My Latest, at The Cult of Hockey - Adding back some Top-6 muscle may be just what the doctor ordered for the Edmonton
#Oilers
: 9 Things via
@edmontonjournal
The NHL is the league that allows Connor McDavid to be driven head-first into a goalpost unpenalized, and then fines Artemi Panarin $5k for (*checks notes*)…throwing his glove.
#Oilers
🙄
NY Rangers’ Artemi Panarin has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for Unsportsmanlike Conduct during yesterday’s game with the Boston Bruins.
So I think we all gave Giordano the benefit of the doubt on the McDavid injury last year. But then the knee on McDavid tonight...
How many stars is the
@NHLPlayerSafety
going to let him injure before George Parros opens his eyes.
The issue the NHL has created:
A. Players can’t defend themselves against what Tkachuk did. Suspend-able offence.
B. What Tkachuk did WAS within the rules or there would have been a call/review.
So...you’ve traded “A” for “B”.
Head’s up, Johnny Hockey.
The Montreal Canadiens are a 2020 playoff team and the Edmonton
#Oilers
went from home ice advantage to being in a play-in position.
The NHL never ceases to amaze me.
So, Kassian gets a fine for *checks notes* taking a guy's helmet off from the bench (o.k., fine) but the Landeskog blindside on Yamamoto is "just fine". Yeah, sure the NHL sure protects it's players.
I’ve time & respect for NHL writers who chose MacKinnon or Panarin over Draisaitl for MVP. All 3 are great players who had great years.
But the guy who left 29 OFF his ballot entirely?
With his actions he makes the PHWA and its long list of reputable writers look bush league.
As an
#Oilers
fan who has far too often had to watch the best players leave town, I take no pleasure in Calgary losing Johnny Gaudreau. BoA better with him on the other side. Big hole for them to fill.
Now that Eric Francis is done taking shots at Leon Draisaitl maybe he has time left over in his day to explain how his beloved Flames just lost to Montreal.
😉
Ethan Bear gets the GWG & coach shows confidence in him by throwing him out there with the game on the line. Plays 21:40. Named 1st Star. What. A. Story.
I see a lot of Evan Bouchard anger out there today. Look, I’m the guy who graded him a “2” in our
#Oilers
player grades. But let’s not “Jeff Petry” this kid. It’s a process, and there will be bumps in the road.
Leon Draisaitl not nominated for the Selke this season despite being 2nd in the NHL in both scoring and +/-. The 3 nominees are certainly deserving. But 29’s not getting his due.
I do not post much here anymore. But we figured that as the Oilers head to the Stanley Cup Finals, my lovely wife & I should show off the player-worn hoodies we watched Game 6 in: Matt Hendricks and Ryan Jones!
Elliott Friedman confirming that a factor in Adam Larsson leaving EDM was the incessant (my word, not EF’s) “It was 1-for-1” drone from some in the market, RE: the Hall traded. “Never really felt comfortable”.
I don’t you about you, friends, but with all of the bullshit going on in the world right now, I’m even more excited about the
#Oilers
season that I typically am. Arguing over our 4th line Center or 3rd goalie seems like such a relief from “all the rest”. 🙄👍
I miss the
#Oilers
I, intellectually, completely understand and agree with the reasons behind the pause in the season. It is 100% the correct thing to do for all of the right reasons and for all involved. But...
I miss the
#Oilers
Tkachuk aside, I actually have nothing against the Flames at all. Tough loss for them. But for those select Calgary fans who trolled the
#Oilers
and me all season long...this Bud’s for you. 😉🍻
I respect the hell out of the fact that Mr. Katz set his health aside today in order to speak to the
#Oilers
fans. It’s right to address the fan base given what it has endured. But we are also all entitled to our privacy. Met in the middle.
Todd McLellan hired in L.A. Wish him nothing but the best. I continue to believe that firing him in Edmonton was a mistake by a GM intent on covering his own butt.
As a fan of Sam Gagner, if you had told me I would become a fan of Zack Kassian, I would not have believed you. But he changed my mind. Not a perfect player, but routinely laid it on the line for team & teammates. Good luck to him. 👍
There will be people calling for sweeping changes for the Edmonton
#Oilers
during the off-season.
My response:
Did we not learn anything from the Peter Chiarelli era?
I don’t expect Ken Holland to panic. Nor should he.
Canada administered its 6 millionth dose of vaccine today. 1st million took 52 days. 2nd took 27. 3rd took 13 days. 4th took just 8. 5th & 6th million took only 6 days.
As we reported at The Cult earlier today, Mike Green had a modified NTC. Submitted a list of 10 teams he would say “yes” to. Wanted to come to the
#Oilers
and Edmonton. Very good acquisition, excellent price tag.
