Player Discussion Jay Woodcroft

[Zguy370]

This team is so easy to defend because they employ plugs on the PP and point men with muffin shots. Klefbom is one of the few that can blast it but hes been pretty useless this year as far as hockey IQ goes.

I wouldn't be surprised if Klefblom is nursing some injury and is kinda forced into the lineup because the other 2D are also out. He is too good a player, to be having this crap start to the season. Someone had mentioned a back problem? I have no doubt he will elevate his play again, barring some hidden injury and/or when he recovers.
Now back to the Topic; So is he fired yet?

 

[SourOil]

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

this guy is a grade A moron...Special teams have cost us games on way too many occasions

 

[GameChanger]

I don't know the person so he may be a good guy, but in his shoes I'd be so embarassed to join the team when they practise and play. I mean the players are not stupid. I'm absolutely sure they know what a lousy job he's been doing. They are also aware of Jesse's shot and must be wondering what's going on there. I wouldn't even wonder if that eats their motivation a bit.

 

[YEGman]

Woodcroft should be looking for work today

Woodcroft should have been looking for work quite some time ago but not in the Oiler parallel universe that we keep seeing....

 

[McBeastMode]

We are going to stick with the same plan, same perimeter passing. My Pee Wee coach swore by this system.
As the old saying goes, If it's broke, don't fix it, or something like that..

 

[Dazed and Confused]

I wouldn't be surprised if Klefblom is nursing some injury and is kinda forced into the lineup because the other 2D are also out. He is too good a player, to be having this crap start to the season. Someone had mentioned a back problem? I have no doubt he will elevate his play again, barring some hidden injury and/or when he recovers.
Now back to the Topic; So is he fired yet?

What I don't get then, if Klefbom's not 100%, why don't you have Auvitu -a guy billed as a powerplay specialist- on the PP over him?

Klef's usage and the continued "4LHS and Letestu" set-up are destroying the PP this year.

It's not like Klefbom's the only PP option on the roster, even without Sekera. I'd be fine giving PP time to Auvitu, Nurse, Benning, and even Russell and Davidson vs. this current edition of Klefbom...

They've also played with the idea of taking Draisaitl off the top unit, so I don't understand why that can't do that and put any of Strome, Puljujarvi, Kassian, Slepyshev (basically any RH shot with the ability to carry the puck) in there instead.


Strome-McDavid-Lucic
Letestu-Auvitu/Nurse/Davidson/Russell

Maroon-Draisaitl-RNH
Puljujarvi-Benning

 

[Dazed and Confused]

If I was trying to fit/adjust the PP using Woodcroft's set up (and healthy) then I'd be hoping to see...

Strome-McDavid-Lucic
Puljujarvi-Klefbom

Kassian-Draisaitl-RNH
Slepyshev/Benning-Sekera

(I'm foreseeing Maroon and Letestu traded)

Or... My personal want for the PP...

Unit 1
Kassian-Draisaitl-McDavid
RNH-Benning

A PP built around the movement of the 3 centres rotating, allowing for a quick backdoor plays and reverses going either way. If he play goes RW to LW you can set up the next LH shot behind the play. If it's RW to LW, you can now reverse to Benning at the point or Kassian diwn low, both of whom are set up to 1 time the puck.

Unit 2
Puljujarvi-Strome-Lucic
Sekera-Klefbom

Here you have Pulju and Strome QB'ing on the LW side, with both Sekera and Klefbom in shooting positions. You can also reverse this so Sekera's QB'ing at the top of the zone with both Pulju and Klefbom serving as big shots on either side of him.

 

[fuswald]

Get rid of him, and don't have a special pp line.
Run the lines like there is no pp. Utilizing ALL lines. Each line runs a different style. Confuse the opponent. More creativity.

 

[Tobias Kahun]

I would rather davidson than Klef on the PP, he has a rocket aswell.

 

[KingKhron]

He refused to ever change his philosophy he brought from San Jose and look at the blatant difference between those two units. He played like we had a Brent Burns for the first 2-3 months of last year. Many teams employ that slap pass to the man in the middle like they did with Drai tipping plenty home last year and it can be almost unstoppable when done perfectly. You almost never see a person in that zone anymore. Pass ten times, try and have the spirit of Souray take over Klefbom to wire it but don’t have a big body within 5 feet of the net, the thing fans complained about for a decade and then Lucic and Maroon end up on the team but who cares anymore?

 

[oobga]

We are going to stick with the same plan, same perimeter passing. My Pee Wee coach swore by this system.
As the old saying goes, If it's broke, don't fix it, or something like that..

“OK boys, here is the plan. McDavid, you be like Jumbo Joe. Letestu, you will be Pavelski. Klef, you be Burns, can you shoot right? No? Too bad, be Burns anyways, or Boyle if you prefer. Lucic, I dunno, try to be Couture I guess. Drai, you can be Marleau. Ok boys, I think we have this figured out, good luck. Wait, what? You want more from me? The guys you are supposed to be never needed any help, so shut up.”

