GDB 12.0: SLUMPBUSTER
Wanye
February 10 2013 01:18PM
A slumpbuster is defined as "something way below your normal standards that you know you can win at." You take what you can get to get back in the game. That's todays game vs Columbus in a nutshell. And its a matinee too. *yawns*
To the casual fan a game like this could be described as "skippable" and "probably boring." But not here among the OilersNation hardcore who live and die with every match - even a puzzling pair of afternoon matches in a single weekend must be watched from start to finish.
Its well known that the Oilers have a 0-1,235 record in matinee games in franchise history.* They are usually emotionless affairs that are forgotten quickly afterwards. That will probably be the case today too - Columbus is still probably seething from losing to the Mighty Oil in the Draft Lottery last year but are too toothless to do anything about it.
Coming in stone cold the Oil have to lay a beatdown on the hapless Blue Jackets today. Oilers fans have watched the last 10 days or so frozen in horror. Will this be another year where we have to make up slogans to give some sizzle to the annual tank campaign?
Or will the Oil catch fire and climb back into playoff contention? A serious beatdown of the Blue Jackets getting things back on track is exactly what the doctor ordered. Then another pantsing back in Edmonton next game too.
Losing this match is not an option.
LINES
We have no idea what the lines are today. You want lines? Ask Jason Gregor. We shoot from the hip son - not from the brain. Here are the lines from last game, lets just pretend they will be the same for the sake of argument. It's not like lines last very long when you are trying to play your way out of a losing streak anyways.
Hall-Gagner-Hemsky
Hartikainen-RNH-Eberle
Yakupov-Smyth-Paajarvi
Eager-Vande Velde-Petrell
PREDICTION THINGIES
This too is the domain of an expert like Jason Gregor but he INSISTS they are included in all GDBs even ones he can't write as he is in Calgary calling the Rush game. How the heck are we supposed to predict what's going to happen. HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO KNOW DAMMIT?
Ahem.
Here goes.
GAME DAY PREDICTION: Oilers dust Columbus 6-2. The Nuge breaks out with a pair of goals and celebrates with ice cream on the way home from the rink.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Within 5 minutes of the telecast starting some announcer will say "Imagine Yakupov was a Blue Jacket?" picking the lowest hanging fruit on the proverbial branch early.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Steve Tambellini runs into Scott Howson in the press box prior to the game. Tambellini flashes his trademark smug grin recalling besting Howson at the Draft Lottery last summer. Howson - knowing his days as a GM are numbered - dissolves into tears and curses Tambo at the top of his lungs. History will remember neither man.
*Or worse even, where would you even look something like this up?
Well we didn't deserve that one. Dubnyk was awesome. Really matur play by RNH. He could have tried the long shot to get on the board but instead he made a nice pass to Gags for the sure win. Good things happen to players who play a team-first style like that and I am sure that he will be rewarded with a goal soon. Also nice to see Paajarvi get on the board because he has been working really hard. Smyth's penalties are moronic and need to stop right now. A win is a win. GO OILERS GO!!
Out of the Ralph Krueger-coached teams I've seen play, the Oilers are threatening to overtake Switzerland as the most entertaining to watch.
Oh look, 94 goes back to the box. *facepalm*
MPS with the shorty!!! Nice breakaway by Gags there!
I expect full value or this might be the last game I watch start to finish for a week or so.
"But we're missing so many centers! That's why!"
"We keep getting BS penalties called against us! It's not our fault."
Bad calls and injuries happen to EVERY professional sports team. Good teams still find a way to win.
Find a way or fold/move to Seattle. No more excuses.
I pray to the hockey gods that the Oilers pull it together...losing to teams like Columbus is NOT an option. With all this offensive firepower, they have got to start scoring some goals. 2 per game just ain't gonna cut it. The game plan today is simple... -Shoot the puck, quit trying to make it pretty -Play a FULL 60 minutes -Stay out of the box -When in doubt, give the puck to Eberle ;)
Hes getting better...now its slashing...atleast it hurts
Gagner with the empty netter! Nice of Nuge to give that one up, he could have had his first goal there probably.
Great job Devan, it's Doobie time!
I cannot thank everyone enough for their support on this trying day. May Jordan Eberle bless everyone individually.
Got to get Yak on the other wing. Every good play he has made this year has come from the right side. The two mid-air goals, stopped and teed up Fistric, rang a couple cross bars, burnt a guy or two cutting middle. All of that came from the right side. give the kid a chance to play good instead of demotion in ice time.
Wanye wrote:
We are talking about hockey... right?
SHOOT THE PUCK!!
I know it sounds so simple. Too much fancy play so far this year.
SHOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!
