Oilers taking Murray?

There are talks everywhere saying that instead of taking consensus #1 prospect Nail Yakupov they may pick Ryan Murray instead. This is because the Oilers have a lot of blue chip forwards such as Nugent-Hopkins, Eberle, and Hall, but do not have any defence prospects. Drafting Murray would give them an NHL defenceman that is young, good, and a good core for the future.

Notes of The Day May 19th 2012

• Milan Hejduk has signed on for another year with the Colorado Avalanche at a price tag of $2 Million
• Josh Cooper of the Tennesseean reports that there will be a two week gap between when UFA Ryan Suter and Preds GM David Poile will talk so Suter can "unwind".
• Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal reports the top five candidates for the vacant head coaching job are,  1. Brent Sutter 2. Marc Crawford 3. Todd Nelson 4. Jon Cooper 5. Ralph Krueger.   (Our own note: Very Surprised Dallas Eakins is not on the list.
• Ted Kulfan is reporting that Nick Lidstrom will have his decision on retiring by mid-June.
• Aaron Portzline is reporting that the Columbus Blue Jackets will not be signing 2010 draft picks Petr Straka, and Brandon Archibald. They are however, undecided on goalie Mathieu Corbeil.
• From Sarah Baicker; Flyers Surgery List.
• Claude Giroux: Both wrists. Out 6 Weeks.
• Kimmo Timonen: Fragment in his lower back. Out 8-10 Weeks.
• Wayne Simmonds: Broken index finger. Out 4-6 Weeks.
• Matt Carle: Torn stomach muscle. Out 4-6 Weeks.
• James Van Rimesdyk: Torn labrum muscle. Unknown time frame for return.

BREAKING: TOM RENNEY FIRED.

EDMONTON OILERS HAVE ANNOUNCED THAT TOM RENNEY WILL NOT RETURN TO THE OILERS FOR NEXT YEAR.

MORE TO COME.

Updates:
7:56 Candidates for the job include,
Tom Nelson
Dallas Eakins
Derek Laxdal
Brent Sutter

Calder Finalist Released

The finalist for the Calder trophy has been released. The three finalists are Edmonton's Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, New Jersey Devils' Adam Henrique , and Colorado Avalanche's Gabriel Landeskog.

Henrique came up as a surprise., but he has excelled with 16 goals and 35 assists in 71 games.
Nugent-Hopkins before his injury had an amazing season with 18 goals and 34 assists in 62 games. A 0.83 points per game pace is nothing to be ashamed of. However, I believe he will need to show people he's not easily injured and pushed around to be a legitimiate star. It will be interesting to see what the injury will mean to his chances of winning the Calder.
Landeskog had 52 points in 82 games is nothing to be ashamed of, but his amazing +/- of 20 is amazing and will make him a legitimate contender for the award.

Other notables:
Matt Read: I believed Read should have be given the oppurtunity,but it just seems that someone had to be left off right?

Our choices:
Alson: Landeskog.
Geoffrey: Landeskog.

Linus Omark wants out?

Edmonton Oilers' young forward tweeted today, "I really hope edm let me have a chance in another nhl team". That is probably the final nail on the coffin for Omark who has been in the press box as a healthy scratch for a good portion of the season. However, we don't blame him, sitting around as a valuable asset in the press box? I would want out too.

Taylor Hall Shut Down.

The Edmonton Oilers have announced that they are shutting down F Taylor Hall. He hasn't played since March 17th after suffering a concussion. In 61 games this season he scored 53 points. However, it is new news that he will be out for the season with the shoulder surgery.

Stay here for the most important news.


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Updates:
3:56 PM: It is a shoulder labrum injury and he will be out for 5-6 months.
4:08 PM: @DarrenDreger reports he has been playing with a torn labrum  for some time now and the Cleveland surgeon recommended that he get surgery now and not to wait much longer.

NHLPA Files Greivance

The NHLPA has officialy filed a greivance on behalf of Oilers forward Ben Eager. On November 26th the Edmonton Oilers were at Vancouver in a game against the Vancouver Canucks. During the game, Eager was assesed a penalty. As he sat down in the box. He slashed his stick at the box in anger. During that slash, he unfortunately smashed an HD Camera broken. Canucks' management was not happy obviously and demanded that the Oilers pay for the new camera. In return, the Oilers docked $13,000 (the said price of the camera) from Eager's $1 Million dollar contract.

