There are just two more games to go. I think the last one was as lifeless of a game as you could get from the Oilers. There was nobody going, not even McDavid, and the defense was bagged. Losing Auvitu and Sekera in the 2nd period meant the team was down to a blueline of Russell, Bear, Nurse, and Larsson and they looked every bit as awful as one could imagine.

Today, in his wonderful 31 Thoughts series, Elliotte Friedman touched on the fact that the Oilers have received just 127 points from defensemen, which is 27th in the NHL. Per Friedman, fixing that will be a priority in the offseason.

If you’ve been paying attention, fixing the blueline has been a priority since 2006 and yet here we are. Chiarelli traded the pick that would become Barzal plus a 2nd in the same draft, traded Taylor Hall a year later, and signed Kris Russell to a boat anchor deal the year after that in order to address the blueline. The result has been utter disaster.

Lowe had overseen a defense that was held together with bits of twine and masking tape for years. MacT was there when the team bailed on Petry while pushing Jultz to 1D status (because I guess you can have too many RHD?). Chiarelli decimated the forward group and the cap situation “fixing” the blueline. It’s difficult to see how this group can possibly succeed when their history is of abject failure, but Oiler fans can pray for miracles.

That said, let’s talk about the Oiler blueline. I think we need to look at this season and what is happening because some of it is a major issue and some of it might be temporary. I identify Edmonton’s top 6 defenders to be as follows:

Klefbom Larsson
Nurse Sekera
Russell Benning

I don’t think I’m going to shock anyone here when I say that I personally dislike what Russell does as a defender. However, if “Points” are what we are judging defensemen on then it has to be noted that Russell’s 5v5 P/60 a year ago was 0.6 and the worst on the blueline but this year has climbed to 0.84 P/60 and is 3rd. His point total is 21 and he’s tied for 2nd with Klefbom, who has now played 10 fewer games.

Additionally, Darnell Nurse has increased his overall and 5v5 P/60 output from a year ago. It should be noted that he did so with very little special teams time. The young defender continues to develop, albeit slower than we may all want. For at least half of the season he was Edmonton’s top defender in many categories.

As far as points go, that’s where the happy news ends and the bad news begins. Benning took a step back offensively. Not by much, but it’s still backwards. The same is true for Adam Larsson, who also missed significant time to a personal matter. They are small setbacks offensively, but I know in Benning’s case the team was hoping for more.

Then we get to the really bad. Klefbom and Sekera’s seasons have been miserable. As we are all aware, Edmonton’s top two defensemen (by talent) were both hampered by injury. For almost an entire season, Klefbom played through a shoulder injury that ultimately required surgery. He dropped from 12 goals down to 5 and the effect the injury had on his shot was noticeable very early on. Meanwhile, Sekera has been shut down again after playing just 36 games this year. He returned from major knee surgery and was not effective at all. He was brutal and his offense dropped by half.

I think points are an important measure, but if a defenseman can get the puck out of his own zone with control then that – to me – is much more important. Edmonton has some horses up front and if they can get the puck in flight then more good things will happen than bad. That’s not a stat that is traditionally tracked by the NHL but I know teams do get that info via various video scouting services. It’s hard to tell who told the Oilers that Russell was 2nd in the NHL in zone exits but one of those services likely did.

Did they mean total number of exits? Did clearing the zone count? Was it with control or just whenever the puck left the zone? I ask because if you watch Russell play you can see why the puck exits Edmonton’s zone a lot. It’s because it’s IN Edmonton’s zone a lot. And it’s not just him who has difficulty making breakout passes.

By my eye, Russell, Larsson, and Nurse all have difficulty making those initial passes. Larsson pushes the puck back to his partner. Russell backhands it around the boards. Nurse prefers to skate the puck out rather than let his stick to the work. Then you combine that with a sophomore slump for Benning, a major knee problem for Sekera, and a shoulder problem for Klefbom. What you get is a blueline that cant move the puck very well at all.

Aside from waiting for health to return, I don’t see how Edmonton is going to fix their problem unless one of Nurse or Larsson is traded for a defender who has a pass-first mentality and the chops to do it.

LINEUP

Sekera and Auvitu have been mangled and Keegan Lowe was recalled. RNH should be back though!

RNH McDavid Rattie
Khaira Draisaitl Puljujarvi
Lucic Strome Caggiula
Slepyshev Cammalleri Kassian

Nurse Larsson
Russell Benning
Lowe Bear

Talbot

OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME

1) Wild Bill Karlsson. William Karlsson has scored 43 goals and 78 points this season after previous career highs of 9 goals and 25 points. It’s like if next year Jujhar Khaira challenged for the Rocket Richard. He is just a hair below a point per game with the Golden Knights and now leads their team in scoring. No, it’s not sustainable for his career (he’s shooting 23.6%), but he’s a dangerous player today and Edmonton will be keeping an eye on him – among others.

2) Top 6 For The Kid. Jesse Puljujarvi is going to get time with Draisaitl as his center. The two players have shared the ice for fewer than 80 minutes total in 5v5 play. Edmonton’s future (for now) includes Jesse Puljujarvi playing in the top six. If it isn’t with Draisaitl then it’s going to be with Connor. The fact that these two haven’t been given a lot of time together over the last several weeks is ridiculous. They need to become more familiar with each other.

3) Nuge Returns. Edmonton has played its last 2 games without RNH and they’ve had their teeth kicked in while also not seeing any points from 97. Now, it’s not as if McDavid cannot score without Nuge, but his ability and presence is noticed, especially when he’s gone. The Oiler center-turned-winger has enjoyed a lot of success as McDavid’s winger. So much so that the team can concern itself much less with questions regarding who will be added to the Forward group.

Puck drops tonight at 7PM Mountain Time on Sportsnet One. Game On!

Follow me on Twitter @Archaeologuy

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