too bad Sens and Oilers couldn't swing a deal at the deadline... Bishop for Gagner would have made a lot of sense.
- themaynia

no it wouldnt of..at least for the oilers.
bishop hasnt proven hes better than dubnyk at all.

Don't! I want the Leafs to get him. He's a warrior on the ice and has a great attitude off it. Level headed and incredible work ethic
- pbrsimps

Doubt he will be available at Leafs position but who would know how draft will shake out.I think when junior playoffs are complete Bo will be pushing himself inside top 15.As for comments he is no better than a 3rd liner time will tell.That may be where he fits if untouchables don't move which quite frankly is absurd.The makeup of this team needs to change.A kid like Horvat brings skill,incredible work ethic and a component desperately lacking on this team.

How can he be at best a 70 point guy when he's already topped that number?
- Ihatebrianburke

What I'm saying is that is likely where he'll even out.No shame in that if he's consistant, I'm just not sure he will be able to keep pace with Hall.He might flirt with a Point Per Game, I just don't see him as a 100 pont guy like I do Hallsy.

no it wouldnt of..at least for the oilers.
bishop hasnt proven hes better than dubnyk at all.
- hugefemale dog77

Lately it looks like Dubs wants the first overall pick more than the Oinkers.

Holy (frank) dude. This is some Cloutier like bullpoop. (frank) me people just know nothing.

The Bruins are up against the cap. They are not taking Hemsky, Ganger + for anyone.

A fourth line of Clarkson (5 mill), Cervenka (3), Stalberg (3.5)? Stupid stupid stupid.

Streit is not the answer. A top 4 of Shultz, Streit, Smid and Petry would not put fear into any other team out there.

Backstrom a back up? lol.

Duby gets no respect.

My god you come up with some ridiculous stuff.
- Iggysbff

Dude, I started by said it was a dream list for line 4. Tell you what, if Clarkson gets 5 million I will hail you the king. That is the dumbest prediction I have seen in a long time. Cervenka and Stalberg could get that if they were overpaid. This depends on whether they sign quick and who is bought out. Neither are worth that money. Cervenka is good but one year of average points doesn't give him that much unless he signs long term. Stalberg is good by default. Play on the best team and you get points. He is a big guy but only an idiot is paying 3.5 for a bottom 6 player and Feaster has other holes to fill and McGillis has his troubles with Edler and his 2 10 mill in goalie salaries for his 3 guys. The only other idiot is ours, so if he is getting 3.5 you know where it is coming from.

I did say I wasn't serious about the 4th line.

As for Boston's cap. I have to assume they will buy out savard making them at least at 10 mill + cap space. Krejki salary is is 5.25 so they gain cap there and they get another top 6 to replace Horton who is going the UFA route. However again, I threw Boston our there not as a real trade thing, only as an example of a team that could spare a center and is losing a top player and might want a two for 1. I never suggested that was the deal we go for.

You really got to read before you start your calling someone out. It makes you look like an idiot and really its just not cool to hear you on here all the time telling people that they are stupid and yet you offer no real counter suggestion. You seem to just troll the oiler forums and most of us are actually here to shoot ideas around and have a good time.

Doubt he will be available at Leafs position but who would know how draft will shake out.I think when junior playoffs are complete Bo will be pushing himself inside top 15.As for comments he is no better than a 3rd liner time will tell.That may be where he fits if untouchables don't move which quite frankly is absurd.The makeup of this team needs to change.A kid like Horvat brings skill,incredible work ethic and a component desperately lacking on this team.
- nellie04

It is absurd to think that all of Hall,RNH,Eberle,Yak and Schultz will all be here in 5 years. Eventually,management is going to have to pay a heavy price to get this team to contender status. It's pretty clear that the Team needs a beefy power forward on the Wing, a Stud D-Man and a big 2 way center in the 55-65 point range. If management can do that with Hemsky,Gagner ,prospects picks and our garbage truck full of 4th liners and depth defenseman that we would have the greatest GM that ever lived. I don't want to see Yak or Ebs go anywhere, but it might come down to it one day.

Dude, I started by said it was a dream list for line 4. Tell you what, if Clarkson gets 5 million I will hail you the king. That is the dumbest prediction I have seen in a long time. Cervenka and Stalberg could get that if they were overpaid. This depends on whether they sign quick and who is bought out. Neither are worth that money. Cervenka is good but one year of average points doesn't give him that much unless he signs long term. Stalberg is good by default. Play on the best team and you get points. He is a big guy but only an idiot is paying 3.5 for a bottom 6 player and Feaster has other holes to fill and McGillis has his troubles with Edler and his 2 10 mill in goalie salaries for his 3 guys. The only other idiot is ours, so if he is getting 3.5 you know where it is coming from.