Leon Draisaitl is making a case for becoming the best 2-way player in the NHL. His takeaway in the D-Zone & subsequent ENG salts away a 4-1 win. The
#Oilers
go 5-0.
Friends: There will be no “9 Things” this week. I haven’t missed a Sunday in 4 years, but the opportunity came up to get my son to see his Grandma for the 1st time since COVID hit. So we are “out at the farm”. I’ll return next week. Thanks for your patience & understanding. 👍
An
#Oilers
expansion success story not talked about much yet is the presence of Jesse Puljujarvi on the protected list. Compare that to the situation this time last year.
Both player & club deserve credit for repairing that. Big win.
The Maple Leafs are outside the play-off cut right now? Wait...
I thought I read that they were “a whole new team” under Sheldon Keefe.
Must have been mistaken.
I’ve spent my entire life around hockey. Mom & Dad practically raised me in a rink. Some of the best, most honest and hardest-working people that you will find. Anyone suggesting otherwise has not spent 10 seconds in the hockey community. Stay in your lane.
The
#Oilers
Defence just got significantly better. Acquired Duncan Keith from Chicago for Caleb Jones & mid-round pick.
Like Matt Benning before him, Jones tried & failed to crack Top 4.
Keith a lock to play 18-20’ in Top 4.
Major influence on & off the ice.
I don’t block people often. Very rare. But @
#Oilers
players or their families with trash talk, or make light of mental illness in any way, you’re done. No apologies.
Whenever I write about Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, it comes through loud & clear just how much the large majority of the fan base genuinely likes the guy. Has to be among the most "consensus" popular Oilers ever.
Matt Hendricks retires. Made the most of what he was given. Left it all out there. Admirable career. As a member of the
#Oilers
truly gave a damn every shift. Respect.
I’ve watched a lot of
#Oilers
teams the last 15 years that would have wilted beneath the MTL grit.
This is not one of those teams. And 97 elevated his play.
A thought
#Oilers
F Alex Chiasson:
-a number of folks thought he’d be a healthy scratch last night. Not I nor anyone else foresaw the GWG. But at this time of year, a guy who has a cup & is willing to go to the tough areas is valuable in the lineup. We saw why.
The small handful of talking heads bitching about the status of emergency goalies in the NHL are blind & deaf to the fact of how good this was for the game in the eyes of hockey fans.
I could watch the clip of Eric Francis trying to explain how the Flames can still make the playoffs and aren’t necessarily sellers on the deadline on an endless loop.
I like the City of Calgary. That organization treated me 1st Class. Johnny Gaudreau is a terrific player. So why’d I enjoy their loss tonight? The Calgary fans who trolled me every time my
#Oilers
took a bad step this season: This Bud’s for You. 🍻
I read this morning that the Leafs-Kings trade was a “master stroke” by Kyle Dubas. Really? He got a back-up goalie and a Bottom 6 winger. It’s not like he fixed that porous Defence. Maybe pump the brakes a little.
The City of Edmonton, the Province &
#Oilers
ownership bent over backwards to provide a perfectly safe venue for NHL playoffs in the middle of a global pandemic. Now, some Eastern players whine about “amenities”? Man.
I see about a dozen people have un-followed me since this account respectfully observed
#blacklifematters
yesterday.
Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out.
Re-watching the OT winner from last night. That rediculous pass from Leon Draisaitl came at the end of a 1:51 long shift when every muscle is operating at a fraction of peak efficiency & precision. The pure biology of it is almost impossible. Elite is what it is.
Derek Ryan for Jujhar Khaira is an upgrade. I appreciated what J.J. brought. But Ryan is a natural RHS center, a better FO man, more naturally offensively inclined, closer to a "real" 3C that Khaira is, and does not have the recent injury issues which unfortunately played J.J.
Henrique, Carrick and a 7th to Edmonton from Anaheim for a 1st and a conditional 5th. That is a very smart deal by Ken Holland. Strength down the middle wins. Henrique could be a 3C or a 2W, strong 2-way, reliable guy. Carrick has grit. Feels there is still one more shoe to drop.
Excellent performance by the
#Oilers
in Toronto. Edmonton’s best players were better than the Leafs best, won the physical battle.
Oh yeah... & Mike Smith with the win. How ‘bout that?
😉
Check the game sheet. The ref just assessed McDavid a penalty at the end of the game. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. Get the hell out of way, Ref. We’re not paying to watch you. What a Prima Donna.
@NHLSitRoom
He's a six-time Stanley Cup champion and seven-time NHL All-Star, and on July 21 he'll take his rightful place among Alberta's hockey elite. Join us in Canmore as we honour
@EdmontonOilers
legend Kevin Lowe!
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