Confirmed with Link: Oilers claim Brandon Davidson off of waivers

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Why did they ever re-sign Gryba?

Because he was a fine depth defenseman and his contract can be sent to the minors without money staying on the cap.

 

[rboomercat90]

Re: Klefbom...
It hasnt been talked about at all as far as I am aware of but I have been wondering lately if maybe his foot is giving him issues. He lost a lot of tissue around his foot apparently and perhaps he is experiencing some issues with that.

Again...havent heard anything...just something I have wondered about.

Last year made everybody forget about that foot injury. Before that though, we were wondering if his career might be in jeopardy. Maybe that’s his problem.

 

[guymez]

Last year made everybody forget about that foot injury. Before that though, we were wondering if his career might be in jeopardy. Maybe that’s his problem.

I sure hope not.
The drop off in his play is just so odd....hopefully there is another reason. The good news is that this team will have some nice depth once Larsson and Sekera get back into the lineup.

 

[oobga]

Why did they ever re-sign Gryba?

1 year for a contract you can bury is not bad for a depth guy. No idea why they gave him 2 years though. Such a dime a dozen player, no one was going to be lining up to sign him. Kills any chance a team would take him on waivers.

 

[Burnt Biscuits]

1 year for a contract you can bury is not bad for a depth guy. No idea why they gave him 2 years though. Such a dime a dozen player, no one was going to be lining up to sign him. Kills any chance a team would take him on waivers.

Given his salary amount I don't really care, doesn't count against the cap at all if we bury him in the AHL and he seems like he'd be a good vet down there for the young guys, we'd normally sign a vet AHL guy to help the young D anyway and all the higher end AHL guys tend to get one-way contracts, if Gryba naturally progresses into that role all the better for us.

 

[oobga]

Given his salary amount I don't really care, doesn't count against the cap at all if we bury him in the AHL and he seems like he'd be a good vet down there for the young guys.

I'd say it's a bit of an issue because we love to load up on contracts and always be right near the 50 limit. If we are a solid team, Gryba really has no place on the roster, so he's just using up space for next year still. But, that's a larger issue of poor planning. More than just Gryba's deal.

 

[ThePhoenixx]

1 year for a contract you can bury is not bad for a depth guy. No idea why they gave him 2 years though. Such a dime a dozen player, no one was going to be lining up to sign him. Kills any chance a team would take him on waivers.

It's not your money. Why care?

 

[nexttothemoon]

Oilers have a solid D group now.

It's actually better than most give it credit for.

Larsson

Russell

Benning

Stanton

Auvitu

Sekera

Davidson

Klefbom

Gryba

Simpson

Nurse

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

That's one of the best dmen groups in the NHL

Nurse has been very surprising this year and has proven to be a solid top 6 option.

Larsson and especially Klefbom have had mediocre years so far and Sekera has been out... yet that d-group has still been reasonably solid.

Stanton/Simpson are 2 other good options down in the AHL.

I think this team has solid D depth that rivals most teams in the NHL.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Oilers have a solid D group now.

It's actually better than most give it credit for.

Larsson

Russell

Benning

Stanton

Auvitu

Sekera

Davidson

Klefbom

Gryba

Simpson

Nurse

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

That's one of the best dmen groups in the NHL

Nurse has been very surprising this year and has proven to be a solid top 6 option.

Larsson and especially Klefbom have had mediocre years so far and Sekera has been out... yet that d-group has still been reasonably solid.

Stanton/Simpson are 2 other good options down in the AHL.

I think this team has solid D depth that rivals most teams in the NHL.

I was thinking the same thing. They don't have a Doughty-esq high end Defenseaman, but there are a lot of effective player and depth there.

 

[CupofOil]

Oilers have a solid D group now.

It's actually better than most give it credit for.

Larsson

Russell

Benning

Stanton

Auvitu

Sekera

Davidson

Klefbom

Gryba

Simpson

Nurse

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

That's one of the best dmen groups in the NHL

Nurse has been very surprising this year and has proven to be a solid top 6 option.

Larsson and especially Klefbom have had mediocre years so far and Sekera has been out... yet that d-group has still been reasonably solid.

Stanton/Simpson are 2 other good options down in the AHL.

I think this team has solid D depth that rivals most teams in the NHL.

Woah, slow down there. This is a middle of the road D group at best but at least they have good depth to the point that they have a bottom pairing that doesn't kill plays every time they are on the ice and I'd guess that Benning or Davidson are one of the better #7D in the league so it has gone from a complete mess to a pretty solid group with the additions of Larsson, Sekera and Davidson.

