Bottom 10? Edit: 6th worst, trending down, season over

[booyakasha]

Wrong

I'll gladly wipe egg off my face and take being wrong for a win.

 

[McJadeddog]

Agreed, if klefbom decides to retrieve his head from his ass, I’m much less concerned about our defense

I actually think Klefbom will come around. This is the worst hockey he'd played in his entire career pretty much. There is no reason to think it will continue long-term.

 

[Javaman]

Time for this again boys?

Today was a bit of a rough day at work. So I watched this video. All is good now.

 

[belair]

1. Calgary (WIN). Last season: 4-0-0, this season 1-0-0
2. Vancouver (LOSS) Last season: 4-0-1, this season 0-1-0(-1 point)
3. Winnipeg (LOSS) Last season: 3-0-0, this season 0-1-0 (-2 points)
4. Ottawa (LOSS) Last season: 0-2-0, this season 0-1-0
5. Carolina (LOSS) Last season: 1-1-0, this season 0-1-0
6. Chicago (WIN) Last season: 2-1-0, this season 1-0-0
7. Philadelphia (LOSS) Last season: 1-1-0, this season 0-1-0
8. Pittsburgh (OT LOSS) Last season: 0-1-1
9. Dallas (WIN) Last season: 2-1-0, this season 1-0-0
10. Washington (LOSS)
11. Pittsburgh (LOSS) Last season: 0-1-1, this season 0-1-1
12. New Jersey (WIN)
13. Detroit (LOSS) Last season: 2-0-0, this season 0-1-0 (-2 points)
14. NY Islanders (WIN) Last season: 1-1-0, this season 1-0-0
15. New Jersey (WIN) Last season 2-0-0, this season: 2-0-0
16. NY Rangers (LOSS) Last season: 0-2-0, this season 0-1-0
17. Washington (OT LOSS) Last season 1-1-0, this season 0-1-1 (-1 point)

Tuesday vs Vegas
Thursday vs St Louis, Last season: 3-0-0
Saturday vs Dallas, Last season: 2-1-0

Missed out on another point. Now 6 points off pace from last season.

 

[CycloneSweep]

1. Calgary (WIN). Last season: 4-0-0, this season 1-0-0
2. Vancouver (LOSS) Last season: 4-0-1, this season 0-1-0(-1 point)
3. Winnipeg (LOSS) Last season: 3-0-0, this season 0-1-0 (-2 points)
4. Ottawa (LOSS) Last season: 0-2-0, this season 0-1-0
5. Carolina (LOSS) Last season: 1-1-0, this season 0-1-0
6. Chicago (WIN) Last season: 2-1-0, this season 1-0-0
7. Philadelphia (LOSS) Last season: 1-1-0, this season 0-1-0
8. Pittsburgh (OT LOSS) Last season: 0-1-1
9. Dallas (WIN) Last season: 2-1-0, this season 1-0-0
10. Washington (LOSS)
11. Pittsburgh (LOSS) Last season: 0-1-1, this season 0-1-1
12. New Jersey (WIN)
13. Detroit (LOSS) Last season: 2-0-0, this season 0-1-0 (-2 points)
14. NY Islanders (WIN) Last season: 1-1-0, this season 1-0-0
15. New Jersey (WIN) Last season 2-0-0, this season: 2-0-0
16. NY Rangers (LOSS) Last season: 0-2-0, this season 0-1-0
17. Washington (OT LOSS) Last season 1-1-0, this season 0-1-1 (-1 point)

Tuesday vs Vegas
Thursday vs St Louis, Last season: 3-0-0
Saturday vs Dallas, Last season: 2-1-0

Missed out on another point. Now 6 points off pace from last season.

When you put it that way it doesn't sound awful but people sometimes can forget how much 6 points can be to regain.

 

[Gunnersaurus Rex]

Some math:
Based on needing 95 pts to make the playoffs, the Oilers will currently need 81 pts in their final 65 games. The rough average of OT losses by teams last year was 9 (which is what the Oilers had). They currently have 2. So assuming they hit that same number, they will get 7 more OT losses this year.
That would mean, in order to hit 95 points, they would need a record of 37 wins, 21 losses and 7 OT losses. Sorry, but not going to happen.

