Confirmed with Link: Ethan Bear signs 2-year $2M AAV

[Behind Enemy Lines]

I thought of him as the most over rated prospect to ever to play for the Oilers to be honest

Wow. In a universe of Jason Bonsignore's, Nail Yakupov's, Paajarvi's among many with higher draft pedigree than Ethan Bear, I can't really see your point of view. The Oil rebuild(s) is built upon an army of overhyped never was through chronic bad drafting and deep end development fail. I don't see Bear anywhere near the 'most over rated' lists. Over achievers list for sure and a guy whose hit some hard wall of adversity after a pretty seamless first year last season. You're a hard marker. Personally, I also think highly unrealistic of a sub age 25 player in the most difficult position on the ice.

 

[Aerchon]

Bear has earned a solid bit of leash. He is not playing well but is coming off injury and still isn't a tire fire imo. Still better than Jones for whatever that is worth.

 

[Oilhawks]

The guy is coming back from a concussion with a hefty amount of time off. Give him some time...

This is probably the biggest reason why he hasn’t looked good since his return. He should be slow played on the bottom pair for now, that’s on the coach.

Nurse - Barrie
Bouchard - Larsson
Russell - Bear

Something like that has to be better than the pairings iced last night. Lagesson in for Russell when he’s healed up.

 

[Stoneman89]

Honestly, I never thought he looked that good pre concussion this year. And certainly not the playins. I know his skating and size are always going to be issues and he'll have to continue to work extra hard on the everything else, but I really think the Oilers are using him too far up the pecking ladder right now. He is only in his second full year, and should be protected some. Keep him in the bottom pairing if you can. Nurse/Barrie should have stayed together, as they were having success during his time off anyhow, but that is one more coaching decision that is a head scratcher. Last night was painful to watch.

 

[alphahelix]

Honestly, I never thought he looked that good pre concussion this year. And certainly not the playins. I know his skating and size are always going to be issues and he'll have to continue to work extra hard on the everything else, but I really think the Oilers are using him too far up the pecking ladder right now. He is only in his second full year, and should be protected some. Keep him in the bottom pairing if you can. Nurse/Barrie should have stayed together, as they were having success during his time off anyhow, but that is one more coaching decision that is a head scratcher. Last night was painful to watch.

The problem is that without a concussion, without being a rookie or a sophomore, without accountability, Barrie still creates 2 or 3 grade A opportunities for the opposing team every game. That is a problem, when your Nurse pairing is being expected to win the game and has best-in-league snipers out against it. How can you play Barrie there against good teams? It’s a nice luxury to have 2 quality puckmovers against scrub teams but its a liability to have Barrie out against top 6 on elite teams and that is simply never going to change. We are growing our own guys like Bear who are much more steady handed on average and that is going to come with growing pains. It’s simply necessary.

 

[Blue Line Turnover]

While it's unfair to criticize Bear at this stage post-concussion, I don't think it's fair to compare him to Petry's development curve. Petry showed amazing skating, had an elite shot, amazing passing skills, is 6'3" 208 lbs, has a good reach, and could absolutely crush dudes with hits when he wanted to be physical; he showed all of these traits at a young age.
Bear is not going to grow a few inches on his height or reach, is not going to become a much better skater than he is now, and will most likely remain at his current level of offensive skill. He was my favourite prospect before Broberg, but we have to be realistic; on a good team, he is a bottom pairing defenseman.

 

[alphahelix]

While it's unfair to criticize Bear at this stage post-concussion, I don't think it's fair to compare him to Petry's development curve. Petry showed amazing skating, had an elite shot, amazing passing skills, is 6'3" 208 lbs, has a good reach, and could absolutely crush dudes with hits when he wanted to be physical; he showed all of these traits at a young age.
Bear is not going to grow a few inches on height or reach, is not going to become a much better skater than he is now, and will most likely remain at his current level of offensive skill. He was my favourite prospect before Broberg, but we have to be realistic; on a good team, he is a bottom pairing defenseman.

