Confirmed with Link: [NJ/EDM] Oilers acquire Kulikov for conditional 4th (3rd if Oilers win a playoff round)

[Bryanbryoil]

As of this point IMO he isn't better than Lagesson or Russell. He really needs to up his game or his spot in the top 6 shouldn't be written in ink.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

Not liking his turnovers but he will be an asset in the playoffs IMO.

 

[Sweetpotato]

I think this really cements the idea that Lagesson is someone we shouldn't lose. IMO he's outplayed Russell and Kulikov. He'll be a great #4/5 shutdown dman.

 

[yukoner88]

Lets not lose sight that Klefa was a complete and utter disaster in that series, he was just terrible every game.

I thought it was pretty clear Klefbom's shoulder problems were limiting him.

If we play a heavier team (or a team that plays a heavier game) ala Montreal, I think I'd rather Kulikov in the line up over KRussell

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I thought it was pretty clear Klefbom's shoulder problems were limiting him.

If we play a heavier team (or a team that plays a heavier game) ala Montreal, I think I'd rather Kulikov in the line up over KRussell

IF he takes better care of the puck.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

I thought it was pretty clear Klefbom's shoulder problems were limiting him.

If we play a heavier team (or a team that plays a heavier game) ala Montreal, I think I'd rather Kulikov in the line up over KRussell

If he was that hurt, stay out of the lineup. Because his "bad shoulder" didn't cause in repeated terrible pinches.

 

[Samus44]

I know it's a small sample but does he make anyone else nervous on D when he plays the puck? I've recounted 2 giveaways that led to GAs, the first on his weak pass attempt to Nurse on the corner board (Calgary or Winnipeg game) and last night's giveaway for the 2nd goal which was Rathbone's 1st career goal.

He needs to get that out of his game before the playoffs cause I'm not a fan of his game at the moment. These plays are self inflicted and it's not something that should happen as a 12 year vet with 722 games under his belt.

I like his ability to be physical and he's pretty good at stopping the cycle. He just seems not very good with the puck from my perspective.

No question it's the biggest question mark with the player and an issue I recall him having in Winnipeg. Kulikov outside of 6-8 plays has been really good but man those 6-8 plays all did or had the potential to end up in the net and that's too much. He's been very strong outside of those moments but he seems to play too loose with the puck sometimes especially deep in his own zone. You'd think that they'd be correctable given the nature of them but some guys are just prone to them. It's likely the biggest reason why he's getting paid under 2 mil and not over 4 mil. Hopefully Kulikov gains some familiarity and they become less frequent because I can live with one GA every 6 games from them but not every 2nd or 3rd because like you alluded to playoffs are no joke.

I do think it's important to recognize one glaring mistake might not be any worse than a less obvious one, or multiple of them, and if the net results are positive it's important not to dwell on single mistakes. That's why Tippett stuck with Kharia and he's been a quality C for this team ever since being put in the middle. It's easy to fall victim to confirmation bias but Kulikov is only -1 playing difficult minutes. He's got great advanced stats outside of 94.6 PDO* but as of now it's fair to say he's why his PDO sucks. lol. In saying that these are also career low numbers in those fields and outside of this season his PDO/on ice sv% has been just fine. If history, or what we can gleam from the numbers of that history tells us anything it's that he should regress to the mean a bit. I suspect that means he'll become less error prone as we go. He's very effective against the cycle and is a bigger asset to the breakout than I expected but I agree the blunders are a big problem and can sink the ship come playoff time.

*PDO is on ice save percentage plus on ice shooting percentage. 100 is average and most players regress to it. Kulkiov is a career 99.2 PDO and was 99 last year for reference.

 

[Faelko]

It’s like he’s trying to do too much instead of just playing his simple game.

 

[Samus44]

It’s like he’s trying to do too much instead of just playing his simple game.

I don't see that at all tbh. I see a player who loses focus and needs to be more deliberate in his simple plays. I'd say he makes mentally lazy mistakes.

 

[Samus44]

Lets not lose sight that Klefa was a complete and utter disaster in that series, he was just terrible every game.

