Craig MacTavish meeting the media

[s7ark]

Last warning. Thread bans and possible infractions incoming if you all don't cut out the attacks.

 

[Halibut]

What a disappointment of a presser... Ekblad was the only thing that I was getting excited about for this year... and now MacT will try to take that away too

Dont worry, MacT rarely seems to accomplish what he trys to do.

 

[CupofOil]

Perron's an upgrade on PRV.
Gordon's an upgrade on Horcoff.
Ference would have been an upgarde on Whitney, but he's basically playing Smid's role now.
Belov's an upgrade on Potter.

The Smid deal would suggest he's undervaluing assets, no?

I think the rookie thing is a bit overblown. Every GM makes bad deals.

I'm not saying it wouldn't have been better to hire a coach and GM with more of a NHL track record. But we are where we are and I don't see any other recourse for management and ownership than to to push on.

Those are all very minor upgrades (a rearranging of mediocrity) and doesn't address any main needs.

Granted on the Smid deal (i guess i tried to block it out of my memory) but doesn't that make him look worse if anything, giving away a decent NHL defenseman for mediocre prospects.

I'm not saying that he needs to be turfed now or even Eakins for that matter because this was obviously going to be a longer term process with 2 rookies getting their feet wet but the early returns on his tenure are sketchy at best and his comments about the team making progress doesn't inspire much confidence and leads me to believe that he's absolutely clueless. It's scary for the future of the Oilers that he sees progress with this group, beyond frightening.

 

[I am the Liquor]

So you would have been happier if MacT drafted Eric Comrie instead of Marco Roy?
It would have not changed a thing this season. Smid would have been traded for Horak + some other prospect since we didnt want any salary coming back.

Sorry but if you biggest issues with MacT are #9Dman + backup goalie then you cant blame him for this pathetic season.

This team has bigger issues.

No it really doesnt. The single biggest issue for this team is mismanagement. The goaltending debacle and subsequent fumbling, poor asset management in an effort to stick a finger in the dyke is a good example of the constant mismanagement of assets that has plagued this team for over a decade.

More of the same.

There is NO light at the end of the tunnel.

Just more poor asset management, more poor drafting, more bad development/mishandling of players, more trade requests, more scapegoating of coaches, more firing and poor hiring of their replacements, more empty promises every off-season, more questionable contracts/signings, it goes on and on and on.

It wont stop until the cancer is cut out.

 

[Up the Irons]

from what I heard from Mact, he believes in this core and the core is about 9 players deep, so you can pretty much kiss the playoffs goodbye for at least 3 more seasons. top 10 pick next year, too.

 

[Pennertration]

No it really doesnt. The single biggest issue for this team is mismanagement. The goaltending debacle and subsequent fumbling, poor asset management in an effort to stick a finger in the dyke is a good example of the constant mismanagement of assets that has plagued this team for over a decade.

More of the same.

There is NO light at the end of the tunnel.

Just more poor asset management, more poor drafting, more bad development/mishandling of players, more trade requests, more scapegoating of coaches, more firing and poor hiring of their replacements, more empty promises every off-season, more questionable contracts/signings, it goes on and on and on.

It wont stop until the cancer is cut out.

Alright, I'll bite. You fire Lowe and MacT today (and presumably Eakins). Who are your replacements? And no, you can't go back in time to a window of your choosing. It's clear who you want gone. Who do you put in their place right now?

 

[Moose Coleman]

Those are all very minor upgrades (a rearranging of mediocrity) and doesn't address any main needs.

But those were never going to be easy to address. It's possible he could have done more (say, swalloed his pride and signed Penner), but I don't think either of us are in a position to say that with any certainty. We just don't know what moves were there to be made.

Granted on the Smid deal (i guess i tried to block it out of my memory) but doesn't that make him look worse if anything, giving away a decent NHL defenseman for mediocre prospects.

It's not a great deal, but I don't think it'll be a disaster long term. the return wasn't great, but what could anyone expect for a 5-6-7 guy like that? Still, fair comment and at least that's a deal we can actually analyze versus ones which didn't take place.

I'm not saying that he needs to be turfed now or even Eakins for that matter because this was obviously going to be a longer term process with 2 rookies getting their feet wet but the early returns on his tenure are sketchy at best and his comments about the team making progress doesn't inspire much confidence and leads me to believe that he's absolutely clueless. It's scary for the future of the Oilers that he sees progress with this group, beyond frightening.

If he had come out full of fire and brimstone and blasted the group for stagnating and promised massive changes, some people would have been down on him for throwing the team under the bus and then not making big moves if those failed to materialize. There's no winning strategy there, which why I just don't put much stock in these kinds of public pronouncements one way or another.

 

[Groucho]

He fired a coach that finally showed signs of improvement with the team and hired in an over-hyped AHL coach.

