What a summer!
Jason Gregor
September 11 2009 10:48AM
Just when you thought nothing was going on this summer, once again the Nation proved us all wrong:
- The Nation sends me to the NHL Entry Draft in Montreal, which was awesome. Although the best part was watching bingofuel and Lynda Steele flirt with one another during a segment on Global. She is one sassy lassy.
- The Colossal Fossil left town, only to be replaced by a tad younger fossil.
- Heatleygate pushed us through the dog days of summer.
- I watched in agony as Jason Strudwick put on possibly the worst hitting display ever by a professional athlete, when I crushed him in a hitting contest at Telus field (see the video above).
- Then Wayne breaks a story on the only day all summer that he didn’t crush 18 beers. And the crack team of audio wizards at The TEAM 1260 put these gems together: Comrie's Back. Back Again.
- We unveil my favourite new segment on Just A Game, Brownlee’s Irritants of the Week (You don’t want to miss this every Thursday).
- Willis lands a new gig.
- Finally the Oilers are back on the ice this weekend.
Sure there was the Coyote saga, but that has been as annoying to follow as when you see your buddy continue to get back together with a flaky ex-girlfriend.
Ch-ch-ch-changes... for the Oilers, that is
Training camp will be much different this year. For the past few seasons the players scrimmaged on day one, two and three and then went into pre-season games. Pat Quinn and his coaching staff will be focusing on getting the players comfortable with the new system on the first few days of camp, so there will be more technical elements and less scrimmage time.
With the addition of Comrie, the Oilers have 19 forwards in camp who have played in the NHL. Hemsky, Horcoff, Penner, Gagner, Nilsson, Cogliano, Comrie, O’Sullivan, Moreau, Pisani, Pouliot, Stortini, Brule, Jacques, MacIntyre, Stone, Potulny, Schremp and Reddox. If you toss in Jordan Eberle, who looked great last night in the rookie game, that is 20 guys battling for 14 spots.
Potulny, Stone, and Schremp are out for sure, and I think Eberle is a long shot. I still think Pouliot is going to the odd guy out and probably Reddox, but we will see what transpires.
The big question is who will play where?
Will Pat Quinn have three scoring lines and a checking/energy line? After a conversation with some Oiler brass in Leduc last night, I don’t think it's cut and dry that they'll go with two scoring lines, a checking one and an energy line. Quinn might look for three balanced lines and then an energy/checking line.
Would these line combinations work?
Comrie — Horcoff — Hemsky
Comrie has skill, and Hemsky might have more confidence dishing the puck to him than some of the other guys he has played with in the past. Horcoff can be the defensive conscience on this line.
Nilsson — Gagner — O’Sullivan
Not a big line, but there isn’t much size to go around amongst the skilled players. Nilsson had his best stretch with Gagner, and O’Sullivan is the sleeper heading into camp. He won’t be nearly as bad as he was since coming over from LA, and he sounds ready to make a statement with the Oilers this year.
Penner — Cogliano — Pisani
I know Cogliano sucks in the dot, but he should improve strictly because he’s stronger this year. If he struggles again, Penner can take the draws.
Penner is more comfortable when he isn’t on the supposed top-line, so he could flourish here.
**I saw him yesterday for the first time this year, and he looks in decent shape. Maybe around 240, which for him is a good weight**.
Pisani has a great shot, and he might be the smartest positional player on the team, so his defensive awareness could allow Cogliano to take a few risks with his speed, and try to get the jump on some loose pucks.
Moreau — Brule — Stortini
Moreau and Brule can get minutes by killing penalties. Stortini is great at creating havoc on the forecheck — maybe the best on the team — and all three can crash and bang. Of course these lines will vary due to injury and such, but Quinn will try lots of different combinations starting Tuesday in Calgary.
Extra forwards are Jacques and MacIntyre. (I’m not a Pouliot fan, and while it makes more sense to have one of the extra forwards be a guy who can play wing or centre, I’m still not keeping him.) MacIntyre will be needed for a few games against the super heavyweights, and Jacques will push players to be consistent.
I don’t see any battles on the blueline or in goal.
Souray, Visnovsky, Grebeshkov, Gilbert, Smid, Staios and Strudwick will be the seven, while the younger fossil and JDD will tend the twine.
Quinn wants this team to push the pace and be aggressive on the forecheck, which means more skating and using more energy. He might want a better distribution of minutes amongst more forwards, rather than have his fourth line play eight minutes of less.
The only player I see with a chance shock some people and crack the lineup is Eberle, and if he does then I can’t see anyway that Nilsson sticks around.
Questions that need answers
What makes this training camp and pre-season more entertaining than the past eight I’ve covered is that we really don’t know where players will play and who they will play with.
