Defense Wins Championships — and McDavid and Draisaitl Know It

The Oilers season is over and I’ve taken some time to calm down and reflect. It was an unfortunate ending but I really did not see the Oilers going all the way to the final this year. With all the injuries to top players such as Draisaitl and McDavid, to their overall lack of team defence, there was just no path to getting to the finals for the third year in a row.

The McDavid effect

Now Connor is the best player to play the game, but with that comes some issues. Because he is so good players and coaches are afraid to challenge him. Rather than getting him to play better defense or at times try not to do everything himself, they just let it go. Ek wrote a really interesting piece on Connor where he quotes a former player’s experience with MacDavid,

  "Recently a player who played with McDavid over the last few years before moving on admitted to me it’s really hard to just NOT give him the puck                           and let him go. That always feels like your best move, he noted…He also told me that while the coaches wanted you NOT to just give it to McDavid,     Connor is so amazing and would want the puck so much that you really had no choice but to let him take it and run.."

Giving McDavid the puck is not always a bad thing, but what I noticed is it's always the go to play. The Oiler, too often, look like a one trick pony when it comes to their offensive game. By having Connor (and Leon) do everything is a glaring problem as the rest of the team look disconnected and the team mentality is offensive so Connor does not get impatient. I love Connor’s desire to win, but one thing he needs is a little more patience. What that means is play a system, and thrive in that system so that everyone else joins in. 

We somewhat saw his impatience in the gold medal game when he went in all alone vs team USA in overtime. Instead of regrouping and waiting for his teammates, he went alone, lost the puck and it ended up in Canada’s net soon after. I don't question his desire, skill or effort. He just needs to relax a little out there. Right now it's the Connor show, which is awesome, but it creates a strange mentality on a hockey team. 

In his end of year media interview, Connor had this to say,

"We were an average team all year. When you're an average team with high expectations, you're going to be disappointed".

I agree 100% with what he says here. To become a great team, they need everyone to be on the same page and play a far more structured game. This starts with Connor and Leon.

Draisaitl says what we all are afraid to say

Following their exit, the media was treated to end of year interviews from both Macdavid and Draisaitl. What they had to say was interesting and really echoed what I have thought about this essentially since McDavid put on the jersey. In particular, this quote from Draisaitl sums it up for me,

"I wasn’t happy with my defensive play this year. I thought it slipped from last year and got away from me a bit. I can only speak for myself, but I think our team took a step back in small areas of defending. It is something we need to be better at next year."

This is one of the top issues with the Oilers. The defensive play of the top players simply needs to be better and that starts with Leon and Connor. I feel odd somewhat criticizing their game as without them, this team is dead in the water. However, this is a big problem as it really explains the disjointed nature of how Edmonton play. 

Pierre Maguire’s Todd McLellan story

To add to this, Pierre Maguire had an interesting story about Todd McLellan when he was coaching the Oilers. Essentially, McLellan was frustrated how the team simply refused to play defence and confided this to Maguinre after a game,

"These guys will not play team defense. They just refuse. I'm trying to coach it into them, they just don't want to do it".

This is a really interesting quote as it gives some insight into what is going on behind the scenes and how the team responds to a coach. I’ve always said that the Oilers have weak structure, and this pretty much confirms it. You can watch the whole video below.

At the end of the day, your best players need to also toe the line in all aspects of the game. If McDavid and Draisaitl continue to cheat and cut corners defensively in favour of offensive opportunities, so will the rest of the team. This is what we have seen for years, and the fact it worked is a testament to how good Connor and Leon are. However, they need to take the next step. Less points for more wins is key to winning a championship. 

I honestly think the Oilers have a good roster. They need two things; a structural overhaul led by Connor, Leon and the coaching staff (new staff?) and a reliable goalie. If they can commit to playing a structure somewhat like the Habs, this team will truly fly and they could achieve dynasty level. But EVERYONE needs to buy in, no questions asked.