Confirmed with Link: Oilers sign Connor Brown to 1-year incentive laden deal ($775K caphit, potentially $3.25M in bonuses)

[bone]

I woulnd't bet the farm on it or Expected stats. Connor Brown just looks like a busy player at times.

But the bolded list is just translation for who's played in topsix. Basically thats it. Play with uber talent and you get some sniffs around net. But if you can't cash that ain't much,

I don't bet the farm on expected stats, but with a player that's typically performed on part with his expected stats over his career, it's reasonable to think he can get there again.

Me, personally, I'd waive him to be sure, and remove the burden on next year's cap, but I can see the logic in holding on if the goal is specifically about putting forth the best team this year.

 

[CornKicker]

the same people poopooing brown today were doing the same about kane 1.5 weeks ago. recency bias is extrapolated here significantly. 55-71-28 score 3 goals in the next 4 games then it will shift to shitting on ceci or kulak and thats just how it goes with the extremely fickle fan base.

living in flames area i hear all day how the oilers are in a easily fixable slump, the optimism around the flames is way different. the oilers are a top 5 team in the nhl and a slow start can put doubt into that if you cant see the big picture. im very confident the oilers are going into the playoffs as the team to beat in the west barring significant injuries.

 

[Spawn]

Points aren't points haha. Why would you compare him to guys with a bunch of PP points when he won't even play on the PP?

He's here as a low-end top6 player to play at 5v5. Those guys give you 25-30 points. It won't be hard for Brown to do that.

Oh please, there is no one on this forum who would have accepted 25 points out of Brown with the contract he has. As I said, that’s fine for a Kostin or McLeod on a first or second deal. It’s bad value for Brown.

 

[Soundwave]

It feels like Ryan Strome all over again.

He isn't scoring, but he isn't getting scored on either. A bottom six that saws off even on a team with McDrai is fine.

Too many people worrying about "mah points". He's got plenty of time to pot the 25 points that a player making his salary should. (There's 172 forwards being paid as much or more than him this season . The 172nd highest 5v5 scorer last year scored 25 points.)

He's paid at 4 million dollars.

The cap being maybe on next year is actually worse not better.

The only responsible thing to do is to dump Kulak most likely and pay more of Brown's 4 million this year.

 

[McDNicks17]

Oh please, there is no one on this forum who would have accepted 25 points out of Brown with the contract he has. As I said, that’s fine for a Kostin or McLeod on a first or second deal. It’s bad value for Brown.

That's literally his value though lol.

Sure, he should probably get a few more because of the McDrai bump, but some people don't seem to understand how much $4M actually is with this cap or that only four forwards on this team are going to get PP points.

 

[Soundwave]

the same people poopooing brown today were doing the same about kane 1.5 weeks ago. recency bias is extrapolated here significantly. 55-71-28 score 3 goals in the next 4 games then it will shift to shitting on ceci or kulak and thats just how it goes with the extremely fickle fan base.

living in flames area i hear all day how the oilers are in a easily fixable slump, the optimism around the flames is way different. the oilers are a top 5 team in the nhl and a slow start can put doubt into that if you cant see the big picture. im very confident the oilers are going into the playoffs as the team to beat in the west barring significant injuries.

Vegas is the team to beat until they start showing any signs of weakness. Which they have not.

The only other team that has maybe earned the right to be considered as such is maybe Colorado because they won the previous Cup and look strong also, but even they don't get that full benefit of the doubt IMO because they are a considerably less deep of a team than that 2022 squad was.

No one else in the West has earned f*** all to be claiming themselves as the "team to beat". Team to beat are walking around with Stanley Cup rings from last year.

Right now the West is Vegas and Colorado above the pack, with Edmonton maybe (provided they want to get off their asses and work and get back into a winning record), Dallas, etc. in a middle tier below that.

 

[Drivesaitl]

the same people poopooing brown today were doing the same about kane 1.5 weeks ago. recency bias is extrapolated here significantly. 55-71-28 score 3 goals in the next 4 games then it will shift to shitting on ceci or kulak and thats just how it goes with the extremely fickle fan base.

living in flames area i hear all day how the oilers are in a easily fixable slump, the optimism around the flames is way different. the oilers are a top 5 team in the nhl and a slow start can put doubt into that if you cant see the big picture. im very confident the oilers are going into the playoffs as the team to beat in the west barring significant injuries.