- Horcoff is probably the best fit for a traditional third line centre, and if the Rangers paid Bobby Holik $9 million to be a checker, can’t the Oilers pay Horcoff to do the same?
- Can Comrie return to his 30-goal form or are his best days behind him?
- Is Cogliano ready to become a top-six forward?
- Can Gagner get off to a good start for once?
- Will Hemsky become a point-a-game player?
- Will Wanye continue to break stories? Hell will he write more than one a month?
- Can Quinn use his old man strength and wisdom and convince Penner to show up most nights? (Ditto for Nilsson.)
- Has JF Jacques realized what he needs to do to become a regular NHLer?
- Which poster will Brownlee carve first?
- Will the Oilers have a 30-goal scorer?
- Will Stortini fight more than 25 times?
- Can Tom Renney get their special teams in the top half of the league?
- How many games will Bulin Wall play before he tweaks a groin?
- Will girls make out on the smooch cam and get banned for six months? I sure as hell hope they don’t get banned.
- Will beers cost $8.50 this year? They sure as $&*#& better not!
- Will the Oilers suck the big ones on Tuesday home games again?
- Will scalpers get more for Ovechkin or Crosby games?
- Will the Oilers win more than 23 games at home?
- Who will be the Nation's whipping boy this year?
MacT coming to your house
Former Oiler bench boss Craig MacTavish will be coaching Canada’s team in the Spengler Cup, but you’ll see him much sooner than that.
He has agreed to be an analyst on TSN.
You might not have liked his coaching style, but MacT was great behind the mic. Hopefully he’ll bring that same quick wit and dry sense of humour to the camera.
I’ll take him over another goalie any day, and I suspect he’ll be very good at that gig.
Gregor you should really write more. I really enjoy your takes and I realize you have 50 or so other jobs but the stuff you put out is always good. Not that I'm trying to slight the other ON guys. I just want to give props where it is due.
By the way, kudos to Gretz on the whole Comrie story.
hopefully the oilers score a ton of goals on all tsn games and mact has a stunned look on his face
Will they let MacT wear his shades on TV?
It has been a crazy summer and as for the lines I thank god that I don't have to figure that out. I've seen countless different lineups and quite a few made sense. Maybe Quinn just pats 3 guys on the back and they go out.
Kiss-cam girls banned?
I've been hoping for MacT on TSN all summer. I can't wait for the first time he carves Pierre a new one with that dry sarcasm. ~Dreamy.~
@ Jamie: I hope he continues with his one liners.
knobert wrote:
No only Bob McCown is allowed to wear shades on TV.
Coaching the Spengler Cup is similar to babysitting a drunken christmas party with swiss distractions, but it seemed to work for Quinn, kind of like pro bono duty.
I really like the forward lines you propose. I hope Quinn tries them out.
I liked MacT as a coach (but the team needed a change) I think he will be golden behind the mic for TSN.
This team had better make a few trades in the next few weeks just to move salary and contracts or injuries could cause major problems for this team with respect to cap space.
I think the Comrie signing is for a good price and above all could be a good PR move by the Oilers if nothing else. I know everyone, including myself, wants that third line check and face off guy but maybe they are just not available.
Gregor - does anyone know if they have have any discussions for these types of players. Do we know if Malhotra, Betts or etc..even wanted to play in Edmonton?
I wonder if he will have the same blank stare behind a TV desk as he had for the last 3 years nehind the Oiler bench.
If Phaneuf is McGuire's favourite monster does that make Reddox MacT's favourite smurf?
QTNA
Who's going to supply MacT with the mini-bottles of water for his TV gig?
Brule? WTF?
Brule is going to ride his 24 point AHL season into the NHL!?
Also, he can't check his hat.
With the talent Cogliano has to burn, and apparently coming in with an extra level of motivation, it makes me sad to see him wasting away on the third line. If he can improve his defensive game, I'd much rather see him with Gagner than O'Sullivan, who could make a decent third-liner. Despite the fact that he (O'Sully) shoots alot he must be related to Tim Horton because he sure serves up the muffins.
Jason, is there any way to get Brownlee's "Irritants of the week" segment up with the other podcasts? You know, for us guys that have to work?
MacT will be AWESOME as an analyst. Best sound bite in the league,
Does this mean that TSN won't be taking Glenn Healy back as an analyst? God I hope so. MacT will be at least 100X better than that tool.
If nobody gets traded, I like this line up too.
Switching Comrie and Cogliano could work as well. That would get Cogliano the minutes he needs to build confidence and reach his potential, while also getting him out of the faceoff circle.
Strudwick is my new favorite Oiler solely due to that awesome two syllable laugh. Huuh Huuh. Did you jack that first one Gregor?