One caveat is that Sekera might take a while to get up to speed so I hope people take it easy on him if he makes more mistakes than usual, might need to ease him in on the bottom pairing for a while.

 

[oobga]

It's not your money. Why care?

Because, it's prudent to not have useless contracts on your books. We almost couldn't claim Davidson because we were right up against the 50 contract limit. There was no reason to not just treat Gryba like a guy that is desperate for a job every summer and could be signed for ~1M on 1 year deals every time if you were desperate for some depth.

 

[Aerchon]

I'll never understand the Gryba hate.

He is paid like #6/7. Only plays in games half the season and typically against bigger slower teams or to fill in for injuries. For as much as he is not in the line-up he manages to stay relatively consistent compared to other 6/7 defenders I have watched. Has some bad games and some good games but for the vast majority he is NOT a liability out there. How many defenders have we had over the years that just get exposed night after night? Many. Gryba is a clear cut above the crap most teams have to deal with for their #6/7 role. He is a right shooting defender as well which is nice since we have so few.

Davidson is a lefty that we didn't even know we were going to have back. Not sure really what having Davidson back has to do with Gryba.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Because, it's prudent to not have useless contracts on your books. We almost couldn't claim Davidson because we were right up against the 50 contract limit. There was no reason to not just treat Gryba like a guy that is desperate for a job every summer and could be signed for ~1M on 1 year deals every time if you were desperate for some depth.

I don't know, if you expect him to be passed on the roster, as he has been, and can replace the veteran presence of Fayne next year and a next to no cost.

 

[nightfighter]

Oilers have a solid D group now.

It's actually better than most give it credit for.

Larsson

Russell

Benning

Stanton

Auvitu

Sekera

Davidson

Klefbom

Gryba

Simpson

Nurse

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

That's one of the best dmen groups in the NHL

Nurse has been very surprising this year and has proven to be a solid top 6 option.

Larsson and especially Klefbom have had mediocre years so far and Sekera has been out... yet that d-group has still been reasonably solid.

Stanton/Simpson are 2 other good options down in the AHL.

I think this team has solid D depth that rivals most teams in the NHL.

If you're talkking strictly about potential, then yes. With Klefbom and Larsson having off years, it is not a good group.

 

[Paralyzer]

If you're talkking strictly about potential, then yes. With Klefbom and Larsson having off years, it is not a good group.

It's better than Calgary's defense currently

 

[Aerchon]

If you're talkking strictly about potential, then yes. With Klefbom and Larsson having off years, it is not a good group.

Where the heck do get that Larsson is having a bad year?

Lol, unless you are saying being out with an injury make this year an off year for him? Before he was injured he was very clearly our best defender.

 

[Burnt Biscuits]

Because, it's prudent to not have useless contracts on your books. We almost couldn't claim Davidson because we were right up against the 50 contract limit. There was no reason to not just treat Gryba like a guy that is desperate for a job every summer and could be signed for ~1M on 1 year deals every time if you were desperate for some depth.

Defensive depth isn't useless even if you never tap into you'll be glad it's there in the event you need it. Anyone remember that single season Buffalo was good in 2005-06, better than Carolina IMO but their lack of defensive depth and injuries caught up to them, sub-marining one of there few chances at a Stanley Cup.

Going into every season I think a team should endeavor to have 7 C's, 11 W's, 10 D, and 3 G's they are comfortable having play in the NHL and not get embarrassed, ideally you'd like some prospects to be filling those periphery roles, but if the prospects aren't strong enough or are just a bit too green there is no issue having journeymen fill some of those roles. That leaves about 16 spots to be used on prospect contracts (not including contracts given to junior players that don't count against the contract limit) and the odd AHL vet (who provides either leadership or is a legit AHL star) ideally you'd have about 3 spots open on your 50 man limit for general flexibility and late-season signings such as College FA's. IMO it would be unrealistic to expect any of our 1st year pro D to take an NHL job, despite how much you may like any of Jones, Bear, or Mantha they should not be counted against our 10 D that we are comfortable counting on. IMO our 10 D this year were Klefbom, Larsson, Sekera, Russell, Nurse, Auvitu, Gryba, Stanton, Simpson, and Fayne; but with us already being 2 key d-men down in Sekera and Larsson and one depth d-men down in Fayne who I honestly don't know if he is playing again this year, I think Davidson made sense as an addition and I think Davidson should slot in the pecking order over Auvitu and Gryba. If you want to bitch about wasted contracts spots bitch about ones given to prospects who don't have any realistic hope at NHL employment (Betker, Chase, Christoffer) or AHL vet signings that don't move the needle which is damn near every AHL signing Chia has made, with a few exceptions. Gryba is not a waste of a contract, we have far more useless contracts on the books and if he doesn't slot into any NHL role next year, he'll fill the Fayne role of elder statesman in the AHL (at a far better price).

