SB Nation - Sam Gagner

Edmonton's Problems aren't on Offense

Derek Zona — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:00:19 -0000

4 days ago: Edmonton Oilers goalie Jeff Deslauriers watches the go ahead goal from Washington Capitals' Tomas Fleischmann, not shown, enter his net during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton on Saturday, Dec. 19, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, John Ulan)

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CBS Sportsline had some fellow named Wes Goldstein write a column in which he makes a Christmas wish for each team in the NHL. Apparently, Mr. Goldstein has yet to watch an Oilers' game or even take a look at the stats thus far in 2009-10. Rather predictably, Goldstein writes:

Edmonton Oilers: Another scoring threat to take some of the heat off Dustin Penner. Edmonton has too many players with embarrassing stats.

He's parroting what many other MSM-types are saying, namely that Edmonton's problems are somehow related to goal-scoring, and that, once again, they lack players to play with Ales Hemsky. It's the same thing that has been said since Ryan Smyth was traded, but this year, it's just not true.

Edmonton ranks 26th in the NHL in points per game. That has little to nothing to do with offensive output. Edmonton ranks 6th in the west in goals per game at 2.86. That's good enough for 10th in the NHL. That's good enough for the playoffs, and with some above average goaltending, maybe a home playoff series. I feel like I'm stating the obvious here, but it needs to be said. For all of the talking heads, the intermission panelists, the newspaper writers, the fans, the bloggers and the commenters blaming team offense - look at the numbers. You're wrong.

The issue this season is team defense. Edmonton is surrendering 3.22 goals per game, 14th in the west and 27th in the NHL -- that's draft lottery territory. A lottery defense to go with a playoff offense.

	Per Game	Western Rank	NHL Rank	Last 10 years
Goals for	2.86	6	10	2
Goals against	3.33	14	27	10

The breakdown is even more obvious when you compare offensive output from this year to the last ten years. This year's version of the Oilers is on pace for the fourth most prolific offensive output of any Oilers team over the last 10 years.

Season	GF	GF/G
2005-06 - Cup Finalist	256	3.12
2000-01 - Playoffs	243	2.96
2007-08	235	2.87
2009-10 (projected)	235	2.86
2008-09	234	2.85
2002-03 - Playoffs	231	2.82
1999-2000 - Playoffs	226	2.76
2003-04	221	2.70
2001-02	205	2.50
2006-07 - 24th overall	195	2.38

When it comes to goals against, this is the worst team of the last decade. Full stop. The Oilers' problems this year rest solely on the backs of the team defense. As we've have harped on since last season, this team lacks forwards that can play the game, and the goaltending situation is a mess. It's been the same story for fifteen months and it's never been more evident than now.

Season	GA	GA/G
2001-02	182	2.22
2003-04	208	2.54
1999-2000	212	2.59
2000-01	222	2.71
2002-03	230	2.80
2008-09	248	3.02
2006-07 - Sam Gagner	248	3.02
2005-06	251	3.06
2007-08	251	3.06
2009-10 (projected)	273	3.22

This team needs to get out from under a bunch of contracts, bring in an entire line of Wes Walz', and find new on-ice leadership. Until then, 8th place in the conference is a mirage.

EDIT: I've updated the stats in this post to include the last two games. The story was written last week, but not published until today. My apologies for the confusion.

Oilers Roundtable Discussion, 1/3 of the way through the season - Part IV

Derek Zona — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:30:12 -0000

via cdn.picapp.com

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If Tambellini can't fix this right now - will missing the playoffs yet again cost him his job? Will Katz allow him to see this team healthy? Edmonton's rally cry is always wait until the kids grow up, but what about now?

Our lineup includes: the prolix Shepso, combining modern western philosophy and hockey at Bringing Back The Glory; Chappy, owner of This is Not a Love Song; HBomb, everyone's favorite bartender in the Oilers' 'sphere; Dawgbone, the pragmatic commentor that writes too infrequently at After The Green Light; Doogie2k, the go-to guy on physiology working at Still No Name; everyone's favorite antagonist Ender, Doogie's partner in crime at Still No Name; and SumOil, a frequent commentor here and the biggest optimist that any of us know.

Find the entire series here, tagged 2009 midseason roundtable

Thanks guys - the discussion was lively.

7. Will Steve Tambellini hold onto his job if they miss the playoffs again?

Shepso: I don’t think so. Tambi reminds me of former Prime Minister Paul Martin-you know, Mr. Dithers. He just sits there and maintains the status quo by and large (coaching staff excluded, which was smart), but I think he has been too easy on a team that has needed more than just a shake-up behind the bench. A trade of someone in the core for someone useful, (not prospects a la K-Lowe/Smitty), would go a long way in really making his presence felt. What was so different about trying to land Heatley? K-Lowe tried to land big fish every year and failed. The only difference was that this time, they didn’t even have a back-up plan. Duff Man (Comrie) doesn’t count.

Chappy: If Edmonton misses the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year, I think Quinn will be GM faster than you can say 'Barrie Moore'.

HBomb: It usually takes a lot more than 2 seasons to get a GM fired (normally, they get more rope than NHL coaches. But depending on Darryl Katz's mood and his contract status, you never know, right? I'll say this - how much do the Oilers regret letting Scott Howson walk to Columbus at this point? My guess is "lots".