Kane played well and was activated in the Heritage Classic. He was pumped from game start. But 8 games in and Kane has certainly shit the bed doing nothing, and being nothing, in several of the games.

its a given any player with a pulse should be able to get up for playing in front of 55k and a huge viewing audience in a profile game. This is exactly the type of game that is most watched and players tend to recognize this But this is in no way the atmosphere of a typical game and Kane has had trouble evevating and getting up for games. He's also been inconsistent, historically, the longer he is with one team.

one game does remove the concerns about what Kane has been this season. Thats not to say he isn't, or won't be a valuable player, its just concerning that he took games off this season when the team needed him going, and clearly the limitation isn't physical. Kane looked fine in a game where he felt like bringing it and where he was pumped from well before game time.

Saying the Oilers are the team to beat is a stretch right now with Colorado and Vegas, both SC winners having outstanding seasons and others like Dallas doing pretty good.

If we even played a team the caliber of Los Angeles this early I think we'd lose. The Oilers will be better, but I think a month after the premature announcements nobody is figuring them SC or west favorites.

 

[JustNapalmIt]

Was opposed to the signing and contract all along. Your strawman attempt not withstanding. It is of course possible not to have liked this deal and addition all along. Its even plausible and likely that views on Brown have just continued given the evidence we now have.

Or not.
Btw, please use strawman in the correct context. Its beneath you to not do so.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Or not.
Btw, please use strawman in the correct context. Its beneath you to not do so.

No doubt in my case. Was against the move all along.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

No doubt in my case. Was against the move all along.

Let’s revisit this at the midpoint of the season.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Let’s revisit this at the midpoint of the season.

Or not

Its a given that Brown will look better than nothing. How do you get worse. Rhetorical question. Turris had the answer...

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

Or not

Its a given that Brown will look better than nothing. How do you get worse. Rhetorical question. Turris had the answer...

He’s finding his game. It’s not fair to judge a player 8 games into a season after he missed a whole season.

Get real.

 

[Drivesaitl]

He’s finding his game. It’s not fair to judge a player 8 games into a season after he missed a whole season.

Get real.

"He's finding his game" is not a real thing. Its speculation and conjecture.

Its the realm of optimism. "turris is finding his game, he's getting there, he's getting close" (These very things were said. (not by me) just as example.

The reality and facts to this point is zero boxcars for a touted player that was supposed to be a shoe in on our topsix and was supposed to help immensely "like Hyman" lol zeropts version of Hyman I guess. Big whoop.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

"He's finding his game" is not a real thing. Its speculation and conjecture.

Its the realm of optimism. "turris is finding his game, he's getting there, he's getting close" (not by me) These very things were said. Just as example.

The reality and facts to this point is zero boxcars for a touted player that was supposed to be a shoe in on our topsix and was supposed to help immensely "like Hyman" lol zeropts version of Hyman I guess.

Finding your game after missing a whole season is definitely a thing. Comparing Turris and Brown is laughable. Points will come… like I said let’s revisit this at the season mid point.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Finding your game after missing a whole season is definitely a thing. Comparing Turris and Brown is laughable. Points will come… like I said let’s revisit this at the season mid point.

Why is it laughable. Turris was a much more touted player than Brown. Turris had several seasons way more productive than Brown and as much as 64pts and several over 50pt seasons, all more than Brown has ever put up.

few players find their game after 18mths off. Thats a thing too. Also an assumption that Brown will find it, and really he wasn't all that much to begin with production wise.

Revisit? people here were telling me to revisit once we'd seen Connor a lot. Apparently no views can be had until the full season is played. lol

 

[Fourier]

Can we use accruing cap space to pay off part of Brown's bonus too?

This is just a Jackson problem now, he is going to have to draw the line here and tell Holland we cannot have a 3 mill carry over into next year. Just can't have it. So if that means we're more limited at the trade deadline, then so be it, that is Holland's bed, he made it, he can now sleep in it.

Holland may be "this year and bust", but Jackson isn't, he is on the hook to re-sign Draisaitl and McDavid and he needs to be able to give his GM hire for next year and chance to do something in the summer and not just be handcuffed by dead cap.

If we don't get the job done this season, then the new GM has to be able to have the flexibility to make changes and we need as much of that $5 million cap rise as we can get.

