Yep. Can't say I understand a lot of the things management/coaching does.

I don't get how with all the talent on this team the shit goalies have somehow been the best players.

__________________
Dig my Cage Match articles? Follow my blog! The Laws of Sport

Also on Twitter @SteveLaidlaw

Gagner has been by far our best player IMO but yea, the goalies have kept us in almost every game we've won.

I don't understand how a team with Hall, Gagner, Hemsky, RNH, Yakupov can't score on 5v5. I know it's early but you sort of have to point to the coach for that.

Ya I'm having a hard time with this... Even Eberle doesn't always seem like the Eberle I know. The coach has to take some blame for this. Too much talent not scoring goals.

Still putting up decent points but just not the same player as last year. I've heard some people say they developed bad playing habits etc. in the AHL but who knows. Hall has still been great but Nuge/Ebs not so much.

One thing is for sure, the team has a great power play. They stick 5on5 though, my god. I don't know if its the kids not playing as well as they should or the role players just not being good enough to put the kids in a position to succeed but they just get dominated at even strength.

__________________
Dig my Cage Match articles? Follow my blog! The Laws of Sport

Also on Twitter @SteveLaidlaw

How has Yakupov looked? I know he is on the 3rd line and all and saw that his ice time was only 9:05 last night. Obviously major room for improvements on his defensive game, but giving him under 10 mins a game? Yikes.

__________________
H2H 12 Team/12 Keeper League. Cats: G, A, P, +/-, PIM, PPP, W, GAA, SV%, SO.

C - Crosby, Malkin, Backstrom
LW - Parise, Neal, Ryan
RW - Kovalchuk, Skinner
D - Karlsson, Subban, OEL
G - Rinne, Ward

Farm - Yakupov, Tarasenko, Galchenyuk, Granlund, Baertschi, Silfverberg, Lindback, Markstrom

When we have the worst 5v5 stats in the league (by a decent margin too) and are below Florida, CBJ, etc. it doesn't take much to realize that something needs to change. It's easy to blame the kids because we expect so much from them, but looking at the 5v5 scoring paints an ugly picture:

Hall - 9 points
Gagner - 7 points
Eberle - 6 points
Yak - 5 points
RNH - 4 points

Not great by any means, but...

Horcoff + Hartski + Petrell + Belanger + MPS + Eager = 5 points total.

Even when you add in Smyth that's still only 9 points between 7 players at even strength.

I could understand if those numbers were goals not points. That's just dumbfounding. I still blame the D somehow. I just think if we had guys who could jump into the rush or get a shot on net or make some smart passes that everything else would open up for even the shitty energy forwards. Instead its Smid, Schultz and a bunch of assclowns.

__________________
Dig my Cage Match articles? Follow my blog! The Laws of Sport

Also on Twitter @SteveLaidlaw

The sad part is twofold:

1) Fistric leads all Oilers d-men in even strength scoring despite only playing 12 games.
2) The Oiler's d-corps have combined for 4 even strength points, which almost looks good next to our bottom 6F.