Dawgbone: I think so. You need to give him time to address things like Moreau and Pisani. Both guys have been hurt and ineffective and initially took up budget and cap space. Signing Khabibulin wasn't a great start, but it really depends on how his offseason and next year go. Regardless of what happens, I think you have to give him until the summer of 2011.

Doogie2k: Possibly, simply because Kevin Lowe held onto his and was eventually promoted after three, ah, uninspiring off-seasons. If I were him, though, I'd still be looking over my shoulder, because I just hired an experienced GM to work beneath me a few months ago, and in that time he's repeatedly pointed out the glaring flaws in my roster, which I've yet to address. By both optics and results, that's not good news for Tambellini so far. Still, I think it's too early to judge him one way or the other, because we don't know yet what he's ultimately going to do: if he tries to fix this thing and fails, that probably earns him a lot more leeway than doing nothing and failing.

Ender: If the team stays with one or more of Hemsky, Horcoff, Souray, VIsnovsky or Penner perpetually on the IR, I don't think he'll be fired. Unfortunately, with Hemsky out now, and Horcoff and Visnovsky obviously playing injured, it wouldn't surprise me if that were the case.

Sumit: I don't think Tambellini's job is on the line. If it was he would have been more pro-active. I really think that organisation believes in him. He has hired new coaches. Oilers management has always been a patient bunch. They will wait it out and give Tambellini a shot at his style of rebuild. Tambellini is still learning his job. His over-zealous pursuit of Heatley and his idle-ness this season is due to lack of experience than anything else. As they say you learn from your mistakes and I hope he is learning from them.

8. Is there hope for the present?

Shepso: Maybe? I don’t know. The team is hard to watch. They looked lost half the time and bored the rest. I can’t put my finger on it, but the last time they looked like they were having fun was in the blowout of the BJs before the epic losing streak started. And if the players aren’t having fun, it’s hard for us fans to really know if there is anything to really hope for. What ever happens, and no matter how much I threaten to leave, I just can’t see myself abandoning ship. It has been said however, that sometimes love just isn’t enough. I am beginning to see the logic in that sentiment.

Chappy: Yes, there's hope. Let's start with halting the injuries for a while, and winning the next game. You've got to get back to .500 before you can climb any more mountains.

HBomb: At this point, the "present" I'm hoping for is a bottom five finish, a win in the draft lottery, and a line of Taylor Hall with Sam Gagner and Jordan Eberle playing behind two solid veteran trios next year.

Dawgbone: Not with the way some of the young guys are playing. Cogs and Gagner needed to take big steps this year and they haven't. O'Sullivan needed to show that last year was an off year, and he hasn't. This team needs all of these young guys to start producing and making all this development time worth it. I mean you can justify losing games one year if lessons are learned and growth happens... but when these young guys don't progress, it really is hard to overcome it. Until these guys get going, there isn't much to look forward to.

Doogie2k: I'm finding it harder and harder to say yes to this, if I'm being perfectly honest. I mean, yeah, I started the year as Captain Optimism, but I also didn't expect the entire operation to go tits-up almost from the word go, the way it has. I hate to keep harping on the injuries and uncertainty of future trades, but the outcome of the season is going to rely on those things. Unless there's a change, though, I have a very difficult time believing that this team, as it exists right now, is going to do anything tremendously positive.

Ender: Hope for the present lies in health and people taking advantage of opportunities. Having Souray back helps a lot, and having Horcoff finally snapping any psychological blocks against scoring bring some measure of hope. If Visnovsky can recover from whatever it is he's got (I'm betting mono) or at least tread water while doing so there's some chance. Getting Stone and Jacques back helps to make some room (and hopefully forces more turnovers) on the ice, but ultimately I think they need either Cogliano or Nilsson to really step up.

Sumit: Hope is all people can have. However this hope will be misplaced in an inexperienced team and management. However there are many positives in this team- Penner, Brule, Our defensemen. Yes our D-men, They have been horrible so far, but we all know they are capable of doing way better. Souray on defense has stunk so far. So has Gilbert and Staois. Even after the loss of Hemsky, Penner has been able to drive the offense with secondary scoring coming from surprising sources. Cogliano and Moreau are improving. If Only Sully could play in a more inspiring manner. Yes there is hope for the present, but a fool's hope. After all there are teams(St. Louis last season) who go into a crazy 30-40 game streak out of nowhere and make playoffs. But is that what we want?

Situational Faceoff Percentage

Scott Reynolds — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 19:00:30 -0000

Faceoffs are reasonably important. Especially faceoffs in the offensive or defensive zone where puck possession leads more directly to success. Gabe Desjardins has demonstrated the impact of the outcome of a faceoff at even strength. No doubt there would be similar results if one looked at the outcome of faceoffs on special teams. I bring this up because the Edmonton Oilers are not very good in the faceoff circle and have recently taken to using options like Patrick O'Sullivan and Dustin Penner in order to compensate for an injured Shawn Horcoff, ineffective Andrew Cogliano and "signed-to-play-wing" Mike Comrie. I wanted to look at what their track record might tell us about what we should expect from them going forward. In order to do that, however, I wanted to first look at the difference between faceoff success on the power play, on the penalty kill and at even strength.

More after the jump...

