"Feels So Right It Can't Be Wrong"

Do you mind if I light up? Is that cool? Much love, girl. You're my boo. Listen, can you do daddy a favour and roll your fine self over and slip some of that mood music on... Yeahhh. That's it. "I Wanna Sex You Up." Damnnn that hits the spot. Still smoove, after all these years. "Tick tock you don't stop." Uh huh. That's right. Oh, we gotsta get our freak on to this one, sugar. Just give loverman a few to talk about the Oilerz, get a pastrami sandwich, and refuel that engine. Then we gonna get our jodeci on. I'm gonna color you good. Toot toot. Mmm mmm mmm.

"Mr. Pitiful"
19. JF Jacques

Jacques played a whopping 03:46 last night, and looked completely ineffective during that time. He's a big body, but that's about all he's adding to the table right now. Stortini or Pouliot should draw in against Philly.

"A Hard Day’s Night"
18. Sheldon Souray
17. Matt Greene

This duo was on for the first Shark goal, and were matched up much of the night against Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo. Thornton drew a penalty on Souray late in the game, which lead to the Sharks second goal. Milan Michalek blew past Greene for a scoring chance during the second. They lead the team with seven combined giveaways. I could go on. A rough night for the pair, and if they continue to be matched up against the opposing team's best players, a long year for the Edmonton Oilers.

"Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)"
16. Marty Reasoner

"The Kid Is Hot Tonite"
15. Kyle Brodziak
14. Robert Nilsson

Not a bad night for the two youngsters. Brodziak scored the second goal, and Nilsson looked like a bona fide NHLer. There were a couple of tantalizing plays between him and Torres that left me wanting more. And he scored a beauty in the shootout. I'd like to see how Nilsson holds up against a team like Calgary or Minnesota (who will give him less ice and more grief in traffic) before I commit to him wholeheartedly, but it was a nice start.

"Ain’t That A Groove"
13. Shawn Horcoff
12. Dustin Penner

Penner is huge. Can't stress that enough. He's a monster with hands, though they weren't on display last night. A solid, if uneventful night from both players. The power play was going back to Souray all night long. They are going to have to mix it up more, and get Hemsky to start feeding Penner. I will say this: I'm already quivering with excitement at the thought of Penner matching up against Dion Phanuef.

"Safety Dance"
11. Steve Staios
10. Joni Pitkanen

This should be the first defensive pairing. Want to know what's a problem? Staios getting 18:28 of ice time, with Greene getting 20:10. That can't continue.

"Street Fighting Man"
9. Jarret Stoll

Stoll had some jump in his step last night, and played with intensity. He had a couple quality scoring chances, and won over 65% of his faceoff chances (so did Horcoff). He also scored the game-winner in the shootout. It was great to see him back.

"Protect Ya Neck"
8. Raffi Torres

"Ride Like The Wind"
7. Geoff Sanderson

I really like Geoff Sanderson. Always have. As Rod noted in the comments from the game thread, his speed creates a lot of difficulty for opposing teams. Put in a position to kill some penalties and forecheck, and not expected to score too many goals (10-15 is reasonable), I think he's going to be an excellent addition to this roster. I also agree with Rod that Sanderson should see some icetime with Cogliano and Gagner.

"Use Me"
6. Sam Gagner
5. Andrew Cogliano

These two...wow. Again, I have to hold back my enthusiasm, because it was only one game, and a game against a team that doesn't play a very physical brand of hockey, but wow. Could we have two Calder trophy candidates on the Oilers this year?

"Let’s Stay Together"
4. Tom Gilbert
3. Dick Tarnstrom

I loved this pair together. They were the best two defencemen for the Oilers, all night long. Gilbert is bigger than I remembered, and Tarnstrom looked calm and poised in every situation. I really enjoyed watching him work against Thornton on that last power play to end the third. They battled in the corner, and Tarnstrom held his own. No small feat considering Thornton's prowess on the boards. Thornton eventually got out into the slot and rifled a wrister over Rolli, but there wasn't much Tarnstrom could have done about it. He also blocked four shots. Could Souray and Greene end up as the Oilers third pairing?

"Brick House"
2. Dwayne Roloson

Rolli looked rock n' roll last night. He got some help from the goalposts, but played outstanding. Focused, which he needs to be. Crazy, running around Rolli is just not a good goaltender. He looked fantastic in the shootout. Unbeatable, even when he let a couple in.

"Shimmy Shimmy Ya"
1. Ales Hemsky

By far the best player on the ice last night, for either team. No one put the body on him, which probably helped, but Ales was dancing. Some sick moves, slick passes, and even a few shots. Five, to be exact, leading the team and tying Thornton for the most in the game. Could it be the year?


"Ain’t No Mountain High Enough"
The Team

It was the first game, so it's impossible to make a rational determination. Plus, the Oilers always seem to play well against San Jose. But it was a fantastic game, and there is obviously a ton of promise and potenial in Cogliano, Nilsson, Gagner and Gilbert. I don't know how many games this team is going to win, but I think it will at least be a fun year. It's also worth noting that the team is down two veterans in Moreau and Pisani. Thrown into the mix, this team gets better. The defence is going to be a problem again, though. We need another NHLer in the Staios/Jason Smith mode to solidify that group. Shipping Greene out would do wonders, but it's unlikely to happen. Maybe when Pisani and Moreau get back Lowe will look to move some of the excess youth (Roy, Jacques, Pouliot, other dudes with French names, and possibly even Schremp). I'd also like to complain about the fact that the player nicknames for Gagner and Horcoff appear to be "Gags" and "Horcer." That's just filthy.


Bonus Tracks
"Mama Let Him Play": Rob Schremp
"Gone Till November": Fernando Pisani
"She Ain't Pretty": Ethan Moreau
"Kick In The Door": David Ortiz (Kick in the door, wavin' the 34, all you heard was Poppi don't hit me no more.)


Deep Cuts
"The Underdog"; "Can’t You Hear Me Knocking"; "Little Bitty Pretty One"; "Doesn’t Really Matter"; "Bring the Pain"; "Fantasy"; "You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet"; "Egg Man"; "(I Just) Died In Your Arms"; "Crazy On You"; "Super Bad"; "Diggin' A Hole"; "New Sensation"; "Boom Boom"; "Roller"; "Poison"; "99 Problems"; "When It's Good"; "Livin' On A Prayer"; "That'll Be The Day"; "Lovefool"; "Never Surrender"; "Gut Feeling"; "A Long December"; "Two Tickets to Paradise"; "Psycho Killer"; "Running On Empty"; "My Favorite Mutiny"

Soundtrack available here.