[News] Oilers fire Chiarelli. Nicholson: "There is something in the water here in Edmonton."

[Scroopy Noopers]

The last thing Sutter will sign up for is a puppet job.

[Flash Walken]

Oilers are paying mclellan 4 million this year.

They paid out the remaining dollars in Hitchcock deal, which has to be several million, and are paying for chiarelli to go away, at least another couple million.

The oilers may be spending more than 10 million on staff that don't work for the team anymore come April.

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by Toonage

I thought about that after I wrote it. You're right. Who holds a top position that isn't in his collection? Nicholson I suppose. But we've seen what good he is.

Nicholson is beholden to Lowe.

Scott Howson is likely the only one.

[taxbuster]

Just read this on HFOil...

There’s no quick fix to this mess. Holes all over the lineup and no one ready to step up. There’s only a few things to do.

1. Send Puljujarvi down to Bakersfield for the rest of the year.
2. Hang onto all prospects and picks until the new GM is hired.
3. Trade Talbot and Petrovic to the highest bidders at the deadline.
4. Waive Manning and reassign him on loan to another AHL franchise that’s willing to take him.

Yes and no to there being no quick fix. A legit top 4 dman (by a sane man's standards, not Chia's) and a top 6 forward, and this team can compete with most. We aren't as big of a hot garbage pile as most are claiming. That said, those moves are easier said than done with our cap situation.

Nicholson and Gretzky simply owe it to the next GM to clear as much cap as they possibly can in dead weight. Listen to everything.

---
What I think they haven't realized is that all that "dead weight" on the cap they want to get rid of....is crap no-one else wants, or, if they do, the Oilers are going to have to eat a lot of salary. Doesn't get the problem fixed at all.


But they all are pretty riled up!!

[Ozy_Flame]

It's probably cheaper to hire a psychologist and/or team of rehab specialists to engage all low-production players on the team than it is to try and manage buyouts or bury them in the minors.

You may as well try and squeeze blood from a stone and maximize as much value on these boat anchor contracts. Simply playing them is not enough.

Added bonus - anyone who can rehab bad players on the Oilers can have a long and lucrative career anywhere else.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

Nicholson is beholden to Lowe.

Scott Howson is likely the only one.

Nope Howson was a Lowe guy too.

Howson was GM of the Oilers farm team but when Kevin Lowe got the job he was promoted to AGM of the Oilers beside Lowe for 7 years until he got the job in Columbus.

Then the second he was fired in Columbus Lowe brought him right back as VP of hockey operations.

Howson is just as much Old Boys Club as the rest.

Lowe, MacT, Howson...those three are the constants in the Oilers mess. And I'm sure that Katz loves having a Gretzky in the organization as acting GM even though it's not Wayne.

[EldrickOnIce]

Originally Posted by taxbuster

Just read this on HFOil...

There’s no quick fix to this mess. Holes all over the lineup and no one ready to step up. There’s only a few things to do.

1. Send Puljujarvi down to Bakersfield for the rest of the year.
2. Hang onto all prospects and picks until the new GM is hired.
3. Trade Talbot and Petrovic to the highest bidders at the deadline.
4. Waive Manning and reassign him on loan to another AHL franchise that’s willing to take him.

Yes and no to there being no quick fix. A legit top 4 dman (by a sane man's standards, not Chia's) and a top 6 forward, and this team can compete with most. We aren't as big of a hot garbage pile as most are claiming. That said, those moves are easier said than done with our cap situation.

Nicholson and Gretzky simply owe it to the next GM to clear as much cap as they possibly can in dead weight. Listen to everything.

---
What I think they haven't realized is that all that "dead weight" on the cap they want to get rid of....is crap no-one else wants, or, if they do, the Oilers are going to have to eat a lot of salary. Doesn't get the problem fixed at all.


But they all are pretty riled up!!

Cap aside for the moment, what are you giving up to aquire the top 6 forward and top 4 dman?

[Ozy_Flame]

One more idea if they are serious about not wasting anymore money:

Do not let Alex Chiasson play another minute with Connor McDavid. If they keep letting him do that they're just going to continue inflating his stats, with an eventual demand for an expensive contract at the end of it all - in which no one but Edmonton would be stupid enough to pay.

The team should consider this season a write-off, Hitchcock should play him Bottom 9 (mostly bottom 6) and see if he can continue to perform without McDavid on the flank.

Half the problem for Edmonton is inflating the value of not-good players, and acquiring doofus after doofus with bad contracts.