I did say I wasn't serious about the 4th line.

As for Boston's cap. I have to assume they will buy out savard making them at least at 10 mill + cap space. Krejki salary is is 5.25 so they gain cap there and they get another top 6 to replace Horton who is going the UFA route. However again, I threw Boston our there not as a real trade thing, only as an example of a team that could spare a center and is losing a top player and might want a two for 1. I never suggested that was the deal we go for.

You really got to read before you start your calling someone out. It makes you look like an idiot and really its just not cool to hear you on here all the time telling people that they are stupid and yet you offer no real counter suggestion. You seem to just troll the oiler forums and most of us are actually here to shoot ideas around and have a good time.
- bsteinley

Calm down, there buddy. I think Clarkson will get paid.5 million might be a stretch, but he really made a name for himself in the playoff's last year.He might be a top on some teams because he can score.I'm not sure, but can an injured player be bought out? I thought there was a rule there saying they couldn't.

Lately it looks like Dubs wants the first overall pick more than the Oinkers.
- whipper334

id put that on the whole team.

the reason we only lost by 1 goal to anaheim was dubnyk. shoulda been 5-1, not 2-1.
but against pho he let in a couple softies. etc etc

he's been up and down and still has a penchant for some untimely weak ones, but hes also been stellar in stretches.

point is; with his price tag and that he's still developing, im not ready to give up on him.
especially by dealing a roster player that currently fills an important role (2C!) in exchange for another goalie that hasnt proven he's better.

that aint wise asset management.

I hear ya.
I also feel like I've said everything a few times over. Now I just try to entertain myself and give my two cents when I feel like it.

As for cloutier, he brings a lot of it on himself, intentionally I believe. His flip flopping is mostly for reaction from the posters, and his troll blogs are definitely for reaction (not positive reaction)
A lot of his ideas, such as draft picks and prospects over established players just seems over the top at this stage of the rebuild and it rubs the fans the wrong way.

Overall I am happy with the regularity of the blogs, just not always the quality and content. Mostly I am here for the boards as they arw almost always entertaining, and Clouts is partly to thank for that. It could always be worse, we could have Garth as our blogger.
- abware

I also like Clouts writing. That is why I come here after writing my blogs. I always tell him that he gives in too much to the comments on the forum and I think he has stopped doing that towards the last few months. He is a blogger which in many ways is an editorial, he should say what he feels. If he is upset with the team at one moment, share it. If he is proud of them, share that. Bring facts and content to the blog but the emotion is what makes it worth reading. His flip flopping is not a flaw and it is not abnormal. I know as an oiler fan I go from frustrated at the team where I am cheering for any player just to get the puck out of our end. To other times where they make the most amazing comebacks or plays that my 5 year old and I actually actually shout to the point my wife runs into the room.

That is Oiler hockey and the life of an Oiler fan. This year was amplified because we can see the potential, you are an idiot not to but we didn't see anything from management. They gave us some Cryptic messages about not changing the dynamic and this is still a rebuilding year. Yet we really know that if Klefbom doesn't become an amazing skater next year, the player we have on the ice are what we have developing.

Clout has a hard job because he takes flak from every other team as our fans are easily defensive and others give up just as easy and trash talk him. I dare someone to write a better blog than him. You can on this site.

My hats go off to you RC, for saying your piece and letting people have their way with it.

It is absurd to think that all of Hall,RNH,Eberle,Yak and Schultz will all be here in 5 years. Eventually,management is going to have to pay a heavy price to get this team to contender status. It's pretty clear that the Team needs a beefy power forward on the Wing, a Stud D-Man and a big 2 way center in the 55-65 point range. If management can do that with Hemsky,Gagner ,prospects picks and our garbage truck full of 4th liners and depth defenseman that we would have the greatest GM that ever lived. I don't want to see Yak or Ebs go anywhere, but it might come down to it one day.
- Jeropotato

Hopefully someone with your mindset/vision replaces Tambo.I don't think he has the parts to pull the trigger.You are bang on what this team needs to draft or aquire thru trade.You have to give up something and get something.

