This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!
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The Athletic
Oilers exploring goaltending options, Ducks won’t rush to move UFAs, Claude Giroux’s future
- There is no saviour in goal out there for the Edmonton Oilers. That’s the sobering reality.
- They’ve kicked the tires on Joonas Korpisalo in Columbus, a pending UFA.
- They’ve discussed internally the merits of Anton Khudobin, who backstopped the Dallas Stars to the Stanley Cup Final in the Edmonton bubble two years ago. But I think the fact Khudobin has another year on his deal at a $3.33 million AAV scares the Oilers to some degree. If Khudobin was a pending UFA, I feel like the Oilers would be more inclined.
- Braden Holtby, who is a pending UFA and on a reasonable $2 million deal right now. He’s also a name it’s believed the Oilers have discussed internally.
- I don’t think Fleury enjoyed being away from his family like he was during the Edmonton bubble back in the summer of 2020… even if Fleury does decide to leave his family for a few months to chase a playoff run, there’s no guarantee he would waive for Edmonton.
- With the Oilers hardly a sure thing to make the playoffs right now, are you going out and paying a first-round pick for Fleury? Even if the pick was lottery protected, how can that even be in the discussion for Edmonton right now?
- Way more realistic to look at a Holtby or a Korpisalo for that reason alone.
BLH’s Thoughts: A short term fix in net isn’t going to come from an organization that doesn’t have three NHL goalies available. So with that in mind, the Bruins and Stars come to mind right away. Same with the Blue Jackets because Boston has Swayman, Rask, and Ullmark, Dallas has Khudobin, Oettinger, and Holtby, and Columbus has Merzlikins, Korpisalo and Tarasov (but I do believe Tarasov is on the IR at the moment).
Now, what the team has to be considering right now is if a lateral move in net will have a positive impact on the team? Will bringing in a goaltender who’s having just as poor of a season as Koskinen, Smith, or Skinner help?
Now, I’m in agreement with LeBrun that Braden Holtby should be the target for Edmonton. His price point of $2M and the fact that he’ll be a UFA at season’s end is perfect for where this team is, but why is Dallas trading him right now? They’re not.
Cult of Hockey
It started so well for the Edmonton Oilers but swirled down the drain in a 6-0 loss to Florida: Cult of Hockey Player Grades
- BRENDAN PERLINI . 3. I wonder how healthy Perlini was really, knowing he had been nicked up in practice.
- TYLER BENSON . 6. Benson was one of the most consistent Oilers on the evening.
- TYSON BARRIE . 4. A rough night, physically and otherwise… Was boarded from behind mid-way through the 2nd but there was no call. Then, to add insult to injury slammed hard into the end boards late and went straight to the dressing room, not to return.
- WARREN FOEGELE . 4. Primarily responsible on the 2-0 goal, when he vacated his check in front for goodness knows what reason.
- LEON DRAISAITL . 5. Was all over a 1 st Period Power Play but he & his mates couldn’t drain one… I thought he and Puljujarvi had some chemistry. I did mark him partially responsible for the 2-0. Even though it IS Draisaitl’s play to be puck support for his D-man behind the net he also didn’t shoulder-check before he left to do so.
- DARNELL NURSE . 7. While he was certainly not perfect, it was impossible not to watch Darnell Nurse’s game and appreciate the fact that he worked his ass off and was highly effective despite (or, in spite of) the ultimate result on the scoreboard.
- CONNOR McDAVID . 6. McDavid started off the game with a dangerous net drive on the very first shift of the game.
- MIKKO KOSKINEN . 3. Allowed 6 goals on 28 shots… But to state the obvious…there were ample mistakes in front of him, and no goals in support of him at the other. Is it Mikko Koskinen’s fault that he isn’t Bobrovsky? No, of course not. That is the General Manager’s department.
BLH’s Thoughts: F*ck, that first period was something to behold. The Oilers were unlucky not to have come out of that first frame with goal or two. They were clearly the better team and I’m wondering why and how they let the game slip right out of their hands?
So, after the game, I was talking to a source and they mentioned to me that Katz has started to speak up a bit more and, believe me or not, you can do your own research on this one if you don’t, the Oilers owner dressed down Ken Holland in front of everyone at the scouts meeting in California in addition to letting the Oilers GM know that his position with the organization is under consideration. The reason being, Holland was ready to sit back and let the players dig their way out of this hole (something I agree with) instead of going out and dealing for some help.
It’s my understanding that Katz has been happy to let Bob Nicholson handle the hockey team, but considering where the club sits and the plethora of embarrassing incidents that have taken place in public, the owner has seen enough.
So with that said, when you hear the NHL pundits say that things will not end well if the Oilers miss the playoffs, that probably hints at Katz removing some folks who’ve been with the club for a while.
The way I see it is Katz is getting embarrassed and the elite do not stand for that. Losing money is fine because there’s always more money out there to make, but humiliation is something that has a true impact.
https://twitter.com/Berger_BYTES/status/1484518619056906244
