[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

Ah yes, the pre-season...Did Spec really think those numbers would carry over to the regular season?!?

Where art thou, pre-season?

Edmonton had an inspiring 7-1 pre-season, but the real sense of optimism came from the various boxes the club checked off during that stretch.

Ty Rattie, Kailer Yamamoto and Jesse Puljujarvi — the three young right-wingers who formed a collective question mark on the right side — all piled up points, turning a perceived weakness into at worst an area that looked like it might carry its own weight. Three games into the regular season, however, the trio has one lonely assist between them. That’s it.

Rattie has been effective, more as a passer than a shooter, while Yamamoto only emerged in Game 3 when he drew a pair of penalties with some inspired play. Puljujarvi, who appeared to have taken a huge step during the pre-season, has been invisible so far, as the 20-year-old proved once again that a young player’s game does not ascend in a straight line.

There is a ton of player in the big Finn, and he’s only 20. But boy, you wonder when the time will come that he becomes an everyday player?

https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/...s-teams-depth/

Originally Posted by Sad Spector

”The bottom six — lines No. 3 and 4 — hasn’t been productive enough, it’s just that simple. If these are a bunch of eight- to 15-goal players, then fine. But those players need to start chipping away at those totals now, not weeks from now, because zero goals from anyone outside the top two lines won’t cut it in today’s NHL.

Dude. Zero goals from every line between 2-4 is not going to cut it. Forget the bottom six—it’s legitimately worth wondering if the Oilers’s second line can actually score a goal.


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