Mid-game New Years Eve: Edmonton at Long Island

Game Story?

Both the New York Islanders and the Edmonton Oilers suck.

In the 70s and 80s, these teams were the talk of the NHL. Double dynasty. If this matchup happened in 1982, people would be lining up in Madison Square Garden just to watch these guys... who are in Long Island.

They might now. The last 3 number one draft picks are here. Michael Grabner and Jordan Eberle are here. 

Youth movement is in full swing.

Lines?

Whatever it is, Corey Potter looks like he's back in form.

Hall - Nuge - Ebs

Smyth - Horcoff - Hemsky

Gagner- Belanger- Jones

Eager - Lander - Hordichuk

Potter-Sutton

Peckham-Petry

Smid-Gilbert

Dubnyk (a little shaky, no?)

It would be a cop-out to predict something midway through the game :)

Happy New Year

Dec 29: Edmonton at Minnesota, 6:00 PM, SNET-W

Game Story

Dud on dud

The Oilers started their journey of wonder with an exceptional 5-3 loss. Woot.

On the other side of the coin, the Wild have lost 8 straight, their latest being against Nashville, 2-1, in a shootout.

The Oilers have a win against the Wild.

CAN THIS BE TURNAROUND DAY?

Lines

Hemsky is a game time decision. If he comes in, Hordichuk will be likely coming out.

Plante suffered a concussion off that hit from Weise. He's out. Teubert draws in.

My hunch is Dubnyk starts. Nothing more than a hunch.

Hall-Nuge-Eberle
Smyth-Horcoff-Hemsky/Gagner
Jones-Belanger-Eager/Gagner

Hordichuk/Eager-Lander-Petrell

Smid-Gilbert

Petry-Peckham

Potter-Teubert

Dubnyk

Khabibulin

Predictions

Glorious Prediction - Oilers fans point to this day, sipping from the glory of making the playoffs, as the day everything turned around. Oilers use this 6-0 drubbing of the Wild to propel themselves through this road trip and into superstardom.

Realistic Prediction - We score a point on the powerplay - Eberle is in on the goal and so is the Nuge. Heatley scores in the dying seconds of the game. Oilers still win 3-2, just this time, in OT.

ELPH Prediction - Oilers fans, drunken and dazed, point to this date as the day they truly drafted Ryan Murray. The Oilers can't even put down the 8 times winless Wild and lose a trap filled hockey fest 4-1. Of course, Eberle scores. 

WJC Tournament Rundown - Also-rans

Latvia

The Latvia hockey team, seen celebrating a 3-0 loss

The Good

They're not that bad. Kristian Pelss is a decent prospect for the Edmonton Oil Kings, where he has been seen to score some pretty goals. Plus, Latvia has had some history with goaltending in the past, and has been known to produce some quality players!

The Bad

They're not that good. Besides a few standouts, they're not excellent by any means of the measuring stick. They're better than most of the world, but where it counts, they aren't going to be able to compete... You say they kept the game between Sweden close? Damn!

I don't give the Latvians enuff credit here. If anyone can pull off an upset, it's these guys!

Oilerwatch

Remember that Kristian Pelss I had mentioned above?

Damn straight!

Denmark

This goalie exhibits an exceptional ability to grasp air

The Good

They qualified for this tournament. They beat out Germany, France, Italy and Austria. Good for them!

Their powerplay is well coached - see that they scored two goals against He-Man and "young-gun" Jack Campbell.

The Bad

They, in fact, kept it close against the Americans for a whole period!

But, unfortunately, they may be looking at regulation. Aside from the 'Nucks prospect, who, in fact, is fantastic (insert Great Dane joke here), they're simply not good enough to compete with the big boys. As displayed by the Americans, they aren't big enough, skilled enough, or trained enough to keep up in long bursts.

Oilerwatch

Nada.

Best of the Worst?

Sorry Denmark

Really, nothing much to add besides "Sorry Denmark". These Latvians almost made it into the Dark Horse pile. They have some good prospects, they played solid hockey, mind you, against the Swedes, and I would mark them down as a team who might actually make games entertaining against the medium skilled teams!

Plus, their fans are kind of awesome.

Predictions!

Pool A

1 Russia

2 Sweden

3 Slovakia

4 Switzerland

5 Latvia

Pool B

1 Canada

2 USA

3 Finland 

4 Czech Republic

5 Denmark

If you're wondering where the playoff schedule is, it's not here... yet. Because, of course, some team (CANADA) could get a bye (not joking, its Canada). When that hullabaloo is sorted out a post shall come with the bracket predictions.

Bleeding out? Oilers at Canucks - The Rundown

OILERS

FINAL 3 - 5

CANUCKS

The Oilers were outscored 3-0 in the first.

Truly, they started playing hockey in the second, so props to them for scoring three goals.

The Bold
Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins continue their strong play. Jordan Eberle had 2 points on the night, while the Nuge kept up his PPG pace.

