plan or not… Has Ennis ever been a top-6 player? Is an add like this going to be more David Desharnais or Sergei Samsonov?
  • Mike Green: Hold up on this trade is money/picks. Detroit is willing to retain but this will have to be a hockey deal. Money will have to go out from Edmonton in order to bring this player in. I like this sort of trade for Edmonton though. You can never go wrong with more vets of Green’s caliber.
  • Andreas Athanasiou: My source said AA has NEVER been a target of the team and Holland hasn’t asked about him. The feeling is Athanasiou wouldn’t fit the Oilers’ team dynamic right now. We’ve heard the term “lone ranger” thrown around with him and I was told he’s a bit too “self-contained”. So I’d say that the Oilers are looking for players who are good in the locker room and easy to coach.
  • Oilers Heading Out: It sounds like Toronto and Carolina made some inquiries as to the services of Jujhar Khaira and Matt Benning (TOR), as well as, Kris Russell (CAR). The Maple Leafs are shitting the bed right now and might be looking for a shakeup of sorts. Khaira and Benning have been connected to the Leafs for over a year and because Toronto is in a bit of a bind, I think the Oilers are probably asking for Kasperi Kapanen there. I can’t see them getting the Finn but it doesn’t hurt to ask. Caleb Jones has made Russell redundant at this point.

Three Players to Watch for the Kings

  • #11 Anze Kopitar – According to Dailyfaceoff.com, Kopitar has 8 assists in LA’s last five games. No goals though. He’ll always be a threat whenever he’s on the ice, right? Leon Draisaitl, no doubt, will be seeing a lot of Kopitar this evening as well.
  • #42 Gabe Vilardi – There was a time when folks thought this kid’s career was in doubt but he’s worked his ass off to come back and make a go of it. : might be this generation’s Jason Allison. Not the fastest or best skater by any means, but he is a helluva playmaker with elite vision.
  • #29 Martin Frk – Frk and his hardest shot in pro hockey will be something to keep an eye out for. Was once the property of Ken Holland’s Red Wings. He’s been up and down throughout his entire career but LA is horrid right now and since trading Tyler Toffoli, they could use him on the pro team. Edmonton has to be careful not to let him get an open shot because he could actually start hurting guys with a clapper that hard. Lord knows, the Oilers don’t need any more bodies on the IR.

Three Players to Watch for the Oilers

  • #73 Ethan Bear – It finally sounds like Ethan Bear is going to be QB-ing the Oilers’ first unit PP… Finally. It was basically his bread and butter in junior and the AHL so I have not idea why it took Coach Tippett so long to come to the conclusion that he should be the one running that unit, not Darnell Nurse.
  • #89 Sam Gagner – Gags took a bit of shot during the Minnesota game that had him clutching his shoulder/chest. So I’m not sure how healthy he is right now, but the reason I have him as a player to watch is that I feel like the next player in our list here will be playing and Sam will be his linemate.
  • #97 Connor McDavid – The Oilers didn’t send Colby Cave back to Bakersfield for nothing. I think the Captain is coming back tonight and that will bode well for this team. I mean, I’ve nearly puked watching the team try to gain entry into the other team’s zone during a PP since he was out. It’s so apparent that they need him there but it won’t hurt to have him 5×5 either.

No lines have been posted yet. It’s the day before the trade deadline and as I said above, some players might be sitting out in lieu of a deal. Keep your eyes and ears peeled and that should give you a good idea as to who is possibly heading out. I do expect Mike Smith to be in the net though and for the forwards to basically be the same as they were against Minnesota.

The Next Ten Games (61-70)

