I would not read much in the Whitney hall handshake deal... It could be penis envy....lmfao....
- saskoil21

I guess pilgor will be non existent tonight as Pilogor had a goal and played stellar with hemmer and the other plug Horcoff... Nice to see he is changing parts of his game"if he got a bit meaner and used his size he could be unstoppable...and turris was mostly ineffective... I think it's funny and ironic...

Good we need a hardass behind the bench!!
Renney is a fool!!
- jaredwildzee

I think we just need accountability and common sense behind the bench... Not sure if it's stupid assistant coaches or all of the blame falls on the head coach?

I hope Chicago deals for khabby again... I think he could help them for the playoffs IMO... Not sure who would take Belanger... I stuck up for Him earlier in the year but now he makes Horcoff and cogs appear to have hockey hands....either he wins the draw and skates to the bench... Or he really learns how to shoot the (frank)ing puck, do one timers and pass... (frank)ing guys gets paid to play professional hockey and constantly gaffes in everything but face offs...

I think we just need accountability and common sense behind the bench... Not sure if it's stupid assistant coaches or all of the blame falls on the head coach?
- saskoil21

minute distribution,sitting Sutton unless they are losing on purpose I don't understand what they're thinking 90% of the time
Belanger is Brutal!!!!!!Good captain of OKC

The Skating past Whitney thing didn't seem to big of deal. To me it wasn't looking like he was Dissing Whitney. It look more like he had an agenda to get toward the bench. Maybe to make sure Renny knew it was him that got the game winning goal.

Just Saying. It wouldn't be the first time Hall's been caught on camera showing his displeasure with the Coaching Decisions.

Yes, I've watched the Oilers this year. I've gone to 12 games this year and have seen 8 wins and a possible 18 of 24 pts. Tanking happens on the ice, not in the press-box. No one on the ice is intentionally losing. Much of the blame should be on injuries. How can a team be successful when losing their 3 of their top 4 dmen at the same time? Or all 3 kids at the same time? Not to mention Gagner started the season off injured. Much of the blame is towards Renney and the coaching staff as well. How do guys like Hall/Eberle only see 16-17 mins a night when guys like Belanger who has 2 goals all year see 22+. The rest of the blame can be placed on the Pro Scouting staff. Our free agent signings have been abysmal. Tanking isn't the right word to use here.
- oilersfanatic

Maybe we're describing the same thing with different words. (Most of) the players are busting their asses of trying to win, but they are fighting against a stacked deck. Tambi gave them a roster that was obviously unbalanced, and that could compete on any given night but was more likely to compete for the lottery than for the Cup, and has declined to give them a single iota of help all season long. Renney gives them really obviously stinky line combinations most nights. If you want your offense to win games for you (that's where the smart money is for us right now) you put your goalscorers on the ice with setup men or chippy hardnosed grinders with speed and skill or complementary goalscorers or anybody but Shawn Freakin Horcoff *takes breath, straightens tie*
Anyways, I see Edmonton as a team where the men wearing jerseys try to win and the men wearing suits try to keep the men wearing jerseys from winning too much. This is what I mean when I say tanking.
P.S. Injuries are like bad officiating - they are intrinsically part of NHL hockey, particularly in the playoffs. Certain teams who will go unnamed here (I'm a smartass but I'm not really a troll) come unglued when they encounter bad officiating. Many teams do not. We come unglued when the injury bug hits - but others do not. Specifically, teams with ridiculous organizational depth. Anybody else remember the Canucks with 5/6 of their starting defensemen injured, winning something stuipid like 80% of a 10 game stretch (I totally pulled those numbers out of my ass, hopefully someone remembers a bit more clearly than I do. Where's that stereotypical annoying knows-everything-understands-nothing Canucks fan/troll when you really need him?)

I think we just need accountability and common sense behind the bench... Not sure if it's stupid assistant coaches or all of the blame falls on the head coach?
- saskoil21

Maybe the coach isn't that stupid - maybe his boss has given him a different definition of "success". Consider:
The fans have gotten a lot of exciting hockey this year. It's frustrating to watch us lose so many games we could easily have won, but watching Edmonton isn't like passing a kidney stone anymore either, so there is progress and lots of reasons for hope for the future.
Most of the core has been given the circumstances they need to excel. PVR and Omark have had terrible deals - limited, sporadic, half-sabatoged "opportunities" and that is totally the fault of the men in suits - this is a total fail and there is no way to rationalize it as anything except gross mishandling of prospects.
The Oilers will draft another Wunderkid this year. With a 30 team league if we want to be deserving to win several Cups in a decade we need to be clearly one of the best 4 teams in the league and our players must play their best hockey when the pressure is highest. With what we had at the start of this year we unquestionably would have spent the next 3 years growing into one of the top 10 teams in the league, but to be in the top 4 we would need all of our roster holes filled plus the same kind of prospect depth we have now.
The investors and money men still make a hefty profit - it's not like the Oilers don't have lots of selling points.
From one perspective you could say this season has gone nearly perfectly - but in all fairness, who could have foreseen the Columbus Blue Jackets?