First, I need to acknowledge that Tyler Dellow has already given us some data that shows teams and players have a much better faceoff percentage on the power play than they do when short-handed. It seems obvious, but isn't always something we think of when we talk about a particular player's faceoff percentage. I decided to put together a couple of charts illustrating this point. The first is a chart of players that took more than 200 faceoffs while short-handed last in both 2008-09 and 2007-08:

The final "totals" column is just adding all of the faceoff performances together so those that took more faceoffs contribute more to the average. That means that the players who took the most faceoffs over the last two years on the penalty kill ended up losing a significant portion of their success. Although for some players there are some pretty big jumps from year to year, in absolute terms, the guys who did the best at even strength also tend to do the best short-handed.

The next chart is for players who took at least 200 faceoffs while on the power play in both 2007-08 and 2008-09:

I think there are some pretty interesting things here. The guys taking the most faceoffs on the penalty kill are generally what we might call "specialists." Teams really don't want to lose draws when they're penalty killing and make it a priority. On the power play, faceoff ability takes a backseat to offensive ability in general. The only player you might regard as a specialist who makes the list is Rod Brind'Amour who, in his best year, won two thirds of his faceoffs on the power play. This will generally serve to drag down the numbers of the specialists and pump up the numbers for the stars. Again, there isn't a lot of consistency at the player level from year to year but the totals stay very similar.

So, back to the Oilers, when deciding which guys should be taking draws I think it's probably wise to just look at even strength numbers. For instance, Dustin Penner's faceoff percentage in 2007-08 was 55.0% in 189 faceoffs but in the 93 faceoffs he took at even strength he only won 40.8%. Here are the career numbers at even strength for all of the Oilers who have taken 50 or more faceoffs this season, adding in Marc Pouliot and subtracting Shawn Horcoff:

It's not the prettiest of charts. There are only two guys on the team who have cleared 43% for their career and, at least so far, Dustin Penner and Patrick O'Sullivan aren't good options on the dot. Sam Gagner has improved a lot so far this year (100 wins and 103 losses) and could be a decent option going forward but with Horcoff not taking draws the Oilers could really use some help in this area. For most clubs faceoffs aren't a big deal because the pack is bunched so close together but the Oilers are bad enough territorially and bad enough at faceoffs that it could well be hurting them. It would obviously be preferable to improve the territorial play but it's probably significantly easier to improve the faceoff situation.

And poor Marc Pouliot. Gilbert Brule hasn't been used at all on the PK so when Pouliot gets back he's likely going to immediately step into some pretty tough minutes (defensive zone draws and lots of PK). It's a virtual guarantee his counting numbers are going to be awful as he heads for restricted free agency. Good luck getting paid kid!

Buffalo - Springfield Post-Game. That Was Springfield, Right?

Benjamin Massey — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:31:42 -0000

More photos » by Don Heupel - AP

Buffalo Sabres right winger Drew Stafford tries to hit the puck past Edmonton Oilers goalie Nikolai Khabibulin, top, during the first period of the NHL game in Buffalo, N.Y., Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009. (AP Photo/Don Heupel)

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You know what? I used to like Buffalo Springfield.

Would-be Falcons were certainly making an impact on the night. Whether it was Ryan Potulny's limp-wristed feebleness leading to the first goal or Liam Reddox getting nerve stapled by Clarke MacArthur on a play that should be a ten-game suspension and will be a firmly shaken finger from Colin Campbell saying not to do it again, it was all about the guys from the Falcons. And the guys who maybe should be on the Falcons (O HAI JASON STRUDWICK).

So when you think about it, were we really all that bad?

The fact that the Oilers lost without distinction is obvious. They've had a few all right games in a row on this road trip and I wouldn't have picked them to get two points on the entire tour, so it's easy to take a loss to the Sabres as a moral victory, in context. They played like a team which had just gutted out a shootout loss against a superior team in Ottawa, which they were. They had every reason in the world to lose this game, and they did. The end.

Well, the end until news of MacArthur's non-suspension comes down, at which point I can dope up on rageahol like it was meant to be.

Most of the Oilers weren't dreadful individually. Patrick O'Sullivan made some classic Patrick O'Sullivan passes to nobody, sure, but he also scored a lovely goal and was a quarter-inch from a hat trick. Nikolai Khabibulin takes the rap for the second goal, which fluttered through his five hole like a butterfly into the eye of a hurricane, but he also made some nice saves. Perhaps his rebound control on the first goal wasn't the best either, but any NHL goalie will let his share of pucks out when he's down like that.

Liam Reddox was actually one of the best Oilers out there because he played like he wanted something from the game. He was tenacious and always hard on the puck, gave the Sabres hassle whenever they were near him - he was, in short, the usual Liam Reddox. Not that skilled but certainly more useful than guys like me usually gave him credit for. Steve Staios was also a highlight - and I want you to know how difficult it is for me to say that. Though his one mistake in the third period was a heinous giveaway leading to a penalty and only Khabibulin's right pad saved him from an embarrassing minus, Steady Steve actually earned his nickname.

When a team suffers as many injuries and as much fatigue as the Oilers have, the role players like Reddox and Staios have to step up. Unfortunately the stars weren't keeping pace. Dustin Penner had his worst game in some time, with a number of stick-cracking slashes by the Sabres going uncalled but the big genius largely ineffective even when he did have all his equipment. Ales Hemsky, rushed back into the lineup to replace Ryan O'Marra, was simply dreadful. Andrew Cogliano was a non-entity, carried by the stronger play of Ethan Moreau and Zack Stortini on his line. Sam Gagner was possibly not on the ice at all.

