I despise the Oilers but anyone dancing on their grave was just dumb. On here it doesn’t matter I guess since no one has to be accountable for all the stupid takes they have. Personally I’ll wait until May to start bashing them.
Oilers are good at hockey again: Back in the plofs
- Thread starter Czechboy
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Even a massive nuck fan like myself knew they weren't nearly as bad as they were the first 20ish games and unlike the oiler posters (not you) I have no problem giving credit.this 17 game stretch is impressive and shows just how insanely good #97 is and how much he affects his teammates. But there are repercussions and revelations that standout. Since oiler fans like bankshot, oilhawk love to talk about sustainable numbers with Vancouver, history tells us #97 will not continue at 2 points a game, the oilers won't win 80% of their games and skinner will not rock a 960 sv%.
and with all the teams fighting for two spots the oilers there is very little room for error and they're banking on skinner who showed he struggles under a heavy load and he's likely playing what 37+ games cuz pikard sucks arss.
Lastly on skinner and the defense, it seems like not all but even during this streak they still look leaky against the better teams while boosting stats against impotent teams.
The last thing I'll say is for all the dick grabbing from the extremely obnoxious sect of oil fans, the main reason the oilers win or lose is #97.
When he was only a ppg player nobody, nobody, stepped up.
I'm not saying #97 drops to a ppg but his pace will drop and history shows the oilers are a lottery team when McDrai average less than 2.75 ppg combined. I'm sure the usual suspects will call me names and spew the usual rhetoric but I guess time will tell.
The oilers have gone 15-3 and made up 9 points on the nucks, 11 on the knights. I'm not even sold on them making the playoffs with the 2nd half being majority division and conference games there's going to be less chance to separate.
Catching the top 3 teams is going to extremely difficult
I started reading your post and with your first sentence assumed you were agreeing with me lol. Making up 9 and 11 points on Vegas/Canucks in an 18 game stretch is actually pretty huge.
I agree nothing will be easy, and obviuosly simply making playoffs is far from a guarantee yet - but with more than half the season to go still, I think there's a very good chance they can end up top 3 in the pacific.
Oilers also have 4 games in hand on Vegas, and 3 on Canucks.
If they win their next 3 games, they'd be 6 points back of Vancouver with half the season to go and same amount of games to play.
If they win their next 4 games, they'd be 2 points back of Vegas with half the season to go and same amount of games to play.
Suntouchable13
Registered User
I think that it will be tough to maintain a 15-3 pace. They will probably go into a 5-5 stretch at some point, like most teams do, and I think catching up to the other division teams will be tough. At some point, you just run out of runway.
The Hanging Jowl
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- Apr 2, 2017
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+18 goal differential. It would have normalized eventually. They are obviously a playoff team.
Never doubted them, even with their horribad start.. If they could pry Saros out of NSH, oh boy. I think they work their way into the top 3 in the Pacifc.
- Apr 20, 2016
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McDavid played the entirety of last season at a 1.88ppg pace, so it might drop, but history shows us he's the only guy in the league that can maintain anything close to 2ppg. You are correct on many points though, I don't think you can bank on Skinner being much more than a .900 goalie. Edmonton has been a streaky team this year.
Some good replies to this ITT
Knoblauch seems quite calm, and isn't trying to disrupt or implement some fancy buzzworthy system. He really rolls all 4 lines, and has tried to build those lines. He keeps guys together much longer than MANY (all?) Oilers coaches in recent history. In particular he rarely resorts to McDrai in 5on5 (a la Tippet). As such I haven't seen Draisaitl completely exhausted in the 3rd or OT like you saw under other coaches.
Credit needs to go to Coffey. Seems to have a huge positive influence "in the room". Guys seem to be more relaxed. He's encouraging them to skate and make plays.
McDavid is clearly healthy & motivated. He's returned to freak-mode. His team was simply NOT going to be out of the playoff picture by All star break.
Booting Campbell has been more important than anything with Skinner imo. Skinner's #'s are better, but a lot of this is the team game. Credit to Knoblauch & Coffey, but it also looks like the change itself (wake up call) got a lot of the guys buying in to playing the right way.
Czechboy
Náš f*cken barák!
- Apr 15, 2018
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Absolutely... I don't think our start is who we are. I don't think this streak is either.
We still have a G problem and a D problem (at minimum). Now that we are in the WC spot, we just have to maintain this .550 to .600 pace so a loss won't be as devastating to our playoff hopes now. As far as catching the big boys in the Pacific.. I don't know about that.lol
Czechboy
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AVS certainly have some great playoff success recently.
