The shanks are out for Jordan Eberle tonight after an apparent lackluster performance versus the Toronto Maple Leafs. Is it time for Peter Chiarelli to entertain the thought of moving him?
I know that Peter Chiarelli has thought of moving him in the past. If you haven’t caught the hint yet, Chia loves his big bruising wingers and Eberle is none of that. The problem is he scores goals and gets assists. He might not do it as consistently as a fan would like but he gets them nevertheless.
Don't understand those who claim Eberle does nothing.
He has scored 24th most pts in NHL the past 5 years.
I guess scoring is nothing.— Jason Gregor (@JasonGregor) November 1, 2016
Yep. Eberle is 24th overall & 6th among RW's since 2011. First line production & then some. https://t.co/FcSXaCENio
— Bruce McCurdy (@BruceMcCurdy) November 1, 2016
Most Goals From 2008 NHL Draft:#TBLightning Stamkos – 318#Oilers Eberle – 148#Rangers Stepan – 111#Sens Karlsson – 103
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) November 1, 2016
Acquiring these types of wingers isn’t easy… Is it?
Now undoubtedly there will be some of you that say the Oilers had a ready-made replacement for Eberle in the event he was traded in Yakupov but he looks like he’s back to his old self. Nail has gone scoreless in 4 games and has played under 10 minutes in three of his last four games… So is that the kind of player we’d like beside McDavid when Eberle isn’t firing on all cylinders? His fancies are still looking alright but he wouldn’t be playing 10 minutes a night if he were Eberle’s replacement, would he?
Now, I’m not saying that Eberle will be an Oiler past this season but I am of the belief he will be an Oiler until after the expansion draft at least. Then the Oilers may move him to upgrade the defense or to potentially fill a hole left by the player who gets picked up by Las Vegas.
Who would they target? A bloody good question. In the past, they’ve looked at Wayne Simmonds but you can be damned sure Philly isn’t letting him got for Eberle alone. In the past, Brad Marchand would stand out as another but he’s signed to a long-term deal in Boston.
Would Dallas be interested in Eberle? Vancouver? Didn’t I hear that the Canucks are looking to add a 20 goal scorer? Would it be safe to deal in inter-division like that? Wouldn’t it be? The Oilers would have the book on him surely.
But maybe the team is thinking that Puljujarvi will be that top RWer next season and Draisaitl will be the 2nd line RWer. Something like this:
27-97-98
X-93-29 (Will Pouliot be on the team?)
19-36-44 (Caggiula as 3C?)
54-55-51 (Khaira come up? That 50’s Line is formed)
We may very well see that set up this season at some point.
IN CONCLUSION
As for his performance against the Leafs, it wasn’t good but Lucic was just as invisible as Eberle was. Why do you think it was McDavid moving around to other lines and not other players being tossed up to the 1st line? Right now, he’s on par with the likes of Ovechkin and Perry and it’s far too early to be throwing him to the wolves. Six points in ten games is nothing to be ashamed of.
I am referring to him as Dusty from now on though. Because each time he gets the puck in a shooting position he’s got to dust off that puck a bit before shooting it. Dusty!!
