Post-Game Talk: Who is worried about 97?

[kevy999]

I wish people in general would stop with the dumb "Team X is a bad team". **** off with that, you've learned nothing the last 2 years or what? Every team in the NHL is capable of beating anyone else on any given night. This is not the NBA. How many times does it take to get that through one's head. There's no easy games.

too many little kids mentally on this board. Everyone with a brain knows that no team in the nhl is really bad and that any team can kick any other teams ass any given night.

 

[Aerchon]

Completely irrelevant but the guy you keep harping on about hasn’t won anywhere he’s been ever, but somehow he’s the answer right?

I didn’t like the trade, but it happened and you gotta move on, unless youre you, then you bring it up all the time and when someone points out hey, he isn’t helping the team he is on so what makes you think he would be helping us, its irrelevant, unless it fits your agenda.....

So tired...

I wouldn't trade the 2016-2017 season for a redo.

A lot of people on here just want to fantasize about would ofs could off and should ofs. With nothing but pure speculation and a pocket full of dreams.

Im a huge Hall fan. Extrodanairly talented. Fun as heck to watch. But Hall doesn't make team Canada despite his offense for a reason. Would be surprised if he ever will. He has legit holes in his game you can drive a semi through.

I don't think he makes a bottom 10 team into a perennial playoff team, let alone a cup contender no matter the circumstances. Not in this day and age.

The funny thing. Is when Conner is playing off, like he has been, he completely reminds me of Hall. Blind passes to no one. Phantom back checking. Last guy to enter the defensive zone right before or after a goal against. Trying to beat 3+ defenders and the goalie.

It's pretty uncanny actually.

 

[Soundwave]

Hall's got 1 goal in 8 games...let's not pretend he's lighting the NHL on fire here

We know what kind of production he can score at, but it's not even just goal scoring, it's the pace of the game dramatically falls off when McDavid/Drai leave the ice.

It's a bail out to other teams, if we could have 2 lines that caused them headaches, opponents would break down by the 3rd period.

And then wouldn't cha know it ... your 3rd/4th line probably can pounce on some garbage goal.

It's all connected, it's not a separate thing, we let other teams off the hook.

Playing McDavid/Drai is extremely hard buts it's managable for other teams if they don't really have to worry too much about any other line, that would not be the case if Hall was here. Teams would start to crack under having to face McDavid/Drai or Hall/RNH for 42 minutes a night and it would lead to them making mistakes and getting tired -- the OPPONENT getting tired that is (how's THAT for a difference).

We bailed out every other team in the NHL by making that trade.

 

[GodPucker]

Hall's got 1 goal in 8 games...let's not pretend he's lighting the NHL on fire here

I think he would be doing great here with Nuge or flipping with Drai. PP as well. He wouldn't be shouldering the load here.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

I think he would be doing great here with Nuge or flipping with Drai. PP as well. He wouldn't be shouldering the load here.

Eberle would probably help too...maybe even Strome... but I'm not sure why we are talking about former Oilers anyways
these guys are gone and we need to move on

 

[subnet]

I think they already know it. I didn't expect it would be this season but then again I didn't know that only 3 forwards on the team would be scoring ANY goals. Well wait, Nuge has one. One goal in ten games can't be bad for a star player amirite?

yeah - exactly for $8MM or whatever people are saying he’s going to get ugh

we’ve paid him $6MM forever - overpaid for what he has done - he owes us in the next contract imho

 

[subnet]

He said it was the teams first bad game and that "we just got beat to pucks all night" as if its some mystery affliction and not evident that battle level was required.

Yet count the number of times Nuge, who has fantastic puck anticipation, is beaten to a puck that should be his. Stop counting at six. Half a dozen of these happen easy, every game, and a dozen in physical games like this. Theres no player on the team that backs off from physical play more than Nuge.

One sequence early Nuge loses a puck battle, loses it clean, wasn't even prepared to engage, just let the Wild walk out with the puck. Neal steams in and regains the puck only for Nuge to lose it again.

Whaddya gonna do. As happy as Neal is to be here I'm sure he's noticed his Center has the battle level of a small rookie out there.

Definitely different from his rookie seas9n where he battled and engaged routinely - then he hurts his shoulder and has backed-off ever since. He was always slight of frame and could do this while in juniors but it’s like he’s scared now when it’s against grown men. Not that I blame him, but at his pedigree and salary, you’d think he’d have to lay it all out at some point. Rather is seems as if he just goes through the motions...

 

[ToeMcDrag83]

Game Observation: Team puts up double goose eggs in back to back games while looking lethargic
Board Conclusion: **** Nuge

Good lord.

