Who should shoulder the blame for the Oilers struggles? Are the Oilers issues something that can be corrected this season? Do the Flames have too many good players to finish last in the NHL? TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button joins SC with Jay Onrait to discuss.
@Edmonton Oilers
35 Comments
Stuart Skinner and Pickard aren't NHL goaltenders. Why the hell won't anybody point to the real issue??
He gives Kulak kudos, which means he's barely watching them recently. Kulak has been getting absolutely caved in the last half dozen games. He's -13 the last 7, in fact.
Stuart Skinner allowed ONLY 5 goals this time! SV = 0.73% ! He and Bouchard 🤑 should play for Team Canada at the Olympics😂😂 Oilers defense is the best in NHL!😝Watch goal #4 by Capitals
Darnell Nurse to Nashville in exchange for Steven Stamkos, and prospects Oasiz Wiesblatt and Tanner Molendyk.
After two consecutive Stanley Cup Final runs, the Oilers look exhausted on the ice and don't seem to be able to play at NHL speed.
They also never adequately replaced the key role players they lost over the past two summer, and their defence and goaltending are turning into a dumpster fire.
Stan Bowman had better start making serious roster moves now, or else the Oilers could easily miss the playoffs this season, and they appear to be heading in that direction very quickly.
Right now, it is also looking like there is no chance McDavid stays in Edmonton after his contract extension expires.
Oilers are not ready mentally they can't think that far ahead because they know their is alot of hockey to play before the playoffs Mentally they don't have it
Nurse should be in the ahl. He has the only contract In the league that will still be bad even when the cap goes up. Which is an amazing achievement.
The whole team sucks.
These losses are not a goaltending issue. The best goaltending in the league wouldn’t be able to steal games with this defensive play.
Time to trade McDavid and Leon start the rebuild again.
Button stop sugar coating the goaltending problems for the Oilers! There are bottom 5 teams having better goaltending on losing nights than what the Oilers are getting from Skinner/Pickard.
Oilers have allowed 34 goals against in just the past 7 games. I would put goaltending near the top of he list of issues they need to fix ASAP
Ill say this. Mcdavid is the best Offensive player. But hes far from the best overall player.
I'll say right now even being a die hard Caps fan, but I follow all goalies in the NHL. If the Oilers had a solid starter in net, they would have won the Cup these 2 previous years! I don't get it with the Oilers. Looking back on their goalie history regarding winning Cups, they had the likes of Grant Fuhr and Bill Ranford. I have not seen the Oilers have a decent #1 netminder since Cam Talbot! It puzzles me how the Oilers, year after year for a long time, keep taking shortcuts regarding goaltending.
The window has closed.
YOU IDIOT
What Button doesn't point out, the Oilers offense still carries this team! Any team can beat the Oilers if they are smart not taking dumb penalties, have a goalie steal the game, can find ways generating offense that forces the Oilers to defend their own end or find a way to slow down McDavid/Draisaitl and force other Oilers players to win the game. Back to Skinner, he is one of the slowest goalies to move laterally and his goalie IQ is low. Quite frankly, Skinner has terrible mechanics for an NHL goalie. The only reason he sort of survives in the NHL is his big size and McDavid/Draisaitl bailing him out a good deal.
Much schadenfreude with Cup-less McDavid and the Oilers struggling
You can’t cycle through a couple of hundred of players the past few years, and keep telling us it’s the players…….what about the coaching?
If every Oilers defenseman matched Emberson’s level of aggression, this team would finally give itself a real chance. The contrast with Bouchard could not be sharper. Every time he turns the puck over, his so-called “chase” of the forward is painful to watch. It is performative effort, not competitive effort, and for a top-four defenseman on a supposed contender, that is simply unacceptable.
Listening to this idiot makes my brain hurt.
Is button paid to say this by Skinners agent or something? Any credibility he had is absolutely gone now
Mcdavid should leave Edmonton. He's never going to win a cup as long as he stays there.
Nurse, Bouchard and Kulak have to go for more defensive D. Then judge Skinner for a few games, if he continues to play bad then he goes as well.
On paper, last year, Bouchard looked like a top level defenseman. Is no one watching how bad this guy really plays?He can't compete with his intensity level, and current physical condition! Absolutely no stamina! He really needs to go play in Europe, where he can float around, stick check, make great passes etc. But! He is not an NHL defenseman. I am not advocating him to be a fighter,or tough guy, but select body checking is a critical aspect of NHL hockey! He refuses to accept this duty! The Oilers are going nowhere with his play. Teams key on McD, why? Because with Bouchard on the ice they are always a man short!
The 3rd goal was the epitome of the problems…at the Oilers blueline 1 man does the right thing,he stands up @ the line to defend it,he does it twice,he does it alone,he does it with no supports because his SYSTEM tells him no to do it and if he does he will surely STAND ALONE and be caught out of position as punishment.I am a Tactical Systems Analyst….for more analysis feel free to request consults/
I'll give a crap when the Oilers give a crap… how bout them apples? Mr. Buttons?
Craig thinks Kulak is still a good defenseman 🙂 🙂 He clearly hasn't been watching the Oil the last two weeks, where Brett has stunk up the joint!
20million for nurse and Bouchard. Like wow.
Oilers suck ass. No depth. Mcdavid garbage. Defense junk. Goalie junk
And people are worrying about toronto .😅😅😅😅
Connor took the 2 years not becouse he was being loyal. He knows he wants to come to the 6 to end his career. Everyone wants to be the one who brings the cup to the 6 after 1000000000000000 years
Thank you for being honest about the Oilers! They are playing horrible.
Atleast Stuart Skinner lost 15 pounds
The Oilers defensive play is what has cost them for the last 4 years, goaltender is average when you spend so much money on two players it becomes a team of I have my money don’t care about the team game