[Signing] Oilers sign Draisaitl (8 yrs, $8.5 mil AAV)

[Love]

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Except outside McDavid, Drai, Klefbom and Larsson you haven't named anyone special.

And even then it costed them Taylor Hall to get Larsson, when it took us a couple of picks to get a clone in Hamonic. Chiarelli is horrible.

[AlbertaOiler72]

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Except outside McDavid, Drai, Klefbom and Larsson you haven't named anyone special.

Nuge? Weak Center who had his best year 4 years ago.

Strome? There's some potential there, but he has been steadily declining the last 3 years.

Caggulia? Run of the mill winger who had an 18 point rookie season. Wow!

Slepyshev? Split time between Edmonton and Bakersfield the last 2 years.

Puljujarvi? Huge question mark who had a terrible rookie season.

Nurse? Guy can hit and that's about it. Constant poor decision making and not a great skater.

Benning? Meh. Wouldn't be in the top 6 of any team outside Edmonton

Even Klefbom and Larsson wouldn't be top pairing guys other than in Edmonton.

I'm not saying they're special...I'm simply listing the youth and room to grow on the Oilers
all these haven't even hit their primes yet...some will make it, some won't

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Not 24 year old Centers who haven't had a 60 point season in their career, had their best season as a sophomore, and have a weak frame who is easily pushed around.

he'll get more than Eberle IMO...he's still a good center that's growing into a two-way defender...where was Backlund at 24? not the player he is today

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

And how will Chia afford a raise for him? No one's taking Lucic and he'll be extremely lucky if he can trade RNH for pennies on the dollar. Fayne is the only big money contract coming off next season and yet Maroon will need a new deal and Strome, Slepyshev, Caggulia, Benning and Nurse need to be qualified. I assume you want to keep those guys, since their your "best players under 25."

because we have no idea what the cap will be in 2 years? we don't know who will and who won't be on the team at that time?
if his performance dictates a major raise then that means the Oilers are successful...same goes with Strome, Caggulia, Nurse, Benning
again, some will get raises, some will be traded/cut/waived/buried

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Gagner, Nilsson, Cogliano, Pajaarvi. Hell, Taylor Hall looks like he peaked years ago and Dubnyk was run out of town only to become a perennial Vezina candidate.

other than Nilsson who wasn't an Oiler draft pick, every one of those players are still in the NHL
seems to be the Oilers can draft just fine in the 1st round (it's the other that need work)

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Larsson and Klefbom are both playing position higher than they should be because the Oilers D is awful. Nurse is a guy who can hit and nothing else. The Matt Benning's of the world can be found on any NHL team roster.

a little early to judge Nurse and Benning...how good was Brodie at 22?
these young guys got great experience pushing Anaheim to the limit in the 2nd round...I expect even more growth from them this year

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Funny you forgot to mention the most important guy who had a career year in Talbot. Also, the fact that no one else had a career year just goes to show how little depth you have. The quintessential one line team.

Talbot had a career year in starts, not save% or GAA

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Because they're never wrong. Remember when you should've had multiple cups by now with Hall, RNH and Eberle leading the way. Not to mention no one is going to say anything bad about McPrincess's team.

except Vegas never had the Oilers as Cup favorite back then...neither did most publications
so it's not just Oiler fans

[Scornfire]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

except Vegas never had the Oilers as Cup favorite back then...neither did most publications
so it's not just Oiler fans

You understand how Vegas odds work right?

[GoJetsGo]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

I'm not saying they're special...I'm simply listing the youth and room to grow on the Oilers
all these haven't even hit their primes yet...some will make it, some won't

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

because we have no idea what the cap will be in 2 years?

[MisterJoji]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

I'm not saying they're special...I'm simply listing the youth and room to grow on the Oilers
all these haven't even hit their primes yet...some will make it, some won't

Yes but you used it as evidence that you don't need to have a good prospect base since all your best young players are on the team already, when every team in the league has players of that caliber.

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

he'll get more than Eberle IMO...he's still a good center that's growing into a two-way defender...where was Backlund at 24? not the player he is today

Backlund was oft-injured in his younger years but still had steady progression. Starting with his official rookie year he had pro-rated point totals of 28, dip to 22, big bounce to 41, and then 42 at 24 years old. He also had/has a much better defensive game than Nuge. Nuge is stalled/regressing.

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

because we have no idea what the cap will be in 2 years? we don't know who will and who won't be on the team at that time?
if his performance dictates a major raise then that means the Oilers are successful...same goes with Strome, Caggulia, Nurse, Benning
again, some will get raises, some will be traded/cut/waived/buried

Yes, but if you had a GM with competent cap management you wouldn't have to lose these players for almost nothing if the earn a raise.