P.S. Injuries are like bad officiating - they are intrinsically part of NHL hockey, particularly in the playoffs. Certain teams who will go unnamed here (I'm a smartass but I'm not really a troll) come unglued when they encounter bad officiating. Many teams do not. We come unglued when the injury bug hits - but others do not. Specifically, teams with ridiculous organizational depth. Anybody else remember the Canucks with 5/6 of their starting defensemen injured, winning something stuipid like 80% of a 10 game stretch (I totally pulled those numbers out of my ass, hopefully someone remembers a bit more clearly than I do. Where's that stereotypical annoying knows-everything-understands-nothing Canucks fan/troll when you really need him?)
- thefullnelson

I agree with a lot of what you are saying.

Injuries are a part of the game and you cannot blame everything on them. These are a way to get people time, to get them to develop. Every team has injuries, when your team gets them it is time for your guys to step it up.

Also, and I can be corrected on this, but the Canucks went through 13 Dmen last year and didn't miss a beat. This is a testament to the franchise more than the players. Their minor league team plays the same system as the NHL club does, so the players shuttleing between the teams know what they are to do and where they should be. This is how much of a pro it is to have your own minor league club and not have to share. Develop your own players as you need them to develop.

As the Barons get better the Oil get better. I don't follow the A, but I bet the Det affiliate works hard with the Red Wings to make the players the best they can be.

I just saw the Hall goal...there was no diss to Whitney in there, he was just skating by to celebrate...people trying to make something out of nothing

*looking at you Clouts*

I'm also not a fan of Belanger, Horcoff and Smyth having more minutes than the kids but if the kids were playing 22+ minutes a game a lot of it would be against oppositions top lines and they are not yet defensively able to handle that. Maybe Renny knows what he is doing with Hall, Eberle, and Nuges development, that is why he is the oilers coach. I dont think he is the guy to take this team into the play offs but he is doing what is probably best for the kids right now.

Maybe the coach isn't that stupid - maybe his boss has given him a different definition of "success". Consider:
The fans have gotten a lot of exciting hockey this year. It's frustrating to watch us lose so many games we could easily have won, but watching Edmonton isn't like passing a kidney stone anymore either, so there is progress and lots of reasons for hope for the future.
Most of the core has been given the circumstances they need to excel. PVR and Omark have had terrible deals - limited, sporadic, half-sabatoged "opportunities" and that is totally the fault of the men in suits - this is a total fail and there is no way to rationalize it as anything except gross mishandling of prospects.
The Oilers will draft another Wunderkid this year. With a 30 team league if we want to be deserving to win several Cups in a decade we need to be clearly one of the best 4 teams in the league and our players must play their best hockey when the pressure is highest. With what we had at the start of this year we unquestionably would have spent the next 3 years growing into one of the top 10 teams in the league, but to be in the top 4 we would need all of our roster holes filled plus the same kind of prospect depth we have now.
The investors and money men still make a hefty profit - it's not like the Oilers don't have lots of selling points.
From one perspective you could say this season has gone nearly perfectly - but in all fairness, who could have foreseen the Columbus Blue Jackets?
- thefullnelson

I think u could be right.... I know they want a top 3-5 pick.... Well we r there but who are they going to take? Grigs or Murray?

I think u could be right.... I know they want a top 3-5 pick.... Well we r there but who are they going to take? Grigs or Murray?
- saskoil21

Current Conventional Wisdom is that a defender taken in the top five is a waste of a top five pick. Just as badly as we need defense, we need size up front. Grigs could be our next Moose. Deals for top-4 D-men are pricey but possible. No team would ever trade away a big skilled #1 center unless he came with lots of baggage and question marks (I'm looking at you, Jeff Carter!)

I'm also not a fan of Belanger, Horcoff and Smyth having more minutes than the kids but if the kids were playing 22+ minutes a game a lot of it would be against oppositions top lines and they are not yet defensively able to handle that. Maybe Renny knows what he is doing with Hall, Eberle, and Nuges development, that is why he is the oilers coach. I dont think he is the guy to take this team into the play offs but he is doing what is probably best for the kids right now.
- abware

Read the latest blog from Tencer. He bring up this point. He feels it is all about efficient time usage for the kids. They are still getting used to playing at this level and to drop a 25 minute night on them, night in and night out, will fatigue them. This way they get to play fresh every play. And I see what he is saying. I would rather see Horc, Bel and Smyth get fatigued and play sub par hockey than see it from the kids who may take it harder mentally and it will affect their development.

Current Conventional Wisdom is that a defender taken in the top five is a waste of a top five pick. Just as badly as we need defense, we need size up front. Grigs could be our next Moose. Deals for top-4 D-men are pricey but possible. No team would ever trade away a big skilled #1 center unless he came with lots of baggage and question marks (I'm looking at you, Jeff Carter!)
- thefullnelson

i think that if the Oil get a Top 3 pick they take the best forward, lower than that then you take the best Dman.

i think that if the Oil get a Top 3 pick they take the best forward, lower than that then you take the best Dman.
- OilHorse

I could get behind that.