 

[McTrashBoat]

It's better than Calgary's defense currently

what's the deal with that yellow guy

 

[McTrashBoat]

Did anybody watch him in Montreal this year? I'm more surprised every game they threw him away

 

[Mr Positive]

I was thinking the same thing. They don't have a Doughty-esq high end Defenseaman, but there are a lot of effective player and depth there.

There's no offensively gifted top 4 D there though. Just lower guys like Benning and Auvitu. Just looking at those goals from Dumba, and they have Suter and Spurgeon too, we are badly outclassed when it comes to D-men supporting the offense. Our top offensive threat there has been Russell this year

 

[nexttothemoon]

The Oilers do have other offensive options.

Auvitu is a solid offensive dman.

Leads all Oilers D in shots/60 and individual scoring chances/60 and is 2nd in pts/60 among the dmen.

When he's on the ice at evens the team scores 3.8 GF/60 and lets in 2.13 GA/60

Auvitu should definitely be getting more minutes on D to help generate more offense and he should be seeing more minutes on the PP as well.

The coaches see things differently and it sometimes takes longer to acknowledge the obvious and for the favourites to see slightly less ice time in exchange for those playing better to see more.

 

[LTIR]

The Oilers do have other offensive options.

Auvitu is a solid offensive dman.

Leads all Oilers D in shots/60 and individual scoring chances/60 and is 2nd in pts/60 among the dmen.

When he's on the ice at evens the team scores 3.8 GF/60 and lets in 2.13 GA/60

Auvitu should definitely be getting more minutes on D to help generate more offense and he should be seeing more minutes on the PP as well.

The coaches see things differently and it sometimes takes longer to acknowledge the obvious and for the favourites to see slightly less ice time in exchange for those playing better to see more.

the guy has 5 friggin points.. he is NOT a solid offensive Dman. Gryba had 6 in 40 GP last year..
Auvitu is a good puck mover but this team needs some much better

 

[Stoneman89]

Because he was a fine depth defenseman and his contract can be sent to the minors without money staying on the cap.

No, no he is not a "fine" depth defenceman. He is a large man, with skating issues, a tough streak, and not a whole lot of hockey IQ at the NHL level. That is not hatred against the man, but a recognition of what he is. That is not his fault or the contract, which he never should have been offered if this team wants to take the next step.

Chia thought they could make do with what they had, even with Sekera out for half a season, and gambling that no one else would get hurt during the year. And he lost that gamble. He needed to go out and sign or trade for a competent low pairing NHL dman.

Gryba was waived through the league last year at one point, with no takers. Teams don't pass up on "fine, depth defencemen."


The league is moving toward puck moving skating and mobile defence. We have plenty of guys that are stay at home, tough, and defensively mindful. Not so many that can skate the puck out of danger or move it. Honestly, at the beginning of the year, I wasn't a big Avatar fan, but I'm coming around. I keep him over Gryba every day of the week. He may not be the most incredible defender, but his skating and puck moving ability help to compensate for that, and get the puck out of our end and keep it down the ice. When Sekera and Larrson come back, he will be an extra for sure, but with the way Davey is playing, I don't know how you keep Brandon out of the lineup. Benning would be the weak link for me at this point, so I think he has to do some sitting as well.

 

[nexttothemoon]

the guy has 5 friggin points.. he is NOT a solid offensive Dman. Gryba had 6 in 40 GP last year..
Auvitu is a good puck mover but this team needs some much better

...in 19 games... playing 14 minutes a night... on the bottom pairing... with a grand total of 5 minutes of PP time all season so far.

The fact that he'd be on pace for 20+ pts in a 82 game season shows me he's doing fine considering all that. He's currently top 50 in the NHL in pts/60 at evens among dmen with 100+ minutes AND he's not a negative out there defensively either.

Klefbom for example has 8 pts in 33 games playing 23 minutes a night... with 99 minutes of PP time so far.

Cmon... compare apples to apples at least.

Auvitu being underutilized is another example of subpar coaching decisions this season.

 

[Burnt Biscuits]

Very happy to have Davidson back, like I said when he hit the waiver wire I see him as an upgrade on Auvitu and Gryba and he has already found himself higher in the pecking order then those two. Things will get tougher for Davidson when Sekera gets back, I'm guessing the coaching staff will lean Benning's way, but even if that comes to pass I have a high level of comfort with Davidson as our #7 d-man and I'm hopeful he gets an extension with us in the summer.