 

[CycloneSweep]

Some math:
Based on needing 95 pts to make the playoffs, the Oilers will currently need 81 pts in their final 65 games. The rough average of OT losses by teams last year was 9 (which is what the Oilers had). They currently have 2. So assuming they hit that same number, they will get 7 more OT losses this year.
That would mean, in order to hit 95 points, they would need a record of 37 wins, 21 losses and 7 OT losses. Sorry, but not going to happen.

I have been negative but I will say this. We dominated the west last year and most of our remaining games are against the west. Its completely possible. Likely? Not really.

 

[Tyrolean]

I actually think Klefbom will come around. This is the worst hockey he'd played in his entire career pretty much. There is no reason to think it will continue long-term.

I think he is overrated around here by a lot of fans. He's just an ok d-man with physical skills.

 

[McJadeddog]

I think he is overrated around here by a lot of fans. He's just an ok d-man with physical skills.

I think he is over-rated as well, but when he is perfectly fine as a 2nd pairing guy. He is on a pretty decent contract, has good physical tools (as you mentioned), and can chip in a little offence here and there. As long as he isn't being played like a #1/2 guy, he has generally been fine in his career. This year he can't even seem to live up to those rather pedestrian expectations. He is playing below his capabilities right now, so I would expect him to turn around. He is young enough that this is in the realm of "to be expected" as far as his career progression/path is concerned. He might suck for the rest of the year, but there is no real reason to expect him to not get any better next year.

 

[Drivesaitl]

I think he is over-rated as well, but when he is perfectly fine as a 2nd pairing guy. He is on a pretty decent contract, has good physical tools (as you mentioned), and can chip in a little offence here and there. As long as he isn't being played like a #1/2 guy, he has generally been fine in his career. This year he can't even seem to live up to those rather pedestrian expectations. He is playing below his capabilities right now, so I would expect him to turn around. He is young enough that this is in the realm of "to be expected" as far as his career progression/path is concerned. He might suck for the rest of the year, but there is no real reason to expect him to not get any better next year.

Other than him making consistently poor decisions and not thinking the game very well? Theres been few times, probably outlier, when Klef has looked like a good NHL D. Almost all of that was last season with Larsson as long as he could shelter him and before NHL clubs had bothered to scheme much to Klefboms side. Bring the play to Klef and you win. Simple as that. So much so that the team HAD to separate Klef from Larsson to stem bleeding. With how Nurse is looking on Larssons side I don't know why Klef would ever be back there. I don't think he's much of a D.

 

[Drivesaitl]

I have been negative but I will say this. We dominated the west last year and most of our remaining games are against the west. Its completely possible. Likely? Not really.

Several clubs in the West are better this season. Only the Yotes are poor. Last season several WC clubs were easier pickings. Lets also note that we've lost games this season even to the likes of the Canucks. One in preseason in which both teams were gearing up for regular season and then again in reg season to confirm the result.

I would say that there are 10 WC clubs better than us right now which is charitable given we're in 14th place.

 

[Gord]

loser team with no depth. a team with mcdavid and drai that is still the worst scoring team in the league. all that's left is a season of excuses from fans as to why they suck.

20% of the season gone and the only thing that hasn't gotten worse as the year has continued is the goaltending.

 

[Bryanbryoil]

So just playing along here for the sake of discussion, the team finishes bottom 10. What do you realistically do to get this team back in the playoffs next season? Is the top 10 of the '18 draft deep?

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

loser team with no depth. a team with mcdavid and drai that is still the worst scoring team in the league. all that's left is a season of excuses from fans as to why they suck.

20% of the season gone and the only thing that hasn't gotten worse as the year has continued is the goaltending.

thats it?
by the way some fans are talking, you'd think there's only 20% of the season left

 

[SupremeTeam16]

I'd be more concerned if they were getting beat down in games. Outside of Ottawa and Wings, the games have been close games, usually 1 goal games.

Historically low S%, and absolutely brutal PP/PK. Eventually these things will normalize and these close games will start going the other way. Only time will tell if they can climb back into the playoff race.

