Post-Game Talk: Draisaitl is the only hockey player we have right now

[MessierThanThou]

Pretty sure Henrique-McDavid-Hyman was the top 6 line to start the game today.

You have your opinion but one can easily argue that Knobloch has been the best coache in the entire league the past 100 or so games. Firing yet another coach would just be stupid.

How is it stupid to fire a failing coach when this team has a genuine chance at missing the playoffs and has played its worst hockey in years in the last month alone? We're beyond this just being a slump now...it's a total team collapse. He is doing nothing to wake this team up, and changing coaches has always led to an uptick in play for this core. Wish this core didn't run through coaches every 1.5 years, but if that's what it takes to keep them producing, you absolutely do it.

 

[Fishy McScales]

I hate that we keep running two guys into the ground so they are tired later in games and will be tired in the playoffs due to all those extra minutes every game.

Meanwhile all other forwards have nothing going. Wonder why?

 

[ThePhoenixx]

How comfortable are oilers fans at mcdavid at 16 mil caphit?

 

[McSpecial DraiBlend]

Funny thing is Draisaitl could have had 5 points tonight if anyone else could do anything.

Pickard starts the next game

This was what he looked like playing junior in Kelowna. The stats didn't even reflect how much better he was than everyone else.
At this point McDavid can seriously rethink his future if he wants even a cent more than Leon.

 

[ThePhoenixx]

Hes been as good as Delia who is crap so..I mean.

It's like they lost their good goalie coach.

 

[fuswald]

Did you miss the part where 90% of the issues with this team are from what Jeff Jackson did before Stan got here?

Are oiler fans this clueless?

Like last season when we ruled with basically Hollands team. This season not so much.

Management not looking so good right now.

That said I blame it on some of our top players looking like they have long flu or something.
McDavid Nuge Hyman Podz Arvidson Skinner Skinner having their worst years so far. 4rth line guys are off a bit but they don't make the team this bad. Podz and Arvidson are absolutely snake bitten but Nuge Hyman JSkinner are really off. SSkinner is, another discussion. McDavid is coming on as of late but still more to go.

Hope the idea is to save it for the end so we don't poop out.

Coaching is questionable but hard to blame with our guys off. Or maybe that is what the coach is for to fix the players.

 

[McSpecial DraiBlend]

Drai is playing the best hockey of his career and lapping the field for Hart in my mind. Going to be a travesty if media darling MacK wins it. McDavid's decrease this year mostly seems mental. Not sure what's going on, hope he can pull it together.

He got married.

I get Jagr wibes from Draisaitl these days. When Jagr was in Pittsburgh in the beginning of the 2000’s.
Only diffrence Kovalev, Hrdina, Lang, Straka etc. could score a little bit at least…

Man that was a hell of a team to watch. I was living in Calgary at the time and had seats down low. It's was amazing to watch that group.

 

[brentashton]

You think Brown is having a worse season this year than he did last year?

There nothing special about to say it’s fantastically better that I would single him out in a thread saying how much better he is.

I mean ya he’s doubled his goals scored so far, from 4 to 8, and is on pace for maybe 10. Wow…

Hold me still, I can only get so excited.

It’s akin to suggesting that a player has doubled his scoring output so is 100% better player, “checks stats” and sees said player scored 2 goals instead of 1.

 

[TKB21]

Looking like a mistake re-signing Henrique. Guy is a complete corpse and utterly useless. I was fully on board with bringing him back but man was that a mistake. Arvidsson is another player that needs to be shot into the sun with a honourable mention to the ghost of RNH. In fact you could wipe out three quarters of our forwards and bring in AHLer’s and we wouldn’t look any different.

 

[Oilslick941611]

Dallas a week ago

So we have 3 regulation wins (including last night) since Jan 27th.


Yikes

 

[Heavy Dee]

Podz has been fairly elite without the puck, he is a great defensive forward and adds size/speed for one million.

It's not his fault he's being put into an offensive role and given more minutes than he should.

I have lots of time for Podz in the bottom 6.

 

[Heavy Dee]

Don’t forget Adam Henrique who had a lot of votes of confidence going into the season. Yours as well. He’s been utter dogshit, can’t score to save his life and on most nights he plays every bit as badly as Connor Brown. Except worse because he makes more than three times what Brown makes and for an additional year to boot. What a joke of a signing.

Henrique has been my biggest disappointment. The guy barely takes a hard stride in any game.

 

[Oilslick941611]

Knoblauch is slowly looking like a fraud honestly.
He can’t get f***ing anything from this lineup. On paper this forward group shouldn’t be bad and if THIS many guys are slumping either they are all infected with the plague or somethings up.
I know the blender has been hurting the team especially when he gives a line a period before he swings to McDrai but like god damn.
Without Draisaitl being the clear cut best player in the league this year this isn’t a playoff team. Let alone a bubble one.