It is absurd to think that all of Hall,RNH,Eberle,Yak and Schultz will all be here in 5 years. Eventually,management is going to have to pay a heavy price to get this team to contender status. It's pretty clear that the Team needs a beefy power forward on the Wing, a Stud D-Man and a big 2 way center in the 55-65 point range. If management can do that with Hemsky,Gagner ,prospects picks and our garbage truck full of 4th liners and depth defenseman that we would have the greatest GM that ever lived. I don't want to see Yak or Ebs go anywhere, but it might come down to it one day.
- Jeropotato

is it totally absurd?

of course they might get dealt, i certainly wont say it aint possible.

our biggest need is a quality top 4 minute dman.
and with the assets we have, i do think we can get that done. dont under estimate the power of a top ten pick.

as far as the big bodied guy, im not so sure it needs to be a stud power forward. just a big guy that goes to the net and can create some space for nuge and ebs. morris mentioned brian bickell. perfect. and at present neither would a guy of that ilk cost too much on the open market or in a trade.

and as far as the center goes, im just gonna disagree. or at least so that we dont necassarliy have to deal one of our core.
we get that other big body in the top 6 and i think we're ok with keeping gags. hes proven he can be a true #2.

you cant have superstars at every position. u need to manage your cap as well as your assets. u get a core and build around them with secondary pieces that come and go while trying to get the right mix.
and the beauty of this is that even in a down year, youve still managed to stay relevant as u have that strong core.

this way we get bigger, deeper, kept our kids and havent broken the bank.
and most importantly, i dont think acquiring a quality dman and a brian bickell type is far fetched either.

you guys need to stary winning
- blizzzard

Haha ha haaaaaaaaa... Devil's fan... I see what you did there

too bad Sens and Oilers couldn't swing a deal at the deadline... Bishop for Gagner would have made a lot of sense.
- themaynia

No. Our goaltending has not been a problem this year... At all. No way I'd do that deal.

Maybe for the Sens. It would have made absolutely no sense for the Oilers...
- Iggysbff

Regardless of where the pick is, does anyone really want to add to this team through the draft? I think filling a hole on 2013-14 roster with anything other than an established player is a step back.Besides, the organization needs to chill with the kids, give the ones we have some time to develope. If thats all were going to do we might as well go into next year with the same roster.
I think the Oilers might be able to work some trades at the draft to help the team, but there is some risk involved.Here is what I would try to do, in this order:

Move our first, maybe a second and one of our prospects for a big young center. I've had a metaphorical boner for Sean Couturier for a while.He had a poopty season and they're deep at center so it's possible the Flyers could go for that. If not, maybe they could target Dubinsky.If the Kings poop the bed in the playoff's, perhaps Mike Richards (Late night reputation and all)? Anyway you know where I'm going with this.2nd line center with size/grit that can contribute on the score board.
Next Step would be to move Gagner for a defensemen. There are few teams deep on the Blueline that suck at scoring, so maybe Columbus (Nikitin,Johnson),New York (McDonagh,DelZotto,Giardi) or Winterpeg (Big Buff,Enstrom,Bogosian) would be interested, though I doubt it would be straight up and a throw in of various worth might need to be included.
Move and replace Hemsky with a 3RW. Ideally I see a player in the mould of Mike Grier in that spot.Big hitter that can pot 10-15 goals a year.Ryan Jones with size and the ability to scare a defenseman, or the Ben Eager we hoped for,lol.Even if find this guy in free agency we still have to move Hemsky.A 2nd and a prospect would be more than I expect.

Of course, opposing GM's have to like these trades, and I'm well aware that just because it works on NHL 13, but I think the team would be improved.

ufa market aint that great tho..
especially for defencemen.

streit would help, but how much? and more importantly, at what price?

raymond doesnt crash enough. hes a decent player (and really good some nights) but im not sure hes the answer over jones. stalberg aint bad

i think any huge moves tambs makes will have to be made thru trades if possible. we need at least one real impact player, especially on the backend.
at that point, the small upgrades will be what's needed.

bickell, stalberg etc can help, but those are secondary moves to a true impact guy.
- hugefemale dog77

Streit is the real only prize for a dman and for the 3 year contract he wants at 35, I would offer him 4 at 4.25 a year and he would be worth every penny. He likes Krueger and has a history with him so signing him goes in our favor. He is the solid veteran d we need. If you watch him play, you will see him brings an amazingly underrated two way game that few can match and he is underrated like Smid when it comes to taking the body. He is not afraid to mix it up and the 4.25 is a raise for him. We might be able to get him cheaper but that is the price he is worth when you look at all of Vans dmen are paid that price and only Hamhuis comes close to being as good (he isn't though).

