Monday Mailbag – March 9th

It’s Monday morning, and you’ve worked enough as far as I’m concerned. Luckily, the mailbag is here to give you 2500 words worth of time wasting goodness! As always, I need your questions to make the mailbag work. If you have a question you’d like to ask, email me at baggedmilk@oilersnation.com or hit my up on Twitter at @jsbmbaggedmilk. Until then, grab some coffee and enjoy the break from “productivity.”

1) Pouzar99 asks – I notice that at MacT’s press conference, when asked about the Oilers D corps going forward, he mentioned Klefbom, Schultz, Fayne, Ference, Nikitin, Nurse, Osterle and Davidson. Noticeable by his absence in this list? Martin Marincin. Was this just accidental, a Freudian slip, or is Marcinin next in line to be Petryied? Is Craig on it again or just getting a tad forgetful in his dotage? 

I’ve said it before, but Craig says what he thinks. In this case his omission of Marincin should definitely raise an eyebrow. This is a player he sent to the minors to work on “battle” even though others on the team have never shown an aptitude for battle themselves. I don’t doubt for a second that he’s not thought of as a key piece moving forward. 

It’s tough to say. I think Todd Nelson may be able to save him but there’s no doubt the Edmonton Oilers have some issues with Marincin’s physical play. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him sent away this summer. We’ll see.

I don’t know, and it would pay not to read too much into it. This is after all the same guy who forgot Ryan Jones’ name at a press conference a few weeks before he re-signed him. At the same time, MacTavish has never been a vocal backer of Marincin publicly and it’s hard not to take that as a suggestion that he’s not high on the defenceman.

I sure hope it was a slip up, but their track record does make you wonder if it wasn’t. If Marincin does get traded and brings back a quality player that is different, but being dealt for more picks would be a disaster.

Fair question to be asked. Hard to jump into his mind. I think he can move the puck and skate. Marty needs to become more assertive with that big body of his to handle the strong cycling of Western teams.

I’m really hoping it was just coincidental. As Gregor pointed out earlier in the week, as he got through more names he started to use full names and looked like he was running out of steam (and had a bit of trouble speaking in general lately). He ran through the names of almost all the D-men in the system basically so he was bound to forget a name or two. 

HOWEVER, with MacT’s history of telegraphing his moves through his pressers I also would not be surprised in the least if Marincin was gone at some point within the next calendar year. MOAR ROOKIES AND AHLers ON D PLEASE!

You seem to have your take already. Let’s go with that.

Sideburns, man. Martin Marincin has got them, and MacT doesn’t like em.

Maybe for a defenseman, not for a goalie. There are still a lot of good players in the top five that could be important Oilers. Strome, Marner, and Hanifin will be available somewhere from 3-5 at the Draft. If a legit young defenseman becomes available then I would give up the pick. If we’re talking a goalie then I don’t think you can pay that high of a price for one.

It depends on return. If they could get a young, established defenseman under control for several seasons before free agency? You’d have to think about it. Could they get OEL in a package? Don’t know. 

It depends on the trade, but they have to be willing to consider it.

If they can get that player and he is under contract for at least three years, then yes. However, I don’t see a team trading a starting goalie for #3 or #4 pick. Very few teams have two starting goalies.

Yes. I think MacT would have to listen to or try to create moves that are out there.

I don’t know that they SHOULD trade it per-say. Hanafin, Strome and Marner are all very intriguing prospects to me. But they should absolutely listen to any and all trade offers for a lower pick. Not that I have a ton of faith that even the third overall pick could land a legit top two D-man or starting goalie but beggars can’t be choosers and the Oilers are the beggiest beggars in all the land.

They would have to consider it if they have McDavid and Eichel rated way ahead of the rest of the field, as most scouts do. Oilers obviously need some immediate help, but if they believe a D-man like Hanifin is truly something special then that clouds the issue — as does what’s coming back for the pick.