  • vs. Minnesota Wild (28-24-7) – Edmonton is 0-2 against the Wild this year and it’s about time the Oilers beat Bill Guerin’s boys. (WIN) LOSS
  • @ Los Angeles Kings (22-34-5) – I have to say, the Kings are a dangerous team right now. They have nothing to lose and can spoil a lot of teams’ seasons. The Oilers have won 2/3 this year against their old coach but Connor McDavid might be back in this one. Keep an eye out to see if anybody out of the ordinary is sitting for this one because the next day is the trade deadline. (WIN)
  • @ Anaheim Ducks (24-29-7) – Last time out the Oilers put up six on Dallas Eakins’ Ducks. I expect Edmonton to equal that this time around and who knows how the roster will look as this is the game that follows the trade deadline. (WIN)
  • @ Vegas Golden Knights (32-22-8) – The Golden Knights record might hover around Edmonton’s but I feel like this team is a bit better on paper plus this is the second game in a back-to-back. (LOSS)
  • vs. Winnipeg Jets (32-25-5) – Big Buff sank this team when he decided he wasn’t going to play but the Jets have stuck in the race the whole season pretty much. You have to love the heart! (LOSS)
  • @ Nashville Predators (29-23-7) – I think the Oilers can sweep the season series with Nashville. The Preds defense isn’t what it used to be and there seems to be a bit of a dark cloud floating over the team at the moment. Pekka Rinne has hit a wall too… (WIN)
  • @ Dallas Stars (35-19-6) – Edmonton and Dallas have each won one game-a-piece against each other this season so far. This will be the rubber match and I like Dallas here. (LOSS)
  • @ Chicago Blackhawks (26-26-8) – Going into Chicago to play the Blackhawks is never an easy task and the Oilers have always had a tough time winning in the Windy City. (LOSS)
  • vs. Columbus Blue Jackets (30-19-3) – Edmonton is 21-8-0 at home vs. Columbus all-time. It’s hard to argue with those numbers, right? On the other hand, John Tortorella has his team right in the running for a playoff spot in the East. This game should be a war of attrition to see who comes away with the two points. (WIN)
  • vs. Vegas Golden Knights (32-22-8) – I like Edmonton’s chances at home against the Golden Knights. History tells us they have a better chance at beating them in Edmonton than in Vegas. (WIN)

(Standings as of February 21st, 2020)

What does Kassian 3:16 mean to you? Click the pic above and get this design today!
Hey Flames Fans! Neal with it! Click the pic above and grab this beauty!
Hockey players are the toughest athletes on the planet. Click the pic and purchase this shirt right now!
Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

Oilers Trade Targets: A Goalie, A Defenseman, and a Winger

3 Comments

https://twitter.com/NicholsOnHockey/status/964284963569909761

First things first, Dreger didn’t get all of that from Chiarelli. Either someone within the Oilers organization above Chiarelli leaked it, Dreger is making it up, or one of the other GMs is trying to throw a wrench into Trader Pete’s deadline/summer plans.

Secondly, why would the Oilers want a winger who can skate WITH Connor? It’s not like you see tandems breaking out of the d-zone into the neutral zone and then into the other team’s end together.

I feel the type of player the Oilers are looking for is a trigger man, not a speedster because if that was the case, why wouldn’t they have gone out and traded for Carl Hagelin when he was struggling like mad earlier in the year? Why wouldn’t they have picked up Nikita Soshnikov before TO traded him to the Blues.

They need a guy who knows where to go on the ice while Connor has the puck in order to get himself open for a one-timer.

If not this kind of winger then a winger who is quick. Personally, I don’t think they need to go out and get one. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is right there and alternatively, Anton Slepyshev is here too and if he didn’t feel slighted by how he’s been treated by the Oilers this year, he might be a cheap re-signing too.

But if we’re going outside the organization, I feel like Mike Hoffman is the perfect winger for the Oilers here. TSN’s Travis Yost feels like Swapping RNH for Hoffman would be beneficial for both teams.

I could see it but I always thought you never trade a centre for a winger…

But what if the Oilers send Kris Russell w/salary retained (remember contrary to what Capfriendly says, the first two years of his deal lack any clauses, only the final two seasons or at least that’s what I’m lead to believe from the MSM reporting on his contract and Spotrac’s website) and say Jesse Puljujarvi to Ottawa for Hoffman.

The Sens are looking to rebuild, the Oilers are looking to upgrade whilst opening cap space and even if I am wrong about Russell’s first two years having no clauses, a simple request is all it takes. If Ottawa truly wants to tear it down, would having Russell on defense help or hinder that goal?

Don’t get me wrong here, I do NOT want Jesse Puljujarvi traded. I love that kid more than Oilersnation loves anti-Chiarelli rallies. I’m just thinking out loud here and trying to work around trading Ryan Nugent-Hopkins or Oscar Klefbom to Ottawa. I do feel like, despite Pulju’s young age, he shouldn’t be fading as the season goes on but this is his first real pro season. Plus I’m thinking the coaches are higher on Yamamoto than Pulju.