Gregor, do you see much of a chance of Comrie being tried out as a centre? Do you think he can handle 1st-line centre duties (maybe a bit optomistic)? That might allow us to try Horcoff in a checking line centre role, and move Cogliano to the wing.
Gregor wrote:
7-2 odds on anyone who talks in third person hillbilly language. methinks
A fantastic opportunity for MacT. Haven't most of the studio commentators gone on to coach again? Should liven up the banter using his boundless comprehension of the English vernacular.
@ Jason Gregor: Those audio clips are solid gold. "Guess who's back . . . Na-Na-Na . . . Oilers brought back Mike Comrie 'cuz they couldn't get Dany Heatley but they need a little controversy so I guess the target's Hillary . . ."
Priceless.
David S wrote:
Or how about here on TheNation? I've missed both weeks!
Kieso wrote:
So we need to move some players or we will be in trouble if some players go down with injury?
Deep Oil wrote:
But isn't McCown on the radio? Oh yeah, they tape his radio show and broadcast it in TV. That's what I want to watch, Kypreos in his pajamas, displaying his ignorance to everything that's not Toronto. What is the deal with his shades, does he have an eye problem or something?
@ Deep Oil:
I heard about this clip on the radio this morning. CLASSIC!!!
Poor Doug McClean, no more Prime Time Sports.
Scuba Steve - yes it would/could be the same problem that the Flameouts had at the end of last year. No cap space for call ups.
@ BUCK75: Both Mclean and McCown acted like little kids. Kinda sad considering they are both suppose to be professionals.
I actually really like those forward lines...best combos I've seen yet. I like Comrie on the 1st line...I think a veteran presence (and his skill) matches up well with Hemmer. (along with Horcoff obviously). I also think Moreau on the 4th is the right call. He's best days are behind him, but he can still be a great player with a little less ice-time. That second line has loads of talent and the potential to be very dangerous, and the third line would def. be tough to handle with Penner's size, Cogs speed and Pisani's awareness. Looks good to me.
@ Deep Oil: I remember once he didn't have them and he wore a hat, he was so disappointed in himself for forgetting his sunglasses.
Why is it no one will mention that the worst contract on the team is actually Pisani's?
For all teh talk about how great positionally he is, and his "awareness" he makes 2.5 million a season, brings absolutely no physical presence and outside of one playoff year, is a poor at best offensive player.
Say what you want about the Captain, but he brings a physical element, and is going to be on most third lines, Pisani wouldn't. If you replace Pisani with generic third liner like Moreau who has a physical edge and can play defensively, is the physicality of the team an issue? If your bottom two lines are filled with bang and crash players, then your smaller top 2 lines suddenly are not a worry. If you count Brule as a bang and crasher, which based on his style of play is fair. Take Pisani out for a third line banger, you have a non physical 3rd line center, flanked by two bangers, a crashing 4th line, and suddenly your concerns about the size and willingness to compete on yoru top two lines is a non issue.
But heaven forbid we run teh guy out of town who brings no tangible benefit to the roster, and who is vastly overpaid for what he brings. That would make too much sense.
Yet we bitch and moan about Pouliot not bringing anything to the table, which he doesn't, he's just a cheaper version of Pisani, without the playoff beard.
@ BRHL Bryce: Many people have stated that Pisani's salary is an over payment. But what do you do with him? No one wants him right now and you really have no one on the team to replace his PK abilities and his 15 or so goals.
BRHL Bryce wrote:
Although his contract is def. too high, I think what's great about a healthy Pisani is that he's as defensively reliable as anybody out there. He knows where to be without the puck, and that's why putting him with Cogs is a great idea. (Cogs has no idea about how to play D) Plus he's capable of putting the puck in the net once in a while. His contract may be a little too high, but not by that much. What's important is how healthy he is.
BRHL Bryce wrote:
Where have you been? Pisani takes his share of "contract critisism"
Also, as for "running him out of town" the team is better off with Pie in the line-up rather then anyone on the farm to replace him, regardless of salary.
@ Deep Oil: The thing is like Mclean said "if this is to happen this is going to be big and why wouldn't I want to be apart of something that is going to be big". Now whether or not this is the truth or not is another story. But that fact remains that people change their minds. Balsillie made a call and obviously changed part of Macleans view. What gets me is why would McCown bash a friend without talking to him in private about this first? Give him the benefit of the doubt. Is that how McCown treats all his friends?
@ Deep Oil: You can add Souray couple years back. And Souray and Lubo could both be on the list again if injuries come back to haunt them.
Why Gregor when I look at your third line do I see the line up from NES Hockey?
