Saturday, October 07, 2006
Deja Vu All Over Again
I wish I could say I was surprised by our lacklustre play tonight. One game good, one game bad. The Flames manhandled us, in my opinion. They were faster to the puck, more physical, and more agressive on the forecheck. Other thoughts:
• Again, an absolutely horrible 2nd period. Why are we always so bad in the 2nd frame?
• Hoo boy, those outlet passes sure did suck, didn't they? No one ever heard of the sideboards? Nah, we'll just throw it up the middle.
• Not a lot of speed in the neutral zone tonight.
• Daniel Tjarnqvist again led the Oilers in icetime, with 24:42, followed closely by Horcoff.
• Team toughness is going to be an issue, mark my words.
• And what is with Phanuef leaving his feet? Is this not verboten? Am I on crazy pills?
• Again, why dress Winchester?
• Can someone else please tee off on how bad our powerplay is? Please? I feel all alone on this one. Here's the play by play record for the two minute 5 on 3 in the 2nd:
No shots through on net on a 5 on 3? Are you kidding me? Oh, here's the record for the two minute powerplay at the end of the 3rd period, with the game on the line:
Not a single shot on net. Not even a blocked shor or a wide shot, for that matter. The Flames got one, and they were down a guy. The Oilers got three shots on net during the powerplay tonight, and two of those were one the play that resulted in the one powerplay goal. 10:37 of PP time, three shots. Unacceptable. Somebody, please, FIRE CRAIG SIMPSON!!!
• Speaking of teeing off, what did everyone think of Kelly Hrudey going off on Kevin Constantine in the 1st intermission? I liked it, myself. It's no different than what Cherry does every week, except it made sense.
Next game is Thursday (?), against the Sharks. Hopefully we'll rebound. I'm still having nightmares from that seven game losing streak to start the year off last year.
• Again, an absolutely horrible 2nd period. Why are we always so bad in the 2nd frame?
• Hoo boy, those outlet passes sure did suck, didn't they? No one ever heard of the sideboards? Nah, we'll just throw it up the middle.
• Not a lot of speed in the neutral zone tonight.
• Daniel Tjarnqvist again led the Oilers in icetime, with 24:42, followed closely by Horcoff.
• Team toughness is going to be an issue, mark my words.
• And what is with Phanuef leaving his feet? Is this not verboten? Am I on crazy pills?
• Again, why dress Winchester?
• Can someone else please tee off on how bad our powerplay is? Please? I feel all alone on this one. Here's the play by play record for the two minute 5 on 3 in the 2nd:
10:42 PENALTY CGY - 24 LUNDMARK, Hooking, 2 min
10:42 PENALTY CGY - 20 HUSELIUS, Holding, 2 min
10:42 FACE-OFF N/A - EDM won - offensive zone. EDM 16 STOLL vs CGY 26 NILSON
11:08 BLOCKED SHOT CGY SH 4 HAMRLIK
11:36 MISSED SHOT EDM PP 16 STOLL, Wide of Net
11:58 MISSED SHOT EDM PP 71 SYKORA, Wide of Net
12:22 GIVEAWAY CGY SH 22 LANGKOW
No shots through on net on a 5 on 3? Are you kidding me? Oh, here's the record for the two minute powerplay at the end of the 3rd period, with the game on the line:
14:46 PENALTY CGY - 22 LANGKOW, Hooking, 2 min
14:46 PENALTY EDM - 15 LUPUL, Boarding, 2 min
14:46 PENALTY CGY - 22 LANGKOW, Boarding, 2 min
14:46 FACE-OFF N/A - CGY won - neutral zone. EDM 10 HORCOFF vs CGY 26 NILSON
15:15 GIVEAWAY EDM PP 83 HEMSKY
15:17 SHOT CGY SH 3 PHANEUF, Slap, 140 ft
15:20 STOPPAGE N/A - Offside
15:20 FACE-OFF N/A - EDM won - defensive zone. EDM 10 HORCOFF vs CGY 18 LOMBARDI
16:00 GIVEAWAY EDM PP 14 TORRES
16:41 TAKEAWAY CGY EV 26 NILSON
Not a single shot on net. Not even a blocked shor or a wide shot, for that matter. The Flames got one, and they were down a guy. The Oilers got three shots on net during the powerplay tonight, and two of those were one the play that resulted in the one powerplay goal. 10:37 of PP time, three shots. Unacceptable. Somebody, please, FIRE CRAIG SIMPSON!!!
