Salary Cap: Oliver Ekman-Larsson

[timw33]

No advanced stats saying how bad he is yet ? Surely we aren't just using the eye test?

The advanced stats show that he is one of the worst D men in the entire NHL over the past few seasons and that his his contract is up there with the Erik Karlsson and Sergei Bobrovsky deals in terms of surplus (deficit) value.

 

[Gwyddbwyll]

Chalk me is another one who is cautiously optimistic on OEL rebound the next two to three years. I am a fantasy owner of Chychrun and I have seen enough of how poorly OEL was playing in the desert. But hockey is much more about analytical charts, and I could see this being the example of it. Of course, the odds of a great contract after 34yo is slim, that’s another matter.

I'm a Coyote fan who was an OEL hater a couple of years ago. He's a terrible captain and his numbers have been down and just get worse the more you look at them. He's had bad injuries so he's become tentative in his play and second-guesses everything now. But there's context that the number crunchers dont see.

Last year he was paired with Ilya Lyubushkin who is a #6 or #7 type. Lyubushkin cannot handle the puck, has no offensive instinct and frequently charges out of position. No other team would even consider him a top 4 defenseman. OEL carried him as a partner and formed a 2nd pairing level. OEL had to handle 100% of the puck and still carried it up the ice against fierce forechecks that keyed in solely on him and he still got the team going forwards. He took the pressure off Chychrun who was free to play as he wanted and consequently became the team's breakout player. All that with the terrible Tocchet and his infamous mumbling catchphrase "I dont know" as his coach. Towards the end of the season we saw OEL partnered with Soderstrom for a few games and the two of them looked great. He's not a captain or a leader but he's a mentor, a community guy, strong team spirit and very experienced - his head is older than his years. On the ice he sees problems earlier than others which is why he'll appear to be out of position because he's covering for the deficiency of others.

Definitely will be watching as a part time fan of the Canucks with both OEL and Garland there now. They're good players who should fit in well. As for 3 or 4 years down the line, that's a problem for another time.

 

[Cancuks]

What do the Canucks do if Rathbone turns out to be a stud? Do you drop Ekman-Larsson to the third pairing? Move him to the right side and hope he can adjust? Trade Rathbone? Trade Hughes? Benning could really find himself trading away a blue chipper because of OEL now.

 

[Blueangel1891]

He is what he is. A reclamation project. But a least a reclamation project of a former #1 elite offensive D. I strongly believe he badly needed to get out of the dessert and that organisation to refind himself and get a breath of fresh air

He will bounce back here. Not to what he used to be but we don't need him to be that with Hughes and Rathbone here anyway.

Best case we get another 3-5 years as a #3-4 out of him. The contract sucks but we can always LTIR him if he declines to bad

Give the guy a chance

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

He’s a Canuck now, I’ll cheer for him until / unless he gives me reason not to. Sincerely hoping he can rediscover some semblance of his game and be a key piece for us.

 

[WhiteCurse]

Definitely did not want any part of OEL but hear we are. I think him not being captain anymore will help him and it has sounded pretty toxic in Arizona. Probably or hopefully gets a better partner to play with then he had in Arizona.

 

[ratbid]

What do the Canucks do if Rathbone turns out to be a stud? Do you drop Ekman-Larsson to the third pairing? Move him to the right side and hope he can adjust? Trade Rathbone? Trade Hughes? Benning could really find himself trading away a blue chipper because of OEL now.

Pump the breaks a bit here. I don't like this trade at all, but you can't build a franchise off of the long-shot that a late drafted prospect, who exceeded, expectations in college, is 22 and hasn't played 10 games in the NHL is going to become a stud. I love Rathbone too, but this attitude is just weird.

 

[canucksfan]

He is what he is. A reclamation project. But a least a reclamation project of a former #1 elite offensive D. I strongly believe he badly needed to get out of the dessert and that organisation to refind himself and get a breath of fresh air

He will bounce back here. Not to what he used to be but we don't need him to be that with Hughes and Rathbone here anyway.

Best case we get another 3-5 years as a #3-4 out of him. The contract sucks but we can always LTIR him if he declines to bad

Give the guy a chance

I am curious why you think he will bounce back?

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

I don't have to like the contract, but I like the player. My problem is it doesn't really address our needs, he's not a shutdown defender, and he doesn't play the right side.

 

[krutovsdonut]

as a player, i am glad to have him. he's an awesome veteran add to the team with a solid all rounder skill set and some elite talents. i fully expect him to contribute as a top line player for at least the first couple of years, and based on the type of player he is i expect him to remain useful throughout his contract as he declines.

i don't care about the money aquaman has to pay.

the cap hit is the only factor

i said exactly the same thing about eriksson.

 

[ratbid]

I don't have to like the contract, but I like the player. My problem is it doesn't really address our needs, he's not a shutdown defender, and he doesn't play the right side.