The injuries, though. We hope Reddox is all right; playing in his next game has nothing to do with it. We know Grebeshkov is going home after a dirty knee-on-knee play that got no call; one suspects that Bryan Young is sitting excitedly near the phone. We still have Bryan Young, right?

It was a game to forget, except for Clarke MacArthur. The Oilers and Sabres don't play that often, but when they do I hope the Oilers have long memories.

The Copper & Blue Reverse Three Stars, Unfair Though Selecting Players from the Minor Leagues May Be:

18th Star: F Ryan Potulny. Scored a goal last night against the ~~Senators~~ Avalanche, and fair play to him! But I didn't see the game ~~last night against Ottawa~~ against Colorado, I saw the goal tonight against Buffalo. And against Buffalo, oh boy did he ever look like an American leaguer.

I pin the first goal on him, as we discussed. With the Sabres moving the puck around our zone, Potulny was skating to and fro awkwardly as if desperately afraid to be caught doing nothing but equally afraid to be caught out of position and therefore being stuck between various extremes of uselessness. The puck went into the corner and Potulny threw his stick out awkwardly, subscribing to the Red Green school of defending and keeping his stick on the ice. The puck clattered off his feeble grip and deflected out in front, whereupon the Sabres ended up banging it in.

The Steve Smith who wrote the Red Green show? Not that Steve Smith. Ryan Potulny would do well to remember that.

Apart from that, he did very little. He generally handled the puck like it were radioactive and was thrown out on the last, desperate shift of the game because who the hell else were you going to put out there? Potulny has lovely soft hands and I like him, but the reason he's not playing in the NHL is because of his skating and because his puck sense isn't the greatest. Boy Jesus, he proved that.

19th Star: F Ales Hemsky. Has Ales Hemsky ever played well hurt? I don't think Hemsky is a stereotypical European sissy by any means. He can fight in the corners and he'll use his muscle when he can. We've all seen him block shots or take heavy blows in the corner that he knew were coming and keep going. He's not afraid and he's not going to shy away. But sometimes he gets hurt, and when he does it gets ugly. He's willing to play almost every time and we all wind up wishing he hadn't.

He plays a very difficult style of play. Even aside from his famous Euro Dangles he twists and turns when he's skating, tries to do everything at speed, and will try to play his way through gaps smaller than most players would attempt. If part of him really isn't feeling right, it may just completely throw him off. Well, he looked completely thrown off tonight. Towards the end of the game when he got into an unprovoked tussle with Patrick Kaleta, he looked utterly miserable, like he was about to throw up on Kaleta's face but was concerned he might be suspended for it.

20th Star: D Jason Strudwick. He's like Mark Messier at this stage. A constant danger, a reliable threat, and somebody who you never, ever can take your eye off for any reason. The only difference is that Messier did it helping his team.

Running out of hyperbole now. Stop sucking so much, Jason.

Season-to-Date Standings:

21 points: Jason Strudwick

14 points: Ethan Moreau

11 points: Mike Comrie, Nikolai Khabibulin

8 points: Denis Grebeshkov

6 points: Jean-Francois Jacques

5 points: Patrick O'Sullivan

4 points: Ales Hemsky, Theo Peckham

3 points: Sam Gagner, Shawn Horcoff, Patrick O'Sullivan, Ryan Stone

1 point: Andrew Cogliano, Tom Gilbert, Ryan Potulny

Oilers participating in Movember

James Mirtle — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:28:24 -0000

Taylor Chorney, for those who don't know. Here's the press release (with photo gallery):

Eight of the Edmonton Oilers are joining the fight against prostate cancer this month by participating in Movember. Throughout November, participating players will grow moustaches in support of prostate cancer research. The Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation will be accepting donations on behalf of the Movember Foundation on edmontonoilers.com.

"We’re very proud to see a number of our players participate in Movember." said Natalie Minckler, EOCF’s Executive Director. "Not only have they shown leadership by joining this important cause but their participation is a product of their own initiative."

Oilers forward Sam Gagner initiated the idea and enrolled his teammates Gilbert Brule, Taylor Chorney, J-F Jacques, Patrick O’Sullivan, Ryan Stone, Theo Peckham and Zack Stortini.

George Parros, in other words, will soon have some competition.

Edmonton - Columbus Postgame: Gagpensky

Benjamin Massey — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 05:16:59 -0000

More photos » by Jimmy Jeong - AP

2 months ago: Edmonton Oilers left wing Dustin Penner (27) and Edmonton Oilers center Sam Gagner (89) celebrate a goal by Penner against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Edmonton, Alberta on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jimmy Jeong)

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Was it the birth of a legend, or was it just another false saviour? There have been so many through the years. How many Kid Lines has this team run out, seen notch a couple fantastic efforts, then fade into nothingness. Where today there are Ales Hemsky and Dustin Penner, once there was Bernie Nicholls, or Craig Simpson, or some other good-but-not-great player who constantly seemed on the verge of taking that last, longest step into immortality.

Nobody gains immortality at expense of the Columbus Blue Jackets. It is a contradiction in terms, even this season when the Blue Jackets are quite good and the Oilers, by every metric except wins and losses, are not. The true test will come when this alloy of old and new faces someone worthy of bearing witness to greatness. But we cannot condemn their brilliance by the opposition it faces. The Oilers were down and out, their corpse twitching on the pavement, blood pouring from their wounds, waiting only for the police to draw a chalk outline around them.

