That's not the infamous 2001 Canada Day "riot" up there, but the 2006 Stanley Cup "riots." (note to cops, media and hooligans: it's not a riot until a cop car gets flipped and set on fire. A busted window at Tops convenience store and a few purloined copies of "Juggs" do not a riot make). Speaking of 2006, one of the guys on that year's Cup winning Hurricanes squad is an Oiler today. That, friends, is called a segue.
Former Eisbaren Berlin star Erik "Vertebrae" Cole comes over from tobacco country for enigmatic and oft-injured young Finn Joni Pitkanen. Now, I always believed that Pitkanen was the most skilled player on the Oilers roster next to Hemsky and that his character issues were overblown. Guess not.The question marks were enough for the Oilers to send out a kid who's already a real difference maker for a guy in the last year of his deal who scores at rates that make Shawn Horcoff not at all jealous.
So far, Kevin Lowe's off-season looks like this:
Pikanen for Cole
Jarret Stoll and Matt Greene to L.A. for D Lubomir Visnovsky.
Raffi Torres to the Columbus Blue Jackets for 21-year-old centre Gilbert Brule.
In terms of assets coming in, the Oilers get a veteran offensive defenceman coming off a bad year, a pint-size former first round pick and a big, physical winger that can play some tough minutes. Brule is a bust and in losing Torres, the Oil give up a physical prescence (though a maddeningly inconsistent one) and a decent ES player, which is weird given how few of those they have. He was kind of a douchebag, I guess, and that makes this deal okay for some.
All in all, I'm having a hard time seeing any of these as big upgrades. I've always been a fan of Lobo, but he effectively takes Pitkanen's spot. Cole more than effectively replaces Torres, but I'd be a lot happier if he came with an extension or additional assets as insurance for if/when he walks at the end of what will almost certainly be another year on the fringes. He will also likely bump Dustin Penner off the first line, another clear addmission by Lowe that he fucked up that offer sheet deal.
"Creme" Brule? By all accounts he's as useless as tits on a boar.
The Oilers are older today and a little better, but not by a whole lot. We'll see what, if anything, happens next.
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2 comments:
He will also likely bump Dustin Penner off the first line, another clear addmission by Lowe that he fucked up that offer sheet deal.
I think Erik Cole is a vast improvement over Dustin Penner on the 1st line.
It could be the case of Lowe realizing he fucked up on the offersheet, or it may be a case of him wishing to improve the team upfront.
Initial numbers show that Cole can play the tough minutes. He's also deemed to have speed and grit. A goal scorer to compliment Hemsky.
I think Pitkanen may have some character issues. Too many sources, including those outside Edmonton. He didn't really blend into the team on a personality basis - every time he scored, the Oilers didn't gather and hug him, like they do with other players. 3 teams in the past 13 months. Something may be apparent that we don't know about. On the on-ice, if he could make a bigger difference on the powerplay, he still may have been an Oilers. Unfortunately, his PP production was pitful, and always has been.
The only deal I have somewhat of a reservation is the Brule-Torres deal. That said, the Oilers may be high on him, and this may be a deal that works out in 2-3 years.
Pierre McGuire was on the radio...absolutely loves the Oilers moves.
It could be the case of Lowe realizing he fucked up on the offersheet, or it may be a case of him wishing to improve the team upfront.
To-may-to,to-mah-to.
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