Player Discussion Oscar Klefbom

frag2

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Mar 8, 2006
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Remember the days when Klef and Nurse were considered good skaters? Klef looks slower than ever and his shot isnt worth a wet fart anymore. Bouchard and Broberg should be training like beasts looking at what they have to displace to get into the NHL.

Yep. I've said it in the Broberg draft thread. I suspected maybe Holland drafted him simply because all our D suck at skating. Even Nurses skating has been mediocre all season. The strangest is Klef seems to have gotten much much slower the past few years

Considering who Bouchard and Broberg are up against, theoretically its not difficult to surpass. But the problem is the league is still built around respecting veterans blah blah and naturally, the incumbents will be given benefit of doubt regardless how much better those 2 are.
 

Oilhawks

Oden's Ride Over Nordland
Nov 24, 2011
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Yep. I've said it in the Broberg draft thread. I suspected maybe Holland drafted him simply because all our D suck at skating. Even Nurses skating has been mediocre all season. The strangest is Klef seems to have gotten much much slower the past few years

Considering who Bouchard and Broberg are up against, theoretically its not difficult to surpass. But the problem is the league is still built around respecting veterans blah blah and naturally, the incumbents will be given benefit of doubt regardless how much better those 2 are.

Yup, makes you wonder if playing one or both of them in the series means we're talking about if the Oilers can knock out the Hawks in game 5 today. I think Bouchard should have played in the exhibition game and drawn in when Larsson went out, with Jones on the bottom pair over Russell or Benning.
 

frag2

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Mar 8, 2006
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Yup, makes you wonder if playing one or both of them in the series means we're talking about if the Oilers can knock out the Hawks in game 5 today. I think Bouchard should have played in the exhibition game and drawn in when Larsson went out, with Jones on the bottom pair over Russell or Benning.

Pretty much. But you know how old school coaches are? Rooks never get the look.
 

McJadeddog

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Sep 25, 2003
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I am very hesitant to start asking for the young defenders to step in. Time and time again with this franchise, we have thought that we had a young player that was going to become a top-pairing dman. Lots of people thought it with Klefbom (most I would argue), some thought it about Nurse, and some (although less, due to how he arrived in Edmonton) thought it about Larsson. All of these thoughts were wrong, and none of these players are really good top-pairing players. They are all essentially 2nd pairing guys being forced to play top-pairing roles. I think the same thing is happening with Bear right now. He has looked good for a rookie, and already people are saying he can be a top-pairing player. Not a chance.

We keep putting dmen in roles that are above their playing ability because we don't have that #1/2 guy that forces everybody else down the roster 1 peg. Bouchard doesn't look like that player at all, as he will likely be a 2nd/3rd pairing PP-specialist guy. Broberg is ridiculously young and only started playing defense as a teenager a few years ago. His "defensive IQ" likely has miles and miles to go, and may never get there. Yes, he is a ridiculous skater (I just watched some video again of him while making this post, and he really is just a bonkers skater, wow) and he has really good size at 6'4" and about 210#, but I'll take a slower, small dman who knows his positioning well over a guy with all the physical tools (see Nurse as a primary example of this).

We have to let Bear, Bouchard and Broberg (the 3 Bs, lol) slowly mature if we want to home-grow our own potential top-pairing guy.

Personally, I think this will take too long and will be wasting too many years of the 29/97 contract. I would be looking to trade one of the 3 Bs + something else (maybe our first rounder) for some immediate help on defence if I was the GM. 29 and 97 are too great of talents to waste while we wait for our defensive prospects to mature. I wonder if a guy like Broberg, who is generating a lot of hype and is young enough that he hasn't "disproved himself" at the NHL level yet, plus the 1st rounder this year in a relatively deep draft would be enough to get a #2 defender from some team?
 

Ritchie Valens

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Sep 24, 2007
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This is what I think of Klefbom after that showing. It's not the "grouch" part either.
 
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Dazed and Confused

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Aug 10, 2007
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I'll more or less repost what I had in the Nurse theard as it applies to Klef too:

This team needs to reduce both Nurse's and Klef's (offensive) roles going forward.


They're both super effective minute eaters/workhorses, and having those two able to play 45 quality minutes vs. any matchup is a nice luxury (most of the time...). However both of them have the polish and precision of a workhorse, and start to underwhelm when put in specialized situations.

Both go with a very "meat and potatoes" approach on offence. Not bad, but there isn't a team in the league that has worse to-go options offensively on the backend.

If those two are driving your top 4, than those last spots on the defence need to go to players that can succeed in specalized roles. So if Bear and Larsson are rounding out the top 4, then you need a more dynamic pairing than Russell-Benning for the mop up minutes, even if they're not bad per se.


They don't need to bring in a true #1, just someone who can survive in the top 4 (even just occasionally) and properly drive the play. A Shattenkirk, Barrie, or Gardiner. Even a Jones-Green/Bouchard pairing would be a massive upgrade if you're just sticking with with internal options.
 
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Sempiternal

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Jul 5, 2014
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He's overrated and mildly injury prone. I'd trade both him and Larson without losing any sleep.
 

Bryanbryoil

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Sep 13, 2004
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I'll more or less repost what I had in the Nurse theard as it applies to Klef too:

This team needs to reduce both Nurse's and Klef's (offensive) roles going forward.


They're both super effective minute eaters/workhorses, and having those two able to play 45 quality minutes vs. any matchup is a nice luxury (most of the time...). However both of them have the polish and precision of a workhorse, and start to underwhelm when put in specialized situations.

Both go with a very "meat and potatoes" approach on offence. Not bad, but there isn't a team in the league that has worse to-go options offensively on the backend.

If those two are driving your top 4, than those last spots on the defence need to go to players that can succeed in specalized roles. So if Bear and Larsson are rounding out the top 4, then you need a more dynamic pairing than Russell-Benning for the mop up minutes, even if they're not bad per se.


They don't need to bring in a true #1, just someone who can survive in the top 4 (even just occasionally) and properly drive the play. A Shattenkirk, Barrie, or Gardiner. Even a Jones-Green/Bouchard pairing would be a massive upgrade if you're just sticking with with internal options.

My biggest bitch is that neither have a slapper worth a f***. I dont expect them to be Brian Leetch, Bobby Orr or Paul Coffey out there, but how about being able to hit the net with some accuracy at 95ish miles an hour on a one timer once in a damn while?
 

Bryanbryoil

Pray For Ukraine
Sep 13, 2004
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Evidently, it's all but certain he will be back.

I don't take those comments like that at all. He WANTS to come back, but it will depend on his pain levels going forward. Being on pain killers/NSAI's long term = not living a very long life. Hopefully the surgery minimizes or better yet removes his pain and then if he feels confident in it, he can try to come back to the NHL.
 
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KlefDown

I adore Soli
May 2, 2014
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If his shoulder is really as bad as he says he is, his decline in play over the last 2/3 years can honestly be forgiven

I messed up my shoulder playing beer league 2 years ago and I still feel the effects of it to this day, can't imagine how bad it must be for a pro
 

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