cross16

Oilers are dominating this game and so far have been better in this series by quite a bit. They were very prepare for what Dallas does and have done a nice job taking it away. Dallas looks slow.

Pretty steep price for moving 2 picks in the first and 4 in the second. Speaks to what I've heard about this draft though. Top heavy for the most part.

that was bad... Only saving grace is I don't think Dallas played very well, has started every series slow and it still took double OT for the Oilers to win. But credit the Oilers, they had a good game plan. Dallas is going to have to adjust their game I think becasue Oilers are taking away the middle of the ice in the d zone and Dallas was just throwing pucks at the net and hoping.

Be interesting to see if Tanguay's name pops up. There were strong rumors he was coming in last season before Savard got announced but contract may have been an issue, as in Detroit wouldn't let him go. 1 year later perhaps that isn't an issue anymore.

True, but I also would not say the results were average, they were below avg IMO. But this also isn't just about results it's about what I saw and the process that I didn't like. But as I said, recognize personnel was a challenge for sure. Not suggesting the Flames are better off without him but i'm also not exactly upset to see him go.

Trying to recognize that personnel was a challenge but I coudln't find a lot of things I liked about the job Savard did this year. Conroy and Huska preached creativity and their offense was equally as boring was it was under Sutter from the forwards, maybe even more. PP lacked purpose. Most of the time i'm skeptical it's actual "mutual" but feel like that may be true in this case. Suspect you'll see him on Berube's staff in TO.

For me Kuzmenko is going to be the test of whether or not the philosophy of the Flames organization is changing. If you are truly committed to a retool with the plans of winning a cup then you shouldn't be looking to sign players as they are turn 30 to multi year deals, Conroy has mentioned this. Perhaps you can get him on a 2 year deal or less but normally guys like that want term. The rebuttal to this is well he has a ton of skill, can score 40 and was great on the PP (although i would point out I don't think it's accident that despite this the Flames still weren't good and Vancouver got better without him). All true and if the goal is to make sure you turn this around as fast as possible then you need to retain players like Kuzmenko. He really only makes sense to retain if your goal is to win more in the short term and likely at the expense of long term. I want to see him traded personally but putting that aside I think it's a good litmus test for this org to see how they will handle him.

I agree with some of this and ultimately if you can find a market inefficiency it's great. If another team is just cheap then for sure take advantage of it. I don't think I'd put Carolina in that bucket though I actually think Carolina is the model the Flames should follow. I don't think they bailed on Lindholm/Hanifin too early they used an excessive of assets to target someone they deemed superior and I don't think they were wrong. I'd call that trade a win/win for both clubs. Yes they played hardball but it was a pretty good result at the end of the day. I agree with some of the theory here and agree Necas has some positive attributes but still comes down to "why isn't' Carolina paying him then" and personally I don't think the answer makes it make sense for me. Think he's gonna get more $ and term then he's worth.

I get it's what the Flames are going to try and do but IMO the worse type of acquisition to try and make is targeting that 25-28 year old age group players who are about to get paid. First question should always be "why isn't their team signing them ?". Once in a while you might get a winner but I think far more frequently if that team doesn't want to sign them there is a good reason. Think you wind up with bad contracts in that segment more then you pick up good players. Hronek and Necas would be a similar type of acquisition for me and i'm not a big fan of either.

Ya these are hard ones. There were games I didn't see him and then times like last night where I thought he was one of their best players. See below.. he was good. I didn't think the Canucks were close but for what they gave up I don't blame their GM for taking a shot. Can always be conservative but I still think the deal made sense for the Canucks.