Main problem is the same, no bottom 6 offense. McDrai are being overworked for this reason too.
And we are seeing the effects of some injuries. We miss Nygard and Persson.

Overall, I'll take the 7-2-1 start. We played well in maybe half of those games, with some poor signs in the latter half.
Reset, shuffle out some bottom sixers for all the extra ones we have, and tackle the next 10 games harder.

 

[KarmaPolice]

I'm more worried that the team around him does zero to back him up. Not acceptable.

Yeah, someone might want to remind the bottom six that the season has started. 2nd line also needs to chip in more at evens.

 

[KarmaPolice]

Waste of time.

I can't believe I put my good Crocs on for this game. What a waste.

 

[McDNicks17]

Has RNH ever taken any blame on himself for bad games? You never hear “I” didn’t play good, it’s always “we”

Ryan Nugent-Horcoff.

 

[Louis Cypher]

New coach effect has worn off. Time for a new coach. Maybe Tippet and Hitch can rotate every 10 games.

 

[Chef de Cuisine]

We know what kind of production he can score at, but it's not even just goal scoring, it's the pace of the game dramatically falls off when McDavid/Drai leave the ice.

It's a bail out to other teams, if we could have 2 lines that caused them headaches, opponents would break down by the 3rd period.

And then wouldn't cha know it ... your 3rd/4th line probably can pounce on some garbage goal.

It's all connected, it's not a separate thing, we let other teams off the hook.

Playing McDavid/Drai is extremely hard buts it's managable for other teams if they don't really have to worry too much about any other line, that would not be the case if Hall was here. Teams would start to crack under having to face McDavid/Drai or Hall/RNH for 42 minutes a night and it would lead to them making mistakes and getting tired -- the OPPONENT getting tired that is (how's THAT for a difference).

We bailed out every other team in the NHL by making that trade.

i like dat take

 

[MaxR11]

I wouldn't trade the 2016-2017 season for a redo.

A lot of people on here just want to fantasize about would ofs could off and should ofs. With nothing but pure speculation and a pocket full of dreams.

Im a huge Hall fan. Extrodanairly talented. Fun as heck to watch. But Hall doesn't make team Canada despite his offense for a reason. Would be surprised if he ever will. He has legit holes in his game you can drive a semi through.

I don't think he makes a bottom 10 team into a perennial playoff team, let alone a cup contender no matter the circumstances. Not in this day and age.

The funny thing. Is when Conner is playing off, like he has been, he completely reminds me of Hall. Blind passes to no one. Phantom back checking. Last guy to enter the defensive zone right before or after a goal against. Trying to beat 3+ defenders and the goalie.

It's pretty uncanny actually.

Refreshing and accurate take! Glad to see you can be a huge fan but can still see things objectively. Rare nowadays.

You are right with Connor. Although he can get away with it more because he's much more talented than hall but fair is fair.... if i'm going to make the criticisim with hall being a net negative with the holes in his game etc i'll have to say when connor does some of those things it does hurt the team overall. He is the captain and you shouldn't be seeing our captain play that way. You can say it shouldnt affect the play of a third line grinder and that he should still give it his all but when your cpt and the best player in the league does that it somewhat saps the team bit by bit everytime he does those things. When he plays that way he tells the team he's frustrated and sending a message that hope is lost and that all we could do is maybe cheat our way to some goals. You want to see your cpt step up the effort and continue to grind away and BE PATIENT and do the right things all over the ice. When he abandones this he's basically telling the team "we have little chance". Team spirit sags as a result.

Again, i hate to criticize connor like that because he carries so much of the load but..... with great power comes great responsibilites.

 

[McDNicks17]

Damn. Now they need to trade McDavid to fix the culture too.

 

[Blue Line Turnover]

He said it was the teams first bad game and that "we just got beat to pucks all night" as if its some mystery affliction and not evident that battle level was required.

Yet count the number of times Nuge, who has fantastic puck anticipation, is beaten to a puck that should be his. Stop counting at six. Half a dozen of these happen easy, every game, and a dozen in physical games like this. Theres no player on the team that backs off from physical play more than Nuge.

One sequence early Nuge loses a puck battle, loses it clean, wasn't even prepared to engage, just let the Wild walk out with the puck. Neal steams in and regains the puck only for Nuge to lose it again.

Whaddya gonna do. As happy as Neal is to be here I'm sure he's noticed his Center has the battle level of a small rookie out there.

Which would be ironic, considering Nuge seemed to have much more drive and creativity when he was a small, rookie centre

 

[iCanada]

On the bright side...

#firstshottalbot

 

[LemmyUlanov55]

Getting shut out by the Wild, sounds familiar..

