Confirmed with Link: Oilers Do Not Match Broberg ($4.58M X2) & Holloway ($2.29M x 2) Offer Sheets | Oilers acquire STL 3rd '28 & Paul Fischer for Futures

[WaitingForUser]

Seriously this. Oilers are looking like they have no future now past 2 seasons so putting myself in Drai shoes I’d sign a 1 year and leave as UFA the same year as Mcdavid to teams that can compete with a future vs what the oilers look like in 2 years.

Where’s the incentive for our stars to stay? Money? They can get that anywhere

Wow that’s certainly a take. We just added 3 cost controlled players to the roster and 2 high picks not to mention the compensation we got by not matching these absurd offer sheets. I hope Leon isn’t as short sighted as this

 

[Oilslick941611]

Ekholm wasn't free.

I’d trade every first round pick we made in the last decade (not together obviously) for Ekholm, that trade moved the needle in all the right ways for this team and put them over the ledge they’ve been trying to get over for decades.

 

[CycloneSweep]

This is creative math. The Oilers had offered Holloway only 1.2M. His two yr deal in STL is a whole 2.3M over what it would have been here. Really around TWICE the pay. Not sure why people are using the ask price, of 1.8M in the calculation. The Oilers weren't prepared to pay Holloway that here.

Theres other aspects too, and the kind that make it increasingly difficult for young players to develop here. The unending scrutiny, blame, fans saying that Holloway is nothing, no loss etc. Just look at this thread. Holloway to most of the fans here is oatmeal.

So that instead he gets to play in a market that is an extreme fishbowl.

I'm sure Holloway and his agent are fine, I wish them well. Its the Oilers fault they are gone.

From the sounds of things, Holloway didn't want to go. And ultimately, this could hurt his long term earnings. He had a chance here to play with big guys due to injures and on paper will be a bottom 6 guy in St Louis too. Has a chance to win a cup here but years away in St Louis.

Holloway is for sure a potential loss for what he COULD bring in the future but based on what he brought last year, he was already replaced.

 

[gordonhught]

It seems that the bulk of the group of McLeod, Foegele, Holloway, Bouchard, and Broberg are out the door.

Now they are gone except for Bouchard.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Seriously this. Oilers are looking like they have no future now past 2 seasons so putting myself in Drai shoes I’d sign a 1 year and leave as UFA the same year as Mcdavid to teams that can compete with a future vs what the oilers look like in 2 years.

Where’s the incentive for our stars to stay? Money? They can get that anywhere

its problematic for that reason two. I don't even want to count all the starters here over age 30. Obviously the shelf life on competitive window with those is limited.

Its interesting too how much narrative tends to change here. At playoffs end several comments on the board that the Oilers giving players like Broberg and Holloway finally more roles was a message to players like Drai that development was still on here and that help in that form was at hand. With several posters even saying Holloway should be with Drai more. That this would help Drai to have a young pace player continuing on.

But those comments and thoughts get revised the moment a player looks to be gone.

 

[guymez]

I could be wrong but wasn't Broberg playing LD/RD just before his draft or just after? Ideally you don't play them on their offside but once again their hand was forced to get Ekholm because Broberg wasn't even close to taking the next step.

TBH the only games he's looked even passable were in these last playoffs playing his offside

Broberg is a LHD. If you really want to allow a Dman to develop into the player he can actually be then you develop him on his natural side.
The Oilers did the oposite and understandibly Broberg had an issue with it.
I dont blame him at all.
As I said St Louis didnt take this risk on Broberg because he is a dud. They took it because even they could see that if Broberg is utilized properly (soemthing the Oilers did not do) then they have a potential top 4 dman on their hands. Essentially for free.
As I said I dont expect Broberg to outperform his contract this season but I sure do expect it next season after having a full season on his natural side.
The Oilers f**ked up here IMO.
No doubt about it and I blame Holland more than anyone else.

So the Oilers are also still in the same position of trying to find a player that they can match with the most useless $9.25M Dman in NHL history.
Good luck with that.

 

[FlameChampion]

My biggest concern today is that the Oilers have moved on from almost ALL the prospects they've had over the last several years.

Not just the two today but moving from Bourgault, McLeod, Oilers misfiring on tons of drafts.

Indeed the Oilers have two players in the lineup since Connor McDavid pick. Thats 10 f***ing years of drafting and two roster players to show for it. That is pathetic.

What other contending teams do so consistently poorly at draft or developing their picks or failing to utilize them and retain then?

As a result this team is among oldest teams in league. Older than last season.

I'm not assuming Podkolzin even makes the lineup. Whens the last time the Oilers even had any success with a Russian prospect?

Theres no doubt that drafting and development under Chiarelli and Holland has been terrible. Guess we will see if it improves under Jackson.

I do think one of the problems with Hollland is that by the time a players ELC is up we have no idea what the player is. Some of it can be chaulked upto a playoff team but overall I think it was a poor job done in this particular regard.

I am not even going to go into Chiarelli because he was a straight garbage GM.

This organization (GM, coaches and leadership core) really need to figure out a way to incorporate youth and depth into the team better.