BingBong wrote:
Based on what metric is he as defensively reliable as anyone out there? While I haven't seen any of Willis' articles comparing his strength of competition. Its not like he has been out there against other teams top lines that much, and the PK was horrid, so it's not like he saved the Oilers there. The same could be said about Moreau and Horcoff but they each bring something to the table in other areas still (physicality, faceoffs).
You replace Pisani with a grinder who pops 10 goals a season and is half the cost, and the physical play of yoru team isn't as much of a concern. But he's an albatross physically unless he is in top 6, which he shouldn't be by any stretch of the imagination.
BRHL Bryce wrote:
I think a big key will be if he's healthy. We all know he's been in tough the past few years...if he's healthy the guy can play. I have no metric to prove this, just my expert eye. :-)
I'd try this for a top 12...
Comrie-Cogliano-Hemsky Nilsson-Gagner-Pisani Penner-Horcoff-O'Sullivan Moreau-Brule-Stortini
three good offensive lines, three lines with some defensive responsibility.
Penner has to play in the top 6. i wouldnt be opposed to this either:
Comrie - Horcoff - Hemsky Cogliano - Gagner - Penner Schremp - O'Sullivan - Pisani Moreau - Brule - Stortini
OHHHH WHAT? SCHREMP?! god, this team sucks for real.
BingBong wrote:
If Pisani was making 1.25 would you be saying this?
Ogden Brother wrote:
Should have been directed @ BRHL Bryce
After seeing the lines you proposed, the Comrie signing looks a little better. Has Comrie played with a better playmaker than Hemsky since he left E-Town? 20-25 goals isn't that out of the question.
I also don't think it's such a bad thing because this gives Cogliano another year to develop without the whole city expecting him to score 25 goals.
And finally, did Stauffer sound even more cocky and arrogant than usual on his firt show back or was it just me?
Gregor, I like your line combos. Even though they're small, I think Nillsson/Gagner/Sully should be a good mix. Sully's a shooter, and should compliment Gagner and Nillsson. I can't wait for this season to start to see if some of these combinations click.
Also, that's great news if Penner comes to camp in shape. I'd love to see a full season with him putting in solid effort.
Maybe it's just this time of year, but I'm optimistic about the Oilers this season. It may be the same players (essentially) as last year, but it's a much better schedule, we have new coaches top to bottom, and everyone has a fresh start.
Kieso wrote:
I spoke to Blair a few times over the summer. The Oilers showed a slight interest, but the Flyers seemed more interested and that is why he chose to go there without a contract. Malhotra and the Oilers didn't have any indepth conversations from what I understand.
David S wrote:
Starting next week, I will upload them to my website...
Links wrote:
Horcoff is the best fit skill wise to be a checker, but he also has put up more offensive numbers than any of the other guys. I think he will start with Hemsky. As for Comrie in the middle, he is a better centreman than a winger, but if he plays the middle then Cogliano or Gagner has to move to the wing. I'd bet Cogliano would be the better option in that regard. DrPow wrote:
Nope warning track...and my 3rd, 4th and 5th swings sucked because I was laughing hard from his "I'll use one of his calves as my bat." But he was brutal...it was hilarious. BRHL Bryce wrote:
Since his playoff run, Pisani has been hampered with Colitis and then a broken ankle. He hasn't played much since. His $2.5 isn't great, but isn't crimpling the organization at this point. And it is done after this year. Comparing Pouliot is a bad comparison. Pouliot lacks hockey sense. That has been his biggest downfall, and this is from people in the organization.
The Menace wrote:
It is impossible not to have small ones, unless you put Jacques or Moreau on one of those lines, and I don't see that as a great fit. They will need to play bigger than they are to be successful in my mind.
rubbertrout wrote:
Thanks man...I'm not a Willis factory, but I will be firing more out now and through the season.
I quite like your line combos. I cannot understand why people keep trying to slot Penner in the #1 line. I totally agree that 'Penner is more comfortable when he isn’t on the supposed top-line (he less minutes not more), and I would actually leave him on #4 as he's not the greatest checker/skater. I think too many are driven by the size of contracts when choosing line combinations.
I was thinking something like:
Comrie — Horcoff — Hemsky (scoring) Nilsson — Gagner — Cogliano (scoring) Moreau — O’Sullivan — Pisani (#1 checking line) Penner — Brule — Stortini (the variety line - I was going to say 'energy line' but for Penner)
Jason Gregor wrote:
I meant those as 2 seperate thoughts. A) I like your line combos. B) Nillsson/Gagner/O'Sullivan may all be small, but I like them together on a line.
I know that all we have are small ones, but I think we can still do some damage with them. Ummm, I mean the fowards - we have small forwards.
I have said it before, but given the minimal changes (to date, and I am still hoping) we will get to see just how much a difference coaching can make.