On paper are the Oilers better or worse than they were last season?

[DingDongCharlie]

Up front:
- Added Arvidsson & Skinner to the top 6.
- Will have a full season of Henrique.
- We now the version of Connor Brown that can play hockey.
- As it sits now we can LTIR Kane until healthy and he can be activated as we are no longer cap strapped. A healthy Kane is still a very valuable player.

Arvidsson + Skinner > Foegele + Holloway


The backend:
Everyone told me Ceci, Desharnais both sucked and that Broberg was a bust. Now that they've left we're a worst team than last year even though the consensus I've read is Edmonton improved up front? Losing Ceci and Desharnais is really supposed to negatively offset the additions made? Honesrtly...

- Josh Brown can replace what we lost in Desharnais at a much lower cap hit.
- Broberg's potential is a loss but let's not pretend is was some impact player last season. Do I think he will grow into that player though.
- It's amusing people will list Ceci as a loss when days ago it was "it will cost a 1st to move him" and "it's addition by subtraction if you move him", "an overpaid 3rd pairing D at best". He actually gets moved and the narrative changes pretty quickly.

Add to the fact the team is cap compliant even when Kane is activated + we're now able to build up cap space till the deadline and be in a better position to add an impactful piece. The deal will be easier if we're not in a "dollars in, dollars out situation".

 

[Voodoo Child]

I voted worse but there isn’t an ‘about the same’ option.

They’re about the same.

 

[Cup or Bust]

Up front:
- Added Arvidsson & Skinner to the top 6.
- Will have a full season of Henrique.
- We now the version of Connor Brown that can play hockey.
- As it sits now we can LTIR Kane until healthy and he can be activated as we are no longer cap strapped. A healthy Kane is still a very valuable player.

Arvidsson + Skinner > Foegele + Holloway


The backend:
Everyone told me Ceci, Desharnais both sucked and that Broberg was a bust. Now that they've left we're a worst team than last year even though the consensus I've read is Edmonton improved up front? Losing Ceci and Desharnais is really supposed to negatively offset the additions made? Honesrtly...

- Josh Brown can replace what we lost in Desharnais at a much lower cap hit.
- Broberg's potential is a loss but let's not pretend is was some impact player last season. Do I think he will grow into that player though.
- It's amusing people will list Ceci as a loss when days ago it was it will cost a 1st to move him and it's addition by subtraction if you move him out. He actually gets moved and the narrative changes pretty quickly.

Ceci is the only loss in the sense that he could play respectable minutes most of the time but he should not be that difficult to replace. The Oilers had Desharnais in their top 6 the entire season so I don't see how Josh Brown can't fill his role. Emberson is a question mark but he sounds like he has shown decent potential and might be able to fill Ceci's role for the short term if they are not able to find some cheap vet before the season starts. I really don't see much downgrade on defense, if anything it looks similar to last season where they needed an upgrade on their second pairing right hand shot going into the deadline.

 

[Scintillating10]

They lost depth. Speed also

 

[Voight]

Hard to say given they still employ Darnell Nurse.

 

[Evergreen]

I voted better because I think they are in a better position to make an addition on the blue line during the season or at the deadline with the newly freed up cap space. They’ll need to make the right adds though.

I’m also optimistic Podkolzin will be effective for them.

 

[Nogatco Rd]

Oilers are by far the best team in the nhl. Id be shocked if they lost more than a handful of games in the playoffs enroute to the cup

How many points are you expecting in the regular season?

 

[Mr Positive]

As an Oiler fan I say we are better.

Of course the defense is the kicker. Broberg was a piece for the future though. He didn't contribute a ton. I bet he will be top 4 quality for the Blues though. He will thrive with big minutes and on his correct side

Ceci and Desharnais were good but very replaceable. We are marginally worse at D but it's a system defense that relies on our excellent 1st pairing as the game breaker.

And of course at forward we are a lot better in the short term.

I'd argue Stuart Skinner being a year older and with a playoff run under his belt should see a development upgrade

 

[mouser]

Surprised by how many people are taking the Ceci loss as a blow to the oilers when I’ve seen them comment about how bad he sucks.

