Post-Game Talk: Playoff spot engaged

[Whoshattenkirkshoes]

I’m going into the playoffs with a “yay if we win” mindset

Tempered by a. This year is weird and our team isn’t healthy and sometimes timing just doesn’t work out.

Let’s hope it’s the first one

Sure, but the worst part os our window is closing with every year that passes us by.

 

[Mr Positive]

It's nice to clinch but overall I'm quite down on the game.

I'm thinking Ekholm won't be available for the playoffs. His issue isn't day to day or week to week. I'm not a doctor of course, and more importantly I'm not his doctor so I know nothing, but I am a hockey fan and I've seen this dance before

 

[Whoshattenkirkshoes]

Starting to think if we can't get healthy and get it done this year that Mcdavid won't win a cup ever.

 

[AM]

Spec is a turd though. Maybe he’s right and maybe he’s full of shit. But that’s some serious fear mongering.

He also hates this team. He’s loving every moment of this. Make no mistake

I think he just detests the fans.

 

[Tobias Kahun]

Missed the entire game as Friday night is D&D night. How did the injuries to Hyman and Ekholm happen? Read Ekholm aggravated his existing injury after 1 minute. If that’s the case who’s the idiot who cleared him to play?

I am beginning to think we have Dustin Schwartz’s relatives as our medical staff.

We have the same medical staffs as previous years and were one of the healthiest teams for the last 3 years

 

[Tobias Kahun]

There's credible reporting coming out that the medical staff was adamant about Frederic not being ready, but was overruled by management, coaches, and player. That's organization failure. And what's to say it didn't happen with Drai and Ekh?

I’m sure you have some links to back this up

 

[Ibanez]

I am no fan of Mark Spector. But the playoffs are 4 games away and the Oilers have Draisaitl, Ekholm, Hyman, RNH, Walman, Frederic, and Kane out. Ekholm, Frederic, and Kane wont even be starting the playoffs. We don't really know how Draisaitl and Hyman are. Frederic isn't even skating(!). There were talks earlier in the season that Kane might not even play, period, so Spec's reporting tracks a little bit.

I don't think I've ever seen so many injuries to so many key players at the worst possible time. Not just on the Oilers but on any team period. It almost seems made up.

Oh we are banged up for sure. It’s crazy times.

Doesn’t make Spector not a turd.

 

[Ibanez]

I am no fan of Mark Spector. But the playoffs are 4 games away and the Oilers have Draisaitl, Ekholm, Hyman, RNH, Walman, Frederic, and Kane out. Ekholm, Frederic, and Kane wont even be starting the playoffs. We don't really know how Draisaitl and Hyman are. Frederic isn't even skating(!). There were talks earlier in the season that Kane might not even play, period, so Spec's reporting tracks a little bit.

I don't think I've ever seen so many injuries to so many key players at the worst possible time. Not just on the Oilers but on any team period. It almost seems made up.

Oh we are banged up for sure. It’s crazy times.

Doesn’t make Spector not a turd.

Sure, but the worst part is our window is closing with every year that passes us by.

yeah maybe. Took ovi a long time. I haven’t lost hope. I just am more realistic with my expectations. Assuming we sign McDavid there is still hope for me for about 5-6 more years.

I don’t bet against Drai and McDavid. We shall see

 

[brentashton]

I’m sure you have some links to back this up

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

We have the same medical staffs as previous years and were one of the healthiest teams for the last 3 years

When you have no injuries, there is nothing to treat. It’s like having a janitor to clean up the mess, but your guests are all Japanese and clean up after themselves before they leave.

Maybe because these guys have done nothing for the past three years, they forgotten how to do medical stuff.

Look I have zero and I mean less than zero faith in anything the Oiler front office does now. I used to be like you and support them no matter what but the utter incompetence they have shown the last two decades they’ve completely lost me. It’s massive mistake after massive mistake after massive avoidable preventable mistake.

Prove you are competent. Allowing player after player to return early only to aggravate the injury is not competency. I’m sorry. It’s just not. Trading and signing for players who are injured and those players cannot play is not competency. It’s just not.

And if management and players are pressuring medical staff to allow these trades and signings and returning early then they need to have medical staff with a spine.

