I’m trying this new transcription format right now where I find hockey clips online, transcribe them, and share them with you. The reason for that is, admittedly, I tend to find more to write about when there’s an actual Edmonton Oilers hockey season going on and I’m not one for analytical posts or historical pieces. I leave those for the computer boys and the men and women who have been alive longer than I and are better storytellers.
Is the All-Canadian division a bad idea for Canadian teams? Read about that here.
Today, I present to you “Enter Dominik Kahun”. Craig Ellingson and Jim Matheson from The Edmonton Journal recently commented on the signing of German winger Dominik Kahun and what that means for the Oilers.
If you’re interested in watching the clip, it’s at the bottom of the page.
Here’s what was said and for fun, take a drink each time Matheson says “you know”.
CE: Craig Ellingson
JM: Jim Matheson
CE: Dominik Kahun is the latest free agent to join the Edmonton Oilers signing a one-year deal. The 25-year-old will be entering his third season of play in the NHL whenever the Oilers and the league get started.
JM: I think the book on Kahun is he’s more of a playmaker than a goal scorer but he’s a player who can play with really good players. So, he’s a complementary player, a support player, and which is what the Oilers need. I suspect he may be a younger Tyler Ennis. You know, he’s 25 and you know Tyler’s 30. So maybe he’s a younger Tyler Ennis.
CE: And the price for the Oilers is right. $975 000 and fits under the salary cap.
JM: That’s always been the lure for players, the chance, you know, to be on the same team as McDavid and Draisaitl. I think it’s a stretch to say that, you know, these players sign because they get there’s a chance they could play with Leon or Connor. They have to be good enough to do that. In Kahun’s case, he played a fair bit with Malkin in Pittsburgh. Almost one shift he said he played with Crosby and Crosby got hurt. So he was able to play with Malkin and Malkin liked him. So if you can play with Malkin, I’m sure you can play with Draisaitl. He’s a much cheaper replacement for Athanasiou, who was coming off a three million dollar contract. They’ve got Kahun for a third of that, so I think, you know, in terms of fiscal responsibility, that’s a good deal.
CE: Kahun’s signing also answers the question of what moves the Oilers needed to make to address their forward depth in the top six and with which center would he be best suited to play alongside, Draisaitl or Connor McDavid.
JM: Not McDavid’s (wing), Draisaitl, And he could also drop down to the third line too. Kyle Turris is a third-line center, he’s an offensive center. So I think in the Oilers’ case they may feel they’ve got a top nine, with some offensive players on the third line, and then a fourth line with some penalty killers and such.
Draisaitl makes more sense. I think you have to start the season with Nugent–Hopkins and McDavid again. Although, you know, certainly Nugent-Hopkins played tremendously well for a couple of months with Leon Draisaitl, but I think in the short term you start with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on the left-wing.
CE: Before joining the Blackhawks in 2018, Kahun played four years in German pro hockey and has also been a frequent teammate of Leon Draisaitl on the German national team.
JM: They got together when they’re about 14 years old and scored 200 points a year. As Kahun told me on the phone, there were a lot of teams that weren’t very good in that league and there were some games where they won 20 to nothing, and Leon and Kahun both got 13 points so they have a history. They have also played internationally together on the German national team, so I think there would be a certain comfortability with Leon and Kahun and that Leon wouldn’t have to wonder what Kahun’s going to do because he has played with him before and kind of knows how Leon thinks the game. I think Kahun is, as I said earlier, more of a playmaker than a shooter. Leon is a shooter who plays center, unlike a lot of centers who, you know, score 30 goals and get 60 assists. I think Leon is the kind of player who can get between 40 and 50 goals, so on that line, Leon could be the shooter and Kahun could be the playmaker as a winger goes.
What do you think? Are you excited to see the Oilers’ new blitzkrieg offense next season? Let us know in the comments below!
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