As for the UFA market, with the exception of maybe Boyes and Horton who could really break out as Oilers (there stats are great and they are not old or small) the big prizes are the bottom 6. I really advocate for buying out Horcoff and replacing him with Bozak. I like Horcoff. I know him through a friend and he is a great guy off the ice. However Bozak would sign for less that 5.5. His cap hit would be less, he is faster, great on the draw and would compliment a Paajarvi and hartkinen line better offensively and physically.

If we went with boyes or horton that would allow us hemsky or gagner (if we were willing to move hall to center). I think getting streit would also allow us to part with Nick. I like Nick but 3.25 salary as a 5-6 dman is a little crazy. Plus he has trade potential. Striet might not be the top 2 we all want but he might be the only top 2 we can get without mortgaging our future. If that changes in the future then great. We upgrade someone. I also think we trade or waive potter and keep fistric and whitney (then we trade whitney so he doesn't go for free). Fistric is good for the games against big teams.

Maybe they'll win the rest of the games.
- robin_steele264

Lets hope not. If we can't make the playoffs, lets at least get a high draft pick. My vote is to put Bunz in net and alternate him with Hovinen. See if Hovinen what Hovinen has and see where Bunz is. Make sure they know that we don't care if they win or lose so they don't get discouraged. If they feel anxious then don't do it. We don't want to hinder their growth, we just want them to have fun out there. I think that will be exciting.

Eberle sux this year so I don't blame u... (frank)er loses an edge at least once a game... I am disappointed in his game this year
- saskoil21

Agreed. Hopefully he has mono or something. He looks pretty bad out there.

is it totally absurd?

of course they might get dealt, i certainly wont say it aint possible.

our biggest need is a quality top 4 minute dman.
and with the assets we have, i do think we can get that done. dont under estimate the power of a top ten pick.

as far as the big bodied guy, im not so sure it needs to be a stud power forward. just a big guy that goes to the net and can create some space for nuge and ebs. morris mentioned brian bickell. perfect. and at present neither would a guy of that ilk cost too much on the open market or in a trade.

as far as the center goes, im just gonna disagree. or at least so that we dont necassarliy have to deal one of our core.
we get that other big body in the top 6 and i think we're ok with keeping gags. hes proven he can be a true #2.

you cant have superstars at every position. u need to manage your cap as well as your assets. u get a core and build around them with secondary pieces that come and go while trying to get the right mix.
and the beauty of this is that even in a down year, youve still managed to stay relevant as u still have that strong core.

this way we get bigger, deeper, kept our kids and havent broken the bank.
and most importantly, i dont think acquiring a quality dman and a brian bickell type is far fetched either.
- hugefemale dog77

I don't entirely disagree, and if our Top 10 pick can net us that guy, I would be all for it. Obviously,I would prefer a top pairing guy to play with Schultz Jr, but for that it will be costly. I think it might be easier to get a 2C with that pick though.

O'Reilly's salary next season is 6.5M thanks to CGY. If you want to have to qualify him as an RFA with at least 6.5M on a team with the likes of Yak and RNH and Schultz. There'd be a couple huge contracts. Also ROR has been sh1t this year. As has most of the avs roster though.
- TheNugeIsHuge

We can sign him before the July. He wants to stay. He won't want to make more than his line. They are not greedy. If Schultz wanted money he would be in NYR right now. Also we kind of started the offer sheet thing when we screwed Buffalo, although Vanek did turn out to be good where ROR we kind of expected was a wash.

Lately it looks like Dubs wants the first overall pick more than the Oinkers.
- whipper334

What the (frank) are you talking about?

Dubnyk's last 7 games...
4-3-0, 1.76, .944 in last 7 GPI

Streit is the real only prize for a dman and for the 3 year contract he wants at 35, I would offer him 4 at 4.25 a year and he would be worth every penny. He likes Krueger and has a history with him so signing him goes in our favor. He is the solid veteran d we need. If you watch him play, you will see him brings an amazingly underrated two way game that few can match and he is underrated like Smid when it comes to taking the body. He is not afraid to mix it up and the 4.25 is a raise for him. We might be able to get him cheaper but that is the price he is worth when you look at all of Vans dmen are paid that price and only Hamhuis comes close to being as good (he isn't though).