Then the surge came, so gently I reckoned I could hear strings in the background, like an orchestra playing up to the crescendo. Dustin Penner almost lovingly tucking a puck past his old friend Mathieu Garon on the short side. Seven minutes later, Ales Hemsky repeating with power what Penner achieved with finesse. And in the third period it was Penner again, banging in the tying goal and from that point on it was only a question of how many the Oilers would win by. When Penner ripped a wristshot that caromed off of Garon straight into Lubomir Visnovsky's wheelhouse, it almost felt like they were showing off: next one, I'll bank off the scoreboard.

The Oilers' leaders were true of heart and the team followed. Robert Nilsson ended proceedings with a perfect backhand into the empty net, a routine play save for the fact that he was halfway between his own blue and goal lines at the time. It was that sort of night. Lead and we shall follow. Or, to pick a more conventional hockey metaphor, the team just climbed on the first line's back.

It was a statement game for young Sam Gagner. Some scribes - and I am one of them - said the Oilers made a mistake taking the Son of Dave over Jakub Voracek in the draft all those years ago. Voracek had the complete package, whereas Gagner was a flash in the pan with a junior club that had always overinflated its players' results. Voracek spent an extra season seasoning in junior, Gagner made the jump too early. And yes, Gagner has played far tougher competition than Voracek so far in their respective careers, but Voracek's conventional numbers are so far beyond Gagner's and at root hockey is a game where your guys have to score more than the other guys.

Well, Voracek had two assists, both well-earned. And Gagner had two assists. But Gagner also scored a lovely little goal, was a dervish up and down the ice, and won seven of nine faceoffs into the bargain, as if to add a little "anything you can do I can do better" facewash to his Czech adversary. So far on the year, Gagner is ahead of Voracek in goals and points and playing his toughest competition yet, and even in the hearts of hard-boiled cynics like myself there cannot help but be a little surge of hope.

I do not subscribe to the doctrine of the Big Goal. The greatest advantage of scoring a goal near the end of the period is that you just scored a goal, not when it came. But Gagner seems increasingly to be at ease with the spotlight in a way that few of his generation can boast. Gagner played his heart out in the Battle of Alberta, scored a dagger of a goal and had an all-round fine game against Vancouver, and with the Oilers so rattled at home by the Blue Jackets he played superbly; a game that would make him the first star almost any other night. I do believe that athletes react in different ways to pressure, that - to boil it down to a much-loathed word - some are "clutch" and some are not. Sam Gagner increasingly is coming out well in that measure.

Shawn Horcoff? The veteran, the man supplanted by this beardless youth and stripped of his rightful inheritance on the Oilers first line? Alas, mortal once again! Given the strongest possible signal to shape up he reacted with another pedestrian effort similar to those that have dogged him all year. His faceoff percentage was poor for the second straight game, losing fourteen of twenty-four. He was defensively sound and did not make a single mistake. But where was the sly creativity that we have so long loved from Horcoff? If the old steadiness of hand and heart is back Horcoff will contribute to this team, but what happened to the little coups of audacity, the cheeky backhand passes and clever little flicks up the neutral zone, that so defined him as a first line centre rather than another Michael Peca? Even in Horpensky's brief cameos this season it was Horcoff who was along for the ride, fighting the puck while Hemsky and Penner made the world revolve around them. Every rise has a fall, and Shawn Horcoff may be the great tragedy so far in this Oilers season.

At the end, it all comes back to Hemsky and Penner. The former having shed the sickness that nearly felled him against Vancouver even as it ravaged his teammates (flu? a preoccupation for mere mortals!), dancing among the best all-round defensive team in the Western Conference like he were Guy Lafleur come amongst us again. And Penner, once again earning the "fatso!" chants in sheer, disbelieving admiration rather than scorn. Some of us always believed. The underlying numbers were always there, and for someone allegedly so soft and lazy he had the oddest way of getting elite results anyway. But we were, in a strange way, wrong. Properly motivated and with a coach who truly believes in him, Penner has moved from mere greatness to being truly, terrifyingly good. His physical dominance this season, the way he combines the primal fear of being torn from limb from limb with the fear of being executed just as swiftly by his puck skills, has been equaled by no Oiler but Messier, and that is the most rarefied air that any hockey player can breathe.

The Oilers met a better team tonight, and they came out the victors. Two men were responsible for this. Pat Quinn would do well to heed this lesson.

The Copper & Blue Reverse Three Stars:

18th Star: D Jason Strudwick. Another standard bad game from the journeyman defenseman and dominant frontrunner for the Golden Rooster. Strudwick played a relatively light 18:02, less than Taylor Chorney and ahead of only the flu-stricken Ladislav Smid among Oiler defensemen, and Tom Renney seemed to be conspicuously avoiding Rick Nash and company whenever Strudwick and Chorney went over the boards. Yet Strudwick still struggled conspicuously, being taken wide or outmuscled for the puck by such luminaries as Kristian Huselius and Jason Chimera, who humiliated Strudwick to score Columbus's fourth goal of the night and seemingly put them in control. His repeated failure to get the puck out of the zone resulted in, among other things, a Nikolai Khabibulin tripping penalty. In truth, Strudwick got away with a fair bit himself.