Do you want to know my honest opinion? I’m tired of pretending to know anything about the draft. I can’t say whether or not the Oilers should trade a pick outside the top two for a proven player or not – I don’t know enough about the draft prospects. All I know is that people keep saying it’s a very deep draft, so I guess it would be good to have some prospects in the cupboard. That being said, this is the Oilers we’re talking about so there’s a very good chance they could draft an actual tractor with any of their picks, so…

If you could only ask current GMs how they felt about other current GMs then you would get a lot of BS. I don’t care if he wasn’t good as a GM, Button knows how the job works and has an opinion. It’s worth a listen even if he says things you question. Basically, if an Ex-GM can’t comment then I have no business commenting and that doesn’t seem right to me.

Because they’ve been there and they are more familiar with the process than we are. Button’s frank responses to Jason’s questions were very insightful.

Because those guys do have valuable insight and experience, even if they are no longer employed by NHL teams. As always, we should evaluate any argument less by the name attached to it and more on its own merits. Even if that opinion comes from somebody like me who (according to at least one local reporter) in fact lives in his mother’s basement.

Because Button was fired that means he knows nothing. He knows more about being a GM than I do, so I ask his opinion. It doesn’t mean you or I have to agree with it, but often he has insight into how the job works. He admits he made mistakes. Every GM has.

Easy: because they know the job. Very few people have been in that position to be able to comment with some knowledge.

I think it’s just one of those hockey culture things. For the most part everyone at that level has respect for everyone else, because of how insanely difficult it is to even get a crack at any kind of NHL gig. So I think when it’s a guy like Button or McLean who the fans (and history) remember as having mostly bad runs as a GMs, there’s still a reverence there from people inside hockey circles, because as we’ve seen being a GM is NOT an easy job, regardless of how many no-brainer trade scenarios you think you’re throwing out on Twitter. 

And to steal a horrible hockey cliché: those guys have “been there before” so on paper they’d probably be the ones to ask about being a GM, rather than some smelly blogger or whatever *points to self*.

Because they know the business and the demands of the job. Even the best GMs and coaches get fired. Nature of the business. That doesn’t necessarily render their opinion less insightful.

Probably better to ask Craig Button than some random plumber. I mean, sure he may have gotten fired but he’s also been fired from more GM positions than I have. Seems to make sense as a guest, no?

I have been privy to NO inside information, but I would think this year’s theme would have to be built around “Craig’s On It”

Another Brick in the Wall. 

Can you go wrong with “Another great Oiler decade”?

Groundhog Day.

Why not toga?

As a Motley Cure fan I nominate the theme to be “Same Ol’ Situation” and in this case the ball and chain is the Oilers dragging us all down to our alcohol related deaths. And there will definitely be a draft party this year, even if it’s just me sitting alone at the Pint crying into a table keg of Nation Beer®.

Blame Wanye.

#DraftTheMall?

I don’t really have any major vices that I want to stop doing. I mean I’m a non-smoker who also only drinks in social situations. Outside of the bleach addiction THAT I HAVE COMPLETELY UNDER CONTROL, I’m a pretty boring guy. Anything else I do that’s bad for me is done in the name of Dionysus and I consider my religious obligation.

Justin Bieber. I just can’t stop.

I’m crazy disorganized and I wish I could knock it off. Seriously, you should see my desk; it looks like a garbage dump in Beirut. When my wife eventually divorces me this will be why. Well, it’ll probably come second to me forcing her to live with me in my mom’s basement, but you know what I mean. 

Looking in the mirror. I do it often at home, and the face staring back at me is always so inviting… I keep coming back for more. 🙂

Slurpees

I mean, the reason they’re vices is because they’re so much fun so I’m not sure if there’s anything I wish I would stop doing. But I do wish I had more discipline to not eat garbage (BUT DELICIOUS) food and to stick to a workout routine for more than four weeks at a time. I want abs like Joe Manganiello but I eat and live more like Fat Joe.

Smoking. Stupid, expensive, health-damaging addiction.

I’m in a pretty good place with all of my vices. We’ve come to a point where we understand each other. To answer the question, I probably drink more than my doctor would prefer. There are also times that you probably wouldn’t be able to distinguish my diet from that of a 10 year old – I’ll work on it… Maybe.