The greivance was not filed because the NHLPA thinks the teams should pay for the camera, but instead the price of $13,000 is in dispute. For example, a question in dispute is who says the camera is worth $13,000 and not $10,000?

A greivance hearing has not been scheduled yet.

Video of the incident:

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins finally back?!

Sound the alarms! The first overall pick is back, but will he be the same as before?

Last night, the Edmonton Oilers played the Phoenix Coyotes and lost to them 3-1. Although the Oilers lost, there was some good news as RNH came back from his shoulder injury and scored a goal.

All signs are pointing that he will take over the scoring lead from Adam Henrique (RNH missed 20 of the last 22 games and he only trails Henrique by 6 points) but can he do it with the NHL season dwindling down?


Sure the Edmonton Oilers can pretty much kiss the playoffs goodbye for this year, but they do have a bright future of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall.


However, there is a big question mark surrounding the durability of RNH. He does have a small frame for an NHL player (6'1'' 175lbs.) and big guys will be looking to hit him to prevent him from scoring.

So how can the Oilers make sure that their latest first overall pick be healthy? Will he be able to avoid having a promising career marred by injuries? Only time will tell but for this blogger, I hope he does avoid it because for such a disappointing season from the Oilers, they should have a positive to remember from it and that is the scoring tandem of Eberle, RNH and Hall.

3 overrated and 3 underrated players on the block

With the trade deadline approaching, we take a look at the top 5 overrated players and the top 5 underrated players on the trading block this year.

3 Overrated Players

1. Sam Gagner, C  Edmonton Oilers
   He's been getting so many hype ever since he had that crazy 8 point night against Chicago. Even though he's been on a good run, he's overrated because he hasn't been consistence offensively.

2. Rick Nash, LW  Colombus Blue Jackets
    Because he is an all-star and an Olympian, many people think he is the best player out there. He does have size and skill that make him attractive but he is having a terrible season right now. He didn't contribute much in the olympics. they tried him on the first line but he failed and ended up on the fourth line.

3. Derek Roy, C   Buffalo Sabres
    Roy isn't a bad player but he is not worth that much. He puts up god numbers but his playoff performances are sup-par. If you want to make the playoffs and have a deep run, he's not your guy.

3 Underrated Players

1. Ray Whitney, LW   Phoenix Coyotes
    The desert is known to always hide players. Ray Whitney has quielty been piling up points and at 39 years of age, he's leading the Coyotes in points. He won a cup with the Canes so he has the experience and the veteran leadership.

2. Ryan Suter, D    Nashville Predators
    Shea Weber has been given much credit for the extremely strong defensive game of the Preds. weber's defensive pair has also been a strong leader both on and off the ice. The Preds must have been really happy when they drafted those two in the 2003 draft (Suter was drated 5th, weber was drated 49th)

3. Lubminor Visnovsky, D    Anahiem Ducks
    Visnovsky has always been a terrific puck-moving defensemen. When he started out with the Kings, LA basically tried to cover the existence of him until he started producing too much to not get noticed. Last year, he led defensmen in points. Need I say more?

Ales Hemsky Re-Signs + Calgary Twitter Blooper

Ales Hemsky has re-signed with the Edmonton Oilers in a two-year $10 Million dollar extension. This effectively takes him away from the trade market. for now.

The Calgary Flames official twitter made a blooper today while commenting about the signing. Like all professionals it was deleted and an apology came after.

Deadline Special!

Our deadline special consists of a bunch of names we have heard a lot from the media and sources a like. We will have a bunch of names and teams we believe are interested in the said player. We can't guarantee that the player will go that team, but we try to give you the best and quickest information as quickly as possible! So without further to do, here is our deadline special!


Wexler's rumor: I heard J.S. Giguere's name brought up by teams in need of a solid backup going into the playoffs.
Teams Interested:


Alson + Wexler's rumor: There's lots of rumors about Rick Nash going to the Philadelphia Flyers for Sean Couturier or Brayden Schenn, James Van Riemsdyk, or Wayne simmonds plus a 1st Round pick (2012) . We've also heard that Jack Johnson, Dustin Penner, and Johnathan Bernier in exchange for Rick Nash. However, there were also rumblings that Jack Johnson may have complained that he would be unhappy there. On his short list he submitted I can confirm that the Toronto Maple Leafs and the LA Kings. Rumored teams include the Sharks and the Bruins. I can also confirm that Leaf's GM Brian Burke met with CBJ GM Scott Howson over breakfast at a New York hotel.