Strudwick's foibles are, of course, forced onto the Oilers by the injuries to Sheldon Souray and Steve Staios. But his performances have been simply intolerable and he's shown no sign in the last year of being able to raise his game. Strudwick may be a slightly better player than, say, Theo Peckham, but the additional experience for a promising prospect would be well worth the marginal drop-off in skill. Even Dean Arsene seems like he'd at least provide a different dimension than Strudwick, who seems like Steve Staios with even less footspeed and puck presence this season.

19th Star: LW Mike Comrie. Along with O'Sullivan, Comrie was the only Oiler to go -2 on the night. But O'Sullivan was active all over the ice, mustered five shots, looked better than usual defensively, and while mediocre was at least inoffensive. Comrie merely repeated what we've seen from him the last few games: bad at even strength and worse on the power play. He was never a very good power play man, and his continued presence on the man advantage is simply staggering. Comrie's entire career suggests that he can't get it done in the NHL 5v4, but he's a silky offensive player so therefore he must be good on the power play. It is ridiculous and patently untrue, and with his ill-conceived passes and lack of vision it's costing the Oilers goals.

We know that Comrie can play, but he needs to have his role reduced. Play him with O'Sullivan and Jacques and keep him the hell away from any special teams. Let them take on third-tier opposition, where Comrie and O'Sullivan can feast and Jacques can do little harm. Mike has the ability to be a contributor at even strength, but he needs to be in the right position to succeed. And his power play ineptitude is bordering on the legendary.

20th Star: D Denis Grebeshkov. A guy with a nickname like "LSD Blotter" is going to wind up on this list from time to time. It started out bad for Grebeshkov, who made Kristian Huselius's first goal a bit too easy for Jakub Voracek as he span and sent in a perfect backhand pass. That was not the end of his twenty-four minutes of suffering, either. On the powerplay, Grebeshkov sent wide-open, elementary passes onto Lubomir Visnovsky's backhand, forcing the Oilers to reset. At even strength, Grebeshkov seemed in over his head regardless of the opposition, being beaten by Rick Nash or R.J. Umberger with equal aplomb. He was not at his worst, and he didn't send any of his trademark passes to nowhere or decapitate one of his own players with a slap shot. But he was bad.

Full marks to Grebeshkov so far this season. He's been Edmonton's best defenseman next to Ladislav Smid, and his development over the last two seasons has been more than encouraging. He has improved in the mental aspect of the game and these crazy nights which once accounted for two games out of every three are becoming more and more infrequent. But they're still there, and until he eliminates them from his repertoire I cannot help but view Grebeshkov with a mixture of hope and apprehension.

Season-to-Date Standings:

16 points: Jason Strudwick

11 points: Mike Comrie

8 points: Denis Grebeshkov, Nikolai Khabibulin

6 points: Jean-Francois Jacques

3 points: Sam Gagner, Shawn Horcoff, Ethan Moreau, Ryan Stone

1 point: Tom Gilbert, Ales Hemsky

Struggling?

Jonathan Willis — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 01:32:19 -0000

More photos » by John Ulan - AP

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Vicki Hall of the Calgary Herald:

Craig Conroy decided to do a kid a favour Saturday on Hockey Night in Canada.

The random act of kindness came in the second period when Conroy lined up for a faceoff at centre ice against a struggling Sam Gagner, of the Edmonton Oilers.

I think that one game on the fourth line has to be a new record for use of the term "struggling".

Stars 4, Oilers 5 (SO); So Tell Me Why I Don't Like Shootouts, Tell Me Why...

Brandon Bibb — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 05:03:01 -0000

More photos » by Jimmy Jeong - AP

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And no, it has nothing to do with the fact the Stars have dropped their first two games of the 2009-10 campaign in them.

I'll freely admit that I enjoyed them in the first season after the lockout. How could you not when you knew that Jussi Jokinen was going to pull off a truly memorable move?

But the novelty on this has worn off. We've seen everybody's moves. And in the end, you're using a skills contest to decide not only games, but possibly, playoff spots down the road.

Anyway, I just wanted to get my stance on this on the record. I'll leave it at that because, let's face it, the Stars had one goal leads on three separate occasions in this contest and failed to hold onto each lead. That's why they found themselves in OT and eventually, the shootout.

For more on the game, follow me after the jump.

Edmonton jumped on the Stars from the outset and were rewarded with a power play when Jeff Woywitka was whistled off for high sticking 1:53 in. For the first 1:40 of the power play, the Stars did a good job of holding the Oilers on the perimeter. But then Andrew Cogliano carried the puck behind the net and waited for Mike Comrie to drift to the front. Stephane Robidas was late getting over, Cogliano fed Comrie, who tabbed the puck past Marty Turco to open the scoring 3:49 in.

Brenden Morrow knotted things just a few minutes later and picked up his first goal of the season in the process on a backhander past Nikolai Khabibulin. The teams remained tied throughout the rest of a ragged first period. In fact, they remained tied at 1-1 for just over 20 minutes of play before Marty Turco fired a pass off the glass on an Oilers' power play and into the neutral zone. James Neal picked up the puck and streaked down the right wing where he fired a snapper over Khabibulin to give Dallas their first lead of the game at the 5:57 mark of the second period.

Unfortunately, the lead didn't last as Sam Gagner, the son of former Dallas Star Dave Gagner, knotted things up just 48 seconds later with some helpers from Zach Sortini and Denis Grebeshkov. The back and forth action between the two teams continued throughout the second when Stephane Robidas' seeing eye bomb from the point snuck in past a screened Khabibulin to restore Dallas' one goal lead at the 11:57 mark. It looked like that power play marker would hold up until the second intermission before Dustin Penner scored at the 18:06 mark to tie the score for a third time.