Yes and no to the bold. The bonus overage is reduced by what ever cap space is not spent by the end of the season. But this is not the same as accrued space in the sense that it is often expressed.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

Why is it laughable. Turris was a much more touted player than Brown. Turris had several seasons way more productive than Brown and as much as 64pts and several over 50pt seasons, all more than Brown has ever put up.

few players find their game after 18mths off. Thats a thing too. Also an assumption that Brown will find it, and really he wasn't all that much to begin with production wise.

Whats comparable between Turris and Browns games? Or is this just based off Browns slow start?

Maybe he doesn’t find his game. He is looking better and better. We will know that at the mid point of the season won’t we?

 

[Fourier]

People are looking at Brown as if he is both a $4M player this year and costs $3.25M in dead cap space next year. This year he is a $775K player. If he was not there the replacement is an Erne or Gagner level player. So the realty is that the Oilers could either have a replacement level player this year or a replacement player next year. The team chose to put their money in this year and take their chances next year. Pay me now or pay me later.

One can criticize the $4M tag but at best next year a player of his caliber is going to cost $3M+. And if thecap rises by even more than predicted, probably more.

 

[Soundwave]

Yes and no to the bold. The bonus overage is reduced by what ever cap space is not spent by the end of the season. But this is not the same as accrued space in the sense that it is often expressed.

So is it basically the cap space you have at the year end?

So we could say in theory use Kulak and Foegele for the full year up until the trade deadline and then move one of them out and then that open cap can go towards Brown's salary?

The other thing that would open up is a situation where like you move out a player like Janmark for another equivalent bottom 6 player but get the other team to retain 50% so their salary is effectively 500k, that opens another 500k off Brown's bonuses.

Stuff like that.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Whats comparable between Turris and Browns games? Or is this just based off Browns slow start?

Maybe he doesn’t find his game. He is looking better and better. We will know that at the mid point of the season won’t we?

He's looking a bit more engaged and occasionally getting to pucks. He's also whiffing on his shots and he's not even seeing guys that are open. The guy is supposed to have some hands and be able to play well in topsix. He's dropped since and even in the looks he's getting he's not getting anything going.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

He's looking a bit more engaged and occasionally getting to pucks. He's also whiffing on his shots and he's not even seeing guys that are open. The guy is supposed to have some hands and be able to play well in topsix. He's dropped since and even in the looks he's getting he's not getting anything going.

Sure. Talk about it again in another 35 games.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Me, personally, I'd waive him to be sure, and remove the burden on next year's cap, but I can see the logic in holding on if the goal is specifically about putting forth the best team this year.

Why wouldn't the team do this? Just curious. I doubt anybody claims him.

 

[JustNapalmIt]

Or not

Its a given that Brown will look better than nothing. How do you get worse. Rhetorical question. Turris had the answer...

Hes been far better in the last 3 games. Anyone who actually watches & has even a remote understanding of the game would see & know that.

 

[tiger_80]

Holland and woody, lavoie Brown all the way to the AHL!

 

[alphahelix]

It seems like we have to keep Brown up regardless of how he does otherwise we will never be able to sign another UFA ever again.

Yeah…or not. There will be a lineup out the door to replace Brown as a top6 McWinger.

Losing the ability to improve the team, or potentially even just to tread water retaining the team going into the final year of Draisaitls contract is the worst thing you could possibly do to this franchise.

If we fail to improve next year and lose Draisaitl we will be the frozen northern wasteland franchise that couldn’t even win with the 2 best players in the league.

No one who has options will EVER come here by choice again. Connor Browns agent might want you to believe that not giftwrapping him 3.25M is a cardinal sin that everyone will notice, but the ACTUAL Cardinal Sin is being a bunch of sad sack losers who can’t capitalize on the best players maybe ever and whose MANAGEMeNt will have proven beyond any doubt that they ARE NOT committed to doing what it takes to win in a 32 team league. For the record it’s an absurd concept because the Oilers drew up this contract for him and signed it. if he was earning it, he’d be picked up on waivers by one of the other 31 teams and paid what he’s worth. Since there’s no chance anyone else would risk their offseason on a 0 point winger he’ll get what he deserves in the AHL. If he can score there I wouldn’t be against calling him back up at some point.

Losers always whine about their best and pay bottom 6 bums 3.25M bonuses.

Winners go to Vegas and F@#$ the Golden Knights.