I'm not convinced that Eakins is a terrible coach. I've got my own opinion that the players aren't playing for him, and my opinion has been formed from watching several players interviews and reading some of the things they've said.

I'm talking mainly about Ference and Smid.

 

[hmminvisiblecola1279]

Alright, I'll bite. You fire Lowe and MacT today (and presumably Eakins). Who are your replacements? And no, you can't go back in time to a window of your choosing. It's clear who you want gone. Who do you put in their place right now?

I'll bite. How about anyone not connected to the Oilers organization, former player or friend of Katz. That is a start. By the way, it isn't just IATL and a few select fans that want Lowe gone, he has burned so many bridges over the years. His comments towards the fans and that "six rings" nonsense sealed the deal for many. You are happy with them, you are entitled to that. Their record on the other hand speaks for itself. The organization has never hired the best people under Katz's tenure, that isn't acceptable.

 

[Beerfish]

I'm not convinced that Eakins is a terrible coach. I've got my own opinion that the players aren't playing for him, and my opinion has been formed from watching several players interviews and reading some of the things they've said.

I'm talking mainly about Ference and Smid.

Unfortunately that is the #1 attribute you need from a coach. All of these coaches have systems, some better than others. It is a huge part of a coaches skill set to actually find out what makes the players tick and to get the best out of them. If he doesn't have that skill set he is lost, not all players are the same and you have to figure out what they need to play their best.

Edit: The thing that disturbed me the most of this whole Yakupov thing is when it was revealed that the coach has never talked to Yakupov one on one. I found that inconceivable.

 

[LTIR]

from what I heard from Mact, he believes in this core and the core is about 9 players deep, so you can pretty much kiss the playoffs goodbye for at least 3 more seasons. top 10 pick next year, too.

MacT said 8 player core that he wishes to surround with veteran role players.

so my guess: Hall, Nuge, Eberle, Yakupov, Gagner, J.Schultz, Ference, Nurse ?

5 of these wear a letter already, one is in Juniors and the other 2 are J.Schultz and Yakupov.

I just dont see us making the playoffs with RNH and Gagner as #1 and #2 C or Yak and Ebs as top 6 RWs.

 

[hmminvisiblecola1279]

Unfortunately that is the #1 attribute you need from a coach. All of these coaches have systems, some better than others. It is a huge part of a coaches skill set to actually find out what makes the players tick and to get the best out of them. If he doesn't have that skill set he is lost, not all players are the same and you have to figure out what they need to play their best.

Edit: The thing that disturbed me the most of this whole Yakupov thing is when it was revealed that the coach has never talked to Yakupov one on one. I found that inconceivable.

The Oilers over the years to me have had very poor communication skills with their players to the fans.

 

[Groucho]

Can you think of any other gm's around the league who announce they are trading players, naming them by name, and/or announcing they are trading top three overall picks MONTHS in advance?

I cant. You know why? Because it is abso****inglutely moronic, that's why.

I cant believe there are still those who would defend this crew of losers.

Dale Tallon just did it.

I don't see a big deal over MacT saying he's open to moving the pick.
What difference does it make if he emails a bunch of GM's? Chances are those GM's and scouts talk to each other anyway, there's only 30 teams in this league and I doubt players being shopped are some big secret.

 

[LTIR]

I'll bite. How about anyone not connected to the Oilers organization, former player or friend of Katz. That is a start. By the way, it isn't just IATL and a few select fans that want Lowe gone, he has burned so many bridges over the years. His comments towards the fans and that "six rings" nonsense sealed the deal for many. You are happy with them, you are entitled to that. Their record on the other hand speaks for itself. The organization has never hired the best people under Katz's tenure, that isn't acceptable.

And how will this make the Oilers a better team? I agree that Lowe still has a job because he has connections with Katz but that doesnt mean that a non Oiler would be any better. The only difference between that un-connected person and Lowe would be the trust level of ownership group. Right now we are only firing GMs and coaches.. we will just be including another position on the firing row.

We need to fix the team instead of replacing the management group.

Dubnyk sucking has nothing to do with Lowe. same goes for guys like Hall, Yak and Schultz.

 

[Groucho]

My comments in bold.

My point was he made some moves, he tried to address his perceived problems with the team. And he did address some of them, he didn't address them all. But to be fair there were/are tons of holes.

Gordon isn't crashing back to earth. He takes nearly every face off in the Oilers D zone that wasn't an icing and he wins around 60% of them. Him chipping in offensively at the beginning of the season was just a bonus.

I'll admit MacT has made a few bad moves too. The Eakins signing is looking sus (though many on this board were happy with it at the time, much like the Belanger signing) and trading Smid away for basically nothing (and the way this trade went down makes me think Smid may have wanted out... or did something...)

