The Loss of Broberg and Holloway Gripe Thread

[midnightcopper]

Its worse than Miro even. Its like leaving Shane Doan on the draft table. Its one of those. Worse, the Oilers drafted Holloway, somehow didn't believe in him, and lost him for nothing. Posters don't want to hear about it as I've stated this is the single worst player loss since Taylor Hall and subsequently Eberle. By an org that longstanding, just doesn't value its players.

Holloway was just my kind of player too. Edge, speed, talent, hands. He's 23. Whats the limit?

It's going down as one of the worst roster decisions ever. Miro Satan bad.

There was that infamous day in August of '88...but it was for the good of hockey, remember. Who knows how many more cups and goals he could have had (I always felt he could have scored more goals had he felt like it)...and that ugly Russian would still be chasing his shadow.

 

[PitkanensGitch]

Broberg looks amazing. Was clearly still growing into his body which resulted in some awkward plays, and he's still falling down too much for my liking, but wow. Pacing 45 points with no PP time is absolute insanity.

I know we realistically couldn't sign Broberg given our situation (we could've with a high end GM), but it feels bad. Holloway would be our third best player for 2.2 mil. Let that sink in.

Broberg looks just as good as any of our other D by the way -- and only going to get better as he fills out his frame.

Imagine how our stars feel going out for shifts with Podkolzin, Arvidsson, Skinner, Perry etc when we had Holloway.

 

[WhiskeyEE]

Broberg looks amazing. Was clearly still growing into his body which resulted in some awkward plays, and he's still falling down too much for my liking, but wow. Pacing 45 points with no PP time is absolute insanity.

I know we realistically couldn't sign Broberg given our situation (we could've with a high end GM), but it feels bad. Holloway would be our third best player for 2.2 mil. Let that sink in.

Broberg looks just as good as any of our other D by the way -- and only going to get better as he fills out his frame.

Imagine how our stars feel going out for shifts with Podkolzin, Arvidsson, Skinner, Perry etc when we had Holloway.

Imagine how the Oilers management feel being the laughing stock/disgrace of the league. Everyone's looking at them with the Skinner meme. Especially us fans unfortunately. What's done is done though. People are dwelling too much with the Blues playing so well and the Oilers not even playing. I do hope the Blues miss the playoffs as some consolation though.

 

[McFlash97]

There are no excuses and absolutely nothing you can say to excuse Bowmans refusal to match Holloway. It was shocking in August and still shocking today. Everytime Bowman opens his mouth to explain why, he digs his grave deeper. This is why the Oilers management has been considered a joke during the McDrai era.

 

[bucks_oil]

Kane to LTIR

"Publicly" they were saying they didn't know how long Kane would be out.... and even still, he only gets you close.

We started the season with a 21-man roster and $685K in projected cap space.

Kane to LTIR only gets you to $5.785

Broberg + Holloway = $4.6 + $2.3 = $6.9M, so you are still short

And now you have zero space for short term injuries...

... and zero space to accrue for the deadline, which means you just lost Ceci & Desharnais and can't upgrade the D at the deadline (which was the plan all along).

I mean it's doable if they sent down Janmark or Perry instead of Derek Ryan... the math then works... but as we discussed on the Oilers board this summer, it meant putting ALL of the D-upgrade eggs in the Broberg basket and they just weren't willing to do that.

Obviously it will change with time, but for THIS year I'm happier with Walman + Emberson + Klingberg vs Broberg + Josh Brown + ??? AHL guy.

 

[CornKicker]

Enjoy this thread while it lasts because come playoff time this thread gets closed and the topic needs to die until the offseason.

even if we end up playing st louis at one point?

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

"Publicly" they were saying they didn't know how long Kane would be out.... and even still, he only gets you close.

We started the season with a 21-man roster and $685K in projected cap space.

Kane to LTIR only gets you to $5.785

Broberg + Holloway = $4.6 + $2.3 = $6.9M, so you are still short

And now you have zero space for short term injuries...

... and zero space to accrue for the deadline, which means you just lost Ceci & Desharnais and can't upgrade the D at the deadline (which was the plan all along).

I mean it's doable if they sent down Janmark or Perry instead of Derek Ryan... the math then works... but as we discussed on the Oilers board this summer, it meant putting ALL of the D-upgrade eggs in the Broberg basket and they just weren't willing to do that.

Obviously it will change with time, but for THIS year I'm happier with Walman + Emberson + Klingberg vs Broberg + Josh Brown + ??? AHL guy.

the cap space they were accruing turned into 1.7mil for John Klingberg and waiver pickups like Kapanen
only after they knew Kane wasn't coming back until the playoffs did they go out and get Walman

 

[Canovin]

even if we end up playing st louis at one point?

St. Louis getting passed Colorado and Dallas?

 

[Lacaar]

I think the Organization has to have a good hard look at why the vet's they counted on have come in this season and shit the bed. Just like Holloway, Broberg, and Mcleod shit the bed last year in the regular season. Seriously they were just as awful last year as the players we brought in this year.

