The Oilers are 52 games in with a losing record… but is coaching really the problem? Or is it on the players and roster construction?
We break down where the blame actually belongs and what needs to change going forward.
Tell us in the comments: Is it coaching, roster, or something else? 👇
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12 Comments
Not a coaching problem but we can definitely notice how good of a coach Paul Coffey was and how much better the defense was under him.
Yes we do!
I’m not a fan of Knoblauch at all.
Yes yes YES!!!!!!!
Way less structure and disorganized team play after Coffey left.
I wouldn't mind seeing Coffey replace him. Team plays with no consistency, zero cohesion between the defense and offence.
YES
YES!
YES!!!!!
Big time problem. Gulutzan and Coffey made Knoblauch look good. Now that Knoblauch has his own assistants, you can see how bad it is behind the bench. 97 and 29 are being overplayed 24+ minutes a night, meanwhile the entire bottom 6 plays 11 minutes or less. Gotta play our young guys more and put them into positions to succeed. Roll 4 lines and balance out the lineup. But what do I know, I’m sitting on my couch writing this.
Hes terrible coach
From my perspective, Knoblauch wasn't any better than Woody. Knoblauch had different and better pieces to work with in the past 2 years. Knoblauch also had Paul Coffey and Glen G. Remove Paul and Glen throw a few season long passengers in the line up , and Knoblauch is scrambling like any other coach The Oil had behind the bench. I wouldn't be surprised if Coffey came back for the Playoffs or just before. To me it seems like Knoblauch is hanging on by a very thin thread. If Knoblauch didn't have Connor, Leon and Evan he would have been fired earlier this year because Kris has no idea and refuses to roll all 4 lines consistently and 95% of the time has no confidence in his bottom 6. Doesn't matter who it is. I'm sure Connor, Leon, and Evan go home or go back to their hotel every night questioning so many moves Knoblauch makes on a night basis. But even more to my point all 3 are unanimous in saying we make Knoblauch look better than he really is.
We get out coached in the finals
I believe we have a " too many players just expect this team to make playoffs so they're just along for the ride and play lazy" problem