December 20, 2019 /

2019/20 Edmonton Oilers GM38: Penguins @ Oilers – 3P2W Plus a Thought on Kassian’s New Deal

Edmonton’s last game against the St. Louis Blues offered up a lot more optimism than I think a majority of people who follow the team realize. Yes, the Oilers were outplayed for most of the match but they were in it largely due to Mikko Koskinen’s netminding. The Blues went with a volume shooting tactic and hoped to wear the big Finn down, but it never came to fruition. Koskinen was more than up to the task and had Leon Draisaitl not hit the post in that final scramble, there’d be a much different tune being sung on Edmonton’s sports talk radio stations this past couple of days.

The one thing that frustrated me the most was the Oilers’ inability to get pucks deep in the third period when they were pressing most. Good players were getting stuffed at St. Louis’ ringette line over and over again and I can’t for the life of me understand when they didn’t just decide to chip and chase? Ah well, maybe next time?…

Tonight, the Pittsburgh Penguins will be in town but it’ll be a very different-looking team from the last time they played as they’ve been hit with injuries quite badly. Sidney Crosby is joined by, Patric Hornqvist, Nick Bjugstad, Brian Dumoulin, and Justin Schultz. So, it’s safe to say that the Oilers have to take advantage of this and put the Pens to bed early.

It won’t be easy though, Tristan Jarry has been standing on his head since Pittsburgh threw their support behind him and sent Casey DeSmith to the AHL. He’s 10-5-0 with a GAA of 1.85 and a SV% of .940.

I will say this though, with all of those injuries, it’s been the Penguins top line of Jake Guentzel, Evgeni Malkin, and Bryan Rust along with their top-pair of Kris Letang and former Oilers draft pick John Marino that have been carrying the scoring load. From lines 2-4 and d-pairings 2-3, the Pens forwards have three goals from that group in their last five games. If the Oilers can shut down the aforementioned five producing players, they’ll have a very good chance of winning the game.

Then again… This is the Edmonton Oilers we’re talking about. They haven’t exactly been known to take advantage of these sorts of scenarios. Hopefully, this evening will be different and Mike Smith can conjure up some of that mojo he had the last time these two teams faced off.

Get Good Kassians, Keep Good Kassians

It’s a rare occasion when a player with Zack Kassian’s skillset comes along, especially these days. He’s tough, he can skate very well, he’s got soft hands, a wicked hahd wristah, and he’s a smart hockey player. It’s a shame that it has taken so long for him to find his groove, but I couldn’t be happier that he’s found it in Edmonton.

Kassian’s current deal will expire at season’s end and he will become an unrestricted free agent if the Oilers can’t get his name on a new contract.

I’ve been told that he loves it in Edmonton, he wants to win a Stanley Cup, and he’s under no illusions as to the reasons his numbers look the way they do currently. He wants to re-up with the Oilers and a discount isn’t out of the question. The contract proposal I was passed along was 4-5 years at $3M per year.

Some Oilers media out there have been throwing out a number closer to $4M per season and if that is more accurate than what I’ve been told, this could be the last season we see our beloved Kass in an Oilers jersey.

Then there are some fans that would actually have the gall to propose he take no more than $2M per season because it’s not worth paying a guy on a 37 game heater who can only produce along Connor McDavid.

I hate to break it to you, but Kassian’s been playing this good for well over 37 games. It started last season when Ken Hitchcock put him up with McDavid and Leon. The other thing, it’s not easy finding wingers for the likes of Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby, so when you do, you must keep them.

I reckon it’ll come in between $3M and $4M and on a three to five-year term and I’m okay with that because I understand that Zack Kassian isn’t Pat Maroon. He’s not Alex Chiasson either. While those two players are great in their own way Kassian is head and shoulders above them. There’s also a feeling that Kassian’s production will fall right off the cliff starting any time now because it happened to so many other power forwards like Milan Lucic, Kyle Okposo, and Andrew Ladd.

I do not believe that will be the case simply due to Kassian’s ability to skate. His hands might start to deteriorate over time but by then he can be eased down the lineup where his contract won’t hurt Edmonton’s cap. Said salary cap is expected to increase in the years to come anyhow and if he’s playing on the Oilers’ 3rd line and making $3.5M and only scoring 20pts, I think it will be par for the course for players in his range.