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

other than Nilsson who wasn't an Oiler draft pick, every one of those players are still in the NHL
seems to be the Oilers can draft just fine in the 1st round (it's the other that need work)

Yeah, they're still in the NHL, playing for other teams that managed to clean the Oiler development failure stench off them. Cogliano is a solid 2 way player for the Ducks. Dubnyk is a top tier goalie for the Wild. Gagner just had a career year for the Jackets. If Yakupov had been drafted by a team with competent development he'd probably still be a decent winger.

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

a little early to judge Nurse and Benning...how good was Brodie at 22?
these young guys got great experience pushing Anaheim to the limit in the 2nd round...I expect even more growth from them this year

Brodie at 23 played 47 games in the NHL vs. Nurse's 44 and outscored him 14 to 11. However Nurse also had more NHL games played at the same age and only saw 4 games in the AHL vs. Brodie's 115. And what do you know, by letting Brodie develop at a nice pace he turned into a very good young defenseman. Unlike the Oilers who have probably the worst defensive group in the league but threw in a young kid who wasn't ready because they have no other option. Classic Oilers.

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

except Vegas never had the Oilers as Cup favorite back then...neither did most publications
so it's not just Oiler fans

Well they should probably award them the cup then. Just like how in 2016/17 Chicago, St. Louis, LA, San Jose, Dallas, Detroit and Minnesota all had better odds in the West than Nashville.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by MisterJoji

Well they should probably award them the cup then. Just like how in 2016/17 Chicago, St. Louis, LA, San Jose, Dallas, Detroit and Minnesota all had better odds in the West than Nashville.

Yeah that goes to show how meaningful pre-season odds are

[CF84]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

a little early to judge Nurse and Benning...how good was Brodie at 22?
these young guys got great experience pushing Anaheim to the limit in the 2nd round...I expect even more growth from them this year

I would have easily taken 20 year old Brodie over 22 year old Nurse and Benning. Brodie already had an elite play-making and passing ability, along with an on ice intelligence you can't teach. Brodie was a beauty. It was clear to fans, who were lucky enough to see 20 year old Brodie tear it up in 2010-2011 training camp, that he was special.

Every single time I have watched Nurse play, he has stood out as someone who continually makes basic mistakes. He could still end up to be good, but I don't see him any higher than a top 4. Benning is alright. I would take both over Wideman though

[Lanny_McDonald]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

I'm not saying they're special...I'm simply listing the youth and room to grow on the Oilers
all these haven't even hit their primes yet...some will make it, some won't

Most won't be on the Oilers after their current contract runs out as the Oilers won't be able to afford them. Have you looked at your salary structure and realized how ####ed it is?

Maroon ($1.5) - McDavid ($12.5) - Jokinen ($1.1M)
Lucic ($6M) - Draisaitl ($8.5)- Strome ($2.5M)
Kaissan ($1.95M) - Nothing-Happens ($6M) - Poolparty ($925K)
Slepyshev ($925K) - Caggiula ($925K) - Letestu ($1.8M)
Parakinen ($725K)

Larsson ($4.167M) - Klefbom ($4.167M)
Sekeras ($5.5M) - Russell ($4M!)
Benning ($925K) - Nurse ($863K)
Fayne ($3.625) - Gryba ($900K)

Talbot ($4.167)
Brossoit ($750K)

RFA
UFA

Try and plug some names and salaries into those holes. Try and get the production you got last season out of some of those names, for players with equal salaries. Things start to fall apart pretty quickly.

he'll get more than Eberle IMO...he's still a good center that's growing into a two-way defender...where was Backlund at 24? not the player he is today

No, he won't. The Tenderness is far from a good center. He's mediocre at best defensively, and he isn't a big scorer. He's being paid $6M a season for what again? He has no potential left to pay for, so what you see is what you get. He's a $3M player, at best, and if you can shelter him from play that exposes his lack of complete game. The return is going to be atrocious, because he's grossly overpaid and the Oilers can't afford to take salary back. This one is going to leave a mark.

Where Backlund was at the same age is irrelevant as the Flames weren't trying to trade him. Stay focused on the Oilers' situation, not the Flames.

because we have no idea what the cap will be in 2 years? we don't know who will and who won't be on the team at that time?