As for the UFA market, with the exception of maybe Boyes and Horton who could really break out as Oilers (there stats are great and they are not old or small) the big prizes are the bottom 6. I really advocate for buying out Horcoff and replacing him with Bozak. I like Horcoff. I know him through a friend and he is a great guy off the ice. However Bozak would sign for less that 5.5. His cap hit would be less, he is faster, great on the draw and would compliment a Paajarvi and hartkinen line better offensively and physically.

If we went with boyes or horton that would allow us hemsky or gagner (if we were willing to move hall to center). I think getting streit would also allow us to part with Nick. I like Nick but 3.25 salary as a 5-6 dman is a little crazy. Plus he has trade potential. Striet might not be the top 2 we all want but he might be the only top 2 we can get without mortgaging our future. If that changes in the future then great. We upgrade someone. I also think we trade or waive potter and keep fistric and whitney (then we trade whitney so he doesn't go for free). Fistric is good for the games against big teams.
- bsteinley

streit's a good player no doubt. but he'll be 39 when that contracts up. risky/
id consider him, and if hes the best option (tambs has tried to make a deal that wont materialize) then i wouldnt be opposed at 3 years and 4ish.

but i also dont agree for a second that none of BIEKSA, hamhuis, edler are as good as streit. at all.
hamhuis is WAYY underrated. i think hes had abit of a down year this season. but that's from norris candidate type year last season.

bieksa has been stellar this year. and is a mean, tough SOB that can skate and carry the puck.

edler is an enigma, but we've talked about this. i certainly dont think hes as bad as u do. and we also KNOW he can be elite. hes big and can/has dominated physically.
id take him over streit in a heartbeat.

and theyre all younger too.

id put that on the whole team.

the reason we only lost by 1 goal to anaheim was dubnyk. shoulda been 5-1, not 2-1.
but against pho he let in a couple softies. etc etc

he's been up and down and still has a penchant for some untimely weak ones, but hes also been stellar in stretches.

point is; with his price tag and that he's still developing, im not ready to give up on him.
especially by dealing a roster player that currently fills an important role (2C!) in exchange for another goalie that hasnt proven he's better.

that aint wise asset management.
- hugefemale dog77

Dubnyk's last 7 games...
4-3-0, 1.76, .944 in last 7 GPI

Streit is the real only prize for a dman and for the 3 year contract he wants at 35, I would offer him 4 at 4.25 a year and he would be worth every penny. He likes Krueger and has a history with him so signing him goes in our favor. He is the solid veteran d we need. If you watch him play, you will see him brings an amazingly underrated two way game that few can match and he is underrated like Smid when it comes to taking the body. He is not afraid to mix it up and the 4.25 is a raise for him. We might be able to get him cheaper but that is the price he is worth when you look at all of Vans dmen are paid that price and only Hamhuis comes close to being as good (he isn't though).

As for the UFA market, with the exception of maybe Boyes and Horton who could really break out as Oilers (there stats are great and they are not old or small) the big prizes are the bottom 6. I really advocate for buying out Horcoff and replacing him with Bozak. I like Horcoff. I know him through a friend and he is a great guy off the ice. However Bozak would sign for less that 5.5. His cap hit would be less, he is faster, great on the draw and would compliment a Paajarvi and hartkinen line better offensively and physically.

If we went with boyes or horton that would allow us hemsky or gagner (if we were willing to move hall to center). I think getting streit would also allow us to part with Nick. I like Nick but 3.25 salary as a 5-6 dman is a little crazy. Plus he has trade potential. Striet might not be the top 2 we all want but he might be the only top 2 we can get without mortgaging our future. If that changes in the future then great. We upgrade someone. I also think we trade or waive potter and keep fistric and whitney (then we trade whitney so he doesn't go for free). Fistric is good for the games against big teams.
- bsteinley

Tough to buy out Horc without that replacement signed though.What if we do that and Bozak tells us to bugger off? Now we are screwed. Is there a plan B to Bozak? Plan C? I think Horcoff is as good as just about any UFA or buy out candidate in the 3C spot. I don't advocate getting rid of any servicable roster players for nothing when we already have depth issues.

Clouts, there is no way..NO WAY.. that Gagner is traded for a pick or prospect. Snap out of it, bud. You are so obviously trolling for reaction.