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Oilers' Huge Grenade Jumpers Line Keeps Taking One for the Team

October 29, 2014, 10:15 AM ET [121 Comments]
Ryan Garner
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
In an era of crappy hockey nicknames, the Edmonton Oilers have some of the worst. Unoriginal and uninspired, nicknames like “Hallsy” or “Nuge” or “Ebs” make you embarrassed for both the person uttering the terrible nickname and the player branded with it. Even recent additions aren’t immune, as evidenced by nicknames like “Fayner” or “Nicky.” I suppose it’s okay when you limit the damage to a single person, but giving an entire line a crappy nickname? That’s where we have to draw the line.

The Oilers’ “Wagon Line”—made up of Boyd Gordon, Matt Hendricks and Jesse Joensuu—has earned some high praise recently. However, the nickname needs to die a hasty death. Exactly how unoriginal is it? Hendricks was part of a “Wagon Line” while playing for the Nashville Predators, alongside Rich Clune and Paul Gaustad. Apparently, Hendricks is known as “Wagon” and called every line he’s ever played on the “Wagon Line.” That simple-minded approach is somewhat endearing but completely ridiculous.

In a perfect world, where nicknames are clever, original and fitting, the Hendricks-Gordon-Joensuu line would be called the “Huge Grenade Jumpers Line” because all these players do is jump the grenade and take one for the team. Jumping the grenade is a difficult job. Often thankless, it requires a strong back for all the heavy lifting, a complete disregard for individual glory, and a willingness to pave the way for others to succeed. In order to understand why the HGJ Line has been so successful, you have to know each of its parts.

Matt Hendricks – Leading the team with 35 hits, Hendricks has carved out a niche for himself in the NHL playing a grinding, no-nonsense style that’s made him a human piñata everywhere he’s played. Most hockey fans were introduced to Hendricks and his mashed right eye in December 2010 during HBO’s 24/7, leading up to Washington’s Winter Classic contest against Pittsburgh. He’s been a valuable contributor to the Oilers, and the player most likely to drop the mitts with Luke Gazdic on the sidelines.

Boyd Gordon – The type of player you love having on your side but hate to play against, Gordon is a defensive specialist who thrives on the faceoff dot, wining 55.2 percent of his draws this season. Doing the grunt work, he leads Edmonton forwards in blocked shots (15) and has more than twice as many as the next-closest forward (Hendricks, 7). Some might scoff at a fourth-line centre making $3 million per season, but Gordon has arguably been the Oilers’ MVP since signing with the club in July 2013.

Jesse Joensuu – Given up on by the New York Islanders after the 2012-13 season, the 6-foot-4 Finnish winger seems to have found a home in Edmonton. Like Hendricks, Joensuu is a contributor to the hit parade, happily bashing opposing defencemen against the end boards and chasing down loose pucks. Joining the Oilers prior to 2013-14, he was limited by back injuries until an ankle injury ended his season, but those issues seem to be in the rearview mirror. He’s been both dependable and durable so far.

Add those three together and you have a trio happy to do the dirty work, and Oilers coach Dallas Eakins keeps heaping it on them. Playing five-on-five, Gordon’s offensive zone start percentage is a team-low 11.6 percent, with Hendricks at 12 percent and Joensuu at 16 percent. The plan is simple, even if the job isn’t: Eat up the defensive zone faceoffs against some of the opposition’s toughest competition, giving other lines a better opportunity for success. It’s basically the definition of taking one for the team.

Of course, the Huge Grenade Jumpers Line wouldn’t be given such an arduous task if they hadn’t proven they could do it well. Monday night’s 3-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens provided a perfect example. Playing at even strength, the HGJ Line didn’t have a single offensive zone start, won eight of 12 draws, blocked five shots, dished out five hits, and didn’t have to watch a single Montreal goal celebration. That’s a very effective night for a line solely called upon to do grunt work, holding off the opposition.

Eakins’ zone start deployment could signify a lack of trust in the Leon Draisaitl or Mark Arcobello lines, just as it indicates an abundance of trust in Gordon’s. There’s nothing wrong with that, as long as the results are favorable and everyone knows their role. The HGJ Line certainly does, enduring the bruises and blocked shots that come from perpetually having your backs pinned against the wall. Jumping on grenades isn’t much fun, but it keeps the entire Oilers organization from being blasted into oblivion.

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