Brenden Morrow's power play goal 1:25 into the third gave Dallas it's third lead of the game when he took a feed from Mike Ribeiro and found oodles of room to shoot the puck through Khabibulin's five hole. But just like on two previous deficits, the Oilers came back and tied the score when Grebeshkov's shot deflected off Nicklas Grossman and over a sprawling Marty Turco, who was far from his best in the this one but could not be faulted for this goal.

The goal scoring stopped and both teams went into OT where the Oilers nearly ended it early on when Patrick O'Sullivan's centering pass somehow got through to Tom Gilbert who redirected the puck towards the net, only to be thwarted by the left pad of Marty Turco. Twas clearly Turco's best save of the night.

Alas, the Stars couldn't take advantage of the great save and end it in the extra session. So for the second straight game, the Stars went to the shootout.

Both clubs traded missed shots and easy saves through the first two rounds. Brad Richards fired the puck right into Khabibulin and Mike Ribeiro fired wide of the net while Sam Gagner and Patrick O'Sullivan were both foiled by Turco. Ales Hemsky stepped up, skated in, and misfired on a wrister so bad that it fooled Turco and sliped in through the five hole to give Edmonton a 1-0 lead in the shootout.

And when James Neal hit the post on his attempt, the Stars had dropped their second consecutive shootout. As a fan, this contest was enjoyable as any contest between these two rivals. It was certainly fun.

But it could have been better.

Cue Marc Crawford from his post game presser:

"We're making it fun for everybody, but the fun comes from getting the results."

Their next chance to get a pair of points will come Friday night in Calgary.

September 30: Notes in Space

Robert Cleave — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:37:24 -0000

With the season starting tomorrow, there is plenty of hockey news circulating, Flames-specific and otherwise. After the jump, Mike Keenan speaks, Mats Sundin makes up his mind a bit earlier this year, and Carolina gives Cam Ward a pile of money.

Calgary:

First, some house cleaning from last season's wreckage. Mike Keenan spoke yesterday for the first time about his dismissal from the Flames. He accuses the Flames of impatience, comparing his situation to that of Scotty Bowman in Detroit. Note to Mike, Scotty Bowman's Red Wings went to the Finals his second year, and he had six Cups on the resume by that time. Keenan's an educated man, so I'm sure he's familiar with this word.

On to the new hotness. George Johnson takes a look at what the season may hold in store for Dion Phaneuf. Accountability, Dependability, Maturity. It may not have the ring of this famous phrase, but progress in those areas will be what Flames' fans should watch for this season from number 3.

Jarome Iginla's teammates have his back against critics of his play last year. Kent's spent plenty of time showing that Jarome beat up the weak sisters of the league last year while struggling against the top tier. Iginla himself says that his defensive play could use some improvement, and in that assessment, the captain and I are in complete accord. There's also plenty of chatter from the team about the burgeoning chemistry between Iginla and Jokinen. We'll see if they can do it at both ends of the ice.

Eric Francis has a Q & A with the new boss in the Sun. Amongst the tidbits, Sutter re-iterates that he wants Kiprusoff to play fewer than 70 games, citing fatigue from travel a one reason. He also notes that the Flames need Boyd, Dawes and Glencross to step up if the Flames expect to contend.

To that end, Sutter wants to give Dustin Boyd a larger role on this year's team, and notes that he's had success with Boyd in their Team Canada days by giving him more of a set role. Moving up to play with Glencross and Conroy is an opportunity that Boyd has to grab, because those two are good, and they'll likely play third-level comp, so Boyd has to produce in that scenario if he expects a long-term deal next summer.

Northwest Division:

The Robbie Schremp era in Edmonton is finally over, with the Islanders claiming him. Schremp was, to say the least, a lighting rod figure in the hockey-sphere. I think the diversity of opinion about him could be best summed up by slightly amending Homer Simpson's famous quote: "To Rob Schremp; the cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems."

Does that make Rob Schremp the Duff Beer of hockey players?

In other Oily news, Sam Gagner has been given fourth line duties to start the season by Pat Quinn, and the Oilers' coach is blunt in assessing what the young man needs to improve at. Play a two-way game or take a step back, kinda the theme in Alberta this year, I'd say.

In Vancouver, salary cap issues have the Canucks doing some juggling. Tom Benjamin and our own Kent Wilson examine the situation. Kent's POV about what risks are entailed in running tight to the number is one I share, and Flames' fans should certainly understand those potential risks better than most.

The other Canuck news of note is the demotion of Cody Hodgson to Brampton. Unfortunately, from what I saw of him last spring during the AHL playoffs, he's too good for junior. Like Calgary prospects Mitch Wahl, Greg Nemisz and T.J. Brodie, he'd be likely be better off in the AHL playing against grown-ups. Spending the winter(hockey-wise, anyway) here in the 'Peg would be his best bet for development, since Vancouver doesn't want or need to have him in the bigs, but the rules exist, and he's stuck.

Elsewhere:

Mats Sundin has finally called time on his career, announcing his retirement. A jersey retirement and enshrinment in the HHOF are in his near future. Unlike the charade of every Leaf of the 1960's apparently getting inducted, Sundin's a worthy member of the hall, both for his play in the NHL and his regular efforts on behalf of Sweden in international play. Now if only Peter Forsberg would take the hint.

