Losing My Religion

Yawn. Another night, another Oilers loss. I dunno, I've been spending some time reading through the gameday threads at LT's and it's like Groundhog Day over there every fuckin' night: "the underlying numbers are good, this team is fun to watch...whoops they fucking lost again."

Maybe I'm missing something here, but how is this team any different from every other sad sack bunch of dinks we've seen sporting the Drop over the past, I dunno, 15 years? Better question: when was the last time it was actually fun to be an Oilers fan? April 2006? May 1990? Nineteen-fucking-eighty-four?

Ain't fun the point?

It's probably easier for those lucky/miserable sods back in Edmonton who are-ahem-covered in Oil. If you can't just flick on the TV or mosey down to your local and catch a game, fandom requires a bit more effort and commitment, more than most busy 30-somethings with jobs, girlfriends, interests etc can probably squeeze in.

Example: Tonight I went for a nice dinner and a couple of drinks before coming home and flicking on Sportsnet's ticker to see the score, which reminded me what a good decision it was not to crouch in front of the computer and squint at a shitty little streaming video feed, or make the trek across the creek to the expat bar for the game. Not that I needed it, because nothing I've seen or heard from this team so far has convinced me they are worthy of more than a dilettante's passing interest. In short: I'm having a few commitment issues around this team right now.

I wish it were otherwise. I would like to believe, but these peckers are making it difficult with their up and down routine, the three-headed goalie monster, the plucking psychos off the waiver wire, the continued mediocrity of guys like Horcoff and the gallingly decent play of personal whipping boys Souray and Moreau. Etcetera, etcetera.

Don't get me wrong: this is not a cri de coeur or a letter of resignation à la Berry and Winters. I'm just a little frustrated by the fact that it doesn't seem to matter who steps on stage with these guys: the song remains the same.

Old friend, Joffrey Lupul, in Hot Water

So reports Tim Panaccio

Joffrey Lupul is pretty much beside himself, after getting dropped to the fourth line at today's pratice.

The thing both myself and Tim Saunders of WIP noticed about Lupes is that when he is not being physical on the ice and not hitting, his game is off. He admitted much when I asked about his mere 13 hits in as many games this season vs. 34 in 13 games from a year ago.

But the look of frustration on his face both on and off the ice today convinces me that he is very unhappy with this move even though he said to us, the he would "suck it up."

“I’ve been up and down,” Lupul told me today. “Some games I didn’t play as well as I could. It’s different playing 12-13 minutes than 20. I’ve got to simplify my game. When I’m out there, maybe play a more physical game.”

Nothing much to say. Pretty self-explanatory.

A Change is Gonna Come

...
Speaking of change, the JDD head of the Oilers' Cerberus-like goaltending creature gets the call against the Blueshirts in NYC tonight (his second in a row). This goalie merry-go-round shit is crazy, but given that none of the trio have really sack'd up and grabbed the starter's job, I can't see what else there's to do. Regardless, I anticipate another L for the Oil tonight because, frankly, this team kinda sucks at the moment.
...
Also on the "change" front, I see Mike W is the latest CinO contributor to pull the chute on his blogging career. Read his poignant final missive here. Good night, good luck, GOILERS!

Good weekend

Two afternoon road games in a row, two points from each. Hemsky with two goals each as pretty as any you'll ever lay eyes on. And much-maligned Old Man Roloson gets both W's. Not bag, not bag at all. Could it be that the sleeping giant that is the Vaunt is starting to stir? We'll put that to the test Wednesday when the Oilers visit Columbus

Five and counting

Wow, this team is (to borrow a phrase from one of the CinO boys) kicking the care out of me a lot earlier than usual.

So what now? Fire MacT? Or is this lot just not as good as people have been saying they are? Help me out here.

Rexall Place is Inadequate

No.

Honestly.

I mean, the team only generated 11.8M in operating income, 7th in the league despite the fact they were not recipient of any playoff revenues.

That is, Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. The Oilers are [were prior to Katz purchase] debt free so that potentially could put them in even a better financial position than comparables.

It is also interesting to note how quickly the Oilers paid off their debt in recent years. I'd imagine from a cash flow perspective (which many accountants argue to be the a better tool to evaluate financial performance), the Oilers are doing even better than a few teams ranked above them.

