Updated:
In my opinion, the NHL is a better place when the Edmonton Oilers are a relevant team. On Friday afternoon, the Oilers took a quantum leap towards returning to their winning years when CEO Bob Nicholson announced Peter Chiarelli as the team's new President Of Hockey Operations and General Manager.
In the past ten seasons, the once proud Edmonton Oilers brand has become synonymous with losing and mediocrity. These days, the Oilers are a punchline to a bad joke. When I was growing up in the '80s, the Oilers were the best brand in the NHL. They were synonymous with winning and dynastic hockey teams featuring Gretzky, Messier, Kurri, Anderson, Coffey, and Fuhr. The Oilers of yesteryear were rock stars that we all looked up to. Today's Oilers Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent Hopkins, Jordan Eberle, Leon Draisaitl, Nail Yakupov, and Justin Schultz have become the poster children of front office dysfunction and poor asset management.
How can a team draft #1 or #2 so often and have nothing to show for it like the Oilers do today?
MacTavish is officially out of his GM office. He has been re-assigned to another department. The futures of Scott Howson, Bob Green, and Stu MacGregor are unknownat this time. Chiarelli will likely bring in his own lieutenants.
No more messin' around in Edmonton.
Those days are gone now. The buck stops with Nicholson and Chiarelli who vow not to draft and transition Connor McDavid into an abomination of a hockey organization.
For that, I applaud Oilers owner Daryl Katz who is grew sick and tired of losing and mismanaging young, valuable hockey assets like Kevin Lowe and Craig MacTavish have been doing for the better part of the past ten years.
Chiarelli has a lot of work to do to get his train back on the tracks. Firstly, who will be his head coach? He didn't hire Todd Nelson. Perhaps he can Nelson and opts to hire a savvy teacher like Craig Ramsay, who he hired to assist Claude Julien in Boston in 2011 when they won the Stanley Cup together. If not Ramsay, Mike Babcock and Todd McLellan will be no brainers to interview for the Oilers job.
Who will be the starting goalie in Edmonton next season?
Most importantly, Chiarelli needs to build an NHL D-corps. He has Andrew Ference and Justin Schultz on board, however he needs five more studs to round out his corps. Darnell Nurse is wrapping up his stupendous junior career with the Soo Greyhounds right now, and will play in Edmonton next season. Chiarelli needs more beef and skill on his back end if he wants to compete in the wild, wild west next season.
Thanks, Oilers TV
I'm happy for the fans of @EdmontonOilers They have suffered long enough. Here's to a 2017 Stanley Cup Final: Sabres vs. Oilers
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) April 24, 2015
I clicked this pic of Lowe and MacT scouting McDavid in Erie last month. pic.twitter.com/ZPFq7piCTd
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) April 24, 2015
______________________________________________________________________
There's a new sheriff in Edmonton. Craig Mac Tavish is out as GM.
Peter Chiarelli is the new President of Hockey Ops and GM of the Edmonton Oilers.
Chiarelli is going to be drafting Connor McDavid first overall in the NHL Draft.
The Oilers have issued this statement to announce the Chiarelli hiring:
Oilers Entertainment Group (OEG) Chief Executive Officer & Vice Chair Bob Nicholson announced today significant changes to the management structure of the organization – both in hockey and business operations.Peter Chiarelli has been appointed President of Hockey Operations and General Manager effective immediately. Chiarelli will report to CEO Bob Nicholson, and be responsible for all aspects of hockey operations.
“We are delighted to bring a person of Peter’s considerable hockey knowledge and experience to the Edmonton Oilers. Peter has had success at all levels of the game and we look forward to his leadership,… said Nicholson.
“I am honoured to join such a great organization with a long history of success. There is a strong, young core here with good complementary players,… said Chiarelli. “I hope to bring it to the next level with a measured approach. Daryl Katz and Bob Nicholson have a great vision here for the team and Rogers Place. I am very excited to be a part of it.…
Most recently, Chiarelli served as the General Manager of the Boston Bruins for the past eight seasons. He guided the Bruins to the Stanley Cup Finals twice during his tenure in Boston, including winning the Stanley Cup in 2011.
The Nepean, Ontario native has also served as a member of the management group for Hockey Canada’s National Men’s Team, including the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2013 Men’s World Hockey Championships.