The forward group on paper is good. In reality it’s ass. I’d even include McDavid in that since February. For all the chances he’s had and all the in close passes to no one and turnovers at the goal line McDavid should have 20 more points than he has, and even then it probably doesn’t matter because no winger on the team as any killer instinct and RNH seems to be happy to just playing the bare minimum. The others aren’t worth talking about because they’ve been so bad since the start of the year.

When your best players aren’t your best players everything is going to suck. The only person showing up constantly and consistently and playing at or above expectations is Draisaitl.

The team doesn’t play as a team anymore. They play as individuals. It shows.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Seriously, get some secondary offense for f***s sake.

 

[brentashton]

So… we lost all the likes we received in the last year?

Booooooo

Looks like we also lost all messages posted in that time frame. My message count is about 4000 less than what I remember bit being. Too bad, there were some bangers in that last batch. This is like the fire at Universals back lot a few years ago when all those master recordings by some of music’s greatest, were lost .

 

[MoontoScott]

Agree with posters who say that without Leon's MVP season this is probably a non-playoff team.

A lot of changes need to be made over the next few years. Unfortunately some of these retirement contracts will be hard to ship out because the Oilers are running out of draft picks as sweeteners.

Looks like we also lost all messages posted in that time frame. My message count is about 4000 less than what I remember bit being. Too bad, there were some bangers in that last batch. This is like the fire at Universals back lot a few years ago when all those master recordings by some of music’s greatest, were lost .

You were destined to be in the HOF posters Hall of Fame but alas--- fate is fickle.

 

[MoontoScott]

How is it stupid to fire a failing coach when this team has a genuine chance at missing the playoffs and has played its worst hockey in years in the last month alone? We're beyond this just being a slump now...it's a total team collapse. He is doing nothing to wake this team up, and changing coaches has always led to an uptick in play for this core. Wish this core didn't run through coaches every 1.5 years, but if that's what it takes to keep them producing, you absolutely do it.

All is not lost---I think the boys will make the playoffs (anything can happen then) but the last 12 games simply confirms what a number of posters have been saying all along--the supporting cast is weak and since so many guys are on the downslope, it isn't going to get better without a few miracles (Easter is coming mind you).

Not much help waiting in the wings--very few prospects and in this year's draft ---only one pick in the first five rounds (a 3rd rounder). No 1st round pick next year either. "Win now" has taken its toll.

 

[Zguy370]

Does RNH still have an A stitched on his jersey? If so, WHY? What am I missing?

 

[Whoshattenkirkshoes]

Why does letting Mcdavid and Leon play together get so much hate? When we put them together we actually get extended O zone time and scoring chances.

Mcdavid away from Drai 5 on 5 doesn't even exist these days. It's like watching the 2005 Minnesota Wild. We are starving for offence.

 

[MoontoScott]

It simply becomes harder to stand in front of the net as much as these guys have done when you're constantly getting punished for doing it. Other teams also simply collapsing low and making egress harder in first place. they still get there a lot and not getting any luck there when they do.

I don't think Hyman has been 100% this season and he's getting wrecked out there. had his nose and mouth mangled multiple times. Been belted so many times. The punishment Hyman has had this season is the kind of stuff that ended Craig Simpsons career. Its NHL correction occurring that if you score 50 its going to be hell to play in subsequent seasons. He's not getting open looks or being left alone now. Its all fight, its all hard now.

I think he's still been a relative bright spot. He won't score 50 but he still brings a good work ethic and will go to the net. He's contributed something.

In the off-season, he will still be on the "keepers list" which is more than we can say for some of the guys who will be down at the bus station.

 

[brentashton]

Agree with posters who say that without Leon's MVP season this is probably a non-playoff team.

A lot of changes need to be made over the next few years. Unfortunately some of these retirement contracts will be hard to ship out because the Oilers are running out of draft picks as sweeteners.


You were destined to be in the HOF posters Hall of Fame but alas--- fate is fickle.

Warren Zevon was never nominated for the RRHOF. I’m in good company.

 

[Zerotonine]

Decent game, pickard played well. But man is it noticeable how much better and harder this team plays infront of pickard compared to Skinner

And I'm done with knoblach. Guy is in over his head in a bad way. He has no structure. We have went backwards regarding are play. And similar to the previous coaches he is riding mcdrai straight into the ground with all the ice time they get

 

[MoontoScott]

Warren Zevon was never nominated for the RRHOF. I’m in good company.

Yes but Werewolves of London was still unforgettable--just like some of your posts. Your fans won't forget that.

 

[brentashton]

Yes but Werewolves of London was still unforgettable--just like some of your posts. Your fans won't forget that.

And it’s not even his best song.

 

[MoontoScott]

Decent game, pickard played well. But man is it noticeable how much better and harder this team plays infront of pickard compared to Skinner

And I'm done with knoblach. Guy is in over his head in a bad way. He has no structure. We have went backwards regarding are play. And similar to the previous coaches he is riding mcdrai straight into the ground with all the ice time they get

They do seem to work harder in front of him, don't they? That play he made in overtime demonstrates the difference (I think) between the 2 goaltenders. Pickard has more confidence than Stu does--especially when he leaves the crease.