• Speaking of teeing off, what did everyone think of Kelly Hrudey going off on Kevin Constantine in the 1st intermission? I liked it, myself. It's no different than what Cherry does every week, except it made sense.
Next game is Thursday (?), against the Sharks. Hopefully we'll rebound. I'm still having nightmares from that seven game losing streak to start the year off last year.
# posted by andy grabia @ 11:58 pm 
Comments:
Phaneuf lead the Flames icetime tonight with 28:19, and only Regehr had more SH time.
Does that mean "Phaneufed" is an obsolete term?
I don't know what "phaneufed" means, but boy am I drunk and boy do I think Craig Simpson isn't worth the money he makes. I mean seriously, what does he make for that kind of special teams? Like 35-40K a year. I'll do it for free.
The point of course being not the money he makes, but how shitty a coach he is.
When your top line gets shut down like that, I'd say they were phaneufed.
And your criticisms of the Dion leaving his feet would have a lot more credibility if you'd say the same about your man Raffi. That guy is a headhunter. Glad to see his attempt to injure Kipper was wholly unsuccessful.
Still, a great night for the Flamers, the highly praised, highly vaunted 'terrifying' Oilers offence is now surging at 2 goals per game, with Sykora accounting for half of them.
When your top line gets shut down like that, I'd say they were phaneufed.
And your criticisms of the Dion leaving his feet would have a lot more credibility if you'd say the same about your man Raffi. That guy is a headhunter. Glad to see his attempt to injure Kipper was wholly unsuccessful.
Still, a great night for the Flamers, the highly praised, highly vaunted 'terrifying' Oilers offence is now surging at 2 goals per game, with Sykora accounting for half of them.
I love Hrudey. I'd never seen any footage of Constantine before last night -- that guy looks like a complete prick.
I'll hold off on the "Fire Simpson" chant for a few games yet. They SHOULD have fired him after last year but did not. This year at least the PP looks creative. The 5 on 3 did not generate much, true, but that was execution more then anything, imo. The 3rd period PP was a travesty, yes, but its up to the players to gain the zone, no?
The last two years they have been manhandled by the Flames most of the time but I never got that sense last night at all.
They did not get the 2 points but they were thisclose to getting them. Nothing is as good as getting the 2 but they were pretty close and that's a good thing, considering this is the team they have to beat to win the division.
how is it Brad Winchester's fault that the second period was essentially a wash in terms of even strength play? Rookies/marginal 4th liners aren't going to play a lot when that's the case. how many penalties were called in the second?
and when the game is on the line and you're down a goal going into the third, if you are MacT, do you put Brad Winchester on the ice? or do you play your other guys? like.. the ones that score goals?
and when the game is on the line and you're down a goal going into the third, if you are MacT, do you put Brad Winchester on the ice? or do you play your other guys? like.. the ones that score goals?
Exactly my point. I have no problem with Winchester. My point is, why have a guy on the roster that you can't use in any situation besides one that is completely meaningless? Isn't it better to have a niche specialist in the 12th spot? Like a PP specialist, a PK specialist, a faceoff specialist, or a fighter? Doesn't this make more sense, if the guy is only going to get 1-7 minutes a night?
who are these specialists you're talking about? our PP is already crowded and our PK is, thus far, unbeatable. as for faceoffs, I can't think of anyone in the system I would have taking faceoffs ahead of Horc or Stoll. as far as fighting goes, you have a point. kind of. fighting is such a marginal part of the game now, I don't think it makes much difference. besides, I would much rather have 5 or 6 minutes of even strength Brad Winchester than 30 seconds of Zack Stortini, who by all accounts is the only "tough guy" in the Oilers system.