Too many players shitting the bed on this team.

Whatever the Oilers do for their players does not lead to results in play on the ice. You have to be exceptional to succeed here.. WHY?

Is it the support? the coaching? the locker room? the facility? Are Connor and Leon pricks to play with? The let Connor and Leon do it all attitude?

The Oilers are regular season under achievers. They've been this way for the last 5 years. Not a single division win. This is not a take the bull by the horns team. Perhaps will never be.

Thankfully they pick it up in the playoffs. But they still insist on mostly come from behind series wins. They RARELY go up a series 2-1. Last year was their best year where they had the series lead after game 3 twice. Even the cup final is a peak into the behavior of this team. Go down and play like ass because can't score.. other goalie hot.... can't find game.. blah blah blah.

Great hockey team that can't put it's shit together until they're down.
The Oilers don't get going until the going gets tough.

Fun hockey team to watch.. best team in the league to watch. Most frustrating team to watch because their game goes poof. And they absolutely cannot deal with any time off what so ever. They start seasons slow, they start games after four nation breaks slow. Hell they even start playoff series slow when they have a break. Game 1 vs Vegas in 2023 was a no f***ing show. Game 1 vs Vancouver last year. they went up 3-0 somehow while playing like ass and deservedly lost that game.

I say we push to have the regular season start 2 days after the cup final. Breaks just murder this team

Just wanted to toss in a good vent session haha.

 

[CornKicker]

St. Louis getting passed Colorado and Dallas?

most likely not but just saying.... its possible

 

[McShogun99]

"Publicly" they were saying they didn't know how long Kane would be out.... and even still, he only gets you close.

We started the season with a 21-man roster and $685K in projected cap space.

Kane to LTIR only gets you to $5.785

Broberg + Holloway = $4.6 + $2.3 = $6.9M, so you are still short

And now you have zero space for short term injuries...

... and zero space to accrue for the deadline, which means you just lost Ceci & Desharnais and can't upgrade the D at the deadline (which was the plan all along).

I mean it's doable if they sent down Janmark or Perry instead of Derek Ryan... the math then works... but as we discussed on the Oilers board this summer, it meant putting ALL of the D-upgrade eggs in the Broberg basket and they just weren't willing to do that.

Obviously it will change with time, but for THIS year I'm happier with Walman + Emberson + Klingberg vs Broberg + Josh Brown + ??? AHL guy.

When they moved out Ceci they had the space if they put Kane on LTIR. If they kept those two then we wouldn't have been able to add at the deadline but we also wouldn't have needed Walman or Frederic. The problem is no one knew what kind of season Broberg and Holloway were going to have, we knew they had the potential but not this soon so it was a big gamble for management.

I wanted them to match and look at the big picture over just this season.

 

[Heavy Dee]

St. Louis getting passed Colorado and Dallas?

They might

 

[Heavy Dee]

When they moved out Ceci they had the space if they put Kane on LTIR. If they kept those two then we wouldn't have been able to add at the deadline but we also wouldn't have needed Walman or Frederic. The problem is no one knew what kind of season Broberg and Holloway were going to have, we knew they had the potential but not this soon so it was a big gamble for management.

I wanted them to match and look at the big picture over just this season.

That offer sheet decision is only barely palatable if Frederic and Walman extend on reasonable deals.

 

[Blueswin]

most likely not but just saying.... its possible

If the Blues catch Minny they will play Vegas in the 1st round.

 

[Canovin]

They might

most likely not but just saying.... its possible

Oilers have a higher chance of winning the cup than St. Louis beating both Dallas and Vegas

 

[McShogun99]

Oilers have a higher chance of winning the cup than St. Louis beating both Dallas and Vegas

The best chance is STL making it to 7th and Edmonton winning the Pacific. If that happens watch the Blues sweep us to make us not matching the offer sheets look even worse.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

The best chance is STL making it to 7th and Edmonton winning the Pacific. If that happens watch the Blues sweep us to make us not matching the offer sheets look even worse.

Some of our "fans" would probably love that.

 

[Canovin]

Some of our "fans" would probably love that.

Anything to feel they were right eventho the Oilers will be a better team going into the playoffs than they were last year.

 

[Soundwave]

I think the Organization has to have a good hard look at why the vet's they counted on have come in this season and shit the bed. Just like Holloway, Broberg, and Mcleod shit the bed last year in the regular season. Seriously they were just as awful last year as the players we brought in this year.

Too many players shitting the bed on this team.

Whatever the Oilers do for their players does not lead to results in play on the ice. You have to be exceptional to succeed here.. WHY?

Is it the support? the coaching? the locker room? the facility? Are Connor and Leon pricks to play with? The let Connor and Leon do it all attitude?

The Oilers are regular season under achievers. They've been this way for the last 5 years. Not a single division win. This is not a take the bull by the horns team. Perhaps will never be.

