Monday Mailbag – October 20th

As is tradition around these parts, it’s time for another edition of the Mailbag.  It’s time to find a chair, grab some coffee, learn a few things and waste as much company time as possible on a Monday.  This segment depends on you, so if you have a question you can email it to me at baggedmilk@oilersnation.com or on Twitter at @jsbmbaggedmilk. Without further delay, the Mailbag. Enjoy.

Forget the practice squad idea — won’t work with the way the NHL farm system is structured now. Tell me more about your Twitter avatar.

That’s a very large investment, one assumes these aren’t volunteers. And have these people given up on their own careers as hockey players? NFL has hundreds of kids graduating NCAA each year all dressed up with no place to go and make money. Hockey is far wider in scope and jobs are far more plentiful.

But would teams be able to find local players capable of practicing at a high enough level to provide any value against the Oilers? Well let me rephrase that – against an NHL calibre lineup? *winks*

Wait, I thought the Oilers were the practice squad for the other 29 NHL teams?? And speaking of Rudy, remember when we had our own Rudy moment last year? *remembers*

The depth chart is the AHL, and I think those players need to play games. That’s often why you see teams carry a 7th D that maybe isn’t as good as a prospect, but they want the prospect to play.

The current players on the team are more than capable of providing a different look in practice if needed as the opposing team. It’s not going to screw you up if you have to run a few different forechecks simulating what the other team might do. Often coaches or maybe a guy coming back from injury that needs extra reps might pretend they are forechecking like the opposition as well.

With an 82-game NHL schedule, teams get enough game time over the course of the season.

Football plays once a week. They have more practice time during the week, and football also only has 10-12 players on the practice squad. They go head to head with offence vs. defence. It is completely different strategy, plus every play starts with virtually the exact same formation. The Oilers play every second day, and under the new CBA they have to have one day off a week, so that leaves very little practice time. NHL teams rarely have extended practices, and they rarely include full on body contact. They players would be too worn down for games if they had significant body contact drills. Rest is vital.

Doesn’t a practice squad have a lot to do with the football teams only playing 16 times per year? NHL teams basically play every other day, so when would they need to practice squad? With that being said, the Oilers are off to the worst start in franchise history so maybe they can use a little practice?

Curtis Glenncross.

Lowetide: 

Taylor Fedun is the first name I thought about, so I’ll go with him. A fine AAAA player who might eventually get an NHL shot and have a career.

Maybe Matt Greene and Jarret Stoll? Vishnovsky isn’t looking that great in Oilers silks of late. Nor is Whitney.

I still think Rob Schremp deserves a 50th kick at the can. I mean, LOOK AT THIS YOUTUBE VIDEO?? I still don’t understand how things went so wrong!

Vladdy “Hockey” Tkachev 😉 

The weak spots are down the middle and on defence. None of the players the Oilers have let go really qualify as an impact defenceman any more – Lubomir Visnovsky’s pretty clearly winding down, Joni Pitkanen still hasn’t come back from a horrifying injury – so that leaves centres. Jarret Stoll isn’t a perfect player and he’s in the back nine of his career, but if Edmonton could get him back for nothing he’d be an awfully nice fit on the roster.

Simple. The Human Rake, Chris Pronger. He was the legitimate superstar. He makes everyone around him better.

I’m going with Jarrett Stoll for his skills on the ice, and for his skills at pulling babes. 

3) SevenSeven asks – Does anyone find it strange that all the coaches were replaced except Fred Chabot? 

Two coaches were replaced. I do find it odd Chabot didn’t make it three. 

Lowetide: 

No. It’s impossible to comment fairly on the inner workings of an organization. Goalies are witchcraft, so Chabot could be the smartest goalie coach in history and only goalies would know. They’re a strange group and probably cast spells if you mess with them.

I’ll tell you what I do find strange. How come Cool Shots wasn’t ever rebooted? That show was great.

I would find it much more strange if any of the 2000 goalies we’ve used in the last 3 or 4 years have gone on to have success for other teams. On a team rife with problems I think the goalie coach is the least of our worries.

Also, I have it on good authority that Chabot knows where Katz has some bodies buried…. 

I assume given the way the goaltending finished the season they felt Fred was the man. Let’s hope this is just a rough stretch, Scrivens was much better last game. 

Not really. A goaltender coach has substantially different duties than the other coaches on a team and they often outlast other members of the staff.

I wrote in the summer he shouldn’t be coming back, and I still find it odd he did. That being said, I don’t put the blame solely on him that Scrivens struggled in his first three games.

It is strange that every coach aside from Chabot got the boot, but what the hell do I know? Although, wasn’t there something last year after Dubnyk got traded about him having poor fundamentals? I could be making that up.

Many, many times over the years at The Journal and The Sun. Never over anything written at Oilersnation. Players do read it, though.

No, but I have been approached by an individual in hockey about something I wrote. They were agitated, I listened to what they said and changed my view. It was very educational and beneficial from my end.

Nope. Its one of the perks of being a fake person on the internet – no responsibility whatsoever.

Not yet, but by the end of this season if Dallas Eakins hasn’t tried to shove my head into a toilet then this whole thing has been a total waste of time! 

I have not.

I bet guys have come across certain things, tough not to nowadays. No chance any read it with regularity. I would bet especially in a Canadian market with the scrutiny this team finds itself under, most do whatever they can to avoid all media.

No, but the only times I’ve covered teams day-to-day are at tournaments and last year in Oklahoma City. I’ve been approached by players’ agents, but that’s a different story. I think players probably run the spectrum – they’re just people, and if I asked the comments section here how many of you would read Oilers Nation if you played for the team I imagine I’d get a gamut of answers.

I have quite often. The Internet allows players to read more, and if they see a link on twitter some will read it. Not all players do, but I’ve had players on the Oilers and around the league talk to me about an article.

I assume Dallas Eakins reads everything I write, mostly because of my excellent ideas and grammar. 

Everything. Eight years of miserable results will do that to a fan base.

Strudwick’s singing voice. It’s not THAT bad.

Oh at this point I think “everything and anything” would be the best response. Now if you will excuse me I have to go plan the 2015 Cup Parade/Write hate mail to everyone on the active roster.

Everything? Everything. “Whoa the Oilers changed the hinges on their office doors? THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS THEY SHOULD BE FOCUSING ON TRADES NOT DOOR HINGES!!” We’re at the point where I’m going to start getting VERY nervous when the entire fan base ISN’T complaining about everything.

Assistant coaches.

Kevin Lowe’s continued employment.

Head coach. Many want to blame the coach for all the woes of this team. Players makes coaches look better. Every great coach has always said that. Look at Mike Babcock. He is a great coach, but when he lost Nick Lidstrom, Rafalski and Stuart from his blueline over the course of two years, his team hasn’t had the same success. I don’t believe he is suddenly a worse coach, but the players he puts on the ice simply aren’t able to do things that Lidstrom could, and too a lesser extent Stuart and Rafalski.

Oilers fans overreact most about everything to do with the Oilers. Can you blame us, though?  The Oilers are working on what could be an unprecedented run outside of the playoffs, I think we deserve the right to moan. 

Very quickly, I wanted to announce that OilersNation has partnered up with Klondike Cycle as the official sports retailer of the Nation.  If you live on the West End, like I do, Klondike Cycle has always (since 1974) been a staple for sports gear.  From bikes to hockey equipment, the folks at Klondike know their stuff and you’ll be seeing them around the Nation from time to time (including the GDBs).  Since no new Nation partner can walk away unscathed, we’ll also be shaking Klondike down for prizes to give away, including a contest we’ll be running early this week.