Yeah, that Literally. Crush Rexall place is really inadequate.

Now excuse me while I sign a Cheque to Mr. Batman Daryl Katz quickly, so he can expand on his 7 8 figure business income.

I wonder if the payment will trigger in being recipient of a charitable donation receipt which I could then use to minimize my personal income taxes?

Bahhhstaan.

"Hey Caaahrey! The Price is fahhkin' WRAAAHNG, ya faaahg! AHAHAHAHA!"

The Oilers take on the Massholes tonight and are looking to snap a three game skid. They haven't played the B's since Cam Neely could walk, they're home at Literally. Crush. and OG6 games are always fun. So naturally it's another goddamn PPV. Will the responsible authorities please eat a bag of dicks? Thanks.

So it looks like it'll be me and Gossip Girl tonight and if you have to ask why, well, that's your problem.

Sunday morning coming down

The good proprietor of BDHS should be happy today, with the sad-sack Spurs sacking their manager, assistants and director of football and then picking up their first win of the season against Bolton. Such is life in a results-oriented business.

When I was in London a couple of weeks ago, I took in a match at White Hart Lane, a 1-0 Spurs loss to the improbable Hull City Tigers. Afterwards, I popped into one of the pubs near the ground for a pint and was forced to show the large men at the door my match ticket to prove I was a home fan and not some away fan there to stir up shit. I think a policy like that is one that needs to be embraced here, because after taking in last night's stinker of a loss for the Oil against the fucking Canucks at the local Edmonton expat bar, I was ready to glass the first person I saw in a Luongo shirt.

But who am I kidding? The real culprits aren't the smug bastards who cheer for a franchise that has accomplished somewhere between dick and squat in its 40-plus years in the league, but the sad fucking crew wearing the oil drop. Garon, Grebeshkov and Gilbert in particular deserve a sound paddling for their work last night and I'll throw in a few choice words for Hemsky as well. And, to bring it back to the news from north London, when is it time to follow Spurs' example and take a hard look at the men behind the bench? MacT arguably has the horses to at least make a run at the NW title this year, but seven games in and this team has yet to play a complete game. Can you lay some of this on the coach? Is it MacT's fault that Grebeshkov is total chaos or that Garon is looking more and more like a Andre Racicot? I'm pretty skeptical about how much effect coaches actually have on the game outside of setting line combinations and working the match ups. I've heard criticism from some corners that the Oilers' efforts or lack thereof attest to a lack of preparation or inspiration, which seems fair enough, but how much is on the coach and how much on what's between the ears of each player? These are questions I can't pretend to answer, but I hope someone does. Because a few more games like the last three and the rumbles of discontent are going to swell to a crescendo.

Fuckin'-A Friday Post

Weekend's here. How about some rock?

New Lines

Per Tencer (a "good" blogger who doesn't work blue), the Oilers will go into tomorrow's game against Vancouver with the following combos:

Nilsson - Horcoff - Hemsky

Penner - Cogliano - Gagner

Moreau - Pouliot - Cole

MacIntyre - Brodziak - Stortini

I like. Cole returns to his natural position at RW, which Ray Ferraro says is a good thing, and who knows more about hockey than him?

Defenseman Theo Peckham was returned to the Springfield Falcons of the AHL following last night's game; it's expected that Steve Staios will return to the Oilers lineup tomorrow night following a 2 game absence.

Sadly, the return to action comes to late to bolster Staios' prospects in the Hot Off.

How about the Canucks? I reckon Gillis or Nonis or Burke or whoever the fuck is running that clown show these days was pretty blindsided by Pavol Demitra's injury. You just can't predict these things.

Falling Loonie, Patrick LaForge, Dan Mason

Interesting article here

Downhill from here?

Let's see if Ales Hemsky and the rest of the Oilers can pull their heads out of their asses against Colorado after last night's laugher in Shytown. Yeesh.

