Post-Game Talk: Panthers 4, Oilers 1

[Jimmi McJenkins]

There's that. Regroup with a couple days off and decide if the season is something they still want to strive for

 

[FlameChampion]

Well with new guys like Domi and Pettersson on fire i wouldn’t say those teams are that much worse personnel wise, but I get your point. Neither of those teams have a true number 1 D and are getting things done this year, but it’s a small sample size and I do t think anyone expects these teams to be among the leagues elite by year end.

We got a glaring hole on D, which is why I think we’ll be a bubble team or worse no matter the coach. That being said, Tmacs definately does deserve criticism when the ONLY thing he seems to be able to do is blend lines, which really isn’t even coaching its praying and hoping.

So how many times has he Mcblended and we still lost. Don’t get how in the days before a game he and the coaches can sit down and create some Lines, then think during 1 intermission throwing that all out and just create lines at random is the solution to anything.

Well Vancouver just scored 8 goals and Petterson got one point and Boeser is hurt. /shrug

I really think McLellan struggles to find roles for depth players. Star players generally do ok under him, but he just gets nothing from his depth.

 

[McOvechking]

I really don't want to watch another game with McLellan as coach. Same problems every game, even when they win. The team is going nowhere with him.

He's got a decent defensive system in place, but it's just not fun to watch.


In terms of offensive creativity, he gives the players room for absolutely none. I just don't think he's a good fit for a group of guys that has McDavid, RNH, and Draisaitl on it. I'd love a Todd Nelson type coach who encourages creative offensive breakouts.

 

[Up the Irons]

I know Chiarelli has really gutted this team. But at the same time teams like Montreal, Vancouver can play well with a considerably worse roster. McLellan just doesnt seem to be able to get much out of his players. /shrug

Long island (Trotz)

 

[TheNumber4]

This team is doing for a bouchard and a bear

It's not like they defended any worse than anyone else in the bottom 4 this year.

Klef Larsson
Nurse bear
Russel Bouchard
Benning

Suddenly you have two legit pp threats who can hit forwards in stride.

Unfortunately I think it came down to the expansion draft for bouchard. No idea why bear isn't brought back up since he's healthy

I think part of it has to do with Benning just being signed by Chia and the organization wanting to save face and justify their NHL contract for an AHL talent. Actually I think a lot of TMacs inexplicable lineup decisions are directed from the top.

As fans it’s easy to point at it and see how stupid it is... but I think the organization thinks big picture. For example, Lucic sucks and has no hands, but if he isn’t on PP1 how we ever going to justify and hopefully have a chance at moving his contract.

 

[Verdadplus]

Fire Chiarelli tonight

 

[The Hound]

It’s funny how this team will go from looking like legit competitors to playing like we’ve already lost.

 

[space321]

@nabob Does it really hurt you that much to see this player struggling that you're willing to take the world on to defend him even in moments where he's showing the very weaknesses that are keeping him out of the NHL?

Watch the replay. Jesse Puljujarvi is at the end of a shift in his team's zone on a long change. He has the puck in the defensive zone and flips it straight up into the air. None of his teammates could anticipate that--especially Connor McDavid, who was at the opponents blueline. Yet somehow in your mind Connor McDavid is to blame for that goal?

He had three viable options that would've resulted in nothing happening--handing the puck to #93 who was standing next to him, wrapping the puck back around the boards to reverse to #77, or use his 6'4 frame to protect the puck himself and reverse back to the D zone to regroup. What he did was the wrong play and it resulted in a goal against.

It's a shining example of the little things he's doing that are causing him to have a difficult time finding chemistry on this team. The one thing you can take out of this lousy effort by the Oilers is a perfect reason for why Jesse needs to take a step back and figure out how to be an effective NHLer. The first thing is probably learning the language a bit better so he can actually communicate with his coaches and teammates.

The rest of our team also flip the puck out, like over 10 times per game. Try a bit harder to put all the fault on Puljujarvi for that goal please.

 

[Hopelesslucicfan]

Rushing prospects, haven't we learned anything? I'd rather Bouchard stay in junior for a year then start in the AHL and wait for callups.

I agree that he doesn't need to be rushed, but I believe a bottom pairing role with pp time is a good way to bring him along. Unfortunately this team can't provide any shelter

 

[TheNumber4]

Well Vancouver just scored 8 goals and Petterson got one point and Boeser is hurt. /shrug

I really think McLellan struggles to find roles for depth players. Star players generally do ok under him, but he just gets nothing from his depth.

Man when we first got Tmac didn’t he have a reputation of developing players well? Maybe that was an illusion bred from how good the Sharks are at drafting. Looking at their lineup and the amount of impact players they got directly from the draft and comparing to Oilers is depressing.

 

[Soundwave]

Think that little winning streak after the Winnipeg comeback bought Todd at least through till New Years. Team is too chicken shit to fire him, plus there's the fact that they spent money on these new assistants.

 

[nabob]

@nabob Does it really hurt you that much to see this player struggling that you're willing to take the world on to defend him even in moments where he's showing the very weaknesses that are keeping him out of the NHL?

Watch the replay. Jesse Puljujarvi is at the end of a shift in his team's zone on a long change. He has the puck in the defensive zone and flips it straight up into the air. None of his teammates could anticipate that--especially Connor McDavid, who was at the opponents blueline. Yet somehow in your mind Connor McDavid is to blame for that goal?

He had three viable options that would've resulted in nothing happening--handing the puck to #93 who was standing next to him, wrapping the puck back around the boards to reverse to #77, or use his 6'4 frame to protect the puck himself and reverse back to the D zone to regroup. What he did was the wrong play and it resulted in a goal against.