Its hard for me to see a path where the Oilers beat Dallas. For me, top to bottom, Dallas is the best team in the playoffs. Could argue the Rangers, maybe Florida, But no one is as deep as Dallas. Vancouver is not a deep team and while I will give the Oilers some credit they have improved their defensive game under the new coach. Vancouver's rush offense was almost non existent in the series and they became very 1 dimensional at 5 on 5 but I think that has more to do with personnel then it does the Oilers play. Petey is not a good playoff player and the problem the Canucks have is outside of him and Miller there talent falls off fast especially when you think about transition and rush play. Having said that, the Oilers still struggled with the Canucks forecheck, especially when Bouchard and Eklhom are not on the ice. Not only can Dallas forecheck the crap out of you, they stifle you in the neutral zone and they'll take it the other way. I don't see them being 1 dimensional against the Oilers and I don't see how the Oilers slow them down. It feels like a much bigger underdog situation for them then it's going to be sold in the press and normally the way to then win that series is goaltending. Well it's basically impossible for me to see a scenario where Skinner is the better goalie in this series. there just isn't anything from the playoffs so far that impressed me enough to think the Oilers can beat the Stars and it won't shock me if this series is over in 5 or less.

Give the oilers credit. They didn’t panic after that 2nd goal. Dug in and shutdown the Canucks. Don’t think the Canucks were ever as good a team as the record showed. Playoffs exposed them. Be interested to see where they wind up next year and j don’t think it will be on top of the Pacefic

for a guy I think you could have gotten for almost free the last few seasons. think he’s been their best forward for me in the playoffs. Funny how that goes

Avs didn’t beat the Flames because the Flames failed to show up. Flames worked hard in that series they just were not at all prepared for how the Avs were going to play them.

I’ve seen some bad game 7s but I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a team fail to show up in game 6 and 7 with a chance to win. Pretty shocking stuff. I know the Oilers have Skinner in net but this looking tough. Canucks haven’t had a good period in 2 full games now. I don’t think they can just flip a switch

no one is saying to do this. If you have players rated the same then take the player at a higher need. At the end of the day you only get so many picks and you only have so many opportunities you can offer players. You have to prioritize some how I think the strength of your org is one of those factors and I think that’s all Button was saying. way too much being read into this

I agree. I think the Stars are going to dominate whoever comes out of this series. It’s a shame Dallas-Colorado was the conference semi.

I think the process is getting mixed up here. There is finding players/scouting players/and ranking or scoring players and then there is putting together your list. Not all the same. the needs/strength of your organization would not impact who you scout but it would, and imo should, impact how you put your list together

I interpreted that comment differently. I don’t think it was in reference to their top pick but the draft overall. They had almost no D depth before those trades and now they have some so when it comes to building the list I think that becomes a factor. Prior to those moves a D might have been moved up in a tie because they need it move, perhaps now it won’t. That’s what I think he meant Button has mentioned the top D in several interviews now. I get the impression they like a lot of the D prospects at the top of the draft.

Why have I can’t buy into the Canucks as a good team. I’ve never seen a team just flat out not show up in the playoffs like they have multiple times this year. They keep it close so they can find a way late but man way a tough way to try and play in the playoffs. I expect a much better game 7 from them because it can’t get much worse.

Not a well kept secret but I think this is a good hire for the Leafs.

I don't think Markstrom is going to generate a ton either, I'm just interesting to see how the market develops and where that puts him. Is it NJ or bust or do other teams call? What does other teams calling on him or other options do to his value. Just think it sets up as an interesting story line but I'm not convinced it means he is going to return a lot because while I do think there is going to be interest there are younger options available.

Evolving Hockey, who are pretty good at this, had him at 7.5mill AAV on a multi year deal. That is too rich IMO.

Looks like Huska might be looking for a new assistant coach. he came in with a lot of fan fare, from me too, but I'm not too disappointed by this. The PP really lacked purpose all year and they never did seem to settle on a what they wanted to do. It looks under prepared more often than not. think this also may be a sign that Berube is in fact going to coach the Leafs. Savard was his PP coach previously and I could see him wanting to leave Calgary to coach with him again.

I'd be a bit weary of the price. I tried to focus in on Necas a lot in the playoffs and while I do like him I don't think he is a core piece and i'd be really interested to see what type of contract he's looking for. Arb rights and 2 years away from UFA, he isn't going to be cheap. At the right price sure but i have a feel he's going to be more expensive then he is worth.