The Next Step(s) For The Edmonton Oilers.

[Little Fury]

why? so I can hear you cry more about the trade and spout off about a hypothetical team that didn't exist?

no thanks, we've done that song and dance far too long

Oh look a personal attack, it's almost as if you have nothing to contribute in terms of actual discussion..

 

[Soundwave]

Every single one of Gretzky, Lemieux, Lindros, Ovechkin had top 10 scoring teams by their third year, McDavid is the only one of that group that was way down stuck on a team with the 20th overall offence at year 3.

They've built a very unskilled team around McDavid, one that rarely creates or does anything anytime he is off the ice, and they have not added any significant skill to the roster in 4 summer's time.

Instead they've chosen to build around McDavid a bunch of low skill players like Lucic, Russell, Larsson, medium impact guys like Sekera, Strome, and plugs like Caggiula, Benning, Kassian. They have amongst the lowest scoring D in the league.

McDavid works with less talent than other good players in the league.

Matthews +
Tavares (84 points) w/o Matthews
Marner (69 points) plays usually w/o Matthews
Nylander (61 points)
Kadri (32 goals, 55 points) w/o Matthews
Reilly (52 points)
Gardiner (52 points)

Laine+
Wheeler (91 points)
Schiefle (60 points in 60 games)
Connor (31 goals, 57 points)
Ehlers (29 goals, 60 points)
Byfuglien (45 points)
Myers (36 points)

McDavid+
Draisaitl (70 points) play 50% of time w/McDavid
RNH (24G, 48P in 62G) played last stretch w/McDavid
Strome (13 goals, 34 points)
Lucic (10 goals, 34 points)
Puljujarvi (20 points)
Reider (13 points last year) *big add of the off-season
Klefbom (21 points injured D)
Nurse (26 points D)

Gaudreau +
Monahan (64 points)
Tkachuk (24G, 49P in 68G)
Neal (25G, 44P)
Lindholm (44 points)
Backlund (45 points)
Giordano (38 points D)
Hanifin (32 points D)

MacKinnon +
Rantanen (84 points)
Landeskog (25G, 62 points)
Kerfoot (43 points)
Soderberg (37 points)
Barrie (14G, 57 points)
Johnson (25 points in 62 G)

Not even gonna list Stamkos/Crosby/Ovy as obviously they are also on much more talented teams.

McDavid probably has the least to work with, this franchise has accomplished nothing but building an unskilled, grinder club around McDavid after pretty much now 4 full off-seasons. No one has a worse offensive core of players and no one has less offensive help from his blue line.

Flames/Avs are nothing special but bubble teams, Toronto and Winnipeg are clearly way better, but McDavid still probably has the least to work with.

Eichel and maybe Hall are the only other star players that have less to work with, and that shifts real quick if Dahlin is the real deal and pending Hischer's development, both being no.1 overalls.

 

[belair]

They had the lowest scoring D in the league with their two top producing defensemen injured for the majority--if not the entirety of the regular season. Honestly, why are you wasting your time pouring over these stats that ultimately lead to zero conclusion? The stats those players posted last season will change next season--some of them drastically. So the statistics you're using frozen in time here aren't particularly reliable when prognosticating future production. Even then, to what end?

Yes, it's disappointing we can't saddle Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl with quality names. The salary cap is a pain. But fortunately the two of them have shown the ability to carry lesser players--it's what elite talents do.

 

[Spawn]

Every single one of Gretzky, Lemieux, Lindros, Ovechkin had top 10 scoring teams by their third year, McDavid is the only one of that group that was way down stuck on a team with the 20th overall offence at year 3.

To be fair.... McDavid had a top 10 scoring time by his 2nd year

 

[Mcnotloilersfan]

Why are we comparing the Oilers situation now to the Dynasty Oilers and mini-dynasty Penguins, both of whom had no salary cap, fewer teams to compete with for talent, and significantly lower salaries for owners to deal with in general?

 

[Soundwave]

They had the lowest scoring D in the league with their two top producing defensemen injured for the majority--if not the entirety of the regular season. Honestly, why are you wasting your time pouring over these stats that ultimately lead to zero conclusion? The stats those players posted last season will change next season--some of them drastically. So the statistics you're using frozen in time here aren't particularly reliable when prognosticating future production. Even then, to what end?

Yes, it's disappointing we can't saddle Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl with quality names. The salary cap is a pain. But fortunately the two of them have shown the ability to carry lesser players--it's what elite talents do.

McDavid has shown that, not Draisaitl and I like Leon but he is probably a 60 ish point player away from McDavid given the lack of talent he has to work with maybe even high 50 ish range.

Leon is a good player but he needs someone with a high degree of skill to make plays with, when he's off Connor's line he has nothing to work with.

 

[Soundwave]

Why are we comparing the Oilers situation now to the Dynasty Oilers and mini-dynasty Penguins, both of whom had no salary cap, fewer teams to compete with for talent, and significantly lower salaries for owners to deal with in general?

There should be a middle ground between that and not even being able to acquire one single player that moves the needle skill wise on this team in four summers worth of results.

Surrounding McDavid with a untalented roster and praying that 5 foot 7 rookie Yamamoto can bring some skill is a terrible setup, none of the great players in the game have to put up with this.

This is a very untalented group of players full of guys who can't make a play, take a high end pass, or finish basic gimme chances. The amount of plays 70% of this roster pisses away constantly kills us. It's a horrible style of team to build around a player of McDavid's skill.

