Post-Game Talk: Oilers are good at shootouts now?

[fuswald]

There was a point in the second period tonight where Skinner was playing so deep in his net I was worried the puck was going to cross the goal line before he could save it.

This was a complaint about Campbell as well.
Coaching? Maybe both got Schwartzd

 

[Mez]

Skinner now rocking a -10.8 Goals saved above expected....thats worst in the league and a whopping 3 goals worse then the 2nd worse goalie.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

Skinner now rocking a -10.8 Goals saved above expected....thats worst in the league and a whopping 3 goals worse then the 2nd worse goalie.

According to Schwartz he’s killing us it out there. In reality he’s decent in no more than 2 game segments. After that the wheels fall off.

 

[elmeroil]

2 pts!!!!

Skinner still scares me
And McLeod is garbage. Time to throw him with Soup

But he skates really fast...

 

[fuswald]

Both Mcdavid/Drai are now back in the top 10 in scoring.

Might have trouble catching Kucherov who consistently scores at a very high rate too, but they'll easily pass the rest with the team rolling and playing better.

McDavid will pass all book it.

 

[CornKicker]

McDavid will pass all book it.

mcdavid went from 109th in scoring to top 10 in 3 games. LOL

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

McDavid will lead the league in scoring again by the first week in January. He's amazing, simply amazing

 

[North Cole]

I honestly think Skinner was good today. Maybe could’ve had the third goal but, other than that, he was very good. In overtime and the shootout

Thing with Skinner is that when he's good he's quite good, but when he's bad, he's very bad. The issue and conundrum is that he manages to go back and forth period to period and seems to spend more time doing the latter. We know in the first period what kind of game it's going to be against the opponent goalie and when they're on, 95% of the time, it's 45 shots to score 2 goals.

Most goalies have stinker games every once in a while. You sort of just pack it up and move onto the next one. Our goalies have stinker periods so it f***s the whole teams rhythm. It's inexplicable to go from saving 19/20 and having the game in the bag to an immediate 1/3 and everyone feeling like they're on life support going into OT.

The number one thing about goaltending is that you need to be consistent within the game. If you have 2 good games and a bad game, we can work with that. If you're just all over the place inside one game, no one can adjust to anything.

 

[Gordy Elbows]

Why is there a 5 day break after Thursday's Jets game?

Apparently, that’s our by-week according to the SN announcers.

 

[CrazyJoeDavola]

Am I the only one that thought McLeod looked better tonight? He's still not where I want him, but that third line was pretty good the whole night. Our third line led the team in CF% tonight, with McL leading the team at 70.83%. I need to see some f***ing finish, but, overall, I'm happy with how they looked tonight.

 

[brentashton]

Ryan McLeod averages 15 minutes a game, gets 2nd unit PP time, and has ZERO goals in 21 games to show. This guy defines perimeter player. He doesn’t have the jam to go into the paint, he’s not a banger, lots of fly bys, his production isn’t going to change.

Waive him and maybe someone takes him off your salary cap (doubtful) but then at least send him to Bako. When Holloway comes back, if this guy gets roster time in place of Hamblin, Gagner, Janmark, it will be very disappointing.

 

[fuswald]

Glad we got the win. Shootouts are always a crap shoot. Even the worst team in the league has a shot of winning in the shootout. It's more luck then skill imo but I still like the shootouts in the regular season, Ties are BS and I am glad they are gone.

Usually I would agree but the shootout goals from McDavid and Nuge looked automatic.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Am I the only one that thought McLeod looked better tonight? He's still not where I want him, but that third line was pretty good the whole night. Our third line led the team in CF% tonight, with McL leading the team at 70.83%. I need to see some f***ing finish, but, overall, I'm happy with how they looked tonight.

Yeah I haven't been as unhappy with as some. He just can't find a goal to save his life. I think he'll be moved for something that's an upgrade for the team this year, and will probably be replaced by a veteran.

 

[oilers4life5]

Haha... a gaming magazine advertising that game, sometime in early summer of 1991 is what prompted my lazy ass to get my first job at McDonalds so that I could afford to buy the game (and the Genesis to go with it).