No one here thought Petry had an elite shot when he was breaking in. He didnt use his size that much either, although it was definitely beneficial to his defending. I was a huge Petry proponent here when he broke in but there weren’t too many supporters around these parts. He probably got even less respect than Bear. When the team is unsuccessful, everyone is pointing fingers even at the guys who are doing their job. When the team is successful, whatever rube is paired with Nurse gets treated like a God, and so on.

 

[Lacaar]

I'm only speculating but last year he came into training camp in amazing shape and had a good season.
The epidemic came and I'm guessing when the playins came around.. that strength and conditioning wasn't there and he didn't perform quite as well.
This year.. especially with the concussion I wonder if his physical fitness isn't there. He's looking slow (maybe it's mentally slow).. he's getting his ass kicked.. like f***ing worked over in 1 on 1 battles. Sorry his attempt to be physical on what was the second goal last night was downright laughable. He didn't need to truck the guy.. just be faster and more agile.. he was neither. he got shubbed of Hymans back (can't really recall the player, he was bigger for sure) and then the Toronto player turned to make a nice casual pass to an open guy in front of the net. I seriously laughed at how innefective Bear was there.

He needs to take some time off and pound away at the gym I feel.
The Oilers need to take a good long evaluation of this player.

If He has to be in supreme physical shape and health to be effective.. He may not be a player we can bank on in the future.
Unfortunately concussions cloud this all up.

All I do know is right now this guy is a liability.. for whatever the reasons.
Perhaps we can afford the luxury of letting him find himself again but man.. it's costing us games imo.

 

[LaGu]

Excellent signing, period.

It's a bet, as with all signings. But a very good one imo.

 

[Canovin]

His value is at its highest given what he signed for. I'd sell high now before the league figures him out. Bear + a sweetener should really get us a good player like Rakell.

 

[Aerchon]

While it's unfair to criticize Bear at this stage post-concussion, I don't think it's fair to compare him to Petry's development curve. Petry showed amazing skating, had an elite shot, amazing passing skills, is 6'3" 208 lbs, has a good reach, and could absolutely crush dudes with hits when he wanted to be physical; he showed all of these traits at a young age.
Bear is not going to grow a few inches on height or reach, is not going to become a much better skater than he is now, and will most likely remain at his current level of offensive skill. He was my favourite prospect before Broberg, but we have to be realistic; on a good team, he is a bottom pairing defenseman.

I'm a person that would pick size and skill over just skill even if it means giving up a bit of skill.

However, your post is ignoring Bears offensive numbers in junior and generally his meteoric rise from his draft +1 to now. Plus his play this last years is far above a bottom pairing guy.

Bear has more upside than any defenseman we have not named Nurse or Bouchard. He may be years away from achieving that but he absolutely has it.

The nhl is no longer a place where you need to big, especially on defense. And his skating was obviously more than good enough to be a top 4 option for awhile now.

There is no secret combination of size, skill, and speed for a player to succeed. It's up to each player to adapt and improve and Bear has many years before anyone should be thinking he is only x y or z type/level of defenseman.

He has progressed in leaps and bounds to date. Maybe he is done developing but his trajectory certainly suggests he isn't and defense don't fully develope until 25 to 28. Point in case Nurses season to date.

 

[belair]

While it's unfair to criticize Bear at this stage post-concussion, I don't think it's fair to compare him to Petry's development curve. Petry showed amazing skating, had an elite shot, amazing passing skills, is 6'3" 208 lbs, has a good reach, and could absolutely crush dudes with hits when he wanted to be physical; he showed all of these traits at a young age.
Bear is not going to grow a few inches on height or reach, is not going to become a much better skater than he is now, and will most likely remain at his current level of offensive skill. He was my favourite prospect before Broberg, but we have to be realistic; on a good team, he is a bottom pairing defenseman.

I don't believe that it's a certainty that his offensive game necessarily flat lines. The problem I have is that the Oilers are a team with playoff aspirations. They're not in a position where they continue to try and compete while simultaneously hoping that this guy continues to figure things out.