It's a shining example of the little things he's doing that are causing him to have a difficult time finding chemistry on this team. The one thing you can take out of this lousy effort by the Oilers is a perfect reason for why Jesse needs to take a step back and figure out how to be an effective NHLer. The first thing is probably learning the language a bit better so he can actually communicate with his coaches and teammates.

Still trying to pin both McDavid and Nuge making terrible defensive coverage plays on Puljujarvi. I have no problem talking about Puljujarvi’s faults. Your need to blame him for other players poor plays is not something I’m willing to discuss further.

 

[Verdadplus]

Fire Chiarelli tonight

 

[snipes]

Has Todd been fired?

 

[nexttothemoon]

Time for an emergency call up of Bouchard... all the Oilers dmen have apparently died offensively. Literally zero goals by any regular Oilers dman (top4) except 1 by Nurse.

Bouchard at least looked alive on the PP.

 

[McFlash97]

How low can the Oilers go....were pretty much fossil fuel at this point. Miles deep

 

[BlackDogg]

We won those other games in spite of Todd

 

[Soundwave]

We won those other games in spite of Todd

It was mainly the Chiasson boost IMO. Take that away and the same scoring problems from before manifest. Defensively they're not gonna be some powerhouse team so that isn't something to lean on.

Pretty clear now Talbot's 16-17 was him playing way over his head, so can't rely on that either.

 

[frag2]

@nabob Does it really hurt you that much to see this player struggling that you're willing to take the world on to defend him even in moments where he's showing the very weaknesses that are keeping him out of the NHL?

Watch the replay. Jesse Puljujarvi is at the end of a shift in his team's zone on a long change. He has the puck in the defensive zone and flips it straight up into the air. None of his teammates could anticipate that--especially Connor McDavid, who was at the opponents blueline. Yet somehow in your mind Connor McDavid is to blame for that goal?

He had three viable options that would've resulted in nothing happening--handing the puck to #93 who was standing next to him, wrapping the puck back around the boards to reverse to #77, or use his 6'4 frame to protect the puck himself and reverse back to the D zone to regroup. What he did was the wrong play and it resulted in a goal against.

It's a shining example of the little things he's doing that are causing him to have a difficult time finding chemistry on this team. The one thing you can take out of this lousy effort by the Oilers is a perfect reason for why Jesse needs to take a step back and figure out how to be an effective NHLer. The first thing is probably learning the language a bit better so he can actually communicate with his coaches and teammates.

He could score on his own net and he’ll somehow blame someone else.

JP is not an NHLr at this stage.

 

[Up the Irons]

Think that little winning streak after the Winnipeg comeback bought Todd at least through till New Years. Team is too chicken **** to fire him, plus there's the fact that they spent money on these new assistants.

agreed. theyll let the season slip away, then finally fire him when its too late.

even tho, i do believe its mostly a personnel problem, hes a broken for the players too.

 

[TheNumber4]

This team so disappointing. Was excited for this trash game cause of how Washington and Tampa went down. But then they get outworked and outplayed by the worst team in the League. I guess I could be positive and say Luongo was the one who beat us tonight and sometimes you run into a hot goalie. But then you watch that 2nd and see us generating nothing and it’s hard to come away with positives.

Then you watch scrubs who shouldn’t have made the team in the first place like Benning and you wonder if this team will ever right the ship.

 

[ZJuice]

Nelson, Todd Nelson

 

[Mr Tadakichi]

I mean, the Kings fired their coach during a win streak. C'mon chia, do something.

 

[belair]

The rest of our team also flip the puck out, like over 10 times per game. Try a bit harder to put all the fault on Puljujarvi for that goal please.

There are right times and wrong times to do it. That wasn't a right time. The right time to do it would be when the opponent has significant pressure on you while your entire team is pinned in the defensive zone. Flipping the puck into the neutral zone forces the opponents to clear the zone and regroup. In the play we're speaking of, the Panthers missed the net on a rush. They had no pressure in our zone and the majority of their team was in the neutral zone.

This isn't even a discussion about the player anymore. You don't give the opposing team the puck in the neutral zone when you need to change in the opposing zone. You know the saying 'get it deep'? Connor McDavid was our only player in the vicinity of that puck--and he didn't know where it was.

 

[TheNumber4]

He could score on his own net and he’ll somehow blame someone else.

JP is not an NHLr at this stage.

True. And it’s so obvious. But of course he’ll try to feed you bullshit like “nahhh I can critcize Pulju too see”

 

[Niten Ichi Ryu]

Time to switch the lines. Nuge has been playing below average lately, especially tonight with the plethora of giveaways and that penalty that killed us, and Rattie has come back down to earth. McDavid is creating so much out there, he needs a big body with skill on his line:

Draisaitl-McDavid-Chiasson
Reider-Hopkins-Caggiula
Lucic-Strome-Rattie
Khaira-Brody-Kass
(Puljujarvi + Yamamoto - AHL)

Waive Benning, call up Jones (highest scoring dman with 8 pts in 10 games so far down there, as opposed to Bear with 1 pt in 5 games)

And even though the Oilers only scored 1 goal tonight and can't point the finger at goaltending, I want Koskinen to go back and forth with Talbot. Talbot criticizing the team for the 2nd period in his post game comments. What a teammate. The team blocks shots, multiple guys hopping to the bench tonight, sacrificing. Yeah, they had a bad 2nd period, but it's those times good goaltenders bail their teams out. We've seen it time and time again with our opponents.

Competition in net is paramount. We'll see who is hungrier for the permanent starter position. Koskinen is 3 for 4 so far, with his only loss coming at the hands of the best team in the east. And he beat the best team in the league in their arena, something Talbot has never done as an Oiler.