I wonder if they're hoping him and Myers can work together. Remember when that Edler-Myers pairing was actually killing it for a short period of time? (Alex Edler and Tyler Myers are one of the best defence pairings in the NHL - Vancouver Is Awesome)

If by gods grace this pairing somehow works, that would change my outlook on every aspect of this trade and it would change the outlook of the defence. We still need a defensive RD though even if we sign Hamonic, but if an OEL-Myers pairing is effective we're actually doing ok with:

OEL-Myers
Hughes - RD
Bone/Juolevi - Hamonic

To be clear I have next to zero hope of that pairing working, but trying to find some hope since he's here now.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

Yeah, optimism will reign supreme because if our first pair is OEL & Myers, we're in serious trouble.

 

[Luck 6]

OEL, when he's fully engaged, can play a superior two-way role. He has great offensive instincts, and yet he can still motor back to cut off breakaways and pin down the opposing offense. He's at worst a 3/4D, even at his age... when he buys in to what's going on.

The problem with OEL is keeping his attention. For whatever reason, he's been playing unmotivated, and it shows on the ice. The trade to VAN will likely energize him for at least a season or two, and you're going to absolutely love him during that time. What happens afterward is anyone's guess - which is why we traded him, because five or so years of uncertainty at that price point was too big of a gamble.

I think Canucks fans ought to be cautiously optimistic. A fresh start will do OEL a world of good. I think he'll be a good piece for you.

Without the C, I'm betting he's happier. That and the fresh start should do wonders for his game. He can still play and he cut out the diving last year which was my main problem with him. I think this trade is the best thing for his career.

You will like OEL and love Garland. I truly believe OEL will open eyes with his play next year.

I went on to AZ board to ask for an honest assessment of OEL. I thought I’d post a few responses here from AZ posters.

 

[Intangibos]

The advanced stats show that he is one of the worst D men in the entire NHL over the past few seasons and that his his contract is up there with the Erik Karlsson and Sergei Bobrovsky deals in terms of surplus (deficit) value.

 

[Honest M]

OEL still has some years of good play in him.

Also smart and versatile so he could adapt to Hughes and balance that paring, would be interesting to see Hughes with OEL.

 

[Luck 6]

OEL still has some years of good play in him.

Also smart and versatile so he could adapt to Hughes and balance that paring, would be interesting to see Hughes with OEL.

Two left handed shots, both don’t seem like good candidates to play their off side. I don’t see this happening.

 

[ziploc]

Pump the breaks a bit here. I don't like this trade at all, but you can't build a franchise off of the long-shot that a late drafted prospect, who exceeded, expectations in college, is 22 and hasn't played 10 games in the NHL is going to become a stud. I love Rathbone too, but this attitude is just weird.

Also, I'm not sure I totally understand the concern. I am not wringing my hands in worry over Rathbone becoming a stud defenseman. That would be a very good problem to have.

 

[alternate]

Two left handed shots, both don’t seem like good candidates to play their off side. I don’t see this happening.

I would try Hughes on his off side.

 

[timw33]

Of course.

 

[alternate]

If it's true that OEL would only waive for us or Boston, and Boston wasn't interested, the 2nd and 7th sting even more.

 

[VanJack]

There's no way of sugar-coating it, but OEL's play has declined precipitously in the desert the last couple of seasons, and all the analytics bear that out.

In the minds of many Coyote observers, OEL's contract was as immovable as Eriksson's, except that it has six more years to run.

So Benning and Canucks had better pray that the drop-off in his play was the result of Arizona's circling of the toilet bowl in the last few seasons. Playing in front of sparse crowds for a lousy team, in a market where hockey comes in dead last versus the NFL, MLB and NBA, will sap the resolve of any guy. And the fact that he was the captain of this listing franchise, only exacerbated the situation.

But the sad reality is that he may not be top-pairing guy any more in VanCity. But if he can give them a solid 15-18 minutes a night and mentor some of the younger d-men like Hughes, Rathbone and Juolevi, then maybe it will work out.

But I have a feeling that like Myers before him, Jimbo is basing the trade on what OEL was 3-4 seasons ago, rather than what he is now.

 

[GetFocht]

Watching OEL's media scrum, he is pumped and looks in great shape, speaks like a captain of a team.

He's ready to take on the role as a top-pairing defenceman. You can rag on his last two years but the fact is he was on pace for 40 points in those seasons and had a monster playoffs. He's averaged 23 mins a game in his career, it only dipped last season because Arizona wanted Chychurn to play all situations and prepare the team to move on from OEL.

Fresh start will do wonders for him, he's been expecting to leave the team for the last two years. Him also eating tough assignments will enable Hughes to flourish even more.

 

[Honest M]

He will have a different role, not expected to captain and carry the teem on his back. I think new role and new teem and new coaching staff will do him good.

 

[ratbid]

Also, I'm not sure I totally understand the concern. I am not wringing my hands in worry over Rathbone becoming a stud defenseman. That would be a very good problem to have.

Yeah exactly if rathbone starts killing it then our left side is set for years, and we move assets around to make it work.

 

[ziploc]

Of course.

We consistently bid against ourselves.