[Murph]

Originally Posted by Bring_Back_Shantz

Because the discussion is about top end talent when it comes to forwards, and I specifically said from there on down it's pretty much a wash

Looking at the top 12 forward for each team:

Edm Cgy differential (+ is better for Edm, - is better for CGY)


123 115 8
110 104 6
54 82 -28
50 55 -5
41 39 2
39 33 6
36 32 4
26 23 3
22 23 -1
21 21 0
19 16 3
11 10 1


Almost to a man, there isn't much there, unless of course you compare the 3rd best forward (Lindhom vs Hyman). So it's a wash pretty much everywhere, but the Flames have 1 BIG overmatch

For Dmen it looks like this:

Edm Cgy differential (+ is better for Edm, - is better for CGY)

43 50 -7
41 48 -7
35 31 4
28 28 0
21 22 -1
9 17 -8


So everyone in Edmonton talks about how the Flames are overmatched in high end talent.
Well we have 3 defenseman who outmatch their counterpart to the same extent that McDavid and Draisaitl outmatch Gaudreau and Tkachuk.

Match up top to bottom, it's pretty close to a wash, with the big exception being the Oilers have 2 clear cut first liners, and the Flames have 3.

We keep seeing arguments that the Oilers have better top end talent.
Well they have the best and 3rd best players (Point wise), but the Flames have 3 legitimate stars.

We also see arguments that the Oilers have better depth.
At best it's a wash, and if you stop at the only two clear cut stars for the Oilers as your cutoff for top end talent, then Lindholm is a depth scorer, and the Oilers have nothing to match him.

Does this mean we'll win for sure?
Nope, but it means anyone who is arguing that the Oilers are the clear favorite in any team category (with respect to scoring), clearly isn't looking at the numbers.

Anyone arguing that the oilers have a better offence should be directed to the goals for column in the standings. And for good measure, told to have look at the column immediately to its right.