Comedy gold out of Edmonton

[Cobiemonster]

I'd pair Kadri and RNH and Bozak and Draisaitl, comparison should be done by actual ability rather than usage. And I bet Draisaitl could ride Kessel's coattails pretty comfortably even now, let alone when he's not a teenager.

You need a #1 centre (or more than one) to win in this league. I'd rather have RNH and Draisaitl and figure out the rest than have the Leafs "depth".

I was thinking the same thing - the Oilers top centers are better than any center the Leafs have

If neither group of centers is going to help their teams win now, then you might as well take the ones who have the higher ceiling(Oilers)

 

[KennyBanyeah]

I'd pair Kadri and RNH and Bozak and Draisaitl, comparison should be done by actual ability rather than usage. And I bet Draisaitl could ride Kessel's coattails pretty comfortably even now, let alone when he's not a teenager.

You need a #1 centre (or more than one) to win in this league. I'd rather have RNH and Draisaitl and figure out the rest than have the Leafs "depth".

Agreed. Moving forward the duo of RNH and Draisaitl seems more appealing. For this year though I think the Leafs duo is likely to be more effective.

I'm a big fan of Draisaitl's based on viewings in the WHL but I think he'll get eaten alive this year if he plays anything but very sheltered minutes.

 

[dash]

Tkachev has 7 points in his first two games with Moncton.

 

[mattola]

Tkachev has 7 points in his first two games with Moncton.

and he thanks the oilers for alerting the NHL to him to bring up the hype. this is one of my very favourite Oiler blunders

 

[dash]

So they're bringing all the Oilers back from the first Stanley Cup win 30 years ago. Even Peter Pocklington will be there and he is still his prickly self.


Mark Spector ‏@SportsnetSpec
Pocklington on reax by EDM fans: "“I don’t really give a damn about what some of the unwashed have to say. Someday they’ll grow up.”

Mark Spector @SportsnetSpec
Pocklington on hallowed Rexall Place: "I think Northlands was a piece of crap, quite frankly."

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Ferraro used to work for them

This just in from hockey’s best and most outspoken analyst, Ray Ferraro of TSN, speaking on the Leafs Lunch 1050 radio about the Oilers’ eight years of losing and lack of improvement: “I don’t care anymore what the Oilers management says, what they think, or what they project. It’s time for some result. No more about, ‘Oh, we’ve got these good young players.’ I don’t care anymore. It’s been too long, it’s been too dysfunctional, it’s been too bad. It’s now time for some results.”

Ferraro was asked about the Oilers trades and signings of Nikita Nikitin and Mark Fayne.

“They spent a lot of money. I don’t know if they spent it on the right guys or not, but you brought up Nikitin and Fayne. They signed (Benoit) Pouliot to a five year deal. They bring in Teddy Purcell. So they brought some older people in. They never addressed the middle of the ice, so you got a 21-year-old and an 18-year-old as your top two centre men. I mean, no more about promising the future and blah, blah, blah. It’s now. Now it has to get better. And if it doesn’t, I don’t know where they turn because it’s pretty clear that they can’t break the mould from the management group that has been there for 100 years.”

Ferraro: Katz pushed to draft Yakupov

Ferraro also wondered if the Oilers took the right player in the 2012 when the team drafted Nail Yakupov over a number of top d-men.

“Did they draft the right player the Yakupov year?” he asked, then wondered if Morgan Rielly or Ryan Murray would have been better picks. “The Oilers were dying for a defenceman. … The owner did want Yakupov and now he’s got him. Maybe he’ll turn into something.”

Another year where Edmonton is so bad it gets the top pick would be a disaster, Ferraro said.

“Edmonton would love (top 2015 draft prospect Connor) McDavid, I’m sure. But could you imagine another year in Edmonton, another year there where they are in the running for the worst record in the league? Like, ‘Uncle!’ Eventually, they have got to get better, don’t they?

New Arena “great beacon of hope in Edmonton”

The Oilers in bad groove, but Ferraro said: “eventually that groove has to change. That groove doesn’t change when you move to a new building, which, of course, is a great beacon of hope there in Edmonton. Everybody is super excited about the changes that are going on down there. But eventually this team has to be close to a 40-win team. Like get to 80 points. Get in the ballpark. I’m not saying they’re going to make the playoffs. I’m like, ‘Get in the mix!’