Another worthy read from Leaf-land is Pension Plan Puppets' lengthy interview with Michael Grange and Dave Feschuk, authors of Leafs AbomiNation. PPP was featured in the book, and serves up some in-depth questioning of Grange and Feschuk.

Cam Ward hit the jackpot today, as Carolina has made a major commitment to the former Red Deer Rebel, inking him to a 6 year deal reportedly worth 37.8 million. Just remember, 'Canes fans, Kipper's deal looked decent at the time as well. His Conn Smythe run aside, last year was the first season where he seemed to rate as a proper number 1.

ESPN's Scott Burnside has a, um, novel power ranking to open the season. Vancouver behind the Oil, Tampa 10th, and the Blue Jackets and Devils behind teams like Nashville and Ottawa? What's in the water in Bristol?

Todd Bertuzzi tells Dan Rosen of NHL.com that he's ready to fit in with the Wings. A coach that doesn't give him unfettered ice-time will likely help curb his excesses to a degree, so it'll be interesting to see if Bertuzzi is done as a serious contributor, or if Keenan's endless coddling of him just made it look that way. If it's the former, this might be Bert's last contract unless he wants to play for a bottom feeder.

Max Afinogenov has found a new home, signing a 1 year, 800k deal with Atlanta. With all the money that he could have made in Russia, this might be a slight surprise, but he'd made noises all summer that he wanted to stay in the NHL. He wasn't exactly a favourite by the time he left Buffalo, but he's not a terrible gamble at that price. Atlanta signed Nik Antropov to a 16 million dollar deal, so I guess I'd say it isn't even the biggest gamble Don Waddell took this off-season.

Feel free to add a link to anything else you see in the comments.

Who Can Handle Brodziak's Workload?

Derek Zona — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 12:00:30 -0000

More photos » by Christopher J. Morris - AP

3 months ago: Vancouver Canucks' Evan Oberg and Edmonton Oilers' Marc Pouliot battle along the boards during the second period of an NHL hockey preseason game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Christopher J. Morris)

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Kyle Brodziak was traded to the Wild because it was his fault that the Oilers lost last year. Or he was a locker room problem. Or he wasn't physical. Or something. The reasons for the Brodizak trade aren't quite understood by most, especially in light of the fact that the management team in Edmonton has yet to replace the skillset that Brodziak brought to the team.

Below is a chart of 2009 statistics [Zonestart, % of faceoffs taken in the defensive zone, % of faceoffs taken in the offensive zone, Corsi, and % of faceoffs won] of the five current Oilers' centers and Brodziak.

The two things that jump out on this chart are Brodziak's starting position on the ice and his faceoff percentage. Neither Sam Gagner nor Andrew Cogliano could be counted on to win a faceoff, which eliminated them as options in the defensive zone to start a shift. That left Brodziak to do everything that Shawn Horcoff couldn't handle and worse. The faceoff numbers were impressive for such a young center, especially given that he was taking so many own zone draws. Brodziak had an awful Corsi, but he did have inferior linemates, which impact performance when combined with the terrible starting position Brodziak endured throughout the season.

The contenders to replace Brodziak's workload are going to struggle with those starting conditions. Andrew Cogliano's faceoff woes are well-documented, Sam Gagner is still a kid and learning the craft. Mike Comrie hasn't had success in the faceoff circle in four years. Marc Pouliot has shown that he has some skill in the circle, but is untested.

Brodziak also contributed heavily to the Oilers' penalty kill last year -- he played the second most short-handed minutes on the team and took almost every faceoff that Shawn Horcoff didn't take.

Given that Kelly Buchberger's system last year didn't involve three pairs of forwards, maybe Buchberger isn't worried about getting another penalty killer. Perhaps he's content with Horcoff, Pisani, Moreau and O'Sullivan with Cogliano and Pouliot spot-filling. If Tom Renney is involved, however, remember that from this post Renney likes to run three pairs of forwards. Either way, Quinn still has a void on the penalty kill - someone that can win faceoffs when Horcoff is gassed.

The candidates to take up that role are either unproven or unable to handle it. Gilbert Brule, Cogliano, Comrie, Gagner, and Pouliot. Brule seems to have the keys to the kingdom because the team mismanaged his waiver situation last year, but is not ready for the penalty kill or slanted ice in the faceoff circle. Pouliot has shown flashes of talent in these areas, has the skills necessary to handle that load and has the size to make an impact defensively. However, according to most, he's barely hanging on to the 14th forward slot at this point. The others are not penalty kill options, are just plain bad in the faceoff circle and have never played in any similar role previously.

The Oilers were short-handed at center last year and it led to the situation that Brodziak was placed in last year. Rather than strengthen the position, the Oilers weakened themselves by trading Brodziak and leaving defensive zone work to players that have tried and failed or have never been asked to do so. To make things worse, the player with the tools to most likely step in is in danger of losing his job because of roster mismanagement.

Poll

Shawn Horcoff is unable to take a defensive zone draw with 1:30 to go in the game. Who do you tap on the shoulder?

Gilbert Brule

48 votes

Andrew Cogliano

3 votes

Mike Comrie

33 votes

Sam Gagner

11 votes

Marc Pouliot

52 votes

147 votes | Poll has closed