 

[Bryanbryoil]

I like Nuge a lot. His line has been the only positive possession line we have. But man he needs to start producing outside the pp

I see a lot of RNH criticism in this thread and IMO tonight he was one of the very few that was playing hard and kept his foot on the gas when we were down 3-0.

For the record I agree that his season to date has been lackluster and IMO this was actually one of his better showings. Neal isn't the fleetest of foot and the McDrai line didn't look any better when he was out there either. That 3rd winger on RNH's line needs to have some speed and playmaking ability. Whether it's Jesse or Yamamoto or maybe Nygard when he returns, that line needs some speed on it. Nuge needs to pick it up, but it bears repeating, he needs a winger with some speed to offset the lack of speed from Neal. Hell, maybe McLeod is a potential answer there as IIRC he was on Cave's left wing in Bako's last game.

 

[guymez]

Poor D zone coverage and a lack of push back and execution in the O zone.
Last years Oilers are showing up and it was totally predictable. Its takes time to break bad habits and adjust to a new system..

News flash...the sky is not falling.

 

[Niten Ichi Ryu]

I'm really curious on what's going on with McDavid. People say he's playing injured or sick, but it's not his skating or speed that's off. Connor's greatest asset is his hockey IQ, he sees the ice like no other player in the league, turns nothing into prime opportunities, successfully uses every inch of the little space defenders give him and makes really high level plays that utilize the teammates in his vicinity.
He rarely gave the puck away, was so tenacious on the backcheck that he was consistently top 3 in the league in takeaways, and he's always moving at 100MPH with and without the puck.

All of those attributes seem to have dropped a bit, especially since he got all that attention about the 17 pts in 7 games, 1st star of the week, 5 pt night. After that game, he's pointless in the last 3 consecutive. It does kind of look like he's not having fun out there lately, which is maybe affecting his creativity a little bit

But he is indeed still Connor McDavid. There are several moments/plays in each of those games that's trademark McDavid hockey, and even pointless in 3 straight, he's still 2nd overall in scoring. So it's not the end of the world at all, especially still being the Pacific Division leader. But it does look like Connor's passion level went down a notch or two, we'll probably never know what's really going on with him right now, if anything at all, could be a very personal matter. Just hopeful he gets over that hump sooner than later and returns to God-Like form at some point in the near future

 

[voxel]

Only saw bits of the 1st and missed the two goals against when taking a break. Glad I skipped the rest of this game. Looked lackluster from the start. Team had zero energy and wasn’t cycling nor making crisp outlet passes... just a lot of point shots from a distance that poised no threats. The last two games have put this team on a funk.

Some line juggling and energy is needed for next game.

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

Not loving our results this season against not-terrible teams.

Remember when in the off-season people were like 'its not like we'll have a Reider that scores 0 goals all season, the depth was unsustainably bad'

And here we are.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Remove two of the faster forwards, and a defenceman with a good first pass, and it's not surprising the team starts to look slow.

The team benefited a ton from the speed and transition ability that Persson, Nygård, and Haas helped supply at the start. Now they're back to missing that element.

Also while Nurse and Klefbom are good at driving the puck forward, neither are true OFD. If you pair either of them with a guy like Russell, the pairings going to stall, as other teams know to key in on the one guy.


I know people won't like the idea, but I'd be tempted to call up Yamamoto and Jones (or possibly even Bouchard) just to add some speed and transition ability to the lineup until the others get healthy.

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

I'm really curious on what's going on with McDavid. People say he's playing injured or sick, but it's not his skating or speed that's off. Connor's greatest asset is his hockey IQ, he sees the ice like no other player in the league, turns nothing into prime opportunities, successfully uses every inch of the little space defenders give him and makes really high level plays that utilize the teammates in his vicinity.
He rarely gave the puck away, was so tenacious on the backcheck that he was consistently top 3 in the league in takeaways, and he's always moving at 100MPH with and without the puck.

All of those attributes seem to have dropped a bit, especially since he got all that attention about the 17 pts in 7 games, 1st star of the week, 5 pt night. After that game, he's pointless in the last 3 consecutive. It does kind of look like he's not having fun out there lately, which is maybe affecting his creativity a little bit

But he is indeed still Connor McDavid. There are several moments/plays in each of those games that's trademark McDavid hockey, and even pointless in 3 straight, he's still 2nd overall in scoring. So it's not the end of the world at all, especially still being the Pacific Division leader. But it does look like Connor's passion level went down a notch or two, we'll probably never know what's really going on with him right now, if anything at all, could be a very personal matter. Just hopeful he gets over that hump sooner than later and returns to God-Like form at some point in the near future

Perhaps he's mentally tired from playing almost half of every game so far