 

[Drivesaitl]

thats it?
by the way some fans are talking, you'd think there's only 20% of the season left

Since the advent of the 3 pt NHL its incredibly difficult to climb standings. Teams that are out as much as say 5pts at the end of November are done, its over.
The probability of a last place scoring team that is in 14th place in its conference suddenly going on a tear and picking up 80 pts out of the remaining 65 games is extremely remote. This is the task the Oilers have just to have a chance of a playoff spot.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

Since the advent of the 3 pt NHL its incredibly difficult to climb standings. Teams that are out as much as say 5pts at the end of November are done, its over.
The probability of a last place scoring team that is in 14th place in its conference suddenly going on a tear and picking up 80 pts out of the remaining 65 games is extremely remote. This is the task the Oilers have just to have a chance of a playoff spot.

didn't Calgary do something similar last year?
not impossible

 

[Drivesaitl]

didn't Calgary do something similar last year?
not impossible

We've been through this. Calgary has a better, and deeper D, a deeper lineup, and more adherence to system when they are playing well. They have gone on runs and its almost a regular thing for them to do that. Happens almost every year with that club. They get in a zone.

The closest thing the Oilers have had to that is the start of last season when they went on a 7-1 run and then in the last month when they piled on a fair number of W's playing clubs that weren't making the playoffs anyway.

Anything is possible but I don't really see this club going on a real tear. I don't see it as a dominant club with this lineup.

 

[yababy]

didn't Calgary do something similar last year?
not impossible

yes, Flames were 6-10-1 after 17 games last year.
By the end of the Dec 2016 they were 21-17-2

Do you really think the Oilers can play 7 games above .500 by the end of 2017?

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

yes, Flames were 6-10-1 after 17 games last year.
By the end of the Dec 2016 they were 21-17-2

Do you really think the Oilers can play 7 games above .500 by the end of 2017?

yes, why not?

 

[McJadeddog]

So just playing along here for the sake of discussion, the team finishes bottom 10. What do you realistically do to get this team back in the playoffs next season? Is the top 10 of the '18 draft deep?

Yes, the draft is apparently fairly deep this year at the top. We'll be picking in the top-10, sadly, so I guess we'll likely get at least a decent player. But we're going to have to wait 3 years for that player to be useful in any way.

 

[McJadeddog]

yes, why not?

Because we only have 22 games left in 2017, so we'd have to go 15-7. Not going to happen.

 

[IranCondraAffair]

So just playing along here for the sake of discussion, the team finishes bottom 10. What do you realistically do to get this team back in the playoffs next season? Is the top 10 of the '18 draft deep?

The draft is deep, but to truly take advantage of it, the Oilers would need to sell guys like Maroon and Letestu. I don't think the Oilers are going to be far enough out of the hunt to make "selling" palatable to the fanbase.

Further, finding a replacement for Maroon AND fixing the other holes is a large order. Maroon has the Oilers by the balls given their scoring struggles. Are the Oilers really in a position to let him go if he scores 30 goals and asks for 5.5M?

If they are far enough out of it, they should easily get a good prospect of a 2nd rounder for Letestu. Strome would return something significant as well fi they truly aren't "married" to him as reports suggest.

The other issue is Talbot. He'll be eligible to extend in the offseason. Do the Oilers want to extend him? Can they afford NOT to extend him?

 

[McDrai]

If we're in the top 10 we run up to the draft podium and select whoever is BPA at that point in time. There is no way in hell Chiarelli should trade away that pick. Especially with his atrocious track record. We are clearly not even a contender so I think we are at plan B. Draft well, try to get rid of the overpaid players, and make a cup run in 3 years or so once our good prospects/young players have matured and the waste on our team is disposed of

 

[McJadeddog]

If we're in the top 10 we run up to the draft podium and select whoever is BPA at that point in time. There is no way in hell Chiarelli should trade away that pick. Especially with his atrocious track record. We are clearly not even a contender so I think we are at plan B. Draft well, try to get rid of the overpaid players, and make a cup run in 3 years or so once our good prospects/young players have matured and the waste on our team is disposed of

It is so, so, so pathetic that we are at this point so quickly into Chia's *disastrous* tenure as GM. He was gifted a team with McDavid and Drai on ELCs, Hall and Eberle for supporting scoring, and Nurse and Klefbom as young dmen. He then turned that into: McDavid and Drai on over-paid contracts, Hall and Eberle traded for Larsson, and nothing added to help on the backend other than a TERRIBLE Reinhart trade where we gave away a 1st rounder for nothing. If it wasn't for Chia falling arse-backwards into a Maroon trade, and Sather doing us a favor with the Talbot trade, he would have made exactly ZERO positive moves with this team. Ridiculous that this man still has a job, simply ridiculous.

We are likely going to have to go into a mini-rebuild for the next 2-3 years. Stop and think about that.