And play goalie... I still play though I am now reaching the intersection of two opposing vectors, physical age vs experience & learning.

That's why I'm quick to defend (also quick to criticize)... for me the position is about tactical precision. So I criticize errors, because errors are what I can see as a goalie-fan. If it's possible or likely that a screen happened, then it's possible or likely that he didn't see it. Next question is did he create a screen for himself by poor positioning or failing to fight past the screen (either physically, or moving his head to find a sight line). If the answer is no, and on the third goal, it's no... then I'll give the benefit of the doubt.

In my opinion many goals include a goalie error, and to my eye, that includes many goals that fans forgive or don't even worry about. I often (any goalie really, not "me") will see mistakes that a non-goalie wouldn't always pick up. Smith for example was classic for TERRIBLE positioning and shrinking back to the goal line... relying only on his size when he should be relying on both his size AND his mobility (which would limit the back-door-angle risk of him playing too far out... his skating would let him cover the distance)... instead, and this was a classic "on Smith" goal, if there were a rush chance with a hard shot pass forward into the slot, you'd see Smith cowering on his goal line rather than challenging on the top of his crease. Then the tip/shot of that shot-pass would go top corner and nobody would give a peep... meanwhile I'm screaming at my TV that it could have been right into his breadbasket if he was in position.

And of course many goals do not, including many that "look terrible" to someone who didn't play the position - for example a classic seven hole shot from a good shooter in a good position... the goalie almost gets it, but it squeaks through. Some of those goals happen to the best goalies, because those goalies are also facing the best shooters.

Also... don't mistake my defense of Skinner on a goal, for my defense of Skinner as a whole. I am not convinced he's an NHL goalie, but it's not because of a goal like last night... it's because his positioning is above average, but not above average enough to compensate for average mobility and below average reflexes.

He'll be fine as a backup (for somebody), because he generally, generally stops the shots you are supposed to and plays a steady game... but the game has too many errors in it and too few unique physical attributes (other than size) that allow him to compensate for the errors.

And having said that, he could be a great starter if you gave him a few more god-given ticks in the physical (reflexes, speed) category, but that stuff is hard to work on, so his upside is limited for me. If he had that stuff he'd be Hellebyuck (sp).

And finally... if and when we have a steady starter, I almost prefer my backups to be erratic and "exciting"... more in the Campbell mode, because if they only play every 3-4 games, you want a guy that can pump you up with a huge, unexpected save... not a robotic guy who will bore you to tears and never be as good as your starter due to his limitations. But this is a personal preference, both can be fine

I am also a goalie and 100 percent agree. Most don’t understand the position enough

 

[Lay Z Boy GM]

My happiness hinges so much on McDavids performance. It’s insane, I know, but it’s been a fun ride and a welcome distraction from the craziness these last few years.

All hail McJesus, our Lord

 

[aspin3]

We need a real goalie and we need one now. Arguing over what piece of shit smells a little better is comical. Skinner? Campbell, Pickard? Doesn’t matter who’s in net, it won’t be good enough if this team has aspirations of doing anything.

Right because Kolesar sitting wide open at the side of the net was Skinner's fault. Imagine if Skinner would have let the goals Thompson let in especially Gagner's goal. Embarrassing some of these comments.

 

[Pavel10]

Right because Kolesar sitting wide open at the side of the net was Skinner's fault. Imagine if Skinner would have let the goals Thompson let in especially Gagner's goal. Embarrassing some of these comments.

Skinner was still not good. Is that your measuring stick? Thompson?

Skinner has let in goals like the Gagner one all season. We need an actual goalie.. Still.

 

[Lay Z Boy GM]

Right because Kolesar sitting wide open at the side of the net was Skinner's fault. Imagine if Skinner would have let the goals Thompson let in especially Gagner's goal. Embarrassing some of these comments.

I don’t hate Skinner but he needs help. We absolutely need another goalie.

This team has a weak link, everyone sees it

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

I don’t hate Skinner but he needs help. We absolutely need another goalie.