Jesus, can Smitty possibly take any MORE hooking penalties this year? Sadly, the answer is mostlikely yes. Ugh
Oh look, Sam just blocked a shot. Wasn't someone ragging on him a couple days ago that he doesn't do that? We need to get rolling, one SOG during the PP isn't going to help.
HEMMER!!!!!!!!!
@Dennis
Smitty looks pretty awful so far this season
Smitty is just too slow now to keep up. Instead of giving it the gas, he resorts to the lazy penalty and gives a hook or a slash. Krueger is sitting Whitney for his crap play, he might as well sit Smitty too.
I am in favor - wtf has happened to this guy besides age ? Its like he is peed off cause he is on the 3rd or 4th Line. Smytty -if there was a fifth line - you would be on it. Actually there is.... as mentioned , the press box.
Wake up or pack it in.
Eeeeeeasy boys... eaaaaaasy there.
Remember when Quinn started 89 on the 4th line, and his response was to score goals and get into a duster? 94 is taking another kind of approach and it isn't a good one.
No SOG in the PP. Good grief! We really need to start finding ways to get pucks to the net. The SN panel was right, you can't always expect to carry the puck across the blue line every single time, sometimes you have to dump and chase.
J.Schultz is a BEAST!!
Doobie saving our ass - we are being outplayed by the fn Blue Jackets ...
Unreal -
Slump busters ? who exactly are we talking about.
Doobie you have proved you are a # 1.
J.Shultz, Solid man, what a player.
Outplayed by the Jackets- what a joke, i dont care if we win or not, this effort is not acceptable.
Playoffs ? we talkin Playoffs ? riiiiight.
This is proof i feel that we have rushed our picks to come in and make a difference. This is not juniors.
Why are you watching the game and reading Oilersnation ?
Staple Smytty to the bench ....
regardless of outcome great shot PRV and nice pass gags
Winning ....
Won ass wipe ...
Robbery - GTF out of town Oilers.
Just a horrid effort i dont care, win or not.
CBJ Dominates you.
Wake the H-LL Up.
starting to not regret picking old gags as my star for the year.. who would have thunk he would be leading the team in points :)
It would have been an even uglier loss, I guess. But they have yet to play a really sound game - the power play is an embarrassment, and how they killed 7 penalties is a miracle and a testament to Dubnyk's hot streak and Columbus's monumental incompetence.
A good example of Gagner being on the ice for every goal, for and against. He is the sole reason either team scores on any given night.
His beauty pass to PRV was as good as his chasing around Umberger was bad.
Smyth is starting to look like a mole for other teams out there with all his blatantly dumb penalties.
Ya, he gives vets so much leash. I mean, Whitney in pressbox for first time in career? Why not publicly whip him in Churchhill square? Let him off easy
@Quicksilver ballet
Are you trying to suggest that the only penalties that hurt a hockey club are those that result in goals against? Not only is it time where your most offensive players are typically not on the ice, but the defensive specialists are more likely going to need to block shots (get hurt), and certainly will be tiring out a lot quicker. Smyth should be damn grateful there isn't a suitable replacement allowing him to be benched for a game. He's turning into Ethan Moreau, but slower.
PS: Has Belanger actually changed his game for the better or are we just appreciating him more for those specialized things he has always done well? I've been liking his game a lot, despite his lack of scoring touch.
This has to be the quickest article turnaround EVER! #GoodJob
Congrats Wanye!! Now you can get back into your alcohol coma!! The Nation salutes your dedication to the GDB!
Yeah baby! SLUMP BUSTER!
Now you can go back to arguing over who goes for the Tim's run.
VV Was sent back to OKC. Yak is suppose to play with Nuge and Eberle. Whitney is OUT !
Fistric and Petry are paired togeather today Smid gets Potter and the Schultz.
See the news tab for apparent lineups.
Tambo might have moved into the history books with the TV Incident yesterday, which is basically the most entertaining thing to happen during an Oilers game since 2006.
Since I am not a hockey player myself and do not profess to be an expert, I would trade either Hemsky or Gagner for a large center of some skill. I question whether Kreuger has the players to run his system so perhaps he should adopt his system to match his players.
Think Yak playing with Nuge and Eberle is going to be a good line. In my opinion Hall looks out of sorts on the 1st line right now.
Having Hall and Hemsky play on the same line has worked well in the past, and I think most teams would find that combo pretty hard to defend against.
Although I love Yak .........I suspect in the long run Columbus will be happy they got Murray.
Defenseman are hard to find at the best of time and ones with puck patience are almost impossible to find......Murray has this in spades.
...i think thingies is spelled thingys no?
...thingmerbob still works if used correctly
I bet you he is SO rattled about that whole thing. I have it recorded on my PVR - so awesome.