“Last year they started out, they were so bad at the start of the year, you could even sense the dread going in there in November. They gave up 35 goals in their first eight games last year. They got pounded. And this year they’re the team with 13 of 21 at home to start. If they’re ever going to get off to a decent start, this is kind of it. I don’t know what even qualifies for a decent start. Five hundred? Like after 21 games if they’ve got anywhere form 20 to 24 or 25 points, they should be pumped.”

 

[forty_three]

Ferraro: Katz pushed to draft Yakupov

Ferraro also wondered if the Oilers took the right player in the 2012 when the team drafted Nail Yakupov over a number of top d-men.

“Did they draft the right player the Yakupov year?” he asked, then wondered if Morgan Rielly or Ryan Murray would have been better picks. “The Oilers were dying for a defenceman. … The owner did want Yakupov and now he’s got him. Maybe he’ll turn into something.”

 

[jstewismybastardson]

the whole Katz wanted Yak and overruled Tambellini thing at the draft table has always been out there ... i dont think its ever been truly confirmed

I wonder if Ferraro ... who is an Italian from Trail BC ... got any specific insight on this matter ... perhaps from another Italian from Trail BC

maybe a lil bit

 

[dash]

Twitter fight:

Edmonton Oilers ‏@EdmontonOilers 1h1 hour ago Remember the last time we opened the season against Calgary? We know @ebs_14 sure does! #TBT #ThrowbackThursday

Calgary Flames ‏@NHLFlames 6m6 minutes ago
.@EdmontonOilers Remember our last regular season game? Curtis Glencross sure does! #tbt Curtis Glencross nets hat trick on Oilers Video - NHL VideoCenter - Calgary Flames

 

[dash]

Hall, Schultz, Eberle and Nugent-Hopkins starting the season well all with -2s. Mark Fayne gets a tasty -3 on the evening.

 

[dash]

Awesome defensive zone coverage...

 

[dash]

 

[dash]

Not a jersey tonight, but a hoodie (with cellphone)

 

[esls79]

Oil on pace to give up 410 this year

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Coilers fans had that (in the background) and now they have this (in the foreground)

 

[DevilishWon]

Oil on pace to give up 410 this year

Where's Harvard Oils fan when you need him...lol

 

[DevilishWon]

Awesome defensive zone coverage...

In fairness one EDM skater was all the way out from behind the goal

 

[dash]

From the Edmonton Sun:

An evening that began with so much love and hope — Gretzky, Messier and Lee Fogolin dropping the opening faceoff — quickly deteriorated into the nightmare scenario, with Calgary scoring on their second and third shots of the game, Raymond at 3:16 and Jiri Hudler at 4:16 to send 16,839 unwashed fans into stunned silence.

Third-period collapse lets Flames score three on Oilers | Oilers | Sports | Edmo

 

[esls79]

From the Edmonton Sun:

An evening that began with so much love and hope — Gretzky, Messier and Lee Fogolin dropping the opening faceoff — quickly deteriorated into the nightmare scenario, with Calgary scoring on their second and third shots of the game, Raymond at 3:16 and Jiri Hudler at 4:16 to send 16,839 unwashed fans into stunned silence.

Third-period collapse lets Flames score three on Oilers | Oilers | Sports | Edmo

“You want to win every game,” said winger David Perron. “Everyone will agree that we played a good game, but we have to find a way

“You take the positives out of it, obviously,” repeated Scrivens. “We want to win every single game but it didn’t go our way tonight. If we play with that effort and that game plan we’re going to be on the winning side more often than not.”

I’m worried about our team’s mindset,” said Eakins. “I thought we played a good game, they feel they played a good game They understand that we made mistakes that cost us the game and we have to rectify those, but I didn’t want them in there with their heads down feeling terrible about tonight. There was a ton of good.”

There you have it folks, a 5-2 home loss to your arch rival on opening night, one in which your opponent was on the tail end of a back to back is considered a good loss.

 

[mattola]

This doesn't even look like a good ahl defence

#Oilers defense pairings tonight vs #Canucks. Nikitin will debut. Nurse healthy scratch.

Nikitin - Fayne
Klefbom - Schultz
Ference - Petry