Again, I’m not advocating for the trading of Puljujarvi. Having him and Yamamoto on the RW for the next 5 years would please me to no end but how else do you satisfy Ottawa’s needs w/o moving RNH, Klefbom, or this year’s 1st rounder.

Another name on my list is David Perron. Not the fastest but draws penalties, is irritating as well and had his best pro season as an Edmonton Oiler in his previous stint with the club.

Thirdly, the defenseman that Oilers are looking for will have to have some puck skills. I think they one they’ve got the best shot at is Rasmus Dahlin at the moment. Not even joking.

But if we were to look at the pro roster, the Oilers have to send someone out before bringing in another because the D corps. is simply too crowded and I’d prefer to see them bring back Davidson and Auvitu too.

At the moment the D looks like this:

Klefbom/Larsson
Nurse/Benning
Russell/Sekera
Davidson, Auvitu, Lowe

Which defender might that be? I mentioned Kris Russell before but the word I’m getting is that it’s Oscar Klefbom. Management/Coaching aren’t happy with his progression or lack thereof, this year. They’re pissed that he can’t stay healthy. So, they’re listening to offers on him which is a far cry from offering him out. Let’s make that distinction clear right now.

I’d love for the Oilers to bring in Mike Green because I value his veteran experience as well as his RH’d shot, and his offensive eye for the game.

A player few might consider is Chris Wideman out of Ottawa. He’s a UFA this summer, he’s 28 years old and he’s also RH’d. Not a big guy but he can skate well and move the puck well. Before going down with an injury this year he had 8pts in 16 games. So he was definitely on pace (#OnPace) for a career year. He’s making 800k this year.

Tyson Barrie will be the name on the market connected to the Oilers from now until he’s moved and his cost is pretty high. Meaning RNH is probably the ask and I really want to avoid breaking up the 3-headed menace down the middle for Edmonton.

So how would you feel if the D looked like this:

Nurse/Larsson
Sekera/Barrie
Russell/Davidson
Auvitu or Wideman (I’d prefer both)

That means Benning and Klefbom would be moved on.

Fourthly, we’re looking for a goalie to compete with Talbot aka we’re afraid that Talbot might shit the bed again next year and we want to go with a 1A and 1B in the nets.

David Staples and Bruce McCurdy have brought up a good point in that perhaps the Oilers WILL need another goalie in addition to Talbot and Montoya and that Montoya should go to the minors in case of emergency next season.

The problem I have with that is, do you simply let the goalies you’ve paid to develop all these years walk away? Not that I think that Brossoit and Ellis are ready but the question still remains.

Here are a handful of UFA goalies who are putting up acceptable numbers this season:

  • Carter Hutton – STL – (15-5-3, 1.81 GAA, .940%) – Does STL move him or Allen?
  • Jonathan Bernier – COL –  (17-10-2, 2.74 GAA, 916%) – $2.75M per… Pricey!
  • Aaron Dell – SJ – (14-4-2, 2.51 GAA, 917%) – The New Cam Talbot?
  • Antti Raanta – ARI – (11-14-0, 2.53 GAA, 920%) – Maybe should’ve acquired him last year…
  • Anton Khudobin – BOS – (12-3-1, 2.32 GAA, 925%) – Chiarelli would be familiar with the little Russian.
  • Michael Hutchinson – WPG – (1-0-0, 1.00 GAA, 958%) – Rumors earlier in the year had connected the Oilers and Hutchinson.

I fancy either Carter Hutton or Anton Khudobin for the 1B position because they’re a bit older and I value experience. But would Antti Raanta be the guy who’d push Talbot a bit more for that no.1 spot? Hutchinson is a beauty too though.

Tough call! Hutchinson and Khudobin have history with Chiarelli though, so there’s that.

A couple of wild cards might be Curtis McElhinney (TOR) and Kari Lehtonen (DAL) if you’re like me and prefer experienced goalies. These two tenders’ contracts expire after next season. The Leafs have Garrett Sparks and Calvin Pickard on their AHL team right now and I’d like to think that one of them will be the back-up next season. I don’t see Lehtonen getting paid $5M per season ever again nor do I see him being a starting goalie again.

Is it even possible for the Oilers to start the 2018/19 season with the following roster?