At least be consistent.

Both things can have elements of truth.

To me losing Ceci is likely a loss for the Oilers because they didn’t upgrade his roster slot with a better Dman.

 

[CupofOil]

Having Skinner in net isn’t a recipe for success with that D core. He sucks.

Oh, I see that this dumb narrative still exists.

 

[Mr Positive]

Both things can have elements of truth.

To me losing Ceci is likely a loss for the Oilers because they didn’t upgrade his roster slot with a better Dman.

But how impactful is that loss? He wasn't a core piece. The difference between Ceci and Stecher/Emberson isn't going to as big as the upgrades at forward

 

[GirardSpinorama]

Less depth and upside surprise. They had a couple of guys they could realistically count on being breakout players. They also lost speed and size to add small skill, which I don't really understand.

Arvidsson and Skinner arent exactly playoff studs.

 

[Connor McConnor]

Surprised by how many people are taking the Ceci loss as a blow to the oilers when I’ve seen them comment about how bad he sucks.

At least be consistent.

Oilers fans getting the Leaf hate on here even though we can actually win in the playoffs.

It’s actually hilarious to see posters on here acting like losing 2 guys that dressed a total 60ish games last year and Ceci makes the team worse while adding guys like Arvy, Skinner, Emberson, Harris, Pod, and getting other guys like Henrique and Brown to take discounts to stay.

 

[JurassicTunga]

Seems like they got smaller, slower, softer...
and are the oldest team in the league.

 

[theVladiator]

Forwards out: Foegle, McLeod, Holloway
Forwards In: Skinner, Arvidsson, Podkolzin

More offensively inclined and less defensively inclined guys. Might work.

Defense out: Ceci, Broberg, Desharnais
Defense in: Brown, Stecher, Emberson

2 of the lost Dmen are "maybe a 2nd pair" quality. The replacements are straight up waiver wire fodder quality.

On paper the changes look really scary considering Skinner is in the net. But Knoblauch worked some true magic last season, best rookie coach entrance in a looong time.

Would have voted "worse", but will chicken out with a "TBD" because of Knoblauch.

 

[Bounces R Way]

Older, softer, smaller, and slower.
Did they really need more goals?

Also doubt they'll be as healthy as they were last season.

Voted worse for now, but probably not significantly.

 

[centipede2233]

Much much better group of forwards

Defence took a step back

Goaltending is the same

I think the team is better but less balanced. HOWEVER, they should have cap space going into the TDL which is a big difference from last year

That’s the kicker. Edmonton should be able to coast to the TDL then add a couple of d men along the way. Could add more if someone like Kane is on LTIR

 

[Nogatco Rd]

Ya, that's hilarious.
There's a reason Oiler fans (or just me) would call him Feces all season.

Because he’s a legit #2? Sounds like a compliment to me

 

[bucks_oil]

Poll

Last year when? At the start of the season or game 7?

We are miles better than we were at the start of the season.

In: Henrique, Perry, Skinner, Arvidsson, Stecher, grown up Bouchard, Savoie in the wings, huge cap space for the deadline

Out: McLeod, Foegele, Ceci… neither of Broberg or Holloway were Oilers in October.

Unheralded in these parts, but the the teams’ forward depth has been massively improved vs the start of last season… even vs the game 7 lineup.

Would it be nice to have Holloway and Broberg at a combined $3M… yeah, big missed opportunity… but that cap space is going to be huge come deadline. Huge.

 

[bucks_oil]

Less depth and upside surprise. They had a couple of guys they could realistically count on being breakout players. They also lost speed and size to add small skill, which I don't really understand.

Arvidsson and Skinner arent exactly playoff studs.

Skinner we don’t know about in the playoffs for obvious reasons….

Arvidsson was 3rd in playoff points/ppg among LA forwards over the last couple of playoffs, behind only Kempe and Kopitar.

We also added Henrique at last years deadline…. So regular season vs regular season we are miles ahead and have cap space to weaponize.

