Comments (17)

By Racki, June 11, 2013 7:15 pm

Craig MacTavish handshaking his clone

So last round’s predictions did not work for me at ALL. I got both winners wrong. Luckily, I still have the Boston Bruins as a team I can stand to win some moola on from some bets I made on Bodog before the playoffs start. If the B’s win it all, I’ll double the money I spent on all my bets combined. Not spectacular, but I’m ahead, and that’s what matters!

Anyways, round 3, I got a big stinking zero right on my predictions. I had the Continue reading 'My take on Eakins hiring, and Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions.. final round'»

Comments (21)

By Racki, June 9, 2013 2:26 pm

So you want to be bold, Mac?

So MacTavish wants to be bold? Well here’s some targets being thrown around right now:
Continue reading 'Random player targets…'»

Comments (20)

By Racki, June 8, 2013 4:16 pm

Dallas Eakins.. is the the next head coach?

Since 2009, the Oilers have had 5 head coaches: Craig MacTavish, Pat Quinn, Tom Renney, Ralph Krueger, and now …. unknown. Sources say, Dallas Eakins will be named, however Craig MacTavish would not confirm yet (the signing is not done). MacTavish has an agreement lined up with a coach, but a deal isn’t signed yet. It is likely Dallas Eakins based on the word out there, but chances are there are other teams out there interested. I sure as hell hope that someone doesn’t snipe our candidate and leave us finding someone else now.

Dallas Eakins was head coach of the Toronto Marlies from 2009-10 seaosn to 2012-13. In his first two seasons, he missed the playoffs. In season 3, he and the Marlies made it to the Finals where they lost to the Norfolk Admirals (the then Tampa Bay Lightning affiliate). This year, the Marlies made it to round 2, where they lost to the Grand Rapids Griffins (the Detroit Red Wings affiliate, whom the Barons also lost to, and are now in the Finals). It seems that Eakins has had some good success in the AHL, and is another “player’s coach” and strong motivator. I don’t know enough about him yet… doing some digging, but I sure as hell hope he can line match. In today’s NHL, that seems quite important. I’d almost rather go back to Craig MacTavish as coach than another guy that just rolls the lines like Quinn and Krueger each did.

So I have one question already, is he a line matcher? My other question, will the new coach bring in a new set of assistant coaches? I sure hope so. I think that’s been another constant here, and maybe it’s time to move on with those guys. Buchy has been here since 2008-09, and Steve Smith came on a few years ago. Might be time to take a look elsewhere.

Craig MacTavish said he came to the conclusion about letting Ralph Krueger go when he was shopping around for an associate to coach with Krueger. He had discovered that the guys he was looking at weren’t so much guys that would support Krueger and in line with his abilities… but more so, support what MacTavish was looking for. Things changed… he wasn’t intending to fire Krueger initially, but changed his mind when looking at the options out there, it seems. He said this wasn’t meant to be “fair to Ralph .. but the best decision for the betterment of the club”. MacT also says he disagreed with Krueger’s philosophy. I’d bet line matching was a big part of it.

I really liked Krueger, to be honest. But I think he’s missing some important X and O stuff to have success. The Oilers are a mess in their own zone, often, the line matching is non existent… MacTavish, as frustrating as he could be, was a better coach than Krueger was. So I think as much as I hate to see a nice guy go, I think this is a wise choice. However, it’s hard to say he had enough of a chance here either or the right support. There should be some new assistants here to support whomever our new head coach is. Or, at the very least, the new head coach needs to make this decision solely on his own.

Comments (13)

By Racki, June 4, 2013 9:21 am

Seth Jones, ranked #1 overall on Button’s 2013 NHL Draft Rankings

So some don’t put a tonne of stock in Craig Button’s draft rankings, much preferring Bob McKenzie’s list (which is based off a survey of NHL scouts). But it still is worth looking at.

Button has Seth Jones ranked #1 overall. Nathan MacKinnon sits at #3, which is probably different than what a lot of scouts have him at (most probably have him at 1 now). The Oilers fans may be disappointed if Button’s list is accurate to the actual draft, with the top six. I think it will be as far as players taken, although not necessarily the order. That means the better centers, including Sean Monahan, will be gone by the Oilers #7 pick. So the question a lot of people are asking is “should the Oilers trade their #7 pick?”

I’m on the fence on that idea. On one hand, I think the Oilers fans need to break away from the mentality of drafting a guy, then seeing him play that same year. Realistically, the player should be going back to junior for at least a year, and perhaps a year or two of AHL. So we could be talking somewhere between 3-5 years before seeing a player in action. So think of this draft as stocking the cupboards, unless we trade up and get in the top 4 somehow and land Seth Jones, Jonathan Drouin, MacKinnon or Sasha Barkov. This doesn’t seem likely, although it’s possibly we could move up to #5 (Carolina Hurricanes pick) and perhaps one of the big names will be still available by then if someone deviates slightly. Anyways, I think MacT should consider all options with this pick.. moving up, moving down, using it. And really, it sounds like he is. It will be interesting to see what can happen.

The other play of interest on this list is Edmonton Oil Kings’ Curtis Lazar. I’ve seen him as high as 12 (on the ISS rankings). Button has him way down around 32. That seems unlikely. But I think if Lazar lingers, the Oilers should trade their 2nd, and another pick (perhaps in another draft) and get a late 1st. I don’t see Lazar lasting past 20th though.

To wrap up, teams are always going to need centers, and they’re always going to need defensemen. I don’t want to see the Oilers drop too far down with their pick unless they get a good offer in exchange. No matter where they pick, I hope they choose the best d-man or center available (unless we get into a position of picking a guy like Drouin).

Comments (5)

By Racki, May 31, 2013 11:24 am

Oilers

So, to start.. yesterday MacTavish inked big Russian D-man Anton Belov to a 1-year deal (reportedly a cap hit of $1.525M with bonuses). This supposedly was the best we could do as far as length, on an entry level deal… and once it expires, he should be an unrestricted free agent. It’s a fairly low risk move. The Oilers have full expectations this guy can jump into the lineup next year. He sounds fairly raw in his defensive game, which may be a concern. But it sounds like he’s a good puck carrier, and fairly physical. In the KHL this year, he had 9 goals and 17 assists in 46 games for Omsk. He also played in the World Hockey Championships and is being considered for the Russian Olympic team. He also was 3rd on his team with a +19 plus minus rating. He is 6’4″, 216 lbs, according to Elite Prospects. The scouting report on him had this to say:

A large defenseman, Belov is still an excellent skater. He can control the offensive game with his passing skills and hard shot. Could improve his defensive game.

Oilers sign Omsk KHL defender Anton Belov

The Oilers are also in the mix for a goaltending phenom out of Finland, Antti Raanta. Raanta played 45 games this year for Assat Pori in which he put up a 21-10-11 record, with a remarkable, league leading GAA of 1.85 and SV% of 0.943. He tweeted just a short bit ago that he’s made his decision. Edmonton, Minnesota and another team were said to be in the mix.. and Michael Russo, beat writer for the Wild, feels that the Wild are out of consideration now. Come on Edmonton!

On to the playoff predictions…

Playoff Predictions

Round 2 saw Racki getting 4 out of 4 series winners correctly ( 11 for 12, bitches!), Steve-O, Hemmerlady and Metal&Oil each got 3 out of 4 winners correct, and Trogdor fumbled blindly for 2 out of 4 correct. Series lengths, different story. If I wasn’t so lazy, I’d count how many wins each player was off by. Maybe next year… that’s my Steve Tambellini motto.

Post your round 3 predictions in the comments!