Lets not lose fact that the Oilers, like the Pens, were also statistically very unlucky. Team defense and bad bounces sunk them more than any one player. McDavid and Draisaitl made their own fair share of defensive errors themselves. The Oilers were/are a young team that had a single preseason game to get ready. I'm not saying it was all due to bad luck that they lost as many players underachieved and some tough lessons were learned but it was 4 games after months off, shit happens.

 

[OfCorsiDid]

Appears Tippett’s had enough of his shenanigans too.

 

[Draiskull]

I think this really cements the idea that Lagesson is someone we shouldn't lose. IMO he's outplayed Russell and Kulikov. He'll be a great #4/5 shutdown dman.

Outplaying Russell\Kulikov doesnt make you a #4/#5.

Lagesson is a good #6/#7 especially when paired with Larsson.
Jones, Russell, Kulikov are worse than him. If Klefbom doesnt return, Holland will need to go out and acquired a 2nd pairing LHD more than a goalie or winger.

 

[Llamamoto]

I might be in the minority here, but out of Russell/Lagesson/Kulikov/Koekkokek/Jones I actually prefer Jones.

 

[Aerchon]

I have an honest question.

How many saw the trade, hopefully for a third round pick and thought:

"Holland must know what he is doing to grab this guy for a third rounder going into the playoffs".

Or "Who?"

Or "I heard he is having a great year on the devils, is a great shutdown defender, and I'm pumped we got him. ".

I was in column #2 and while I knew the name I had no strong positive or negative position. After doing my research this seemed like a poor move and a little pricey for a third. This was a guy I wasn't even sure was better than Jones and I'm not a big Jones fan.

He seems like a waste of an asset to me. Jones and Laggesson both have struggled at times and having insurance is nice but imo not at the expense of a potential 3rd round pick.

If what we see is what we get I certainly think we paid too much for him and am honestly questioning our pro evaluation abilities.

I knew Green was a pile of garbage and I was so happy he didn't end up costing us more. I like what I've seen of Kulikov far more than I did of Green but the fact remains both look like wasted assets.

Edit: if Kulikov pulls some of the stuff he has so far in the playoffs that would really really hurt.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

I have an honest question.

How many saw the trade, hopefully for a third round pick and thought:

"Holland must know what he is doing to grab this guy for a third rounder going into the playoffs".

Or "Who?"

Or "I heard he is having a great year on the devils, is a great shutdown defender, and I'm pumped we got him. ".

I was in column #2 and while I knew the name I had no strong positive or negative position. After doing my research this seemed like a poor move and a little pricey for a third. This was a guy I wasn't even sure was better than Jones and I'm not a big Jones fan.

He seems like a waste of an asset to me. Jones and Laggesson both have struggled at times and having insurance is nice but imo not at the expense of a potential 3rd round pick.

If what we see is what we get I certainly think we paid too much for him and am honestly questioning our pro evaluation abilities.

I knew Green was a pile of garbage and I was so happy he didn't end up costing us more. I like what I've seen of Kulikov far more than I did of Green but the fact remains both look like wasted assets.

Edit: if Kulikov pulls some of the stuff he has so far in the playoffs that would really really hurt.

Edit : Give him a couple more games IMO.

 

[gordonhught]

I have an honest question.

How many saw the trade, hopefully for a third round pick and thought:

"Holland must know what he is doing to grab this guy for a third rounder going into the playoffs".

Or "Who?"

Or "I heard he is having a great year on the devils, is a great shutdown defender, and I'm pumped we got him. ".

I was in column #2 and while I knew the name I had no strong positive or negative position. After doing my research this seemed like a poor move and a little pricey for a third. This was a guy I wasn't even sure was better than Jones and I'm not a big Jones fan.

He seems like a waste of an asset to me. Jones and Laggesson both have struggled at times and having insurance is nice but imo not at the expense of a potential 3rd round pick.

If what we see is what we get I certainly think we paid too much for him and am honestly questioning our products evaluation abilities.

I knew Green was a pile of garbage and I was so happy he didn't end up costing us more. I like what I've seen of Kulikov far more than I did of Green but the fact remains both look like wasted assets.