Chiarelli graduated from Harvard University with an Economics degree in 1987 and he played for the Harvard men’s hockey team from 1983-87. He began his career in hockey after graduating with a law degree from the University of Ottawa and was hired as the Director of Legal Relations for the Ottawa Senators in 2000. In 2005, Chiarelli was promoted to assistant General Manager of the Senators and he served in that role for one season, before being hired by the Boston Bruins in 2006.
Kevin Lowe’s responsibilities transition out of hockey operations, however, he remains Vice Chair of Oilers Entertainment Group.
“I support Bob in the changes he has implemented and I am very excited about the bright future for the Edmonton Oilers, the City of Edmonton and Oilers fans everywhere,… said Kevin Lowe. “It has been an honour to represent the Oilers both on and off the ice, and I look forward to my new role in the organization.…
OEG also announced changes to business operations.
Patrick LaForge has stepped down as President & Chief Operating Officer.
“We thank Patrick for his dedication to the Oilers and Oil Country over the last 15 years. He made a significant mark on the organization and was the driving force behind many successful initiatives,… said Nicholson.
Working closely with Nicholson to continue to grow OEG business will be a trio of senior executives. Stew MacDonald will be responsible for marketing and revenue, Darryl Boessenkool will be responsible for finance and OEG transition business, and Bob Black will continue as Executive Vice President of the Edmonton Arena Corporation, and will also be heading up new business for OEG.
OEG Chairman Daryl Katz said, “I want to thank Kevin, Patrick and Craig for their commitment and contributions to the Oilers over the past many years. No one should question the heart, integrity, dedication or capability of any of these individuals. Each has done great things for the team and our city, but it was simply time for a change. We will honour their contributions and treasure their continued friendship. Once an Oilers, always an Oiler. I also want to commend Bob Nicholson on his leadership and welcome Peter Chiarelli aboard.
***
Winnipeg was a great experience for Drew Stafford. He rode the emotional roller coaster during his nine seasons in Buffalo. He was there during the great times of Drury and Briere leading the Sabres to consecutive Eastern Conference Finals. He was also present for the mass exodus that saw management trade away veteran leaders Pominville, Vanek, Miller, Regehr, Leopold, and Ott. Stafford and Tyler Myers were traded away in February to clear the decks for the tank for Jack Eichel.
Stafford was the "oh by the way" guy in the Tyler Myers for Evander Kane-Zach Bogosian trade. Tim Murray was able to find a new home for Stafford so that he could de-frag his mind of the negativity of his past two seasons in Buffalo. Stafford won the proverbial lottery by landing on a veteran team with playoff aspirations. Stafford, a pending UFA, played inspired, hear felt hockey in his short stint in The Peg. He created immediate value in himself by leading by example on the ice. Stafford played in a total of 30 games for the Jets. He scored 10 goals and added 11 assists for 21 points in 30 games. In 50 games played in Buffalo before his trade, Stafford scored 9 goals and 15 assists. He was -18. In his 26 regular season games with the Jets, Stafford scored 9 goals and set up 10 others. He was +6.
I feel strongly that the Jets would have missed the playoffs without Stafford and Myers in their lineup.
The Jets were spanked 4-0 by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of the playoffs. Its time now for Stafford to reflect on his hockey future. Will he be offered a deal to stay and play in The Peg, or will his heart lead him home to Minnesota to play with his bros Zach Parise, Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, Chris Stewart and Jordan Leopold? Stafford makes his off season home in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. He and the Parise brothers have been best friends since they were knee high to a grasshopper. Do the Wild really need another top six forward? We will have to wait and see what Wild GM Chuck Fletcher is going to do with his roster after this playoff run comes to an end.
After Friday's locker clean out day, Stafford said that he enjoyed with short time in The Peg. He said that he would like to return their next season. His buddy Tyler Myers is coaxing Stafford to sign a UFA deal to stay there on a long term deal. Stafford is open to the idea. Are the Jets interested in re-signing Stafford? If so, to what level do they sign him at? $4 million or more per season?
Thanks, Jets TV
***
Buffalo Sabres GM Tim Murray said last week that he is serious about building a solid list of five coaches that he wants to interview for his head coaching job.