So do the Knights.
Will be neat to see Vancouver in playoffs again. Twice in the last decade! Maybe save the sweep talks for now. 2 playoff rounds won since 2012.
BTP
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- Apr 28, 2013
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Canucks will get washed in the playoffs
snag
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- Feb 22, 2014
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As an Oilers fan I sometimes have to shake my head at Oilers fans. But it hilarious how arrogant and cocky some Nucks fans have gotten over less than half a season of success, too.
Their prognostication is very amusing when they have proven f*** all themselves.
Edit: Sorry Avs fans.....I had a Freudian slip there and called you out. Your team has proven itself
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Shoutout to Paul Coffey. Turned our defense around, and Bouchard/Ekholm have been one of the best pairings both defensively and offensively. Bouchard had a HORRIBLE start to the season but is looking like a stud now.
Rodgerwilco
Entertainment boards w/ some Hockey mixed in.
- Feb 6, 2014
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Not even halfway through the season yet for most teams. I don't really get people talking about playoff standings at this point.
Hockey Outsider
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There was a thread on the History boards where we looked for how far out of the playoffs a team has been, in a season where they ultimately qualified.
The answer, as far as we could tell, was 9 points - by the 2019 St. Louis Blues.
It looks like the Oilers were 10 points out of the playoffs about a month ago. Obviously there's no guarantee that they'll make the playoffs this year - but if they do, it'll be the largest comeback in NHL history.
(EDIT - see post #133. The 2019 Blues were actually 11 points out of a playoff spot. Therefore the Oilers wouldn't set the all-time record this season - but it would still be a very impressive comeback).
The answer, as far as we could tell, was 9 points - by the 2019 St. Louis Blues.
It looks like the Oilers were 10 points out of the playoffs about a month ago. Obviously there's no guarantee that they'll make the playoffs this year - but if they do, it'll be the largest comeback in NHL history.
(EDIT - see post #133. The 2019 Blues were actually 11 points out of a playoff spot. Therefore the Oilers wouldn't set the all-time record this season - but it would still be a very impressive comeback).
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Czechboy
Náš f*cken barák!
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You must've missed October and November when this site was littered with posts about the Oiler's not being a playoff team then.lol
It was EPIC
ChaoticOrange
Registered User
Oilers fans in october: This is just a run of bad luck, it'll come around
HFMains: LOL HOMERS COILERS MCSUCKS YOUR TEAM SUCKS ITS NOT BAD LUCK LOLOLOL
Oilers: win 15 of 18
HFMains: whoa wow what a crazy run nobody saw this coming
HFMains: LOL HOMERS COILERS MCSUCKS YOUR TEAM SUCKS ITS NOT BAD LUCK LOLOLOL
Oilers: win 15 of 18
HFMains: whoa wow what a crazy run nobody saw this coming
Rodgerwilco
Entertainment boards w/ some Hockey mixed in.
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I thought it was just as silly then. I don't really look at playoff considerations until it's closer to the trade deadline.
Aw it feels good to be right.
Can't wait to see McDavid and Drai go 2PPG in the playoffs again.
Can't wait to see McDavid and Drai go 2PPG in the playoffs again.
McFlyingV
Registered User
Its not exactly that simple, but his impact when he's on is obviously enormous. The team as a whole is capable of much more than they showed in the first 20 games even taking McDavid out of the equation. But there is a serious trickle down effect when he's out there dominating. It bleeds into other lines and the team as whole just feeds off his dominating shifts.
McFlyingV
Registered User
I think you can definitely bank on him being more than a .900 goalie. He's got a career .909 and outside of the strange start of this season has typically performed at a .914ish level. He's also young and has room for growth and consistency being a young goalie. That said I think they really need to pick up a goalie who can at minimum play between 30-40 games and reduce his load to 45-50 games max.
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I mean the NHL average SV% is .904 these days. You get even .900 from Skinner and you're going to win a lot more games than you lose. He only gave them .883 in the playoffs last year.
Czechboy
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League average is/was .902... I think Skinner is in that range.
I actually think the 30-40 guy is Rodrigue.. but not till next year. I feel like we may have an internal solution for next year. However, this year we need something.. I keep suggesting some Czechs as placeholders.. so Mrazek, Vladar and Vejmelka would be the guys I'd want as cheap placeholder options.