If this were one or two isolated cases, then I would say yeah sure shit happens. But this has been a pattern since Jeff Jackson took over starting with Kane. Patterns have causation.

So if it’s the medical staff or management or whoever I really am past the point of caring anymore.

All I know is we have a pack of idiots running the show here and that has been proven time and time again.

 

[Whoshattenkirkshoes]

Oh we are banged up for sure. It’s crazy times.

Doesn’t make Spector not a turd.

yeah maybe. Took ovi a long time. I haven’t lost hope. I just am more realistic with my expectations. Assuming we sign McDavid there is still hope for me for about 5-6 more years.

I don’t bet against Drai and McDavid. We shall see

Ovi won at age 32 and that was literally the last run that team had. Also their roster wasn't as aged as ours.

I seriously think if we don't win this year (and without Ekhokm we probably won't) it's over for Mcdavid.

 

[FlameChampion]

It's age as well. This is one of the biggest issues with an aging team, more injury prone. They really needed to win the Cup the previous two years, that was their window. Of course you never know, they could make a Cinderella run but this looks like a likely quick playoff exit with their skating wounded.

Also, when is the medical staff going to come in question. This is multiple incidents now of players returning then going back on the injured list. Draisaitl, Frederic and now Ekholm. Something is amiss with the way this has been handled by the organization, it's not a coincidence that this keeps happening.

Could be the players too.

Previous years we were “healthy”, but I wondered how much of it was stubborness. Feels like our players went into the playoffs banged up because they wouldn’t take the time off. Doesn’t help that the team generally puts themselves in a hole, where they have to claw out of the hole to get back on track. Players feel like they can’t sit out.

With some of these guys I wonder if they didn’t take the time off during the season when the injury occurred and now they can’t get healthy down the stretch. McDavid and Ekholm in particular. Might just be coming back to get them.

 

[McShogun99]

Ovi won at age 32 and that was literally the last run that team had. Also their roster wasn't as aged as ours.

I seriously think if we don't win this year (and without Ekhokm we probably won't) it's over for Mcdavid.

The future of this team looks pretty grim. We really need to hit on some late round picks if we want to extend McDrai’s window.

 

[GMofOilers]

Anyone hear Bowman’s interview with Bob yesterday, didn’t sound great about Fredric or Kane to be honest. Sounded like Kane not close to playing

 

[The Panther]

Some of you seem rather pleased with this game, but I'm not. The Oilers managed a 1-goal win (thanks to lots of PP's) over a terrible team that is long-eliminated from contention. McDavid was transcendent, having his best game in a long time, while Bouchard, Emberson, and maybe J. Skinner showed signs of life, though none was amazing. Pickard was fine as ever (though the 1st goal would be worrying had it occurred later in a game). Brown was fine, I guess.

Nobody else struck me as very good. Arvidsson (now on the 4th line? Yikes.) and Janmark (again!) did nothing of note. Henrique is just a warm-body at this point -- I keep waiting for him to summon his vetern-poise and show his value, and he keeps disappointing me. Kulak and Nurse were mediocre (did not enjoy seeing another puck off Nurse and into the net... that's a trend we don't want coming back).

Dressing 5 D-men against good teams isn't going to work. And now they lost Ekholm again, after three shifts or whatever. It's absolutely crippling to the Oilers if Ekholm isn't healthy and ready to go. No Ekholm means the Oilers will lose to L.A. And now Hyman...

I do think if all the players were healthy and ready to go, the Oilers would at least have a fair shot at getting out of their division. But that's evidently not going to be the case.

 

[Whoshattenkirkshoes]

The future of this team looks pretty grim. We really need to hit on some late round picks if we want to extend McDrai’s window.

And the odds of that lmao.

 

[Canovin]

The future of this team looks pretty grim. We really need to hit on some late round picks if we want to extend McDrai’s window.

There's free agency.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

Some of you seem rather pleased with this game, but I'm not. The Oilers managed a 1-goal win (thanks to lots of PP's) over a terrible team that is long-eliminated from contention. McDavid was transcendent, having his best game in a long time, while Bouchard, Emberson, and maybe J. Skinner showed signs of life, though none was amazing. Pickard was fine as ever (though the 1st goal would be worrying had it occurred later in a game). Brown was fine, I guess.