 

[redgrant]

Literally will still have a job tomorrow.

 

[YEGman]

So sad that our special teams are so dreadful....

 

[t0nedeff]

Its getting as bad as it used to be for this organization letting idiotic personnel remain with the team when its so obvious they deserve to be getting their walking papers. I hope next year is fresh and we don't have to watch Mclellan and his gang of idiots keep this team down where there idiotic methods.

 

[Del Preston]

Another game where they fail on the PP. If they scored on one of the two in the first period it would have been an entirely different game.

Tonight was the 20th time in 31 games the Oilers' power play has been shutout (one other game they didn't get a PP). The PP is 0/46 in those twenty games.

 

[GodPucker]

Yo

Another game where they fail on the PP. If they scored on one of the two in the first period it would have been an entirely different game.

Tonight was the 20th time in 31 games the Oilers' power play has been shutout (one other game they didn't get a PP). The PP is 0/46 in those twenty games.

Can' fire Todd' BFF. No accountability here

 

[joestevens29]

I thought our PP has been better. They said we are at 15th. Considering where it was I don't know that being 15th is all that bad.

 

[Porkleaker]

It's 17th but they're not scoring when it counts (5 on 3) they'll just light it up one game and get shut out the next. The PK is abysmal at 31st so special teams are terrible.

 

[frag2]

 

[THall4]

Teams adjusted to the Oilers PP, which looks actually quite easy to defend considering the personnel they have to deploy. 2 set plays...that's it.

Assistant coaches rarely, if ever, get fired during the season...they don't need to fire Woodcroft (yet) but they should bring in a guy like Perry Pearn whose a special teams wizard or we might as well call it a season and look forward to the draft again. The PP and PK have cost us far too many games to just "let them figure out"...****in do something.

 

[GameChanger]

Assistant coaches rarely, if ever, get fired during the season...they don't need to fire Woodcroft (yet) but they should bring in a guy like Perry Pearn whose a special teams wizard or we might as well call it a season and look forward to the draft again. The PP and PK have cost us far too many games to just "let them figure out"...****in do something.

Might be a good idea, but before that they should really give Pulju and maybe Nurse a few PP shifts. Then again, they do need to do something drastic about the PK, too. The Oilers should have enough suitable guys for the PP and PK so this level is faaaar from acceptable.

 

[t0nedeff]

What I don't get then, if Klefbom's not 100%, why don't you have Auvitu -a guy billed as a powerplay specialist- on the PP over him?

Klef's usage and the continued "4LHS and Letestu" set-up are destroying the PP this year.

It's not like Klefbom's the only PP option on the roster, even without Sekera. I'd be fine giving PP time to Auvitu, Nurse, Benning, and even Russell and Davidson vs. this current edition of Klefbom...

They've also played with the idea of taking Draisaitl off the top unit, so I don't understand why that can't do that and put any of Strome, Puljujarvi, Kassian, Slepyshev (basically any RH shot with the ability to carry the puck) in there instead.


Strome-McDavid-Lucic
Letestu-Auvitu/Nurse/Davidson/Russell

Maroon-Draisaitl-RNH
Puljujarvi-Benning

We tried Russel on the pp already and he was horrible. It was just as bad on the ice as it was even reading it on the pregame line up card. The problem with having Nurse/Russel on the pp is there shots are jekyll and hide. Hide shows up 99 percent of the time with both throwing muffin shots from far out. They should have tried Larsson earlier on the pp when he was really opening up offensively 5on5. They need a right shot d man and a right shot forward (JP) on the pp to give Mcdavid 2 options for 1 timers as well as 2 options down low. Both ends of that strategy will open the other one up its astonishing that this idiot can't see that.

 

[BoldNewLettuce]

We are going to stick with the same plan, same perimeter passing. My Pee Wee coach swore by this system.
As the old saying goes, If it's broke, don't fix it, or something like that..

woodcroft; you see this....this is "the tip".
rnh; that's the half-wa-
woodcroft; WE WANT pucks funnelled to the tip at all times.
drai; do you mean to the net? or funnel pucks to the half-wa-
woodcroft: IF WE FUNNEL ENOUGH....pucks....it creats what I call "a tipping point
team; *crickets*
woodcroft; ....now in another movie i watched yesterday......falling down....featuring michael douglas....*trails off*
woodcroft: have any of you seeen the movie tipping point by Director Michel Poulette?
*Broissoit half raises hand*
woodcroft; here..*checks cell phone*.....imdb describes it as "A medical student is desperate to solve a murder to prove that she's not having a psychological breakdown, as her family and friends believe her to be."-----this is what we want going forward.....for both special teams.
team; *crickets*

 

[redgrant]

Why for the love of God won't they change up the pp personnel even a little?