The Nuge
Some say…
I couldn't resist. Continue.
What impressed me the most is how Draisaitl got up the ice really fast and even beat Patrick Kane and fight him off of all players to feed Hall for the one-timer. We got some great young guys in McDavid and Draisaitl.
Since moving to center, he has had to face Kopitar/Toews and hasn't missed a beat. He is playing so well right now.
That is always why I liked the nickname Panzer over Dr. Drai. It fits his style more.
Can't be... wasn't MacT the GM and Stu the head scout? He, Nurse and (Tambo's) Klefbom are all busts right?
Stu was great in the first round. It was rounds 2-7 that his drafting was weak. People like to blame Stu for those picks but the scouting staff was instructed to select size over BPA after round 1. Management felt they had enough skill in the top six and wanted to focus on bottom six players and big defencemen.
I've been pimping Draisaitl since I knew we wouldn't get Ekblad, and even I have to admit I didn't think he'd be this good for 2-3 more years.
Is it just me or does every goalie play lights out against the Oilers?
Super frustrating
So many good plays, watching him is really very impressive. He's so strong on the puck in the defensive end and just boxes out players and takes the puck away like it's nothing, and seems to always be making the right play at the offensive blue line. I've also been quite impressed by how quickly he's getting shots off in tight and putting them upstairs, a lot of our players would shoot those low or into the crest.
I admit I was skeptical that he'd be able to translate his game that well, but he's been looking just great for a while now.
That's the wrong way to think the game nowadays. If RNH is playing "3rd" line, then it's not really a 3rd line. It would be depth on C that would allow us to roll three 1st lines, and/or combine them into 1 line (for example move Drai to wing) when the situation arises. Having three 1st line centres is a luxury that you shouldn't just throw away.
I think I am emotionally Scarred and unable to truly enjoy Leon's current success.
I've been a Leon supporter for a long time. Always thought he was the right pick for the Oilers.
Bennett had/still has the potential to be the better player, but I always thought Bennetts Skill set would be more difficult to transfer to the NHL and would also take longer. I also think the eastern media bias has overblown his top end by a bit as well.
I followed Leon closely in junior when we sent him down and watched him frequently as well. I watched every memorial cup games he, Nurse, and Mcdavid were in to boot.
His body of work, including: skating, puck moving, shooting, face offs, and overall defensive play were bring raved about. He won much deserved hardware that should have put him higher on some peoples radar.
In short I feel Leon's low end was certainly higher than Bennetts and his high end potential really had no real limits. Elite #1 center has always been in the cards for this kid and at the moment seems likely.
6 goals, 14 points, in 9 games is beyond impressive.
However, the reason I say I can't enjoy it is because the oilers never seem to truly improve. The small sample size and super high shooting rate will most likely come back down to earth at some point.
Adding Mcdavid back into this lineup seems too good to be true. So we will see what happens as the season goes on.
EDIT: As good as he is playing RNH is still untouchable. Not sure why anyone would think otherwise. Some of Leons success is due to Hall as well, something we shouldn't forget.
I want to see the current lines stay together even when McDavid comes back and put McDavid on the third line with Yak and Hendricks. Easily the best three lines I think this team could put together.
We all feel your pain and I think everyone knows around these parts that cautious optimism is the only form of it that still exists; however, I have never seen a recent version of the Oilers that has won as many 50-50 puck battles, including Draisaitl, against top-tier teams like Chicago and LA. Once again, cautious optimism.
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