Nobody else struck me as very good. Arvidsson (now on the 4th line? Yikes.) and Janmark (again!) did nothing of note. Henrique is just a warm-body at this point -- I keep waiting for him to summon his vetern-poise and show his value, and he keeps disappointing me. Kulak and Nurse were mediocre (did not enjoy seeing another puck off Nurse and into the net... that's a trend we don't want coming back).

Dressing 5 D-men against good teams isn't going to work. And now they lost Ekholm again, after three shifts or whatever. It's absolutely crippling to the Oilers if Ekholm isn't healthy and ready to go. No Ekholm means the Oilers will lose to L.A. And now Hyman...

I do think if all the players were healthy and ready to go, the Oilers would at least have a fair shot at getting out of their division. But that's evidently not going to be the case.

We have half a lineup. Expecting us to work any NHL team right now is silly… even bad ones.

Henrique had 2 points last night and went 67% on the dot which puts him at 4 points in his last 3 games.

 

[LTIR]

He wasn’t worth his previous contract. Do I really need to specify that I’m talking about this his current one?

Was Brown treated like a 4 million dollar player or a league min last season? You guys are double dipping.

Thanks for clarifying. Wasn't sure if you were including both seasons.
If he continues to click with McDavid in playoffs his 4.5M caphit of this season can be justified.

 

[CrazyJoeDavola]

The future of this team looks pretty grim. We really need to hit on some late round picks if we want to extend McDrai’s window.

We haven't even hit on most of our 1st/2nd round picks. Bar none worst scouting/drafting, other than McD, out of any team in the last 10 years. We are not hitting on any late round picks lol.

 

[stewy04]

Ovi won at age 32 and that was literally the last run that team had. Also their roster wasn't as aged as ours.

I seriously think if we don't win this year (and without Ekhokm we probably won't) it's over for Mcdavid.

Wow.... go cheer for flames please. You are ignored.

 

[LTIR]

Some of you seem rather pleased with this game, but I'm not. The Oilers managed a 1-goal win (thanks to lots of PP's) over a terrible team that is long-eliminated from contention. McDavid was transcendent, having his best game in a long time, while Bouchard, Emberson, and maybe J. Skinner showed signs of life, though none was amazing. Pickard was fine as ever (though the 1st goal would be worrying had it occurred later in a game). Brown was fine, I guess.

Nobody else struck me as very good. Arvidsson (now on the 4th line? Yikes.) and Janmark (again!) did nothing of note. Henrique is just a warm-body at this point -- I keep waiting for him to summon his vetern-poise and show his value, and he keeps disappointing me. Kulak and Nurse were mediocre (did not enjoy seeing another puck off Nurse and into the net... that's a trend we don't want coming back).

Dressing 5 D-men against good teams isn't going to work. And now they lost Ekholm again, after three shifts or whatever. It's absolutely crippling to the Oilers if Ekholm isn't healthy and ready to go. No Ekholm means the Oilers will lose to L.A. And now Hyman...

I do think if all the players were healthy and ready to go, the Oilers would at least have a fair shot at getting out of their division. But that's evidently not going to be the case.

Oilers clinched so obviously Oilers fans are happy with the win.
Expecting Oilers to win any game without Drai, Ekholm, Hyman etc is wishful .
Only thing that stood between Sharks crushing this version of Oilers team was McDavid.
There is a lot of parity in this league and 50% of your cap on IR is a huge handicap.

 

[LTIR]

The future of this team looks pretty grim. We really need to hit on some late round picks if we want to extend McDrai’s window.

McDrai window could be open for another decade. We just need to extend McDavid.
No need for doom n gloom.
This club will continue to attract top end talent as long as we have McDavid on the team.

 

[russ99]

Why all these injuries?

Is this hockey karma for beating the Wild in Minnesota?

Much of it is due to the minutes load early when we were down two players due to offer sheets and had to patchwork a 18+2 together.

Lots of 11 - 7 games trying to figure out if Emberson or Dermott would stick.

And Ekholm especially was taking an unreasonable minutes load the first 20+ games of rhe season.

 

[Oilhawks]

That article is bleak.

Just the way Mark likes it