Last season Bear was a godsend in a time where our need at RD was apparent with the injury to Larsson. But now that Tyson Barrie is here today and Evan Bouchard is showing he can hang around at this level, Bear is kind of 'found money' at this point. Similar to how Benning was in his later years here. I'm not convinced he's necessarily needed anymore.

 

[Stoneman89]

The problem is that without a concussion, without being a rookie or a sophomore, without accountability, Barrie still creates 2 or 3 grade A opportunities for the opposing team every game. That is a problem, when your Nurse pairing is being expected to win the game and has best-in-league snipers out against it. How can you play Barrie there against good teams? It’s a nice luxury to have 2 quality puckmovers against scrub teams but its a liability to have Barrie out against top 6 on elite teams and that is simply never going to change. We are growing our own guys like Bear who are much more steady handed on average and that is going to come with growing pains. It’s simply necessary.

It is definitely NOT necessary to crush a young guys confidence who is coming off a concussion. Barrie isn't a great defensive option, but at this point, Bear clearly needs some protection down the lineup. He got destroyed last night.

 

[Draiskull]

Rough night and maybe even the whole season for Bear.
Way too early to give up on him though.

 

[Blue Line Turnover]

No one here thought Petry had an elite shot when he was breaking in. He didnt use his size that much either, although it was definitely beneficial to his defending. I was a huge Petry proponent here when he broke in but there weren’t too many supporters around these parts. He probably got even less respect than Bear. When the team is unsuccessful, everyone is pointing fingers even at the guys who are doing their job. When the team is successful, whatever rube is paired with Nurse gets treated like a God, and so on.

Petry definitely had an absolute accurate rocket of a shot, but he didn't unleash it as many liked. He also threw some absolute bone crunchers including a few hip checks that we raved about.
I like Bear and hope that he improves, but it would be beneficial to his development to keep him on the bottom pairing to get his confidence up after that poor showing during the play-in series.

 

[belair]

It is definitely NOT necessary to crush a young guys confidence who is coming off a concussion. Barrie isn't a great defensive option, but at this point, Bear clearly needs some protection down the lineup. He got destroyed last night.

Who could've foreseen that?

It's pretty apparent that Bear as a defensive option isn't the most reliable either. And when he's given soft minutes with the team's offensive drivers, he doesn't really provide much in terms of offense individually. Barrie and Nurse together are far more polished offensively. So playing Bear ahead of Barrie essentially handcuffs your team's ability to generate and sustain offense.

 

[ThePhoenixx]

It is definitely NOT necessary to crush a young guys confidence who is coming off a concussion. Barrie isn't a great defensive option, but at this point, Bear clearly needs some protection down the lineup. He got destroyed last night.

I agree.

It's as if they re-worked the whole defense to get him back in the lineup and then didn't protect him. Even threw the prized rookie on his wrong side and made him look dumb to make Bear comfortable. Then throw him with Nurse just cause.

He will sell tickets...

 

[BarDownBobo]

It’s definitely too soon to be writing off Bear, but I do think the start to this season has really shown why a bridge deal was the best idea for the team. I remember the year that Brandon Davidson came up and was a huge surprise for the team people were screaming for a long term extension for him as well, and that would’ve been a big mistake in hindsight. I felt the same way with Bear, you want to see a lot more before handing him that kind of a deal. It might end up costing the team another 500k or so if he shows he’s worth it in the next two years, but that’s way better than if you would’ve given him an extension like Marino got in Pitt.

I don’t think anyone is running him out of town, but if Barrie is willing to extend in the $5M-$6M range this summer it would be a decent idea to try and cash in on Bear and move him for a top 6 winger like a Debrusk.

 

[Stoneman89]

Who could've foreseen that?

It's pretty apparent that Bear as a defensive option isn't the most reliable either. And when he's given soft minutes with the team's offensive drivers, he doesn't really provide much in terms of offense individually. Barrie and Nurse together are far more polished offensively. So playing Bear ahead of Barrie essentially handcuffs your team's ability to generate and sustain offense.