I agree with you on Winchester, Andy. I have no problem with him but if you're a 4th liner then you have to at least be able to kill penalties and fill in for the top guys in defensive situations - both Reasoner and Thoresen fit the bill.
One problem this team had last year after trading Marty was an inability to roll 4 lines. It did not cost them in the playoffs but it could have. You need 12 guys who can play. Or else you have two or three guys (remember some playoff games last spring) playing a couple of minutes a game.
As for who to take Winchester's place? Peterson, Jacques, MAP, Brodziak for a start ... I would submit that all of those guys could play a bigger role then Winchester is right now.
All this Phaneuf bashing is REALLY starting to sound like sour grapes and nit-picking to me. Now that Dion's starting to play "hard minutes" MC you're keeping your eyes peeled for isolated plays in which Phaneuf doesn't meet top level expectations...your hypervigilance for any sign of weakness in his game basically ensures you will find fault...
...every defensemen gets beaten occassionally, though. Remember when Pronger was made to look foolish last year by Tim Connolly?
Face it, gentlemen. Phaneuf's for real. Accept it so you can once again focus on complaining about Kiprusoff.
Grabia, I didn't think the Oil were manhandled last night, myself...I thought they distinguished themselves well in the "physicality" department. And I wouldn't complain too loudly about the PP because it could be worse - you could have ours.
I don't think I can say Raffi (isn't that a children's singer?) deliberately ran Kipper last night, but there's little question he took full advantage to give him a good ride. If John Garrett was your colour man, he'd had had a stroke on that play. (And, as an aside, who is that colour guy the CBC is using? He makes Mike Toth seem sedate. I'm almost yearning for Greg Millen to come back).
Speaking of goalie running, how about when Iginla shot the puck at the end of the period and Roloson got all uppity and shit? He needs to keep his cool, but oh yeah, he's a little crazy. That's all I'm going to say because I have him in a pool and I don't want Alana to go all Roli on me.
Who was that colour commentator that the CBC was using for that game? I found myself shouting for him to shut the hell up by the 2nd period. He labours points and keeps saying inane bits of details that we don't need to know. "See that? Torres gets body position but just couldn't keep his balance!" Wow...so THAT'S why he fell, he couldn't keep his balance.
Wish it was just the play by play commentator and that the colour commentator would slip from his seat and knock himself out.
That would be Drew Remenda, previously employed at FSN Bay Area on Sharks' telecasts. I think he was head coach or ass't coach with the Sharks for a couple of years in the mid-90s before that.
HG: Roloson always gets uppity. To the fans it's one of his charms. Like his magic mask thingymabob.
Remenda's not bad, he just talks a bit too much.
They have to play Winchester to prove that he's worth taking in trade.
Remenda is used to doing colour on American broadcasts where the audience needs more tutoring. He comments aim too low for this hockey-mad Canadian.
mo
Ah, thank you for the information Drew, and anon. Since he's used to an American market I guess I can cut him some slack. I really hope that as the season goes on though that he cuts down on his chatter and commentating as if he's speaking to Aruntas or Yanomamos that have never seen ice let alone hockey before.
Yes it does look like Phaneuf's gonna draw tough min this year so we'll see how that players out. So that's one thing Oilers fans might not be able to keep harping on. On the other hand where's the SJ game report? I think it's what...4 goals in 3 games for the newly revamped Flames offense? So the Flames can't score eh? In other news it's hotter during summer:D
In other stuff...As a long time CI subber Remenda has been pissed me off for years. Yeah he did work in a US market but the guy's from Sask BTW.
But he is a fellow that's gonna make me scream all year. On opening night he broke out this one, "the Oilers have a bunch of guys on the blueline who can jsut hammer the puck."
I mean sweet fuck...I thought Cole was unprepared, and he was and is, but Remenda's been watching hockey for how many years and he looks at the Oilers rearguards and sees a bunch of guys who can hammer the puck?