The Meh
Khabi wanted two of those goals back. That would have made it 3-3.

Potter was to blame, I believe, on the second goal. Then again, his point shot was deftly deflected by Jonesy.

The Awful
Plante's nose after that hit. Ouch! Godspeed on recovery!

Also, the glass team. Seriously? It was as long as an intermission to fix that. Then again, I don't have your skills, so props for running on the ice. That was epic.

The Beautiful
The pride of Sherwood Park, Alberta. Till he beat the Oilers in the Cup Final.

Nice to see him get his first NHL goal!

Even more epic he scored it against the all-time leading point scorer... for goalies, Martin Brodeur.

Yes, that's right. Cam Ward. Take a bow, sir, my beauty of the day!

Dec 26: Edmonton at Vancouver, 8 PM, SNET

Game Story

Damn

Oilers fight 'The Man'

Look at that win. 

Then look at every single one of those losses.

The Oilers started excellently, beyond excellently. In fact, people were even saying this team had enough to make it into the playoffs Then, of course, reality happened.

Now, according to the Canucks page and various NHL sources, we're the bottom of the league.

Time to stick it to the man? I. Think. So.

Lines/Injuries

Musta been an awful Christmas for poor Hemsky - he was sick, and well, being sick stinks. He's still sick, so Hordichuk is in.

Ryan Whitney is out. Not because he's not doing well, which is a valid reason, but because HES INJURED AGAIN OMG OMG ZOMG.

Plante has been called up to replace him.

Hall-RNH-Eberle
Smyth-Horcoff-Jones
Eager-Belanger-Gagner
Hordichuk-Lander-Petrell

Peckham-Potter
Smid-Gilbert
Petry-Plante

Khabibulin
Dubnyk

Predictions!

Glorious Prediction - OILERS WIN WOOT. The Canucks continue their poor play of late and let in an early goal to Jordan Eberle, and find themselves chasing and trailing the speedy Oilers. Goals from Ryan Jones, Alex Plante, Ryan Nugent Hopkins and Lennert Petrell means the Oilers win 5 - 0.
Realistic Prediction - My hunch? Oilers are better than they showed in November. Here we go, time for a win streak.

Oilers take this one in a shocker 5-4 in OT. Hall scores.

ELPH Prediction - Hah. Oilers.

Mason Raymond's natural hatter destroys the back of the Oilers as we drop yet another game 4-1. Ebs scores.

WJC Tournament Rundown - Dark Horses

Finland

See what I have on my stick? PSYCH

The Good

Mikael Granlund (as pictured doing the routine "flip behind goaltender who is in the butterfly" move) is probably the most talented player in the tournament. Solid defensively, does tricks like that offensively, he's a Finnish Flash for sure. Brother Markus make for an exciting tandem up front. Plus, his linemates bring a wealth of experience. Never hurts.

Finland's goaltending has improved steadily as well through recent years, so that should prove to be good, right?

The Bad

They're plain, otherwise. Like Sweden and USA, they don't have any glaring faults, except maybe their defending, which is still quite good.

Their game against Canada, the horrendous loss, proves they have a little more ways to go to becoming a powerhouse.

Oilerwatch

Samu Perhonen, an Oilers 3rd round pick, was once thought to be a lock for one of the three spots open for goaltending. Yeah, no.

Ville Pokka, however, should the Oilers improve and get a draft spot somewhere near 15-18, could be on the radar.

Czech Republic

All signs point the team is moving in the right direction

The Good

The Czech Republic are icing a rather talented roster. They've got size on the D, talent up front - separate from the concussed Martin Frk - and athleticism in net. That's good, right?

The Bad

They're in the same group as the USA, Canada, and the Finns. That does not bode well for any dark horse, let alone the second tier. Finland is making their push into the favorite section, USA likes to dominate, and Canada has not shown in recent history that they are going to take a step back from gold or silver. Yikes.

Oilerwatch

YES.

David Musil. Lowetide cites him as a draft steal - I would say his draft pedigree is approximately right where he was, 31. Defensively sound young defender, and that could be a boost for the big squad moving forward!

Slovakia

Slovakia, after realizing Patrik Stefan has officially retired

The Good

They have very good placement. Russia is the only real dominant threat in their pool, the real sure bet. These guys can be the upset makers against the Swedes, who may just lose their dominant favorite status to the Finns. With Switzerland and ho-hum Latvia also in their pool, they might just slip into the next round via mercy.

The Bad

They're simply not as good or better than anybody else. They have talent, that's for sure. But, I mean, not enough to compete with the Russians, the Canadians, or the American squads.

Oilerwatch

Double Martin trouble here - Martin Marincin and Martin Gernat.

Marincin is the returning shocker, really. Nobody knew who he was, but as a rookie, dominated the WHL, causing many Oilers fans to rightfully begin the Cult of Worship of Stu the Magnificent Bastard.

Gernat, however, is the Marincin of this year. Nobody knew who he was, and as a rookie, is dominating the WHl. Seriously, you can't take your eyes off this kid when he plays. He's good. The CWSMB grows ever larger.