 

[Forgot About Drai]

Broberg leaving does leave a hole in the roster as he was ill suited to be a RHD.
Ceci leaving is the hole that needs to be filled.

I agree, you agree, but did management/coaching agree? I dont think so.

 

[Seachd]

Seriously this. Oilers are looking like they have no future now past 2 seasons so putting myself in Drai shoes I’d sign a 1 year and leave as UFA the same year as Mcdavid to teams that can compete with a future vs what the oilers look like in 2 years.

Where’s the incentive for our stars to stay? Money? They can get that anywhere

Yes, I’m sure after all these years, those two are focused on nothing but prospects.

 

[The Nuge]

This is creative math. The Oilers had offered Holloway only 1.2M. His two yr deal in STL is a whole 2.3M over what it would have been here. Really around TWICE the pay. Not sure why people are using the ask price, of 1.8M in the calculation. The Oilers weren't prepared to pay Holloway that here.

Theres other aspects too, and the kind that make it increasingly difficult for young players to develop here. The unending scrutiny, blame, fans saying that Holloway is nothing, no loss etc. Just look at this thread. Holloway to most of the fans here is oatmeal.

So that instead he gets to play in a market that is an extreme fishbowl.

I'm sure Holloway and his agent are fine, I wish them well. Its the Oilers fault they are gone.

There’s also been reports of 1.3 and 1.5 for Holloway. There’s also the playoff bonus money, which he probably won’t be getting in St Louis

 

[Pass the Saitl Sauce]

Wow that’s certainly a take. We just added 3 cost controlled players to the roster and 2 high picks not to mention the compensation we got by not matching these absurd offer sheets. I hope Leon isn’t as short sighted as this

What high picks? Nearly all ahl players are cost controlled.

Oilers forward depth will be using sticks as canes and ekholm might be third pairing in 2+ years

For the record I hope Drai and mcdavid stay long term but they could have better situations in about 15 different cities around the league in 2 years

 

[Mr Positive]

Kulak has been absolutely money the last 3 playoffs, and his steadiness has offered some reprieve from how bad Nurse-Ceci were during that same time- his minutes are a big reason for our deep playoff runs. Broberg absolutely would not have provided the same steadiness.

Still, it's just horrible luck in a way, that when we found these Dmen that upgraded our team in a big way, Ekholm and Kulak, that they had to be LDs. Our key Dman in the pipeline being a LD as well becomes awkward when we have Nurse, Ekholm and Kulak all blocking any realistic path to earning a spot, and all 4 Dmen don't really do well on their off side.

Even for someone like me who wanted to match on Broberg, I wanted him as an eventual Ekholm replacement, but that would take 3 years or more to happen. So it would mean putting someone on their off side. That could have worked but it is one more handicap on this whole mess working out.

But, to avoid this short term awkwardness we've increased the odds that this team will age out in the near future. We might be able to get by with these bargain UFA deals, but imo we really need a core of younger players

 

[CycloneSweep]

I agree, you agree, but did management/coaching agree? I dont think so.

I think they do agree.
However I think they think the defense as it stands with the rest of the team is good enough to get them to the deadline in a top 2 spot in the division and properly fill that role at the deadline.
Is it the best idea? Maybe not. We will get a better player then that can actually fit in our cap structure than we would if we tried now.

 

[Oilslick941611]

Broberg is a LHD. If you really want to allow a player to develop into the player he can actually be then you develop him on his natural side.
The Oilers did the oposite and understandibly Broberg had an issue with it.
I dont blame him at all.
As I said St Louis didnt take this risk on Broberg because he is a dud. They took it because even they could see that if Broberg is utilized properly (soemthing the Oilers did not do) then they have a potential top 4 dman on their hands. Essentially for free.
As I said I dont expect Broberg to outperform his contract this season but I sure do expect it next season after having a full season on his natural side.
The Oilers f**ked up here IMO.
No doubt about it and I blame Holland more than anyone else.

Broberg whined about being utilized wrong, but never showed any promise or strength of character to show why, he didnt shut up and put the work in, he whined and requested a trade and whined again. He never gave the Oilers a reason to put him over any LHD on the team.

 

[Drivesaitl]

From the sounds of things, Holloway didn't want to go. And ultimately, this could hurt his long term earnings. He had a chance here to play with big guys due to injures and on paper will be a bottom 6 guy in St Louis too. Has a chance to win a cup here but years away in St Louis.

Holloway is for sure a potential loss for what he COULD bring in the future but based on what he brought last year, he was already replaced.

No team in Canada has one a cup in 31 yrs. The NHL didn't want it happening this spring either. In a 33 team league cup winning chances are slight. Even repeat runs at SC are rare. Usually teams have fall back year after reaching a final. Only Florida didn't have that. There are no guarantees anywhere and SC isn't the only player goal in pro hockey. The end of the day pro sports is all about getting paid.

 

[Oilslick941611]

Still, it's just horrible luck in a way, that when we found these Dmen that upgraded our team in a big way, Ekholm and Kulak, that they had to be LDs. Our key Dman in the pipeline being a LD as well becomes awkward when we have Nurse, Ekholm and Kulak all blocking any realistic path to earning a spot, and all 4 Dmen don't really do well on their off side.