Dennis
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Phaneuf lead the Flames icetime tonight with 28:19, and only Regehr had more SH time.
Does that mean "Phaneufed" is an obsolete term?
# posted by 
: October 08, 2006 1:40 am
: October 08, 2006 1:40 am I don't know what "phaneufed" means, but boy am I drunk and boy do I think Craig Simpson isn't worth the money he makes. I mean seriously, what does he make for that kind of special teams? Like 35-40K a year. I'll do it for free.
The point of course being not the money he makes, but how shitty a coach he is.
When your top line gets shut down like that, I'd say they were phaneufed.
And your criticisms of the Dion leaving his feet would have a lot more credibility if you'd say the same about your man Raffi. That guy is a headhunter. Glad to see his attempt to injure Kipper was wholly unsuccessful.
Still, a great night for the Flamers, the highly praised, highly vaunted 'terrifying' Oilers offence is now surging at 2 goals per game, with Sykora accounting for half of them.
# posted by : October 08, 2006 8:48 am
: October 08, 2006 8:48 am When your top line gets shut down like that, I'd say they were phaneufed.
And your criticisms of the Dion leaving his feet would have a lot more credibility if you'd say the same about your man Raffi. That guy is a headhunter. Glad to see his attempt to injure Kipper was wholly unsuccessful.
Still, a great night for the Flamers, the highly praised, highly vaunted 'terrifying' Oilers offence is now surging at 2 goals per game, with Sykora accounting for half of them.
# posted by : October 08, 2006 8:48 am
: October 08, 2006 8:48 am I love Hrudey. I'd never seen any footage of Constantine before last night -- that guy looks like a complete prick.
I'll hold off on the "Fire Simpson" chant for a few games yet. They SHOULD have fired him after last year but did not. This year at least the PP looks creative. The 5 on 3 did not generate much, true, but that was execution more then anything, imo. The 3rd period PP was a travesty, yes, but its up to the players to gain the zone, no?
The last two years they have been manhandled by the Flames most of the time but I never got that sense last night at all.
They did not get the 2 points but they were thisclose to getting them. Nothing is as good as getting the 2 but they were pretty close and that's a good thing, considering this is the team they have to beat to win the division.
how is it Brad Winchester's fault that the second period was essentially a wash in terms of even strength play? Rookies/marginal 4th liners aren't going to play a lot when that's the case. how many penalties were called in the second?
and when the game is on the line and you're down a goal going into the third, if you are MacT, do you put Brad Winchester on the ice? or do you play your other guys? like.. the ones that score goals?
and when the game is on the line and you're down a goal going into the third, if you are MacT, do you put Brad Winchester on the ice? or do you play your other guys? like.. the ones that score goals?
Exactly my point. I have no problem with Winchester. My point is, why have a guy on the roster that you can't use in any situation besides one that is completely meaningless? Isn't it better to have a niche specialist in the 12th spot? Like a PP specialist, a PK specialist, a faceoff specialist, or a fighter? Doesn't this make more sense, if the guy is only going to get 1-7 minutes a night?
who are these specialists you're talking about? our PP is already crowded and our PK is, thus far, unbeatable. as for faceoffs, I can't think of anyone in the system I would have taking faceoffs ahead of Horc or Stoll. as far as fighting goes, you have a point. kind of. fighting is such a marginal part of the game now, I don't think it makes much difference. besides, I would much rather have 5 or 6 minutes of even strength Brad Winchester than 30 seconds of Zack Stortini, who by all accounts is the only "tough guy" in the Oilers system.
I agree with you on Winchester, Andy. I have no problem with him but if you're a 4th liner then you have to at least be able to kill penalties and fill in for the top guys in defensive situations - both Reasoner and Thoresen fit the bill.
One problem this team had last year after trading Marty was an inability to roll 4 lines. It did not cost them in the playoffs but it could have. You need 12 guys who can play. Or else you have two or three guys (remember some playoff games last spring) playing a couple of minutes a game.