[jaydub74]

I would like to think they're in a similar position to Calgary when Sutter was fired as GM with the benefit of having a couple of really good young players. Their lineup today sucks, and have some bad contracts and it will probably take a couple of years to clean up, perhaps the tenure of another GM (ie Feaster).

They are not going to attract free agents, they're in cap jail, and their prospect tank is limited. They probably need to look at the Winnipeg model, spending money on scouting, improve their draft record, and start developing players.

Short term trades are only going to bring players into a poor environment, that they resent. I think players who are traded to Edmonton underperform because they don't want to be there. As a player getting the call you've been traded can't be great regardless of the situation, but being told you're going to Edmonton would suck. I can't imagine you walk into that dressing room, and are excited. Its the exact opposite, your disappointed, and it shows in your play. This is why the Oilers are getting diminishing returns on their trades, players leaving are excited (Strome), players arriving are disappointed. Add NTC and NMC to the pile, and there are very few players who will even accept a trade to Edmonton.

[oldschoolcalgary]

Originally Posted by dash_pinched

Was this already posted?

https://twitter.com/user/status/1088046491539828737

follow up

[transplant99]

[cam_wmh]

If you were posed with an offer to bet $200, that McJesus were not an oiler roster member before the start of the 21/22 season. Would you make it? I'm pretty close to saying yes.

[Otto-matic]

^

I'm a no. They'll keep McDingus until he begs from his knees for them to trade him.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by cam_wmh

If you were posed with an offer to bet $200, that McJesus were not an oiler roster member before the start of the 21/22 season. Would you make it? I'm pretty close to saying yes.

I'd take that bet.

They aren't making the playoffs this season. IMO it's unlikely they make it next season.

At that point it would be 4 out his first 5 seasons in the league with no playoffs.

15/16
17/18
18/19
19/20

IMO if that occurs the Oilers are lucky to have him on their roster for 20/21 let alone 21/22.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Nope Howson was a Lowe guy too.

Howson was GM of the Oilers farm team but when Kevin Lowe got the job he was promoted to AGM of the Oilers beside Lowe for 7 years until he got the job in Columbus.

Then the second he was fired in Columbus Lowe brought him right back as VP of hockey operations.

Howson is just as much Old Boys Club as the rest.

Lowe, MacT, Howson...those three are the constants in the Oilers mess. And I'm sure that Katz loves having a Gretzky in the organization as acting GM even though it's not Wayne.

Heck, I'm not sure that the fact Keith G. and Chia were tight wasn't a factor in choosing Chia.

[dissentowner]

Originally Posted by KipperFaNaTic

McDavid is gonna bolt like Lebron. Generational talent wasted because of an incompetent front office not being able to attract enough help.

The funny thing is after seeing everything this year, I think this absolutely disaster of a press conference is going to be the straw that broke the camel's back. I think he plays out the rest of the year and then asks for a trade. The Oilers will spin it like it was their idea to add a bunch of pieces for one player but he is going to want out.

[Boreal]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

Nope Howson was a Lowe guy too.

Howson was GM of the Oilers farm team but when Kevin Lowe got the job he was promoted to AGM of the Oilers beside Lowe for 7 years until he got the job in Columbus.

Then the second he was fired in Columbus Lowe brought him right back as VP of hockey operations.

Howson is just as much Old Boys Club as the rest.

Lowe, MacT, Howson...those three are the constants in the Oilers mess. And I'm sure that Katz loves having a Gretzky in the organization as acting GM even though it's not Wayne.

They'll bring in someone who is younger who gives them the optics of autonomy, but whom they can manipulate.

Or Bill Guerin.

I love that Nicholson keeps saying Lowe has nothing to do with Hockey Ops...

Right.

Why does he sit at the draft table? He couldn't keep his mouth shut at the Mac-T press conference... what are the odds that he keeps his mouth shut at the draft table... let alone behind closed doors.

It isn't that they think their fans are stupid.

They either know they are stupid, they don't care, or both.

I'm going with both.

Lowe's a great leader? A leader of what exactly?

[oldschoolcalgary]

they need to rebuild their entire scouting department to be honest.

outside of their 'can't' miss picks like leon, macdavid and RNH, what other decent players has edmonton actually developed? nurse, klefbom, khaira?

their drafting record is atrocious past the lottery picks...

[PeteMoss]

Oilers fans and their Klefbom over-rating. Just because he's the best you've got doesn't mean he's any good.

[GioforPM]