 

[SupremeTeam16]

I like the drafting we've done the last few years but the organization needs to get better at developing players at the pro level, we have had a very hard time developing guys internally who aren't sure bets when drafted. Glad they dumped Fleming but not sure Woodcroft is much of an upgrade, either way this is a department that badly needs to improve for the team to have sustained success. Think they should take a look at their training and medical staff as well. It seems that almost every year we're near the top of the league for man games lost. I'm sure factors like our travel schedule come into play but I'm sure this is an area that could be improved.

As for on ice and roster, the coaching needs to be better next year, they added a couple veteran coaches who should help improve special teams. Both the PP/PK were terrible last year and a lot of that had to do with coaching, add in a lot of questionable decisions from the head coach and TM should be on a very short leash. As for the roster obviously it's been beaten to death but a point producing dman is paramount preferably a right shot, another bonafide top 6 winger would be nice but I think if Lucic bounces back to respectability and 1 of JP, Yamamoto or a dark horse breaks out we would be fine.

 

[ConnorMcNugesaitl]

I imagine if the team starts poorly it will mercifully be the end of the Chiarelli era. Hopefully he's gone gone and not just relieved of his GM duties.

As far as drafting goes I think they've done some nice things and it looks promising but the Oilers have had some promising drafts in the past and the players all turned into nothing?

Considering none of the Chiarelli picks have turned out thus far aside from the McDavid tap in.

I'm not down on the Oilers drafting and I do think there's some potential but I think it's been average and people are giving them way too much credit for average drafting.

If they had drafted DeBrincat and he panned out as he has you could give them points for being above average. Hey I wanted Benson too, that was the safe pick and I like the Oilers appear to have been wrong.

If they had gone off the board and picked a guy like McAvoy I think you could give them credit. In that case the scouts make the right call and they snag a guy above where he's projected and are proven right like the Jets were with Schieffle. Instead they took the consensus guy and while he still has potential I don't think anyone here could say with a straight face they wouldn't take Charlie McAvoy over Jesse Puljujarvi if they had the choice.

It's not bad drafting but it's not great drafting either. There haven't been any real steals or gutsy calls that have panned out just average drafting overrated by a fan base that's used to some pretty abysmal drafting.

 

[nexttothemoon]

I imagine if the team starts poorly it will mercifully be the end of the Chiarelli era. Hopefully he's gone gone and not just relieved of his GM duties.

As far as drafting goes I think they've done some nice things and it looks promising but the Oilers have had some promising drafts in the past and the players all turned into nothing?

Considering none of the Chiarelli picks have turned out thus far aside from the McDavid tap in.

I'm not down on the Oilers drafting and I do think there's some potential but I think it's been average and people are giving them way too much credit for average drafting.

If they had drafted DeBrincat and he panned out as he has you could give them points for being above average. Hey I wanted Benson too, that was the safe pick and I like the Oilers appear to have been wrong.

If they had gone off the board and picked a guy like McAvoy I think you could give them credit. In that case the scouts make the right call and they snag a guy above where he's projected and are proven right like the Jets were with Schieffle. Instead they took the consensus guy and while he still has potential I don't think anyone here could say with a straight face they wouldn't take Charlie McAvoy over Jesse Puljujarvi if they had the choice.

It's not bad drafting but it's not great drafting either. There haven't been any real steals or gutsy calls that have panned out just average drafting overrated by a fan base that's used to some pretty abysmal drafting.

Yamamoto and Bouchard were both solid picks.

Benson could still pan out quite well.

They obviously messed up in choosing some players over others in previous drafts but if (and it's a big IF) they get just 3 or 4 of their picks to pan out at the NHL level.. say Bouchard/Yamamoto/Benson/McLeod and/or another forward/dman... I think that "turns the tide" so to speak.

The team should always have several young ELC contracts developing and playing well while playing somewhat sheltered minutes on the roster... that's actually pretty much a necessity in a cap world and they could get that happening shortly with Bouchard and Yamamoto being the 2 most likely to enter the roster.

If one or two of Benson/McLeod/Marody/Bear follow that same path a couple years down the line... the roster could very well be routinely filled with cheaper solid options rather than having to look outside the org each summer.

 

[Aerchon]

Yamamoto and Bouchard were both solid picks.

Benson could still pan out quite well.

They obviously messed up in choosing some players over others in previous drafts but if (and it's a big IF) they get just 3 or 4 of their picks to pan out at the NHL level.. say Bouchard/Yamamoto/Benson/McLeod and/or another forward/dman... I think that "turns the tide" so to speak.

The team should always have several young ELC contracts developing and playing well while playing somewhat sheltered minutes on the roster... that's actually pretty much a necessity in a cap world and they could get that happening shortly with Bouchard and Yamamoto being the 2 most likely to enter the roster.

If one or two of Benson/McLeod/Marody/Bear follow that same path a couple years down the line... the roster could very well be routinely filled with cheaper solid options rather than having to look outside the org each summer.

This is where we are at. From the outside Chiarelli looks like he has drafted well. To the point where even this fanbase gives him a pass.

The Oilers fate is tied in with those draft picks. If we can finally get even a bit of luck/development from our solid picks we will be set up a playoff team and hopefully more. If not we are a bubble team at best. This is true of every team in todays NHL. Live or die by the draft in a salary cap world. Teams that have won cups or are very good are built primarily through the draft.

I love the way our core is built. Incredible center depth is so nice after so many years with nobody. Just need a few wingers to pan out and hopefully a few others as well.