Rumor: Rumors & Proposals Thread | The Oilers Biggest Roster Need Is?

[Spawn]

Knob has to make it a priority to get other players going and not just fixate on McDrai-ing himself to victory on any given night.

Other players need to be given time to play with McDavid, like Podkolzin on the top line I'm good with.

Skinner and Arvidsson should get looks there too. Same with PP Unit 1. Same with Kapanen now he should get some looks with Draisaitl immediately if not even McDavid.

All that "tough love" shit never works. You demote a guy to the 4th line here and their offense just goes down the toilet.

You have to be flexible. It can't just be RNH + Hyman are the only two players on the roster that ever get any time with McDavid or on the PP. If our PP was lights out, that would be one thing but Hyman and RNH are terrible on the PP right now. Give someone else a chance to score an easy goal or two and maybe, just maybe that gets them going.

I agree to an extent. RNH/Hyman absolutely should not keep getting run out there on the top line/top PP unit. Not while they are being so ineffectual. And we should keep trying options with McDavid/Drai (either together or apart) until we find combinations that work. But at the same time, the forward group on this team outside of those two needs to stop just going out there and trying to survive their shifts while waiting for McDavid/Draisaitl to do everything. Time for these guys to take some pride in their game and start pushing the matter. Some of these players need to get going themselves and stop relying on McDavid and Draisaitl to do absolutely everything on this roster.

 

[McTonyBrar]

Where is this

Earlier in this thread

 

[BarDownBobo]

To me the sleeper target might be Artem Zub, mainly with the Staios link and how heavily he was involved with the Oilers picking Beau Akey when he was here. Could see a deal where he’s the center piece going back, and Zub is a guy who could have an Ekholm like impact. Perfect partner for Nurse imo.

 

[Burnt Biscuits]

Fowler is done though. Hes got nothing left.

I'll agree he has been bad, but I can't tell if he actually sucks or if his competitive spirit has been crushed from being on a crap team for so long.

OEL was awful having played on a bad team for so long, but made a slow comeback. Hampus Lindholm also skewed not to bad, but I'd say mediocre to a central pillar to a dominant B's team for the 2 seasons prior to this one.

 

[Fourier]

Skinner is not a "boston" type player is the other problem.

"Boston" type players are a thing of the past. Their big addition this year was Elias Lindholm who is most definitely not a "Boston" type player.

When he is on Skinner scores. And that is an issue for the Bruins. They are 28th in GF and unlike the Oilers they can't really look at their roster and think it will turn around. Of course Skinner is a LW and right now he could either replace Geekie on the top line with Zacha and Pasta or slot into the 3LW spot beside Coyle and Frederic and replace Merkulov on the second pp unit.

And I am not saying that Boston is actively pursuing Skinner. Just that if things continue as they are he may well be willing to waive to get a chance for a more significant role.

 

[FlameChampion]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1859383883789107629

Wonder if this means Nurse is back.

Kinda thought they might send Dermott down honestly. Maybe Brown making an extra 250k hurts him here.

Hopefully we have 12F now but not sure about Arvidsson or Hyman

 

[harpoon]

If interested, and I don’t see why they would be, the Bruins can take their pick of Skinner or Arvidsson imo. As fans we should probably try to be patient a bit longer I guess, but neither of these guys has delivered on expectations.

 

[nexttothemoon]

I'm not a salary cap expert and I know the Oilers strategy was/is to accrue cap for a big deadline addition (or 2 or 3)... but I wonder how an older team like this holds up in the injury department and whether with all the bodies already slowly piling up on IR... will that have an effect on the amount of money that they can actually accrue between now and the deadline.

In theory accumulation of cap space looked like a doable plan... but Oilers were relatively injury free last season and this season with the team a year older and arguably some injury prone players now added... like Arvidsson... there's certainly no guarantee it will go as smoothly.

I'm thinking the pot of deadline money likely won't be as big as expected... especially since the team is struggling and very up and down and they aren't guaranteed to cruise into a playoff spot... so they may not be able to afford to just sit on "cap space" while the team meanders it's way all season long towards what might be a wildcard spot.

They might change strategies and just bite the bullet early and get pieces to help this roster now (or at least very soon) because between the offensive regression, questionable goaltending and injuries... this team likely is NOT going to have the type of "#1 contender" type year that everyone expected.

 

[ChasinWaterfalls]

Getting Jiricek seems like a no brainer. He's clearly disgruntled at being stuck behind all the RD in Columbus. He's cheap enough that we could send back a smallish contract like Stecher and maybe Ryan and it all fits easily and we can still accrue for a bigger move later

There is a zero percent chance Columbus gives up jiricek for stetcher and Ryan. His value is much much higher than that.

 

[Stauf4Prez]

Right now yes. He can't even 2C lol.

Best course of action is to split mcdrai up. They played a crappy Ottawa team. Need balance. Don't need them to be minus players

Fix the pp they will get their production together there

Doesn’t really have enough offense for a top 6 player 5 on 5.

Hes more of a special teams player. But he hasn’t been good on the PP this year.