 

[TheDawnOfANewTage]

They added Jeff Skinner, aight? Man is due. Some see his 0 playoff games and think “loser”. I think “winner in the making.” No hero’s journey is all victories, that sucks. There’s a cosmic balance to it all, and after bravely trying to rescue bad teams for so many years, this man has stored and cultivated his playoff potential in record setting ways. Dude shall go supersayan, and all other concerns shall fall to the wayside. It is known.

Nah, but now that I’ve wrecked what little credibility I’d possibly have- I think the adds on offense will make ‘em incredible offensively, and you can always add defensemen via trade. Right? Maybe? Edit: Oh shit, call up Giordano, if he still has feet that works.

 

[Just Linda]

Currently worse.

If you added someone like Zadorov who went for a 3rd and 5th last year, Tanev who went for a second and third, or pretty much any of the similar quality d that will be available by Christmas, they'll be better.

They are worse now but in a good position to be better. Their route to improvement is pretty simple and easy.

 

[Just Linda]

Last year when? At the start of the season or game 7?

We are miles better than we were at the start of the season.

In: Henrique, Perry, Skinner, Arvidsson, Stecher, grown up Bouchard, Savoie in the wings, huge cap space for the deadline

Out: McLeod, Foegele, Ceci… neither of Broberg or Holloway were Oilers in October.

Unheralded in these parts, but the the teams’ forward depth has been massively improved vs the start of last season… even vs the game 7 lineup.

Would it be nice to have Holloway and Broberg at a combined $3M… yeah, big missed opportunity… but that cap space is going to be huge come deadline. Huge.

Savoie is far from NHL ready. Oilers would be worse with him in the lineup. He's not strong enough/ good enough at winning battles to be a role player, he's not developed enough to play an offensive role, and he won't crack the PP to be a specialty player.

He won't make the Oilers better for at least a couple years. Overall though, Oilers fans should temper their expectations for him, he doesn'tatch the hype he once had.

 

[sepHF]

Older, softer, smaller, and slower.
Did they really need more goals?

Also doubt they'll be as healthy as they were last season.

Voted worse for now, but probably not significantly.

Draisaitl was playing with a rotating cast of Foegele / McLeod / Holloway. He badly needed some wingers

The forecheck definitely got downgraded a bit, and losing both Ceci and Desharnais might hurt the PK. I don't know anything about Emberson, so we'll see how he does there.

I think they're 1 trade away (a solid 2nd pair RHD that can cover up some of Nurses weaknesses) from being pretty solidly upgraded

an extra year on some of the older forwards and Ekholm could have a negative impact too, we'll see how that goes

 

[Bounces R Way]

Draisaitl was playing with a rotating cast of Foegele / McLeod / Holloway. He badly needed some wingers

So they got him Arvidsson and Skinner? I assume RNH-McD-Hyman won't be broken up. Kane and Draisaitl I don't think have ever looked good together, too slow. Draisaitl centering those two seems good on paper but in practice I'm not so sure. They're both small players, so even more of what is usually the bulk of the puck protection, net front, board play, and defensive physicality falls on Leon. He plays insane minutes for a guy with his frame. He was really wearing down those last two rounds of the postseason.

I mean they're good players, sure they'll score some goals. Skinner is horrible defensively and that's not something that Draisaitl excels at really either but the guy can finish. Arvidsson nice player for sure but that grit and tenacity are probably diminished being a ten year vet that missed most of last year. Mostly would be concerned with how that line would perform on the boards. Lots of games are won and lost on board battles.

The forecheck definitely got downgraded a bit, and losing both Ceci and Desharnais might hurt the PK. I don't know anything about Emberson, so we'll see how he does there.

I think they're 1 trade away (a solid 2nd pair RHD that can cover up some of Nurses weaknesses) from being pretty solidly upgraded

an extra year on some of the older forwards and Ekholm could have a negative impact too, we'll see how that goes

I could see them starting the year with the defenseman they have but yeah would be surprised if that's still what it looks like in the New Year. Top 4 RD can be expensive to find in short notice though, especially with a contract that Edmonton can fit in.