Kass is well-liked in the dressing room and fans love the guy, isn’t it about time the Oilers stopped sending these guys out of town and started cultivating them? Part of building a winning culture must take place off the ice, no? And if anybody knows a thing or two about winning cultures, it’s Ken Holland.

The Next Ten Games (31-40)

  • vs. LA Kings (11-16-2) – A pissed off Oilers team will make short order of the Kings in this rubber match. (WIN) WIN
  • vs. Buffalo Sabres (13-10-5) – No Dahlin for Buffalo but Jack Eichel is on a tear. Captain Jack will get his points but his team will not. (WIN) OT LOSS
  • vs. Carolina Hurricanes (16-11-1) – Carolina is too deep for this Oilers team plus Andrei Svechnikov is making a mockery of the NHL as a 19-year-old. (LOSS) LOSS
  • @ Minnesota Wild (13-11-4) – The Oilers seem to have trouble against teams like this for whatever reason. Immaturity in the club maybe? (LOSS) LOSS
  • vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (13-13-4) – The Leafs defense is soft like a Wendy’s Frosty but they’ve got the kind of offense that could really tear open the Oilers. It’s a toss-up for me but I’ll say Edmonton takes it. (WIN) LOSS
  • @ Dallas Stars (15-11-3) – Tough match-up for Edmonton here. Dallas already beat them once this year but that was when they were struggling. Now that they’re playing well, will the Oilers’ mindset going into this one be different? (WIN) WIN
  • @ St. Louis Blues (18-6-6) – Edmonton’s been performing very well against the league’s top teams. I don’t expect that to stop in St. Louis. (WIN) LOSS
  • vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (15-9-4) – The first game of a back-to-back at home and the Oilers are one up on Crosby’s Pens. Pittsburgh is going through one hell of an injury crisis mind you but as we’ve seen, the Oilers have failed to take advantage of these situations in the past. (LOSS)
  • vs. Montreal Canadiens (12-10-6) – I feel like the Habs usually give Edmonton a hard time when they come to town and their team is a lot better than their record tells us. (LOSS)
  • @ Vancouver Canucks (14-11-4) – I like the Oilers chances against Vancouver here and it’s the last game before the Christmas break. (WIN)

(Standings as of December 5th, 2019)

Three Player to Watch for the Penguins

  • #6 John Marino – He’s been a steady defender for Pittsburgh in his rookie season. He’s a good puck mover, smart positionally, and has excellent vision. I’m curious how he’ll fare against the likes of McDavid and Draisaitl.
  • #71 Evgeni Malkin – Am I the only one that enjoys watching Malkin play more than Crosby? He’s so graceful with the puck on his stick, but he’s got that edge to him that Peter Forsberg had all those years ago.
  • #12 Dominik Simon – He’s quick and he loves to shoot him some pucks. He’s on the 3rd line at the moment, but at the drop of a hat, he could find himself in the top-six. He’s very talented and should be quite noticeable due to his quickness.

Three Players to Watch for the Oilers

  • #29 Leon Draisaitl – Tonight, Leon gets back on track. He had a solid week there where he was playing horribly, but I reckon tonight he’s going to relish the head-to-head with Malkin and rise to the occasion.
  • #77 Oscar Klefbom – Three points in his last five and reunited with his old d-partner, Adam Larsson. We’re seeing Norris-like performances from Oscar again.
  • #25 Darnell Nurse – Doc has been quite the grump lately and I like it. Malkin doesn’t like it when people get in his grill, so hopefully, Nurse has that in mind when defending him.

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CategoriesBeer League Hero Edmonton Oilers NHL

TagsEdmonton Oilers Jesse Puljujarvi NHL Pittsburgh Penguins Zack Kassian

Beer League Hero Written by:

I'm the Beer League Hero! I am from Camrose, Alberta but I make my home in Taipei City, Taiwan. I've been through the ups and downs and the highs and the Lowes, the Bonsignores and the McDavids, the Sathers and the Eakins but I'll never leave my Oilers, no matter what! They're with me until the end and then some. GO OILERS GO!