The Edmonton Oilers will play their first pre-season game versus the Winnipeg Jets tomorrow night and I’d have to say things have been interesting in camp this year so far. We’ve got a couple of veterans who’ve yet to make an appearance in Kris Russell (concussion) and Mike Smith (flu) and some who’ve had lots of exposure but haven’t taken the bull by the horns yet.
As promised, full highlights from today's #Oilers intrasquad scrimmage that includes four points for Bouch, some nifty playmaking from Benson & plenty of finish to get you all primed for preseason action tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/j708QnnmPb
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) September 15, 2019
1. Cooper Marody
The annual Joey Moss Cup went this evening and it was a landslide 7-1 win for Team White over Team Blue, here were the rosters:
Team Blue: G: Wells, S. Starrett D: Persson, Bear, Jones, Lagesson, Kulevich: F: Malone, Peluso, Currie, Gambardella, B. Starrett, Esposito, Safin, Marody, Maksimov, Jurco
Team White: G: Rodrigue, Skinner D: Manning, Lowe, Desharnais, Bouchard, Samorukov, Day F: Nygard, Cave, Hebig, Benson, P. Russell, Lavoie, Vesey, McLeod, Haas
I wasn’t at the game for obvious reasons, so I’m left making judgments on it via the information I can gather from social media and once again, the lack of positive reports on Cooper Marody after a summer of hype is concerning, but not a surprise to this writer. There wasn’t even a mention of him in Bruce McCurdy’s review of the game…
In two rookie games and an intra-squad scrimmage (without the team’s top players involved no less), he’s found a way to become irrelevant.
How long can we give him the benefit of the doubt here? He was asked about his skating by Jason Gregor in an interview not too long ago and he brushed it off like it was nothing.
“For me, I don’t see that being an issue. There are a lot of players in the NHL that fly around the ice, but I’m more of a thinker and there is no wasted strides, no wasted movements. I know the NHL is another step but you can’t point to one time where my speed or quickness has prevented me from making a play, or getting to a puck, or winning a battle in the American League all year.”
I could probably point to a couple of times in those rookie games where his lack of speed and quickness prevented him from making a play. And that game was full of junior players and minor leaguers…
Lots of talk, but not a lot of walk to date.
The sentiment I got was that he thinks he knows better than the scouts and coaching staff. I don’t care how good his hands are or if he can see the play five steps ahead of his opponents, his lack of explosiveness and quickness is what will keep him on the outside looking in.
Cameron Hebig has outplayed Marody (and a few others) so far and it’s not even close. Maybe another year in the minors will help adjust Cooper’s attitude a little there.
2. Lavoie and Rodrigue Cut Early
Don’t read into these young men getting sent back to Junior early. Every team is doing it and it’s for the best. They had a very low chance of making the club and they’re better off joining their QMJHL teams as they head into the preseason.
Lavoie showed glimpses of what made him a highly-regarded player going into the 2019 NHL entry draft, but he also showed his age and inexperience. Personally, I think he’s looking forward to at least one or two seasons in the AHL after completing his Junior career.
Rodrigue had an outstanding rookie game versus the Flames (sans the early goal he let in) but his team in Moncton requires his services more than the Oilers. I’ll be interested to see how he does this year as he’s one of the front-runner’s for Team Canada’s starting goalie at the World Juniors in the Czech Republic this year.
3. Speed Kills
From all accounts, the speed and quickness of European signings Joakim Nygard and Gaetan Haas is standing out. Check out the scrimmage highlights above and you’ll notice at the beginning a goal where fellow SHL-signing Joel Persson tries to seal Nygard along the boards, but the speedy Swede slips by and subsequently sets up Cameron Hebig for a goal while Haas takes the defender with him to the net. A lovely play!
One of the things I’ve been wondering since more information has been released regarding these Euro signings is if there’s a possibility we might see them in the top-6 in Edmonton at some point. Haas has the size, the speed/quickness, the hands, he shoots right… Then there’s Nygard who is a grittier version of Carl Hagelin.
All I know is that youngsters like Tyler Benson and Cooper Marody are competing with Haas and Nygard for a spot on this roster. To me, the kids are losing the battle… So far.
4. Evan Bouchard vs. Everyone?
Are we really looking at the Oilers possibly starting the season with a 20-year-old on their blueline? Evan Bouchard has been fantastic so far and it’s really hard to ignore that. Four points in a scrimmage is a lot for a forward let alone a defender.
It sounds like Joel Persson is still adjusting to the ice in North America. He’s getting tons of reps to get him acclimated quickly and I’m not sure if that’s a good sign or a bad one. Even if he does need a bit of time in Bakersfield, the Oilers have the players to cover for him.
From McCurdy’s recounting of the scrimmage, it sounds like Caleb Jones, Ethan Bear, and William Lagesson still need to pick it up a notch.
Could all four be sent to the AHL and Bouchard start the year in Edmonton? I’m very leery of that tactic and it doesn’t sound like one Oilers GM Ken Holland would use. That said, he did use 20-year-old Dennis Cholowski for 52 games last season.
I say, send him to Bakersfield regardless. I don’t imagine these performances will continue against NHL competition and he’s got some work to do on his defensive game. Coach Tippett said that he’s still got some “Junior habits” in his game that need working out. He mentioned that Bouchard and Dmitri Samorukov played so much in Junior that they rested on the ice at times and in the NHL you can’t do that.
It’d be fairer to guys like Ethan Bear, Caleb Jones, or William Lagesson to keep them up instead. We’ve also got fan-favorite Brandon Manning sitting there and who knows what Holland or Dave Tippett has in store for him.
An Alternate Jersey Prototype Leaked?
Do you remember that CCM commercial with Brent Burns and Connor McDavid not too long ago where they were having a shooting competition and they’d give each other cheeky prizes to whoever won? Well, I think I might’ve found something very interesting in the video and I’m surprised nobody else did or maybe they did find it but I didn’t read anything on it.
Look at the uniform that the teddy bear is wearing. I don’t have any confirmation on this, it’s just a hunch on my part, but I believe that could’ve been an alternate jersey the Oilers were looking at using as the colors and the scheme match up with the orange ones they use today. It also matches that of the uniform their AHL affiliate uses.
My feeling is that there’s a strong possibility that we’ll see the uniform that Brent Burns’ teddy bear is wearing at some point in the future. I mean, that’s the jersey they should’ve come out with this year if not a throwback uniform like other teams in the Pacific division are using.
Or maybe this observation is nothing at all and that’s a fakey up there or this is old news…
Just before I go, Jesse Puljujarvi scored a goal and an assist in his second SM-Liiga match of the year. He’s got 12 shots on goal in those two games and is averaging over 15 minutes per game of ice time.
Between the Finnish league and the Champions Hockey League, he’s got 3 goals and 3 assists and 35 shots on goal. A point-per-game player in Europe is the least we could ask for and he’s delivering! Go Yessa Go!
What do you think about Oilers training camp so far? Let us know in the comments below!