This team has a weak link, everyone sees it

It's exactly this. Speaking for myself, I love Skinner, the person, his story and I want him to be the 2nd coming of Grant Fuhr, but he doesn't have that level now (if ever) and the team in front of him has shown how well they can play, so this team needs another goalie who can more consistently provide saves and support.


The Edmonton Oilers were dramatic the better team last night. They played outstanding defense, the PK was flawless and they controlled the game. This team deserved a regulation win, but they deserved the extra point all the same.

Last night was an example of the level this team has, it needs to be supported.

 

[bucks_oil]

Yeah I haven't been as unhappy with as some. He just can't find a goal to save his life. I think he'll be moved for something that's an upgrade for the team this year, and will probably be replaced by a veteran.

I'm more than ready to move on. He's not going to score much at this level and isn't defensively aware or bruising enough to compensate in any other way.

There was a goal last week that sealed it for me, Kulak went rushing ahead to the opposing blue line and McLeod was back to cover him and still didn't manage to stay goal-side of his man. I don't even remember against which team it was, but it was IMO unforgivable lack of defensive awareness that we simply don't have time to train out of him.

 

[McBigYak]

Right because Kolesar sitting wide open at the side of the net was Skinner's fault. Imagine if Skinner would have let the goals Thompson let in especially Gagner's goal. Embarrassing some of these comments.

The fourth goal he couldn't do anything about no but the third one needs to be stopped.

Your team has played their best defensive period of the year and has completely shut down the Knights in terms of high quality chances. It's Skinners job there to make that Grade B save and contribute to the effort.

I think Skinner has a lot of promise and he definitely has the tools to be a starting goaltender in the NHL but he's going through a bit of a slump right now and he needs some help. A quality 1B goalie on a short-term deal that they can alternate games with would do wonders for Skinners game overall.

 

[mkatcherin00]

We did, but they had a bit of puck luck though. But overall Vegas was trash tonight and Skinner should have done better.

The thing is though, when shopping for Skinner replacement were going to be shopping in the bargain bin. I doubt we find a goalie better than Skinner.

This Pietro head snap is really something else. Deserves an Oscar.

Fu**in cuk of a player. I love how he grabs is face when he got tapped on the lower side neck area? lol

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

I'm more than ready to move on. He's not going to score much at this level and isn't defensively aware or bruising enough to compensate in any other way.

There was a goal last week that sealed it for me, Kulak went rushing ahead to the opposing blue line and McLeod was back to cover him and still didn't manage to stay goal-side of his man. I don't even remember against which team it was, but it was IMO unforgivable lack of defensive awareness that we simply don't have time to train out of him.

Also completely fair, I'm not fair off myself.

 

[North Cole]

I know football gets memed, but there's about 4 or 5 Oilers that need to watch this on repeat for about 48-72h until it sinks in. Say what you want about that sport but there's a lot of what he's saying that is directly attributable to our team.



Skinner is a big goalie, get in front of pucks, throw yourself across the net. People in here defending him, like sure, for some of the game he played fine, but that's his job. He's big...Pucks are supposed to hit him. It doesn't mean we can't give him credit when it's due but the amount of holes he seems to have compared to smaller goalies is astounding.

If more guys just did their job instead of worrying about the next guy or floating around doing nothing, we would be a much better team. Janmark played really well, especially defensively. Nuge and McLeod were absolutely useless, head in clouds type stuff. Nuge trying to attack on Dzone faceoff, and his man walks in for a breakaway. How do you get a breakaway on a Ozone face off??? McLeod floating around doesn't tie up any sticks, nice play by Koleslaw to get it out of the air, but where is the stick checking? You'd also swear the third goal was shot from the 4th dimension how it basically phased through Skinner.

Too many passengers on this team. We don't need everyone scoring goals, but we do need is everyone to have their head in the game and make simple routine plays. "Analyze it until the cows come home, you do your job."

 

[GMofOilers]

Right because Kolesar sitting wide open at the side of the net was Skinner's fault. Imagine if Skinner would have let the goals Thompson let in especially Gagner's goal. Embarrassing some of these comments.

Yeah could you imagine if Thompson let in the same number of slot chances?