Well, except that we do. It doesn't take a lot to look at the economics affecting the market and realize that sports spending is trending in a negative way and people are no longer paying the dollars to watch sports. That is especially going to hurt the NHL and the revenues they can generate. Revenues are heading the wrong way for the players to execute the escalation cause without hurting their rank and file.

if his performance dictates a major raise then that means the Oilers are successful...same goes with Strome, Caggulia, Nurse, Benning
again, some will get raises, some will be traded/cut/waived/buried

Except the Oilers don't have the money to pay them. That's the point. You're talking about players that are going to be made unaffordable because of the mistakes made by Chia Pet. These guys are going to have to be low-balled if they want to be kept, and very few players are going to accept that. They'll demand opportunity elsewhere. This is where that pipeline is so important. When these second and third tier players need big raises, you trade them and bring in your other prospects. Problem is, the Oilers don't have any to bring in.

other than Nilsson who wasn't an Oiler draft pick, every one of those players are still in the NHL
seems to be the Oilers can draft just fine in the 1st round (it's the other that need work)

Drafting in the top 10 isn't tough. Drafting 1st overall is even easier. Still being in the league is not a great measure when you're talking about drafting that high. Not developing to their potential is the problem.

a little early to judge Nurse and Benning...how good was Brodie at 22?

Again, focus on the Oilers, not the Flames.

these young guys got great experience pushing Anaheim to the limit in the 2nd round...I expect even more growth from them this year

Those young guys got donkey punched by Anaheim. The only reason that series got extended past three games was because of Talbot. Without Talbot standing on his head that series is so out of hand that the Oilers don't have the sack to take the ice in game four.

Talbot had a career year in starts, not save% or GAA

Talbot had a career year in everything, because it was his best year as a starter. There is a big difference in what you do as a starter versus what you do as a backup behind a stacked team. Talbot was all world last year. He takes any step backward and the Oilers are a lottery team. Trust us, we know what its like to have a great goaltender holding up a team, and just how far you can fall when your goaltender can't stop a beach ball. The Oilers will go as far as Talbot can carry them.

except Vegas never had the Oilers as Cup favorite back then...neither did most publications so it's not just Oiler fans

You need to learn how betting odds works. What Vegas says rarely comes to fruition because the odds are not set by people who know hockey, they are set by people willing to make a stupid bet.

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

except Vegas never had the Oilers as Cup favorite back then...neither did most publications
so it's not just Oiler fans

"Vegas" doesn't have them as a "cup favorite" now. That's not how sports betting odds work.

I'll explain it to you... Say Vegas was going to take bets on the result of a coin flip, a bunch of devoted fans of "heads" bet on heads at even money... Vegas would then adjust the odds on "tails" to pay out more then a bet on heads would until the bets on tails covered the bets on heads.

The actual probability of heads or tails winning never changed. Vegas makes it's sports book money off the Vig.

[AlbertaOiler72]

Originally Posted by Parallex

"Vegas" doesn't have them as a "cup favorite" now. That's not how sports betting odds work.

I'll explain it to you... Say Vegas was going to take bets on the result of a coin flip, a bunch of devoted fans of "heads" bet on heads at even money... Vegas would then adjust the odds on "tails" to pay out more then a bet on heads would until the bets on tails covered the bets on heads.

The actual probability of heads or tails winning never changed. Vegas makes it's sports book money off the Vig.

I guess you missed the part where I said "publications" as well..

[Rutuu]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

I guess you missed the part where I said "publications" as well..

So Edmonton. Never change.

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

I guess you missed the part where I said "publications" as well..

No, I saw it... I just have no comment on the prognostications of those nameless publications. I did have comment on someone fundamental misunderstanding of what sports book odds are.

[Boreal]

Originally Posted by AlbertaOiler72

I guess you missed the part where I said "publications" as well..

I wouldn't say he "missed" it Bob. OblivousOiler72 is the highest quality of Oiler broken clock you can find. He's always right twice a day.

[jemjey]

Originally Posted by Love

And even then it costed them Taylor Hall to get Larsson, when it took us a couple of picks to get a clone in Hamonic. Chiarelli is horrible.

I'd take Dougie over Larsson any day of the week. He's a much better player.

[AC]

Originally Posted by jemjey

I'd take Dougie over Larsson any day of the week. He's a much better player.

While true, Love said "a clone in Hamonic". Not Dougie.

[jemjey]

I'm dumb, my brain read "Ham" and just filled in the blanks I guess.

...Mondays.

[topfiverecords]

Tre got the Hams for cheap. Chia got egg on his face.

[Gaudfather]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

Tre got the Hams for cheap. Chia got egg on his face.

Sort of like that line motivational speakers always use about the ham and eggs breakfast "the hen was involved, but the pig was committed". One could even say about the BOA the Chia was involved, but the Tre was committed!

[Poe969]

I think after the Drai contract it should be that Tre was involved and Chia should be committed!

[Jacks]

Originally Posted by Gaudfather

Sort of like that line motivational speakers always use about the ham and eggs breakfast

So you like ham and eggs huh?
Well your going to be dreaming all the time about ham and eggs when you're living is van down by the river.