Even for someone like me who wanted to match on Broberg, I wanted him as an eventual Ekholm replacement, but that would take 3 years or more to happen. So it would mean putting someone on their off side. That could have worked but it is one more handicap on this whole mess working out.

But, to avoid this short term awkwardness we've increased the odds that this team will age out in the near future. We might be able to get by with these bargain UFA deals, but imo we really need a core of younger players

It just shows you that LHD are easier to replace than RHD.

 

[Drivesaitl]

There’s also been reports of 1.3 and 1.5 for Holloway. There’s also the playoff bonus money, which he probably won’t be getting in St Louis

Good comment on the playoff bonus money, hadn't thought of that. But how much is that and isn't ST Louis expected to be in playoffs this season?

 

[Mr Positive]

There’s also been reports of 1.3 and 1.5 for Holloway. There’s also the playoff bonus money, which he probably won’t be getting in St Louis

I don't think bonuses are allowed on contracts except ELCs and 35+ deals. Friedman said that our final offer to Broberg was 1.1 x 2. That's a sizeable underpay imo

 

[Oilhawks]

I didnt think the defence was good enough last season either.
One of the contributing factors regarding why they lost IMO.
They were close though because they have the offensive guns and were playing a very tight system.

This is a step backwards though IMO and thats not something I wanted to see at this point in time.

Perhaps I am underestimating Emberson, He might be a better fit with Nurse than Ceci.
I guess I have a hard time believing that Emberson is all of a sudden a top 4 dman.
Kulak isnt and niether is Stecher. Many nights Nurse isnt even a top 4 dman.

So IMO they have work to do.

The biggest thing here, IMO, was that none of the guys that aren’t returning on D (Ceci, Desharnais, Broberg) are top 4D either. Emberson gives them flexibility to bring in someone who is. Overpaying a guy who cosplayed as a top 4D in one round of the playoffs (wasn’t as good in the Finals) would have handcuffed the team

 

[North]

I'm not really in the know about what was being offered to these two by the Oilers - any idea?

Apparently there are some differing numbers out there. One rumour was 1.8/2 years for Broberg and 1.1/2 years for Holloway.

 

[guymez]

Broberg whined about being utilized wrong, but never showed any promise or strength of character to show why, he didnt shut up and put the work in, he whined and requested a trade and whined again. He never gave the Oilers a reason to put him over any LHD on the team.

Do you realize how little sense this makes?
Hey Broberg...we know that you wont develop properly on your off wing but because we have literally no depth on the right side (in the AHL or the NHL) and you are a really good skater so we are going to use you on the right side.
If you struggle and then speak out about how it isnt working then you will be labeled a problem.
WTF?
What kind of player development is this?

 

[CycloneSweep]

What high picks? Nearly all ahl players are cost controlled.

Oilers forward depth will be using sticks as canes and ekholm might be third pairing in 2+ years

For the record I hope Drai and mcdavid stay long term but they could have better situations in about 15 different cities around the league in 2 years

I am absolutely not bullish or high on our prospects but like...
Savoie is a high end prospect who imho will be a player, O'Reilly JJ seems pretty high on and his eye for talent seems pretty good, Akey and Wanner have NHL futures on the back end.
We have 2nd round picks etc which can be used to trade for players and free agency still exists.

Drai and McDavid would be moving into bad teams to fit their contracts and they definitely wouldn't be there together. They want to win NOW and the team is doing what it can to make that happen, 4-5 years from now is 4-5 years from now. Who knows what the league looks like then.

We could also always do a quick retool and gain assets there as well.

 

[Forgot About Drai]

I think they do agree.
However I think they think the defense as it stands with the rest of the team is good enough to get them to the deadline in a top 2 spot in the division and properly fill that role at the deadline.
Is it the best idea? Maybe not. We will get a better player then that can actually fit in our cap structure than we would if we tried now.

Yup that was my whole point.

I think we are fine and that we have enough talent to keep this D as is afloat. My main point was that people arent overrating Bro or even upset that the player himself is leaving. They are upset that it blew a hole in our "plan" for the D this year.

 

[North]

wouldn't that a good thing? we could then trade him and get better than a 2nd rounder

Maybe IF he does it which is no guarantee. That’s the issue here.

He showed flashes during the playoffs but he wasn’t exactly great consistently during the playoffs.

 

[guymez]

The biggest thing here, IMO, was that none of the guys that aren’t returning on D (Ceci, Desharnais, Broberg) are top 4D either. Emberson gives them flexibility to bring in someone who is. Overpaying a guy who cosplayed as a top 4D in one round of the playoffs (wasn’t as good in the Finals) would have handcuffed the team

I agree.
They really have to bring someone in now and the good news (assuming Kane goes on LTIR) is that they now have the cap space.
The issue for me is that they have had a few years to shore up the right side on D and to date they have done nothing.
So why should we expect that they will do something now?
Maybe Emberson is better then I think he will be. I hope so.

I guess having a new GM might/should help.

Anyway I cant see them missing the playoffs with this D core (as is) but it clearly isnt good enough so something must be done.