Confirmed with Link: Belov signs 4 year deal with SKA/KHL

[OiledUp]

Yeah, this is my take as well.

I dunno, undefined grievances from replacement level players hold no weight for me personally. It comes off as some irresponsible punk complaining about his manager at Wal-Mart or something.

It's unprofessional and his story about needing a contract for the WC seems fishy to me; he is insured with the oilers till June thirtieth, certainly that covers him losing a potential year of salary.

From what I'v understood from people following russian hockey Belov is known as an intelligent and fairly quiet guy. Not your typical hockey guy, but someone who rather plays chess than chase puck bunnies. He also left money on the table to try his wings at the NHL level. From what I've heard these kind of statements aren't really in his character.

And to me a good coach should at least be respected by everyone of his players. Even the ones not getting a lot of ice time. They might not be happy with their toi, they shouldn't tbh, but a good communicator can at least get along with the players and have them understand his point of view.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

From what I'v understood from people following russian hockey Belov is known as an intelligent and fairly quiet guy. Not your typical hockey guy, but someone who rather plays chess than chase puck bunnies. He also left money on the table to try his wings at the NHL level. From what I've heard these kind of statements aren't really in his character.

And to me a good coach should at least be respected by everyone of his players. Even the ones not getting a lot of ice time. They might not be happy with their toi, they shouldn't tbh, but a good communicator can at least get along with the players and have them understand his point of view.

If he was so into getting into the NHL he would've signed for more than a year here and for less than 4 back home. One bad coach and he takes his toys and goes home.

 

[Oiltankjob Fail]

Still waiting on that Smyth quote, schoolboy.

Its under oilers . com his press conference go dig it out your self. And school boy suits you much better because I doubt your a day over 18.Your not worth my time because no matter what any proof is ever given to you it will be spin doctored by you like any other post that proves you wrong, not once in here since I joined have you ever agreed you were wrong not once go pull your own teeth.

 

[OiledUp]

The "golden boys" are the players that matter. If some lame ass defenseman who can't put in an honest effort pouts I couldn't give a ****. Belov showed nothing this year. Absolutely nothing. If anything he showed why he wasn't given an NHL contract prior to this year. Completely unphysical, didn't take shots, didn't do anything.

But you obviously know a lot about Belov so make sure you tell me what kind of guy he is. If he wanted to return to the NHL he wouldn't have signed a 4 year deal in the KHL. A one year deal maybe, 4 years? Yeah right.

The golden boys are th players that matters? What kind of bullcrap is that? If you want to win it's usually the bottom players that needs to overperform. Certainly in the cap era. Hockey is a team game. One of the keys to good coaching is keeping the players with the least toi hungry and happy.

 

[CupofOil]

Players are to blame as well but Eakins is a bad coach , players do not like him, its quite obvious.

Is it really fair to call him a bad coach considering that he was a rookie coming into a very tough situation?

Also, we don't know why the players don't like him. Maybe they didn't like him because they didn't get enough playing time. Maybe they didn't like him because he was too hard on them. Maybe they didn't like him because they were jealous of his hair.
The point is that there's nothing "quite obvious" about this situation. It's all speculation from fans who are looking for a scapegoat.

Let me reiterate. Eakins made tons of mistakes this season, deserves a good deal of the blame and just doesn't seem like a likeable guy in general but this doesn't necessarily mean that the team hates playing for him and that he's universally disliked or that he's a bad coach.
I'm sure there are players who disliked him and players that liked him.

All these quotes are coming to the forefront because the season has been a disaster and everything is magnified during times like these and frustrations are bound to start boliing over.
These parting quotes seem like players who were frustrated just as much as anything else. If players from within start talking about not liking him and wanting out then i'll be a lot more concerned. Hall and Eberle seemed pretty happy that there won't be coaching turnover going into next season, why isn't that being discussed more?
The bottom line is if they start winning next season, all these black clouds will start to disappear. I can guarantee that.

 

[OiledUp]

If he was so into getting into the NHL he would've signed for more than a year here and for less than 4 back home. One bad coach and he takes his toys and goes home.

I didn't say he was dead set on an NHL career, just that from what I've gathered he's not a guy known to have charcter issues. He might have felt that the NHL wasn't for him. Still doesn't explain him calling out Eakins.