Young folks

Tonight's game should be a good 'un, pitting the peach-fuzzed Oilers against a gawky-after-a-summer-growth-spurt Chicago club that's trying hard to impress their new stepdad, Joel Quenneville. Or something. What I'm trying to say here is there's not many players on either club that lived through the Reagan presidency. One of the few old-timers, Sheldon Souray, is, to the surprise of absolutely nobody, injured, though Sam Gagner will be there to bring the median age down even further. Old Man Roloson gets the nod in net for the Oilers: believe me when I say I have a thematic joke in my back pocket on that tidbit, but I really don't want to get sued. Game's on PPV, so tune in to your wireless set for the dulcet tones of Rod Philips instead.



On an unrelated note, I see the Oilers website (your one and only source for Oilers content anywhere ever) is doing some hard-hitting stuff like this feature on pest and "disgusting hockey player" Zack Stortini. Hopefully a "Who'd You Rather" feature won't be too far behind (example: Mrs. Sheldon Souray or the Big Ľubowski's special lady?).

In ur pressbox, disrespecting ur d00ds

The Dave Berry saga continues to send ripples through the Oilogosphere. This has been covered quite extensively (mudcrutch has a post on the subject here that blows the pants off of anything I could come up with), and I've not much to add. My short take is that the Oilers have a right to dictate who gets to sit in the PB and who doesn't, but their handling of the situation was pretty bush league. What's most interesting about this whole affair is how it betrays a stunning level of ignorance of the new realities of communication on the part of the team. But that's an issue for others to tackle: we've people to mock.

First, OilersNation blogger and radio journo Jason "He's hip, he's cool, he's 45" Gregor strokes his chin and clucks his tongue at the rank social irresponsibility of bloggers these days, and manages to come off like a damn fool.

Most (bloggers) are nameless, faceless people who write their opinions, but unfortunately there are too many false facts in blogs. I understand the next generation gets most of their information from the Internet, but unfortunately lots of it is horribly written or inaccurate. Kids read this stuff and they believe it. I don't think bloggers truly understand the strength of their message, and also the damage it can do. What about writing an article on the damage that bloggers do? They all seem to think that because they "care" about the team, that their messages are helping the team. Well that might be true, but no one in blog world ever talks about the negatives. And it seems that well-written, factual and insightful blogs are rare. For every Lowetide there are 15 horrible bloggers. Kids read the Internet more than the paper, and while we think they should be smart enough to decipher the good from bad, any parent will tell you that isn't the case.

Yeah, he actually went with the "think of the children" line. Fuckin' embarrassing.

But the real good shit comes with Oilers' PR flack J.J. Hebert's attempts to clear the air.

Edmonton Oilers media relations director J.J. Hebert says blogger Dave Berry of Covered in Oil was temporarily banned from the Oilers press box last week because of the "disrespectful and embarrassing" content of Berry's live blog commentary on the Oilers' home opener.

"It was disrespectful, it was embarrassing and we simply do not need it," Hebert says.

What triggered it initially was the content," adds Allan Watt, vice-president of communications for the Oilers. "It was profane."

If we've learned nothing else from Pat Laforge-and I think we haven't-it's that disrespectful and profanity-laden comments about players will only be tolerated once said players are traded (right Doug Weight, you big pussy?)

Having read the live blog in question, I find the particular criticism to be interesting to say the least. I count a single use of the word "fuck" in there, but beyond that, the post is pretty vanilla. One thing it is not is uncritical, so it's easy to see why it would get the flack's knickers in a twist.

Hebert goes on to say that problem with treating bloggers the same as members of the MSM, aside from their potty mouths, is there's just so gosh darn many of them.

Hebert says the Oilers will not give accreditation to any independent blogger right now. There are simply too many bloggers at this point for the Oilers to try to pick and choose and accommodate any of them. "Our players are just inundated with requests, as well as phone requests, every day. For us to say yes to Joe Blow's blog, there's 300 more of them out there.

"You can't open the door to one guy and then say no 250 others. You can't."