That would be my point. RNH is unless most of the time. Can't even say he's an option for the complimentary winger or PP specialist either. Gosh I wish we hadn't traded those 2015 picks. Could have been Barzal/Ekrisson Ek+Aho/Hintz

Agree with all above. I think the worst part about this, is that regardless of how he got them, he was a 100 point player two seasons ago - basically 70 last year. The regression is baffling.

 

[CanadasTeam99]

Copying this from twitter. I actually am starting to loathe this org

Pierre Lebrun says the Oilers are not looking for goaltending help and “They are ready to sink or swim with Stuart Skinner”

Here’s some fun stats:

In the first 3 games of the Canucks series alone Stuart Skinner let in 7 goals on 38 low danger chance shots and 12 goals total

After Stus stolen win to eliminate Dallas he STILL ranked 22nd out of 26 goalies in GSAx per @CSAHockey in the 23/24 playoffs


Per @Sportlogiq Skinner was at -6.99 GSAx going into game 6 against VGK in 22/23 where he ultimately let in 4 goals on 17 shots

The Playoff GSAx of the Cup Winning Goalies per EH:

23/24 Bob: +7.81
22/23 Hill: +13.13
21/22 Kuemper: -7.29
20/21 Vasi: +17.33
19/20 Vasi: +13.72
18/19 Binnington: +1.08
17/18 Holtby: +6.84
16/17 Murray/Fluery: +4.56/+2.53

24/25 Reg Stu: -5.77

Skinner isn’t the worst goalie in the NHL, but he can be for long stretches, you need a second guy you can turn to a la Fluery & Murray

If not, you’re just crossing your fingers hoping he doesn’t single handedly end another year of McDavids prime.

Get Blackwood

 

[North]

Copying this from twitter. I actually am starting to loathe this org

Pierre Lebrun says the Oilers are not looking for goaltending help and “They are ready to sink or swim with Stuart Skinner”

Here’s some fun stats:

In the first 3 games of the Canucks series alone Stuart Skinner let in 7 goals on 38 low danger chance shots and 12 goals total

After Stus stolen win to eliminate Dallas he STILL ranked 22nd out of 26 goalies in GSAx per @CSAHockey in the 23/24 playoffs


Per @Sportlogiq Skinner was at -6.99 GSAx going into game 6 against VGK in 22/23 where he ultimately let in 4 goals on 17 shots

The Playoff GSAx of the Cup Winning Goalies per EH:

23/24 Bob: +7.81
22/23 Hill: +13.13
21/22 Kuemper: -7.29
20/21 Vasi: +17.33
19/20 Vasi: +13.72
18/19 Binnington: +1.08
17/18 Holtby: +6.84
16/17 Murray/Fluery: +4.56/+2.53

24/25 Reg Stu: -5.77

Skinner isn’t the worst goalie in the NHL, but he can be for long stretches, you need a second guy you can turn to a la Fluery & Murray

If not, you’re just crossing your fingers hoping he doesn’t single handedly end another year of McDavids prime.

Get Blackwood

Why are we taking Lebrun’s word for it?

We tend to not to telegraph our moves.

That being said there isn’t a lot interesting out there right now goaltending wise.

I know people want Blackwood but isn’t he made of glass?

 

[Oilslick941611]

I'll agree he has been bad, but I can't tell if he actually sucks or if his competitive spirit has been crushed from being on a crap team for so long.

OEL was awful having played on a bad team for so long, but made a slow comeback. Hampus Lindholm also skewed not to bad, but I'd say mediocre to a central pillar to a dominant B's team for the 2 seasons prior to this one.

Yeah, there is that possibility, I’m not sure I’m willing to bet on a revival though. Theres no room for taking a flyer on a trade this year given our low resources and cap space. I dont think it’s a smart bet to put all your eggs in the same basket for a 32 year old defenseman . What’s happening with OEL is a pretty rare thing

 

[russ99]

The problem with replacing Skinner is that anyone to make a real difference is going to cost considerable cap ($8M is the average going rate for a good goalie) and it will cause a major roster upheaval to be able to do that. I don't think Blackwell or Anaheim retaining cap on Gibson pushes the needle enough considering they'd run into the same defensive breakdowns to bail us out from. Also why spend good assets for a stopgap, would rather see a permanent fix when the roster is finally overhauled.

If we get our shop in order and stop allowing so many wide open chances and give Skinner a chance back there, he could rebound, seems confidence is a big issue. Wouldn't mind a goalie coach change or Skinner bringing in someone to add to the staff that can get him right. Did he work with Rodrigue's dad in Bakersfield?

Also give Rodrigue a shot, can't be any worse, and the math to add him as a 3rd goalie isn't too much of a push with his small capspace. The only drawback would be the need to put on waivers to send back down to the AHL (I think).

Can't believe we're here again after the Campbell mess last year, but goalies are voodoo.

The Oilers can win multiple playoff series with the talent they have if most of it is clicking and a deadline 2D addition.