To the best of my knowledge, Murray hasn't interviewed a candidate yet. He may have spoken on the phone with a candidate or two.
Here is my list of five coaching candidates that Murray should interview:
1. Mike Babcock 2. Todd McLellan 3. Luke Richardson 4. Randy Carlyle 5. Guy Boucher
Babcock cannot interview with NHL teams until his Detroit Red Wings are eliminated from their playoff series against the Tampa Lightning. Babcock will be the number one coach on the market should he opt to go the UFA route this summer. Murray and Babcock can relate well with one another. They have created winning teams together in their hockey pasts. Murray will pay Babcock a king's ransom if he becomes available. Murray knows that Toronto, San Jose, and Edmonton are looking to hire Babs.
Todd McLellan departed the Sharks on Monday. He will be a highly sought after head coach. He and Babcock are the belles of the coaching ball, and rightly so.
Luke Richardson can motivate and develop young talent like no other. Is he ready for prime time? Richardson has been doing great things developing the Baby Sens in Bingo. My guess is that he is ready for the NHL because his daughter will be entering her senior year at Cornell University. If Richardson doesn't accept a head coaching job then he will make a great assistant coach.
Randy Carlyle won a Stanley Cup with Anaheim. Tim Murray and Bib Murray assembled the team that Carlyle won The Cup with. He was fired by the Toronto Maple Leafs while he had them in the playoffs. The Leafs fired Carlyle then went dumpster diving for McDavid. They failed miserably. Carlyle gets the most out of all of his players, both young and old.
Boucher is a dark horse as he has been out of the NHL for three seasons. He coached a generational played named Steven Stamkos to the Eastern Conference Finals. He is an extreme defensive tactician.
I like Murray to use a page out of Terry Pegula's Buffalo Bills play book to close on Babcock or McLellan by offering a Rex Ryan style 5 years / $27 million deal. Murray has a solid core with Kane, Ennis, Bogosian, Gorges, Moulson, Foligno, Deslauriers. Murray will also be active in the trade, UFA, and offer sheet markets. He can easily add veteran core guys like Ryan O'Reilly, Patrick Sharp, Logan Couture, Martin Jones, and Tyler Toffoli. The cherry on top of the sundae will be a treasure chest of blue chip prospects in: Eichel, Ristolainen, Reinhart, Girgensons, Zadorov, Grigorenko, Pysyk, McCabe, Baptiste, Bailey, Fasching, Compher, Florentino, Ullmark, Hurley and many more to come.
Sabres fans keep hoping for the Red Wings to be eliminated by the Lightning.
*****
Sportsnet’s Mark Spector is reporting that the Edmonton Oilers have removed Kevin Lowe as their President of Hockey Operations.
Lowe has been a permanent fixture in the Oilers organization having spent a total of 15 seasons as a player with the Oilers. He joined the club as an assistant coach in 1998 and became the GM from 2000-2009 when he was promoted to President of Hockey Operations.
Lowe will be moving out of a hockey management position and will be serving on the business side of the franchise. Lowe was too close to billionaire owner -slash-80s Oilers uber fan Daryl Katz. Lowe could summon the strength to tell his boss to but out of the day to dsy hockey department business. Katz has been treating his NHL Oilers like it is a fantasy hockey team. Lowe allowed that to occur. My sense is that Chiarelli and Nicholson will push Katz out of the hockey ops realm and back to where he belongs in the owner's suite.
It's about time that Lowe be held accountable for his mismanaging of young player assets in the City of Champions. Under Lowe's leadership, the Oil have gone from a 2006 Stanley Cup Finals appearance vs. Carolina to being a perennial loser in the Western Conference. I applaud new CEO Bob Nicholson for hiring a proven winner in Chiarelli to scrape off rust and inject success back into the Oilers brand.
Peter Chiarelli will be named President of Hockey Operations at a presser shortly. Will Craig MacTavish be packing his GM office later today?
The Oilers have had a great hockey week. Last Saturday, they won Connor McDavid in the NHL Draft Lottery. On Monday, they promoted Bob Nicholson. On Thursday night, they reached a contract agreement with Chiarelli, who led the Boston Bruins to the Stanley Cup championship in 2011.
More to come.....
***