Hoffman/McDavid/Slepyshev
Lucic/Draisaitl/Yamamoto
Caggiula/Khaira/Strome
Pakarinen/Beagle/Kassian

Nurse/Larsson
Klefbom/Barrie
Sekera/Wideman
Davidson

Talbot
Raanta

It seems like we’ve just moved the chairs around on the deck a bit, no?

I’ll leave you with one last thought here. Look at that lineup above, now add one of Rasmus Dahlin, Andrei Svechnikov, Filip Zadina, Brady Tkachuk, or Adam Boqvist.

How does it look now?

Let us know in the comments below! But first buy a shirt for a loved one because there’s a sale going on at the Beer League Heroes Teepublic shop!

Click the image and head over to our Teepublic shop to grab some sweet BLH merch.
Click the image above and get your shirt today!
Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

Bob Stauffer’s Three Needs for the Edmonton Oilers

3 Comments

Bob Stauffer, the host of Oilers Now, woke up the Oilogosphere with an interesting tweet this morning…

I don’t think that any of these things are a surprise to anybody, especially if you saw the line combos that Todd McLellan had together during practice on the first day of 2018… GAWD they are ugly… But I am SO looking forward to seeing them in action! I really want to see Auvitu as a forward. That said, when the coach starts doing things like this, there’s trouble in the hen house Frank…

If you’re the type that really reads into things you might come to the following conclusions based on Stauffer’s tweet:

  • A Shooting Left Wing = Maroon is gone and Lucic is being transitioned into a middle-6 player AKA they’re looking for Connor’s and or Leon’s winger.
  • A Powerplay Right-Shot D = The Matt Benning experiment on the power play is over. (I’m not sure why it was even started…)
  • A 3rd Line Centre Who Takes Faceoffs and Kills Penalties = Nuge is on the market and Letestu probably is too.

I’ll start off by saying that I’m not sure we’ll ever see a complete 1st line ever. The door to McDavid’s LW may be ever-swinging for the duration of his time in Edmonton but with the way that McLellan has been switching between Lucic and Maroon on that line tells me his “big man on 97’s wing” theory is a failure and maybe it’s time to toss some skill up there with the greatest player in the game.

I do question why that player has to be a shooter though. The Oilers have ZERO problems shooting the puck which is evident in the numbers. In fact, Pat Maroon is 8th in shots for LWs in the NHL. Lucic is 40th mind you but that’s still more than Filip Forsberg.

Their problem is getting the puck into the net on the PP. I’d argue that they need a trigger man for said powerplay though. Someone who doesn’t hesitate to fire the puck on the net with the man advantage.

LEFT-WING CANDIDATES:

  • Evander Kane (BUF)
  • Mike Hoffman (OTT)
  • Max Pacioretty (MTL)

These three players are the target of every team in the league, as they should be. Their teams are struggling and looking to shake things up. They would be priced at a premium rate though.

  • Tyler Ennis (MIN)
  • Max Domi (ARI)
  • Carl Hagelin (PIT)
  • Alex Galchenyuk (MTL)
  • Thomas Vanek (VAN)
  • Michael Grabner (NYR)

I feel that these players would be a bit easier to acquire as nearly all of them, apart from Vanek, are slumping. Max Domi has one 5×5 goal this year according to naturalstattrick.com. Tyler Ennis has been a healthy scratch in Minnesota. Galchenyuk can’t escape the ongoing media scrutiny in Montreal and Hagelin can’t seem to find his game this year.

I like Hagelin a lot here because he’d be very handy on the PK I feel with his speed and forechecking ability. For those same reasons PLUS he can score, I like Grabner but I’m not sure the Rangers would be willing to trade him as they’re in the hunt for the post-season.

Funny thing about the Oilers left wing is that both Maroon and Lucic are having good seasons from an even strenght POV. Maroon has more EV goals (9) than Taylor Hall, Brad Marchand, and Artemi Panarin. Milan Lucic has the same amount of even-strength goals (6) as Filip Forsberg and more than Mike Hoffman, Matthew Tkachuk, and Max Pacioretty. Funnier yet, Jujhar Khaira has the same amount of 5×5 goals as Lucic.

Twenty-one 5×5 goals between Maroon, Lucic, and Khaira is great I feel. CGY’s top three LW’s have EV 24 goals, NJ has nearly 30, NYI has 25, Vegas has 21, and WAS has 24.

I will caveat this by saying naturalstattrick doesn’t seem to have everybody’s positions 100% correct. For example, I don’t think that the San Jose Sharks have only played with two left-wingers this year.