 

[Pennertration]

I'll bite. How about anyone not connected to the Oilers organization, former player or friend of Katz. That is a start. By the way, it isn't just IATL and a few select fans that want Lowe gone, he has burned so many bridges over the years. His comments towards the fans and that "six rings" nonsense sealed the deal for many. You are happy with them, you are entitled to that. Their record on the other hand speaks for itself. The organization has never hired the best people under Katz's tenure, that isn't acceptable.

Haha ... "anyone" is a great answer. Very helpful.

And, for the record, I'm fine if Lowe gets fired. He's the next logical head that should roll.

But I don't think Eakins and MacT should be fired AT THIS TIME. And just because I think that, does NOT mean that I am "happy with them." My point is, you need to have another bullet in the chamber if you start getting rid of people - and I don't see a clear upgrade on Eakins or MacT AT THIS TIME. But I guess that just makes me a "shill" for management, right?

 

[Moose Coleman]

Dale Tallon just did it.

Another rookie GM, right?

 

[Groucho]

Unfortunately that is the #1 attribute you need from a coach. All of these coaches have systems, some better than others. It is a huge part of a coaches skill set to actually find out what makes the players tick and to get the best out of them. If he doesn't have that skill set he is lost, not all players are the same and you have to figure out what they need to play their best.

Edit: The thing that disturbed me the most of this whole Yakupov thing is when it was revealed that the coach has never talked to Yakupov one on one. I found that inconceivable.

I agree with you. This was his MO and he let the Edmonton media know when he signed.
Eakins outlined a few things right away, that he wanted the team to be held to a high level of fitness and he wanted them busting ass and competing every night.
I think a group of early 20's players who're used to having it their way and playing the way they want really don't like hearing that. It seems like the older players on the team who have been around have no problem playing this way...

 

[McDoused]

The one thing I found that was hypocritical was that he doesn't want to make a move for the now at the expense of the future yet goes on to say that he would move the first rounder to help the team right now.

I don't see how moving our first rounder is better for the future of the club...

 

[BoldNewLettuce]

The sad reality is that mact will keep the core until next year and then when they are still awful make some trades and then the year after that when they're still awful he'll fire eakins. October 2015

 

[Groucho]

The one thing I found that was hypocritical was that he doesn't want to make a move for the now at the expense of the future yet goes on to say that he would move the first rounder to help the team right now.

I don't see how moving our first rounder is better for the future of the club...

He said he's not willing to trade out the young core for immediate help.
A pick that hasn't been made yet isn't part of our young core.
He also stipulated that he wouldn't move the pick unless a young guy either in his ELC or just coming off it was coming back. IE; somebody who's already playing NHL hockey.

 

[hmminvisiblecola1279]

And how will this make the Oilers a better team? I agree that Lowe still has a job because he has connections with Katz but that doesnt mean that a non Oiler would be any better. The only difference between that un-connected person and Lowe would be the trust level of ownership group. Right now we are only firing GMs and coaches.. we will just be including another position on the firing row.

We need to fix the team instead of replacing the management group.

Dubnyk sucking has nothing to do with Lowe. same goes for guys like Hall, Yak and Schultz.

I guess you missed the fact they have changed many players over the Katz years with the same results. The constant with this organization, Lowe, our two beloved assistant coaches, and hiring retreads in MacT and Howson. Spare me they have nothing to do with this mess.

 

[hmminvisiblecola1279]

Haha ... "anyone" is a great answer. Very helpful.

And, for the record, I'm fine if Lowe gets fired. He's the next logical head that should roll.

But I don't think Eakins and MacT should be fired AT THIS TIME. And just because I think that, does NOT mean that I am "happy with them." My point is, you need to have another bullet in the chamber if you start getting rid of people - and I don't see a clear upgrade on Eakins or MacT AT THIS TIME. But I guess that just makes me a "shill" for management, right?

Maybe you are, I don't care if you are. Their results thus far speak for themselves and the tripe that MacT spewed yesterday that the team is making progress was laughable. For the record, no ones job should be safe from players to management. Lowe should be the first and a new president should have the latitude to shape the organization in a way he sees fit without having to keep on people.

 

[Halibut]

The one thing I found that was hypocritical was that he doesn't want to make a move for the now at the expense of the future yet goes on to say that he would move the first rounder to help the team right now.

I don't see how moving our first rounder is better for the future of the club...

All depends on what you get in trade. Package it for a legit #1 d-man and it could definitely help this team.

 

[Senor Catface]

All depends on what you get in trade. Package it for a legit #1 d-man and it could definitely help this team.

I guess the worry then is what his idea of a #1 d-man is.

I worry about a GM that doesn't inform the entire league a player is available before he trades him.