Switzerland

This is totally going to come back and haunt the team, isn't it

The Good

They are listed in the dark horse section.

Seriously, they have talent. People doubt the Swiss are, well, any good at all, but they have some clear talent to keep up with Slovakia, Czech Republic and Finland. Heck, they could surpass various facets of some crazy good teams through hard work.

The Bad

They're overrated. They have Sven Barstchi, who I believe is one of the more overrated prospects in the system. Not simply because he is a Flame! Just because he's their only prospect...

Beyond that, no Benjamin Conz means they are in tough for goaltending. The man is a machine.

Oilerwatch

Nothing.

The best horse?

Tee hee

Finland, by miles. They could be in medal contention. I believe, at this point, they are followed closely by Slovakia, who benefits from the group placement. Switzerland and Czech Republic remain tied at third for unimportance.

Poor guys.

Speaking of which, Latvia and Denmark will be featured in tomorrows WJC Tournament Rundown, along with my final predictions for the tourney. Oilers post coming soon.

WJC Tournament Rundown - Heavyweights

Canada

Seriously. There are more minutes to a game than the last one.

The Good

They're made of Canadian juniors. 

Seriously, this is the team to beat AT ALL TIMES. You don't want to play them, because they've always got a home crowd, they're the biggest, they're arguably the best trained, and most often the most skilled.

Otherwise, they have a strong forward corps loaded with talent, such as Mark Scheifele and Ryan Strome. Plus, they have returnees from the last World Juniors, which is almost always good.

The Bad

Except the returnee in goal. Look, I know that M. Visentin stole the reigns from Olivier Roy last time around in the WJC. But honestly, after the meltdown against Sweden and that low-profile bust during the finals, I don't know about this kid. It's not going to get any easier in front of a rabid Edmonton/Calgary crowd.

Our defence doesn't look as solid as it once did, and we don't have any real draft-pedigree stars, excluding Ryan Murray.

All in all, the bad is that we're not absolutely certain that Canada will crush anything and everything it touches.

Oilerwatch

Tyler Bunz is an excellent young goalten... Well, that's just ridiculous.

Nobody.

USA

Jack Campbell - USA finally found the anti-aging serum

The Good

Likely the most threatening veteran squad in the whole WJC. Seven returning players bring a wealth of experience to this team, including the aforementioned Jack Campbell, who the majority of Canada remembers as that guy who stole gold from Canada in 2010. Crazy good.

They might also be the strongest team defensively. Look at Jarred Tinordi. Man-hulk, really.

The Bad

Really, this is a solid team up front with the likes of Emerson Etem and Nick Bjugstad. As noted, defensively sound. And their goaltending, well, has been proven excellent.

But are they the best at anything? Jack of all trades, yet masters of none?

Oilerwatch

Yes. Once again, nothing worth noting.

Russia

I simply can't Nail his name down.

The Good

They've got two guys who could very well go No. 1 and 2 at this year's draft, Nail Yakupov (as seen in his glory above) and Mikhail Grigorenko.

They've got the scariest (by miles) forwarding corps in the whole darn tournament. That, in itself, is exceptionality in itself.

The Bad

This team is a total departure from last year's gold medal winning squad, that, say what you want about Canada/Visentin gifting them the medal, was incredibly solid in all three zones.

This is the team to beat up front, but defensively? Its offense's shine hides their flaws, quite plainly.

Oilerwatch

Hah no. The way we are playing, though, Nail Yakupov and Mikhail Grigorenko.

Sweden

Sweden has never been regarded as the same since 2000,
where they brashly signed up their best player in two spots.

The Good

They're, uh, beefy.

Seriously. Watch Canada-Sweden highlights - these guys are monstrously good on the puck and off of it. To physically own Canada is quite exceptional, and if they can bully other teams around, then they have a very good shot at the tournament.

Plus, they were solid enough to beat Canada.

The Bad

It's not "the" year for Sweden. Sweden's chock full of talent every year. 

It's simply not the level of talent iced by USA, Canada and Russia this year. Sorry, Sweden. Solid all around, but unlike the US, no special standouts.

Oilerwatch

OSCAR KLEFBOM - Yes, we finally got one to support. The kid, taken 19th overall last year as part of the Penner *snicker* trade, he's going to be a stalwart defender on the blue-line for the Swedes, and hopefully the Oilers soon.

Favorite of the Favorites?

USA, followed closely by Canada, then Russia, and finally Sweden.

All four teams are leagues beyond their counterparts, with the noted exception of Finland, but the USA, solid at every position, gets the nod over the always dangerous Canadians (*sniff*), explosive Russians, and physical Swedes.

I'm cheering for Canada, no matter what.

Posts coming tomorrow about the darkhorses, Finland, Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Fine - I guess Switzerland too.

The day after contains posts on the also-rans, poor Latvia and Denmark. They did what they could.

Who are you cheering for?!