Here is my crazy Trade Idea that will never happen... Carter 4 Horcoff (Just as bad cap hit but 7 years less) plus our 2nd round pick this year and our 2013 1st and if they ask us nicely they can have teddy peckman too lol The point of this is to say Columbus is going to get screwed in any deal they don't fold cuz of Carter and we get a decent centre

Just several people commenting that Hall ignored Whitney...skated right past him after scoring winning goal. I noticed it too and thought it was strange.

But that being said, and as I said in the blog, I have no knowledge of an actual issue existing between Hall and Whitney. I just was commenting on the strange moment after the goal.
- Maxbone

He's not ignoring him, he's jacked that he scored in overtime and Hall being an emotional type player always celebrates scoring in OT.

And could the CBC have picked a worse play-by-play team to cover the game? Boring, disinterested, and at times, straight-out stupid

i actually thought it was a HUGE step up from the normal hockey night in canada crew. at least they knew the players names. Cole is, WITHOUT DOUBT, the worst announcer in all of hockey, maybe all of sports.....and i think he's senile.


as for the game. congrats oilers. you guys weathered the early storm, and fought back hard to earn 2 pts. great play by hall on the winner. glad we got a point though, and that the habs humiliated the leafs in their own rink. so all in all, pretty good day.

i think that if the Oil get a Top 3 pick they take the best forward, lower than that then you take the best Dman.
- OilHorse

Top three for the Oil should be Yakupov, Grigorenko and Forsberg, maybe even have Grigorenko ahead of Yakupov. Seeing as someone will possibly take Dumba/Murray before Forsberg, we maybe get him at 4. After that I'd look to get Galchenyuk. After that maybe take a Dman, or maybe we can make some kinda deal to move down and get Wsh two firsts

Read the latest blog from Tencer. He bring up this point. He feels it is all about efficient time usage for the kids. They are still getting used to playing at this level and to drop a 25 minute night on them, night in and night out, will fatigue them. This way they get to play fresh every play. And I see what he is saying. I would rather see Horc, Bel and Smyth get fatigued and play sub par hockey than see it from the kids who may take it harder mentally and it will affect their development.
- OilHorse

I believe it's more of sheltering the kids from the other teams top lines. Hall Eberle Nuge and even Gagner still have a lot of development in the defensive zone. At their age and level of conditioning they could probably handle 20+ minutes per game bug if they are chasing the puck against the sedins they are going to get frustrated and not develop properly. Some players probably thrive with the thrown to the wolves type development but it did not work with Gagner and now seems to be thriving under less minutes and defensive minutes, obviously.

Current Conventional Wisdom is that a defender taken in the top five is a waste of a top five pick. Just as badly as we need defense, we need size up front. Grigs could be our next Moose. Deals for top-4 D-men are pricey but possible. No team would ever trade away a big skilled #1 center unless he came with lots of baggage and question marks (I'm looking at you, Jeff Carter!)
- thefullnelson

How is this conventional wisdom? Lets take a look at the 2008 draft shall we
1. Stamkos 2. Doughty 3. Bogosian 4. Pietrangelo 5. Schenn 6. Filatov 7. Wilson 8. Boedker 9. Bailey 10. Hodgson
Seems to me that other than the blatant 1st overall pick the next 4 were all defensemen and all have thus far been the correct choices to make. I wouldnt rather have any of the following 5 picks who were all forwards. So much for your conventional wisdom

Yes, I've watched the Oilers this year. I've gone to 12 games this year and have seen 8 wins and a possible 18 of 24 pts. Tanking happens on the ice, not in the press-box. No one on the ice is intentionally losing. Much of the blame should be on injuries. How can a team be successful when losing their 3 of their top 4 dmen at the same time? Or all 3 kids at the same time? Not to mention Gagner started the season off injured. Much of the blame is towards Renney and the coaching staff as well. How do guys like Hall/Eberle only see 16-17 mins a night when guys like Belanger who has 2 goals all year see 22+. The rest of the blame can be placed on the Pro Scouting staff. Our free agent signings have been abysmal. Tanking isn't the right word to use here.
- oilersfanatic

I think the young guys production could slip a bit if they were used more. I also think that next year you will see them start to get more responsibility in this respect. Can't give em too much rope to hang themselves with so early in their career.

edit: I mean this on a conditioning/stamina level. Takes awhile to build up the fitness required to sustain an 82 game schedule. If they are used too much they could burn out earlier in the season.

that is not what I have been getting from Pil...his issue was that he was not producing...even when PRV was sent down and got some points, he still rags on PRV.

Pil's problem is that he thinks he knows better than everyone else, and strokes his own ego too much.
- OilHorse

Agreed

We are not using PRV this year to get a Dman...and he is a piece of our 2nd line in the future...

IMO
- OilHorse

Agreed,and I have said the same more then 100 times....some people just don't get it.

Sutton signed!!