As for who to take Winchester's place? Peterson, Jacques, MAP, Brodziak for a start ... I would submit that all of those guys could play a bigger role then Winchester is right now.
All this Phaneuf bashing is REALLY starting to sound like sour grapes and nit-picking to me. Now that Dion's starting to play "hard minutes" MC you're keeping your eyes peeled for isolated plays in which Phaneuf doesn't meet top level expectations...your hypervigilance for any sign of weakness in his game basically ensures you will find fault...
...every defensemen gets beaten occassionally, though. Remember when Pronger was made to look foolish last year by Tim Connolly?
Face it, gentlemen. Phaneuf's for real. Accept it so you can once again focus on complaining about Kiprusoff.
Grabia, I didn't think the Oil were manhandled last night, myself...I thought they distinguished themselves well in the "physicality" department. And I wouldn't complain too loudly about the PP because it could be worse - you could have ours.
I don't think I can say Raffi (isn't that a children's singer?) deliberately ran Kipper last night, but there's little question he took full advantage to give him a good ride. If John Garrett was your colour man, he'd had had a stroke on that play. (And, as an aside, who is that colour guy the CBC is using? He makes Mike Toth seem sedate. I'm almost yearning for Greg Millen to come back).
# posted by : October 08, 2006 7:38 pm
: October 08, 2006 7:38 pm Speaking of goalie running, how about when Iginla shot the puck at the end of the period and Roloson got all uppity and shit? He needs to keep his cool, but oh yeah, he's a little crazy. That's all I'm going to say because I have him in a pool and I don't want Alana to go all Roli on me.
Who was that colour commentator that the CBC was using for that game? I found myself shouting for him to shut the hell up by the 2nd period. He labours points and keeps saying inane bits of details that we don't need to know. "See that? Torres gets body position but just couldn't keep his balance!" Wow...so THAT'S why he fell, he couldn't keep his balance.
Wish it was just the play by play commentator and that the colour commentator would slip from his seat and knock himself out.
# posted by : October 09, 2006 12:35 am
: October 09, 2006 12:35 am That would be Drew Remenda, previously employed at FSN Bay Area on Sharks' telecasts. I think he was head coach or ass't coach with the Sharks for a couple of years in the mid-90s before that.
HG: Roloson always gets uppity. To the fans it's one of his charms. Like his magic mask thingymabob.
Remenda's not bad, he just talks a bit too much.
They have to play Winchester to prove that he's worth taking in trade.
Remenda is used to doing colour on American broadcasts where the audience needs more tutoring. He comments aim too low for this hockey-mad Canadian.
mo
# posted by : October 09, 2006 9:57 am
: October 09, 2006 9:57 am Ah, thank you for the information Drew, and anon. Since he's used to an American market I guess I can cut him some slack. I really hope that as the season goes on though that he cuts down on his chatter and commentating as if he's speaking to Aruntas or Yanomamos that have never seen ice let alone hockey before.
# posted by : October 10, 2006 3:23 am
: October 10, 2006 3:23 am Yes it does look like Phaneuf's gonna draw tough min this year so we'll see how that players out. So that's one thing Oilers fans might not be able to keep harping on. On the other hand where's the SJ game report? I think it's what...4 goals in 3 games for the newly revamped Flames offense? So the Flames can't score eh? In other news it's hotter during summer:D
In other stuff...As a long time CI subber Remenda has been pissed me off for years. Yeah he did work in a US market but the guy's from Sask BTW.
But he is a fellow that's gonna make me scream all year. On opening night he broke out this one, "the Oilers have a bunch of guys on the blueline who can jsut hammer the puck."
I mean sweet fuck...I thought Cole was unprepared, and he was and is, but Remenda's been watching hockey for how many years and he looks at the Oilers rearguards and sees a bunch of guys who can hammer the puck?
Dennis
# posted by : October 10, 2006 11:36 am
: October 10, 2006 11:36 am Post a Comment
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