I look at it differently. I agree that Kulikov has been underwhelming and the organization should know the player better than to trade a pick when it returns you no real upgrade at defense.

However it may simply be that the Oilers have a decent enough roster now that they don't improve by adding middling players (especially at defense). Maybe it would have been better to add a forward for that third rounder, or, pay a higher price for a player who is clearly an upgrade.

To me Lagesson or Jones offer as much as Kulikov does (overall).

 

[gordonhught]

I might be in the minority here, but out of Russell/Lagesson/Kulikov/Koekkokek/Jones I actually prefer Jones.

Jones has been playing better as of recently. That is going overlooked.

 

[Soundwave]

If we end up getting to the 2nd round but Kulikov plays no big role or worse is sitting watching as Tippett goes with Lagesson and we throw away another 3rd round pick ... that's going to start to piss me off.

That's a lot of picks starting to be thrown away.

 

[Smartguy]

Delete

 

[OfCorsiDid]

I have an honest question.

How many saw the trade, hopefully for a third round pick and thought:

"Holland must know what he is doing to grab this guy for a third rounder going into the playoffs".

Or "Who?"

Or "I heard he is having a great year on the devils, is a great shutdown defender, and I'm pumped we got him. ".

I was in column #2 and while I knew the name I had no strong positive or negative position. After doing my research this seemed like a poor move and a little pricey for a third. This was a guy I wasn't even sure was better than Jones and I'm not a big Jones fan.

He seems like a waste of an asset to me. Jones and Laggesson both have struggled at times and having insurance is nice but imo not at the expense of a potential 3rd round pick.

If what we see is what we get I certainly think we paid too much for him and am honestly questioning our pro evaluation abilities.

I knew Green was a pile of garbage and I was so happy he didn't end up costing us more. I like what I've seen of Kulikov far more than I did of Green but the fact remains both look like wasted assets.

Edit: if Kulikov pulls some of the stuff he has so far in the playoffs that would really really hurt.

Honest question.

Who the f*** cares about a 3rd round pick in a trash draft?

We have plenty of prospects and we don't need another prospect that will pan out in 3 or 4 years if at all.

We're in win now mode.

 

[TopShelfGloveSide]

If we end up getting to the 2nd round but Kulikov plays no big role or worse is sitting watching as Tippett goes with Lagesson and we throw away another 3rd round pick ... that's going to start to piss me off.

That's a lot of picks starting to be thrown away.

Kulikov will play quite a bit in the playoffs IMO. Curious though did Kulikov do these horrible giveaways a lot in NJ?

 

[Sweetpotato]

I think this really cements the idea that Lagesson is someone we shouldn't lose. IMO he's outplayed Russell and Kulikov. He'll be a great #4/5 shutdown dman.

Outplaying Russell\Kulikov doesnt make you a #4/#5.

Lagesson is a good #6/#7 especially when paired with Larsson.
Jones, Russell, Kulikov are worse than him. If Klefbom doesnt return, Holland will need to go out and acquired a 2nd pairing LHD more than a goalie or winger.

Read both bolded parts and see where you misinterpreted what I said.

 

[Draiskull]

Read both bolded parts and see where you misinterpreted what I said.

Where is the misinterpretation? Lagesson will only be a good top 4 Dman in AHL, not NHL.
Good bottom pairing Dman if Larsson is his partner which is pretty good.
#4 to me means top 4 Dman and #5 means someone who carries the 3rd pairing. Lagesson isnt either but is an upgrade over Jones, Russell and the current version of Kulikov.

 

[Aerchon]

Honest question.

Who the f*** cares about a 3rd round pick in a trash draft?

We have plenty of prospects and we don't need another prospect that will pan out in 3 or 4 years if at all.

We're in win now mode.

I do. A third round pick "can" completely change a franchise. Or remove the "can" and say "should" be able to get us a solid player for our current playoff run. Win now right? If he isn't helping with that AND we are wasting those assets that is a full lose lose situation.

 

[DavidHasselhoffsFist]

Going just as I thought it would.......