Hockey is Back!
Edmonton Oilers: Week 1
I plan on posting some thoughts and items of interest here every Monday that relates to the Oilers. I have listed many great Oiler blogs and other hockey sites on the side menu. I recommend you go check them out.
A Jekyll-and-Hyde type of week for the Oilers. Games with a lot of good, bad, and ugly. I was reading and listening to the following assessments this past week. From Alan Mitchell, over at Lowetide:
"In two of the first three games this season, the Oilers haven’t been sharp at passing or taking a pass, and they haven’t dealt well with forechecking. That has to change."
And head coach Dave Tippet after the first loss:
It’s a frustrating aspect we've seen with the Oilers in the past—not getting the puck out cleanly from the defensive zone. They really just need to support one another better all over the ice. However, as pointed out by Heather Marginet on Twitter, no training camp and three games in four nights might have hampered the Oilers' performance in the game against the Canadiens. Hopefully, they sharpen up this week.“I want to see improved puck play and getting out of our zone. Too many times… (we) gave up two goals off pucks we gave up on the wall. Didn’t get it out. Just some poor puck play led to too many chances against.”
Connor McDavid: Fancy Stat Analysis
As I alluded to in my first post, I am by no means an expert in hockey analytics, but I find it adds to my enjoyment of the game by perhaps points out things I’m not seeing on the ice.
JFresh Hockey has a great write-up and analysis of McDavid's offensive and defensive game. I highly recommend you read it and sign-up for his newsletter.
Part of his piece touches on scoring chances for opponents that happen off counter-attacks when McDavid is on the ice and how he can better balance his attack by changing up his offensive tempo. For me, this was apparent on at least one rush against the Canadiens where Connor appeared to force a pass to Archibald and the puck went the other way for a scoring chance.
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| Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images. |
But for McDavid, I consider this nitpicking. The fact that McDavid still has areas to improve and therefore has an even higher ceiling to reach is mind-boggling.
I feel fortunate to have lived in a hockey era where I’ve been able to cheer for both Gretzky and now McDavid in the primes of their superstar careers.
On another note, I love that McDavid focussed on improving his face-offs with Keith Acton and Will Acton over the off-season ((as per Elliot Friedman during an intermission on CBC). His face-off win at center ice that led to Nures's goal in the home opener was evident.
And as per Natural Stat Trick, he's 55.56% in the dot heading into Monday's game; encouraging to see Draisaitl and Turris at around the same percentage here too. I know, small sample size. But I think it's an important component for possession, especially on special teams.
Keep Nuge Forever
"There is no question fan (and team) favourite RNH wants to remain in Edmonton. But to this point, negotiations have gone in fits and starts, and the Oilers have made it clear they have no plans to go north of $7 million per year on a long-term extension."
– Frank Seravalli, 31 bold predictions for the new NHL season
Interesting to hear that the Oilers have put this number out there to extend Nuge. It makes sense from a team cap point of view. I think it’s imperative that the Oilers re-sign him, whether that’s in-season or with some sort of understanding after he hits free agency in the summer.
He’s an important cog on the team, eating up important minutes; Draisaitl and McDavid need his support in leadership and the young, skilled up-and-coming hockey players like Yamamoto, who are still getting a foothold in the NHL, need his presence and mentorship.
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| #93 Nuge Forever retro sticker and design at Teespring. |
I would love to see him on a long-term contract even if it’s at this $7-million price tag and takes him into his mid-thirties. I know the arguments for declining production as players age into their thirties, but I think one of the biggest mistakes in the past was not signing Ryan Smyth as a bridge and mentor to the next group of Oilers.
The Oilers need a veteran, skilled player like Nuge who bleeds orange and blue to build a franchise that competes for the Stanely Cup every year. They need all three pillars of McDavid, Draisaitl, and Nugen-Hopkins. I hope Holland is true to his word that he's bringing stability to the franchise by keeping this skilled core.
Hockey Pools and Twitter Follows
I’m part of two hockey pools this season: one by Hockey by Design and the other through Sportsnet. If you’re participating in the Sportsnet Fantasy hockey pool you can join the "Oilers Twitter" group created by Oliver to compete with other Oiler fans. I'm pretty far down overall but tied for 8th in Oilers Twitter.
Thanks for all the follows this past week on Twitter! Alyssa put a tweet out there and it’s been great connecting with Oiler fans online. Your enthusiasm, humor, and intensity have me pumped up for games. Please give me a follow on Twitter, Instagram, or Pinterest and I’ll follow you back.