 

[McShogun99]

Its under oilers . com his press conference go dig it out your self. And school boy suits you much better because I doubt your a day over 18.Your not worth my time because no matter what any proof is ever given to you it will be spin doctored by you like any other post that proves you wrong, not once in here since I joined have you ever agreed you were wrong not once go pull your own teeth.

I'm not a fan of Eakins but i'm to lazy to listen to the press conference. I'm curious as to what Smyth said.

 

[Oiltankjob Fail]

I'm not a fan of Eakins but i'm to lazy to listen to the press conference. I'm curious as to what Smyth said.

HE made a quip about run ins with the coach and smirked right after. Starts at 19:40 http://video.oilers.nhl.com/videocenter/ Ryan smyth announce retirement.

 

[McBooya42]

Yeah, nobody is saying any of these things.
I don't recall anybody saying that he has done a good job or any of the other hyperbole that you just threw out there.
I love how a poster who doesn't detest Eakins to the high heavens is considered a "minion". Classic HF right there.

It's merely being pointed out that these players who had choice words about Eakins upon their departure are players who were either healthy scratched or knew that they were on their way out of town anyway so while there might be something to these players not liking Eakins which i'm sure is the case, it could also be sour grapes on the part of the players.

Well put, and my sentiments exactly.

 

[Neatman]

There's a difference between taking the coach's side and taking the players to task. I'm not going to say Eakins isn't at fault but why do the players get a free pass yet again? They've showed in games that they can compete with the best in the league and then they lay eggs in prime time broadcasts.

If you just keep changing coaches the situation isn't going to improve. I still point to last years stretch run as the defining moment for these players. Playoffs in sight and they go to sleep.

Eakins has a lot to prove but so do the players on the ice.

And FYI to the other posters, I asked for quotes, not implications. Smyth could just as easily sign with another team.

Fair enough. The players should certainly shoulder a bunch of the blame. I watched some of a few playoff games this week, and I cant remember the last time I saw players move so fast... The Oilers look like they skate in mud.

However, I think it's clear that Dallas isn't capable of coaching an NHL team. Any NHL team. Least of all, a team in desperate need of an excellent, veteran coach.

 

[Parch]

Spin it anyway you want, but Belov said what he said. I'd consider it a red flag. If a player is willing to say it, I'd bet there are players thinking it and they're just in a position where they can't say anything.

It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest that there could be a division in the dressing room and some disrespect for the coach.

 

[Jimmi McJenkins]

Spin it anyway you want, but Belov said what he said. I'd consider it a red flag. If a player is willing to say it, I'd bet there are players thinking it and they're just in a position where they can't say anything.

It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest that there could be a division in the dressing room and some disrespect for the coach.

True, because great coaches have never had marginal players who didn't get a "fair shake" under them say anything about them, Never Happens.

 

[Pressure]

I don't know, the club looked just as listless down the stetch of last season as well IMO but i don't think there's any arguing that the body language wasn't good so i'll give you that but i think that's a case of yet another losing season compounded on top of other losing seasons and more energy being sapped from the youngsters every season.

Lets be honest about the season under Krueger. The record masked a lot of deficiencies and when you look at the core issues, it was the same exact team that failed this season fundamentally and outside of Hall, Gagner and Yakupov (although he seemed lost most of last season as well IMO), there was little progression to speak of so were the individual player results all that different under Krueger? Maybe they liked playing under him more because he seemed like more of a coddler and was a likeable guy but was that a good thing?

You seem to forget it was a shortened season that had the kids already playing 70'ish games between the Oilers and OKC...not ot mention they never had real practices or a pre season to work on any sort of system.

Give Kruegar that amount of time and I would bet he has more success than Eakins ever will.

Round holes in square pegs...the term insanity comes to mind.

 

[Pressure]

You know it's bad when a guy would rather go to a country on the verge of war under Putin than stay here and just play hockey under Dallas Eakins.

hahah nice and true lol

 

[Lay Z Boy GM]

Lots of people basically saying who cares, Belov sucks. The thing is, the Oilers wanted to re-sign him. This is like when a guy gets turned down by a girl and says "whatever you're ugly".

I wouldn't have wanted to re-sign him, let guys like marincin and Klefbom take his place, but his comments about coaching are interesting. He's not the only player to make these kinds of comments this year. Smid and Bryz, don't forget Kris Schultz slamming the oilers.