One last player I’d like to mention is Sonny Milano (CLB). He has 7 EV goals in 268 min TOI for the Blue Jackets. I don’t watch a lot of Columbus games but I do see his name in the transactions list a lot due to being called up and sent down to the AHL. This kid is a skiller but his 200ft game isn’t quite there but that’s something I care very little about. His problem might be he doesn’t shoot enough with only 24 EV shots this year to date.

Click the pic and grab a 16-bit McDavid tee!

A RIGHT-SHOT POWER PLAY POINT MAN

I do think that the Oilers would be better offer picking up this sort of player sooner rather than later and perhaps using a Matt Benning or an Oscar Klefbom to do it.

The candidates:

  • Mike Green (DET)
  • Kris Letang (PIT)
  • Erik Karlsson (OTT)

It seems I’ve put these players in order of most attainable to least. The Oilers would have to sell the farm to bring in a player like Karlsson, meaning Leon possibly going the other way and I’m not subscribing to that. If the Penguins were looking to go younger on defense, it’s weird that they’re not given it’s an area of concern for them, than Letang would be a more realistic target. As for Mike Green, Matt Benning and a prospect/pick, or maybe Anton Slepyshev or Drake Caggiula ++ may be able to bring him to the City of Champions.

But as these guys are the premium targets on this year’s market, you have to ask yourself if the Oilers have the assets to acquire one of them without crippling the future of the team.

  • Colin Miller (VGK)
  • Justin Faulk (CAR)
  • Brandon Montour (ANH)

These are your straight up PP specialists. Lotta chaos here. I believe that these players could be had for less than the Karlsson cluster above.

  • Shane Gostisbehere

The reason I bring up Ghost Bear is because not only is he one of the NHL’s premier PP specialists but the Flyers LW depth is atrocious and I do wonder if something could be done with Pat Maroon there. Not straight across of course but maybe a larger deal as I know the Flyers want to rid themselves of Jori Lehtera and his chunky contract.

A PENALTY KILLING/FACEOFF SPECIALIST

I’ve been saying for years that the Oilers lack two things,

  • vets who can take the draw
  • agitators to draw penalties

I really feel that the Oilers, whoever is running them at the time, are always trying to re-create the boys on the bus from the early 80s and I wish they’d stop. You cannot had a team over to a nucleus that isn’t old enough to buy a beer in the US. You need to have capable veterans to surround them and to take the weight off of their shoulders from time to time in order to give the kids room to breath. Take a look at Toronto now and go back and look at the Penguins rosters that Crosby played on in his early days.

  • Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT)
  • Matt Duchene (OTT)
  • Derek Ryan (CAR)

I want to focus on these three players at the moment. I’m sure there are more out there but I don’t think they’re available and between Ryan, Pageau, and Duchene, there are three guys who can score a goal,  take a draw and kill penalties.

I feel that with Pageau you get a player who is annoying as fack! He’s speedy, fearless, he draws penalties, and has a dusting of offense to his game (remember the playoff hatty not too long ago?).

In Duchene, you’d get a higher contract but with shorter term. That’s not where the rub lies though, it’s in his faceoff abilities. He’s one of the best in the game hands down. Over the last three seasons he’s nearly 60% on the dot AND he has shown that he can produce points in the past (116pts in his last 190 games). Another reason I include him is because I do wonder if Sens ownership is putting pressure on their GM to get rid of him. Duchene only has 6 pts in 23 games this season with Ottawa.

Derek Ryan is the player that I believe Stauffer is hinting at within his tweet. He’s a former U of A guy that has caught on in Carolina and stuck there. Not a big guy and not really much of a producer points-wise (Just a shade of 50pts in his last three years) but he’d probably be better on the kill than say Drake Caggiula plus I believe he’s a righty and very good on the draw. Not sure if Stauff would be able to strap down his U of A alumni boner if the Oilers brought Ryan in though. Careful around Rogers Place if that does happen.

Lastly, I’m getting the feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach these days with each growing loss. The feeling that something is going to drop soon be that a trade or a firing. Who could be leaving Edmonton? That I’m not 100% sure on but I’ve heard rumblings that the brass above Chiarelli is getting very impatient and action is being requested.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below! Happy 2018 everyone!

Click the image and head over to our Teepublic shop to grab some sweet BLH merch.