Which would be fair if it were true. Fact is, though, picking and choosing who does and does not get accreditation is something Herbert and his ilk do on a daily basis. Hell, one might even say it's part of their job. On the great media totem pole, some hack from the St. Albert Gazette is going to be further down than a Dan Barnes and I trust people like Hebert are capable of making the distinction and justifying it. So why not apply similar tests to bloggers. It's been done: there are NHL teams (notably the Washington Capitals) that provide bloggers with press passes. In fact, Caps blogger Eric McErlain at one point drafted a set of guidelines for granting press credentials to bloggers. Clearly it can be done, and in suggesting otherwise Hebert is either being totally disingenuous or he just isn't very good at his job.

What's the upshot here? I dunno. I'm sad that Dave has quit blogging, I'd like to hear more about these "basement threesomes" Alan Watt thinks are a driving force behind blogs, and I'm happier than ever not to be in a position to give the Oilers' organization one thin dime of my cash.

Autograph Revenues Can Buy A Lot Of Things

Phudi isn't one of them.

Not dead yet.

Just a quick word to say we haven't pulled a Pleasure Motors and packed it in. I've been out of the country for the last couple of weeks (and have thus missed the Oilers storming out of the gate with three straight lopsided marginal victories) and God only knows where the other people who "work" here are doing with their time. Probably more important things than blogging about hockey. Tonight's another edition of the BoA and I'll be glued to MotherCorp, wearing my Flames-hatin' pants and cursing the tiny tyrants with small dicks who make up the Oilers' PR department. Goilers.

ONOZ!

Last night, the Oilers got blown out 4-0 by their provincial rivals from Calgary (spits). Seeing as how this was a preseason game, the natural reaction for many is to freak the fuck out.

I didn't see the game, but it sounds like a real stinker, with the Oilers managing something like 19 shots against the guy who's going to open the door to the Flames's bench this year.

Mac T doesn't sound happy, and who can blame him? The team is starting the season with a tough schedule with 12-15 on the road and need to get their shit together before then. Me, I'm inclined to think it'll actually be good for them to get away from the slush of Rexall and the clearly insane fanbase and focus on playing hockey. If not, well, it's better to burn out than fade away.

It's "Captain" Lou to you

Snark here. I just wanted to post the picture.

They don't make them like that any more.

Submitted with minimal comment: a fine example of sportswriting as a craft.

This Observer piece on rising rugby union star Danny Cipriani. Best read with a clipped british private-school accent in mind. Or David Attenborough. Sorry: Sir David Attenborough.

The archetypal English player is rugged and fearless, not afraid to mix it up. Their approach is caution first, keep it tight, get the three points in the bag. They prided themselves on being the first nation to embrace professionalism, bringing a new physicality to rugby. Think of the heroes of 2003: Martin Johnson, Lawrence Dallaglio and Jonny Wilkinson - is it my imagination or did they, after years of battering, even start to look alike? Their heroic jaws jutting out, expressions glowering and taciturn, their faces like 'a Christmas present from Easter Island', as Philip Larkin memorably described Ted Hughes. Certainly, these are the men whose shadows loom large over the game in England.

The flip side is that you can almost count the number of flamboyant English players on one hand. There was Prince Alexander Obolensky, whose family fled the Russian Revolution in 1917, before settling in Muswell Hill, north London. 'The Prince' made his England debut in 1936 in a 13-0 victory against the All Blacks, the first time New Zealand had been beaten by a home nation; he scored two tries, including one individual effort that covered most of the field and may be the greatest ever scored in England colours. Sadly, he would win just three more caps, and the flying winger died in 1940 at the age of 24, when his Hawker Hurricane crashed in Suffolk. They don't make them like that any more.

Oilers vs Panthers - Post Game Thoughts

What a boring game. I usually won't say no to free tickets, but from now on will have to re-consider. We ended up leaving at the 2nd intermission.

The highlight of the day was seeing a couple buy two 46 oz popcorn ($4.00) buckets instead of sharing one 86 oz ($5.25) buckets.

Idiots.

GAME ASSERTIONS
- Trukhno has some skill; thinks the game well
- Pouliot did a great job battling in the corners
- Chorney will be ready sooner rather than later
- Strudwick certainly isn't anything more than press-box/7th D material
- Like Smid's game
- Brule certainly hasn't shown much; he'll be spending the season in the AHL.
- No atmosphere whatsoever at Rexall; for all the right reasons

Feel free to add your thoughts.