Maybe the front office doesn't have the stomach to blow it all up and reload and fix the glaring roster imbalances, as long as McDavid isn't locked up in his next contract.

 

[Canovin]

The problem with replacing Skinner is that anyone to make a real difference is going to cost considerable cap ($8M is the average going rate for a good goalie) and it will cause a major roster upheaval to be able to do that. I don't think Blackwell or Anaheim retaining cap on Gibson pushes the needle enough considering they'd run into the same defensive breakdowns to bail us out from. Also why spend good assets for a stopgap, would rather see a permanent fix when the roster is finally overhauled.

If we get our shop in order and stop allowing so many wide open chances and give Skinner a chance back there, he could rebound, seems confidence is a big issue. Wouldn't mind a goalie coach change or Skinner bringing in someone to add to the staff that can get him right. Did he work with Rodrigue's dad in Bakersfield?

Also give Rodrigue a shot, can't be any worse, and the math to add him as a 3rd goalie isn't too much of a push with his small capspace. The only drawback would be the need to put on waivers to send back down to the AHL (I think).

Can't believe we're here again after the Campbell mess last year, but goalies are voodoo.

The Oilers can win multiple playoff series with the talent they have if most of it is clicking and a deadline 2D addition.

Maybe the front office doesn't have the stomach to blow it all up and reload and fix the glaring roster imbalances, as long as McDavid isn't locked up in his next contract.

Skinner is sitting at last place. You can get anyone better than him at any price

 

[VeteranPresence]

Why are we taking Lebrun’s word for it?

We tend to not to telegraph our moves.

That being said there isn’t a lot interesting out there right now goaltending wise.

I know people want Blackwood but isn’t he made of glass?

There are a number of options, it's just that this front office is too lazy (or stupid) to explore them. I tend to believe Lebrun based on us not even bothering to call up Rodrigue, who started the year on fire in the AHL while Stu was busy giving up floaters from the wrong side of the net.

If Jackson and Bowman really do think Skinner is good enough, we're in for a long two years of our remaining window.

 

[Mcnotloilersfan]

I still think come playoff time we could be okay.

I do think we need to upgrade on Pickard in the "backup" position. Someone who can make Skinner feel unsafe about his hold on the #1 spot.

It sounds like we will get a defensive upgrade - which considering the reasonably strong play of our D already (for what they are), that should also be fine come playoff time.

The scoring up front has been a concern outside of the big 2. Kane coming back will be a huge a boost. I expect/hope at least 2 of of Hyman, Nuge, Arvidsson and Podkolzin will start to pick it up a bit.

J. Skinner should be moved out for a more playoff effective forward. (Strong two way play, and or physicality with scoring). I actually think bringing in a proper two-way 3C would be huge. Henrique can play anywhere in the top 9 as a winger.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

I agree with him, I'm having trouble remembering the last one-dimensional undersized winger who skewed towards being soft that Boston actively acquired.

They have an old school mentality there and a pretty clear line on what they think a Boston player is and isn't, like they traded Kessel very young cause he didn't fit the team identity. Also I watched a behind the scenes thing when they traded Seguin who I actually think fit BOS's style he just needed a little time to grow into matching it, but all it really took was 2-3 people being like is he really a BOS type player and in that moment his fate was sealed and they had to trade him.

I think what you guys imagine Boston to be and what the Bruins actually are is night and day.

They need more talent and skill, because now they aren't getting elite goaltending every game, it's making life really hard.

Seguin has been in Dallas longer than Boston, so what the hell are you talking about.

Last game the Bruins #1C was Pavel Zacha....so yeah, they need skill badly.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Skinner is sitting at last place. You can get anyone better than him at any price

Dustin Schwartz says no.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Dustin Schwartz says no.

It's more to support my "Stan is planning for next year" idea on this team.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

It's more to support my "Stan is planning for next year" idea on this team.

I'd rather he plan for this year, personally. But we'll wait and see. One thing I know for sure is that barring injury goaltending is not changing.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

I'd rather he plan for this year, personally. But we'll wait and see. One thing I know for sure is that barring injury goaltending is not changing.

Sincerely I would too, but everything thing he does screams "We'll see what happens this year, but after I'm done evaluating things, next year we go for it" lol.

Like recalling Caggiula lol, instead of Philp or Savoie.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Sincerely I would too, but everything thing he does screams "We'll see what happens this year, but after I'm done evaluating things, next year we go for it" lol.

Like recalling Caggiula lol, instead of Philp or Savoie.

Yeah, it's pretty obvious he's no different than his worthless predecessors. Hopefully he proves me wrong.

 

[North]

There are a number of options, it's just that this front office is too lazy (or stupid) to explore them. I tend to believe Lebrun based on us not even bothering to call up Rodrigue, who started the year on fire in the AHL while Stu was busy giving up floaters from the wrong side of the net.

If Jackson and Bowman really do think Skinner is good enough, we're in for a long two years of our remaining window.

What’s out there that is available and can fit into our salary structure that is an actual upgrade and not a moving around of deck chairs?

You can choose to overreact to talking heads. I’m not going to.