Since Bear came back, Nurse has spent most of the games trying to cover up for him and has gotten away from his own game, IMO. And Barrie just doesn't seem to work well with Larrson or whoever.

 

[Oilhawks]

Since Bear came back, Nurse has spent most of the games trying to cover up for him and has gotten away from his own game, IMO. And Barrie just doesn't seem to work well with Larrson or whoever.

Some pointed out that Nurse - Barrie's underlying stats looked rough but they looked good in game and were producing (albeit at a seemingly unsustainable range).

Not sure why Bear isn't being eased back into the lineup on the 3rd pair.

Tippett jumps back into a pairing that worked alright last year in Nurse - Bear, but needs 25+ games to go back to DRY. Hmmm...

 

[Draiskull]

No one here thought Petry had an elite shot when he was breaking in. He didnt use his size that much either, although it was definitely beneficial to his defending. I was a huge Petry proponent here when he broke in but there weren’t too many supporters around these parts. He probably got even less respect than Bear. When the team is unsuccessful, everyone is pointing fingers even at the guys who are doing their job. When the team is successful, whatever rube is paired with Nurse gets treated like a God, and so on.

I was a Petry supporter and there was a lot of hype around his shot when he was just a prospect especially after he won the hardest shot competition in some all star game.

The issue in EDM is that we have 4 2nd pairing RHDs and really need one to step up alongside Nurse.
Barrie and Bear have both struggled this season defensively. Bouchard looks promising but isnt ready to play top mins against hardest competition yet. It is something he would have to do if paired with Nurse.
We also do not have a 2nd pairing LHD.

Option 1 is to add a legit top pairing RD

Option 2 is to add a legit 2nd pairing LHD who would take load off of Nurse pairing and we would have pairing A, pairing B situation. Nurse-Barrie, xxxx-Bear with xxxx being Ekholm level minimum or a healthy Klefbom if we are to throw away this season.

Option 3 is to move Larsson up with Nurse and hope they work. Both are good enough against top opposition.

Option 4 is to stay with what we got and hope Barrie\Bear dont get eaten alive.

 

[Paralyzer008]

I have full belief in Bear.

Excellent passer who looks off right now on his decision-making.

He is 23 years old.

He was excellent pre-injury and I never agreed with the Tippett scratch. It reminds me a bit of when Matt Benning got concussed and came back, but Bear is much better at peak.

I think he got whipping boy status in the last two games for things not his fault in those last two games. Neither goal he was on for in the 2nd game was really his fault. He had a bad change in game 3, but the 3rd goal against I blame Neal for even putting us on the PK.

He doesn't look 100% and he made some mistakes that didn't end up in our net but it would be foolish to give up on him in such a sample. I know three posters who clearly have - you do you.

Guy has been back for FOUR games, played great vs Vancouver and the whole team looked subpar in all three Toronto games.

 

[GMofOilers]

I have full belief in Bear.

Excellent passer who looks off right now on his decision-making.

He is 23 years old.

He was excellent pre-injury and I never agreed with the Tippett scratch. It reminds me a bit of when Matt Benning got concussed and came back, but Bear is much better at peak.

I think he got whipping boy status in the last two games for things not his fault in those last two games. Neither goal he was on for in the 2nd game was really his fault. He had a bad change in game 3, but the 3rd goal against I blame Neal for even putting us on the PK.

He doesn't look 100% and he made some mistakes that didn't end up in our net but it would be foolish to give up on him in such a sample. I know three posters who clearly have - you do you.

Guy has been back for FOUR games, played great vs Vancouver and the whole team looked subpar in all three Toronto games.

His biggest hold back is speed. Hes to slow for the NHL

 

[GOilers88]

His biggest hold back is speed. Hes to slow for the NHL

Did you think he was too slow for the NHL last season too?

 

[GMofOilers]

Did you think he was too slow for the NHL last season too?

You new here? Yes, I have said it from the start. He struggled since game 40 last year, Nurse got the blame for him being bad for some reason.