Thankfully they pick it up in the playoffs. But they still insist on mostly come from behind series wins. They RARELY go up a series 2-1. Last year was their best year where they had the series lead after game 3 twice. Even the cup final is a peak into the behavior of this team. Go down and play like ass because can't score.. other goalie hot.... can't find game.. blah blah blah.

Great hockey team that can't put it's shit together until they're down.
The Oilers don't get going until the going gets tough.

Fun hockey team to watch.. best team in the league to watch. Most frustrating team to watch because their game goes poof. And they absolutely cannot deal with any time off what so ever. They start seasons slow, they start games after four nation breaks slow. Hell they even start playoff series slow when they have a break. Game 1 vs Vegas in 2023 was a no f***ing show. Game 1 vs Vancouver last year. they went up 3-0 somehow while playing like ass and deservedly lost that game.

I say we push to have the regular season start 2 days after the cup final. Breaks just murder this team

Just wanted to toss in a good vent session haha.

Those are all very good questions, too many underachievers here including large periods where McLeod, Foegele, Holloway, etc. couldn't piss a drop.

The coaching staff and management all need to sit down and ask themselves exactly what they are doing.

The leash on some players is unlimited (Podkolzin, Yamamoto) and non-existent for others (Jeff Skinner, Holloway, Broberg).

 

[MoontoScott]

Some of our "fans" would probably love that.

No matter what the frustrations are with management (and they are justified) when you cheer against your own club then why worry about who they are developing?

 

[Arpeggio]

In the end not matching on Holloway was a huge error, no way around that. Broberg is what it is, Blues took a big swing and it has worked out. I don't think matching that contract was ever an option.

I'm convinced that they were being told that Kane could be back before the new year. Say what you want about Bowman, but I refuse to believe that he's a complete moron. He wouldn't say something like "couldn't field a team" if they knew they had 5.5 on the LTIR all season.

I feel like the simplest explanation is that they didn't have a firm timeline on Kane, and they had given out a bunch of NMC at that point, so they couldn't show that they had a reasonable way to get under the cap with Kane returning, especially if it was within 2-3 months. It's the only thing that makes sense. If they knew Kane would be out all year, there's no way they handle that situation like they did. They would've spent Kane's money, whether it was on Holloway/Broberg or on someone else.

 

[PitkanensGitch]

St. Louis getting passed Colorado and Dallas?

Probably not, but they have been on a tear. Very deep team. Depends on Binnington.

 

[CycloneSweep]

In the end not matching on Holloway was a huge error, no way around that. Broberg is what it is, Blues took a big swing and it has worked out. I don't think matching that contract was ever an option.

I'm convinced that they were being told that Kane could be back before the new year. Say what you want about Bowman, but I refuse to believe that he's a complete moron. He wouldn't say something like "couldn't field a team" if they knew they had 5.5 on the LTIR all season.

I feel like the simplest explanation is that they didn't have a firm timeline on Kane, and they had given out a bunch of NMC at that point, so they couldn't show that they had a reasonable way to get under the cap with Kane returning, especially if it was within 2-3 months. It's the only thing that makes sense. If they knew Kane would be out all year, there's no way they handle that situation like they did. They would've spent Kane's money, whether it was on Holloway/Broberg or on someone else.

Ultimately they could have at least kept Holloway and dealt with the situation then.
Losing one player to an offersheet is rough, losing 2 is awful.
Broberg I wasn’t high on and he is proving me wrong but that always made sense to me with the contract.
Holloway was the one that was just dumb not too.

 

[TruBlueFan1970]

As a Blues fan, I have to be honest. Many of us thought Holloway would be a 30-35 point 3rd liner and the real talk on our boards was about Broberg, as we needed badly a potential top 4 Dman based on the age of our existing D. Personally, I never in a million years thought that EDM would let both go. They are fun to watch and we would not be having the team success we are without the two of them. Shrewd move, but I do think it opens the door to more offer sheets going forward. Even without those two, the Oilers are a powerhouse and I'm certain that when the puck drops in round 1, they will be wreaking havoc on whoever they play.

And there is a real possibility that the Blues can catch Minny for the WC1 and end up playing Vegas or EDM in the first round. Assumes we keep playing well. I was at the Habs game last night and my buddy and I were actually talking about this scenario. We are hoping it plays out that way, just for the shear matter of something different. We have never had a playoff series vs Vegas. And neither of us could ever remember a time where we played the Oilers. It would be awesome if it happens to work out that way.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Imagine how the Oilers management feel being the laughing stock/disgrace of the league. Everyone's looking at them with the Skinner meme. Especially us fans unfortunately. What's done is done though. People are dwelling too much with the Blues playing so well and the Oilers not even playing. I do hope the Blues miss the playoffs as some consolation though.

They've been that for the last 15 years, I doubt they feel any shame.

If this team wins a Cup this whole fiasco is an unfortunate footnote. If the team fails to win the Cup this will be a factor. Just a couple flub by management... again.