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I Take a Day Off, and Everything Goes to H-E-Double-Hockey Sticks

November 27, 2011, 3:28 AM ET [ Comments]
Richard Cloutier
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Thank you, Colorado Avalanche, for ruining my McChicken Sammich.

Speaking of chicken parts, it sounds like Taylor Hall has dislocated a wing. Yikes! Not good if you are an Oilers fan. Hall might not have the most points on the team, but he is the emotional leader. When Hall is flying, the rest of the team picks up the pace. Without Hall, someone is going to need to step up in a serious way. I'm looking at you, Magnus Paajarvi. You can skate like Hall and you're bigger than Hall physically. You can be a genuine replacement Hall if you want to be.

Of course, the Oilers managed to lose the game. Isn't it interesting how that always happens: An injury to the emotional leader makes the whole team go emo and limp for the rest of the game. The Avs were all over the Oilers in the third period and won because they deserved the win. The Oilers were completely outplayed, and looked exhausted by the end of the game.

The Avalanche were playing desperate, dirty hockey tonight. Apparently, their players were read the riot act after their last game, and the fans were whipping eggs at them. The Avs responded like a good team should: They came out swinging against the Oilers. While the initial hit that caused Hall's injury just looked like "one of those things", the cross-check that ended his night was not only dirty, but it was a deliberate attempt to injure him. If I'm the NHL, I'm handing out a several game suspension for that one.

Speaking of suspensions, the hit to the head of Kris Letang was ridiculous. When he was laying there bleeding it looked like he was searching the ice for teeth. Was it Pacioretty who did that? A little sad yet comical to see someone who was nearly decapitated by a dirty hit last season almost decapitate a different guy this season. Brendan Shanahan is going to get ripped apart in Montreal if Max Pac is suspended, but he absolutely should be for 6-8 games.

A few things when right for the Oilers, but mostly, things were bad. Hmmm, what went right? Sam Gagner had his first multi-point night of the season, and played a great game. Ryan Jones got a goal and Eric Belanger got a point. Ladislav Smid scored his first goal of the season. Actually, the last time Smid scored, dinosaurs roamed the earth, but who's keeping track? Smid has been incredible for the Oilers this season.

Things that went wrong: Lots. Obviously, the Oilers lost, and they did so after blowing a lead. That's not good. The Hall injury sucked, in part because the first hit he took was the outcome of yet another dangerous bit of skating by #4. He's reckless. I realize his reckless style is what gives him his edge, but it's also going to bring to him constant injuries throughout his career. He needs to be smarter in the way he plays or his NHL experience is going to be short.

Devan Dubnyk had a rough night. I'm getting the sense he's a little thrown off by the play of Nikolai Khabibulin. Put yourself in Dubey's size 27 shoes and consider the following: The old guy (Khabibulin) had a terrible year last season, and it looks like his career is done. You think to yourself, "hopefully, I'll get a chance to become the starter." So you prepare all summer for the starting job, and you play great in the pre-season, while the old guy looks awful. Going into Regular Season Game 1, everyone is considering you the starter. And then, The Old Guy gets a start and plays like a 25 year-old Dryden. After several Dryden experiences, and you lose the starter's job to the geezer. If Devan Dubnyk is playing a little disappointment hockey right now, it's understandable.

Nikolai Khabibulin is playing all-star hockey, and he completely deserves to be the #1 goalie in Edmonton. Dubnyk is going to have to cope, for this season at least.

The biggest concern I have after watching a game like the one tonight is that a see a pattern developing. When a team goes loco on the Oilers, they win. Bruins kicked the crap out of the Oilers and beat them. Dallas Stars...same. Tonight, the Avs played angry hockey and were rewarded with a win because of it. Teams scout each other and have caught on to how the Oilers can be beaten. The Oil are going to face physical play, because teams can beat them by doing so. It's now up to the Oilers to find a way to cope.

I think the solution is deeper than just asking players to fight back. Nuge, Gagner, Hemsky, Horcs, Eberle, Belanger...these are not big players who can bring much physicality to the rink. The Oilers are too small up front, and roster tinkering will be needed. I am not suggesting trades are the solution; or at least, not yet. The Oilers have some bigger players in their system; Tyler Pitlick and Teemu Hartikainen are two examples. I know this is a big of a stretch as far as suggestions go, but perhaps the player to take Hall's roster spot, should he be injured for an extended amount of time, is Hartikainen. He still needs to learn plenty, like how to use his size more effectively, but the point is, he actually has size. You can teach a player how to play, but you can't make them taller and bigger.

Magnus Paajarvi might be the best possible Hall fill-in considering his skill set, but Paajarvi is having a terrible season. Even if he was doing okay, he isn't a physical player. Perhaps the Oilers roster without Hall should have Eberle, Smyth, Gagner, Hemsky, Jones, Petrell, Hordichuk and Hartikainen as wingers, with Eager being the extra. Maybe it's time the Oilers sent Paajarvi and Anton Lander down, and brought up a bigger, grittier center to play on the 4th line. Ryan O'Marra, perhaps? He's 6' 2", 220, he's +5 in OKC, and he has 40PIMs. O'Marra is not as good of a player as Lander, but maybe the Oilers don't need him to fancy. They need him to be big and physical.

When Linus Omark gets back from his injury, he could play on a line with Paajarvi and Lander in the AHL...it would be great if Tre Kronor could spend the rest of the season becoming familiar playing together as a line. Then next season, the task for Oilers management would be working them, as a line, into the Oilers NHL roster. It's just a thought. I don't want to punish Lander in all of this because I like his game, but the Oilers really need to address the size issue, and fast.

As far as the D goes, it's time to give Kirill Tulupov a look. I know the Oil would need to sign him to an NHL deal first, but he's a one-man wrecking crew right now in the AHL. Theo Peckham, as you know, does nothing for me. Can't skate, can't play D, and for a tough guy, he isn't keeping anyone safe out there. Give Tulupov his roster spot. Play Whitney, Potter, Sutton, Smid, Gilbert and Tulupov, when everyone is back and healthy. Three puck movers, two big shutdown guys, and a psycho. Makes sense to me.

The Oilers are now back home for a six-game home stand. Predict the results? Sure, I can do that. Wins against Nashville, Columbus, Calgary, Carolina and Colorado. A loss against Minnesota. Can the Oilers go 5-1? Even without Hall, yep. Heck, they can go 6-0. It's not like they're facing impossible teams to beat. Most of the time when the Oilers lose this season, it's like tonight: A situation where they beat themselves.
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