It goes way back too. Can't forget sourays comments. There's a reason so many players suck in Edmonton and suddenly improve when they leave. Eakins sucks, but so do the morons that can't find a decent coach for this team.

 

[Oi'll say!]

GreatKeith, if I have to read 10 of your posts defending Eakins on every page, can you at least actually tell us all what he did well?

As far as I can see, he's incredibly out of his depth, and it was apparent to anyone who took the time to watch games. He couldn't even line match. His "system" was an embarrassing mess. The way he conducts himself is shameful.

To be justified in thinking Eakins is a useful member of the club, It would be great to hear some analysis beyond "oh yeah? Well the players were lazy".

That's an old-school, out behind the woodshed kinda whoopin.

 

[Replacement*]

Yeah, this is my take as well.

I dunno, undefined grievances from replacement level players hold no weight for me personally. It comes off as some irresponsible punk complaining about his manager at Wal-Mart or something.

It's unprofessional and his story about needing a contract for the WC seems fishy to me; he is insured with the oilers till June thirtieth, certainly that covers him losing a potential year of salary.

In all fairness our NA standards on professionalism would have absolutely no bearing in Russia. I'm not trying to be unkind with that either. Just that theres notions of established protocol and stiff upper lip manners that have more in common with British Commonwealth founding fathers and have absolutely nothing to do with how someone in Russia would be raised and their value system.
Indeed nearly every Russian would've grown up to DISRESPECT the system, authority, rule, etc.

I'm fascinated how we transcribe our mores and beliefs on proper behavior onto individuals that have lived a completely different live, in a completely different philosophy, and have largely different interactional values.

To understand somebody who is a foreigner from a vastly different culture one needs to check their own values at the door. Otherwise one's view is entirely tainted.

 

[Replacement*]

i got the same impression when Smyth was talking to scott oake and hrudy. saying things like physically he feels like he is still able to play, there was a couple times he hinted towards it not being his decision to retire. I will have to listen to it again and pick out the pieces.

Being a longterm married person I happened to note his wife was standing right close by..

I kinda got that inference out of it. Quitting to look after things at home more and something had likely been discussed in detail amongst the Smyths.

 

[Lay Z Boy GM]

That was something Krueger certainly had going for him. He understood European players very well and he knew how to motivate them, but he was also a Canadian. He wasn't the greatest coach but he knew people really well.

 

[Oi'll say!]

Is it really fair to call him a bad coach considering that he was a rookie coming into a very tough situation?

Also, we don't know why the players don't like him. Maybe they didn't like him because they didn't get enough playing time. Maybe they didn't like him because he was too hard on them. Maybe they didn't like him because they were jealous of his hair.
The point is that there's nothing "quite obvious" about this situation. It's all speculation from fans who are looking for a scapegoat.

Let me reiterate. Eakins made tons of mistakes this season, deserves a good deal of the blame and just doesn't seem like a likeable guy in general but this doesn't necessarily mean that the team hates playing for him and that he's universally disliked or that he's a bad coach.
I'm sure there are players who disliked him and players that liked him.

All these quotes are coming to the forefront because the season has been a disaster and everything is magnified during times like these and frustrations are bound to start boliing over.
These parting quotes seem like players who were frustrated just as much as anything else. If players from within start talking about not liking him and wanting out then i'll be a lot more concerned. Hall and Eberle seemed pretty happy that there won't be coaching turnover going into next season, why isn't that being discussed more?
The bottom line is if they start winning next season, all these black clouds will start to disappear. I can guarantee that.

I'm not in the "have patience with the rookie nhl coach" crowd.

I don't really care if Eakins goes on to become the next Scottie Bowman because we don't need a great coach in two more years, or at the middle of next season. We needed a good coach at the beginning of this season when Arco was playing his first game, when RNH was starting his 3rd season, Yak his 2nd, etc.

This is a once in a century opportunity for the Oilers to develop several blue chip prospects at one time. It's like we have 5 Ming vases to move from Taipei to Indiannapolis and we hired a rookie moving company. It's was a bad idea to begin with and at every step of the journey that has been proven again and again with metronome consistency.

I don't agree with MacT's assessment that the team got better at the end of the year and the stats literally scream that.