Wexler's rumor: Hearing Hawk's Patrick Kane is available in exchange for Buffalo's Ryan Miller.


Alson + Wexler's rumor: Grabovski will be traded if he does not resign. He clearly wants to stay with his entire family here, but is looking for $5 Million a year. It may be too much for GM Brian Burke and teams interested include the Senators and Islanders.


Mahbod's rumor: Kyle Quincey's name has been named. No word yet on which teams are interested. Also, the Anaheim Ducks seem to be interested in Ryan Miller.


Alson's rumor: The Edmonton Oilers are looking at a long term soloution for goaltending. Tukka Rask, Corey Schneider and Johnathan Bernier have all been named. I heard the LA Kings wanted Linus Omark and either Magnus Paajarvi and a 2nd or 1st round pick with that.


Alson's rumor: There's talk that the Colorado Avalanche are interested in Columbus Blue Jackets' Jeff Carter. Also a lot of talk about Ales Hemsky being traded. Nashville and LA being named...


Kyle's rumor: Multiple sources confirm that the Philadelphia Flyers have withdrawn from the Rick Nash sweepstakes since they acquired Nicklas Grossman and Pavel Kubina.


Also, as per Darren Dreger tweets, The New York Rangers are the front runners for Rick Nash.

There is a rumor that Ales Hemsky of the Edmonton Oilers could be dealt to the Nashville Predators for Ryan Ellis and a draft pick.

Breaking: Two Trades.

The Dallas Stars have traded D Nicklas Grossman to the Flyers for their 2012 2nd round pick , and a 2013 3rd round pick.
Grossman is a stay at home defender that the Flyers wanted very desperately. He will anchor the blue line and try to fill some of the void that Chris Pronger has left.

Winners:
Wexler: Flyers because they needed a defensive defenseman to fill the void from Pronger. The two picks wont do much because the flyers are a high ranked team looking to make it deep in the playoffs.
Kyle: Flyers needed a shutdown defender after Pronger was declared out for the season with post concussions syndrome. The picks won't get good unless the Flyers breakdown and fall out of playoff contention

The Anaheim Ducks trade D Bryan Rodney to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for C Ryan O'Marra.
Rodney is Defender that has played rather well for the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL, I expect him to only be called up when there is an injury. O'Marra is a good bottom six center, that can be physical but needs to get more of a scoring punch. He is a good gritty physical player though.

Winners:
Kyle: Edmonton, they need defencemen and I believe he should get called up soon. Anaheim already has gritty forwards like Perry and Parros so they basically gave up an NHL Defencemen for an AHL forward.
Wexler: I'm gonna say the Ducks because the addition of O'Marra is going to help during the offseason when the contracts of three veteran forwards expire (Sealane, Blake, Koivu)

Some quick news and trades.

The Anaheim Ducks trade Maxime Macenauer to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Riley Holzapfel.


Macenauer is a good center that always knows where to be when he wants to bank in a few goals. He will be a long term project, and after that I can't really be sure if he will be a good player. After a lot of reading and analysis I see him as a minor leaguer and nothing more.


Holzapfel is a lot like Macenauer ,but needs to beef up if he wants to make it to the bigs. He has some potential but I think his overall skill set is a bit better than Macenauer's.


To follow up on yesterday Sutton's deal is 1 year $1.5 Million. 


Decision on Tuomo Ruutu is expected later this week.

Lots of Rumors. Will be updated when news comes.

We don't want to bombard you with posts, so we're going to have one big posts of a bunch of rumors. It's pretty much a well known fact that the teams are going to be calling like crazy this weekend.

So let's start the fun!

1:06 Rumor - The Detroit Red Wings have spoken to the Buffalo Sabres about Paul Gaustad and/or Brad Boyes. The Red Wings are only willing to part with picks in return.

1:08 Rumor - The St. Louis Blues are having continually discussions with the Montreal Canadiens, names have included Gill, Kostitsyn. No word on what the St. Louis Blues are willing to give back in return. Habs GM Pierre Gauthier is waiting till the trade deadline until making any big moves.

1:08 Rumor/Confirmed (Hearing mixed things...) -  The San Jose Sharks, Vancouver Canucks, and Chicago Blackhawks have all either reconsidered or withdrawn offers for the Montreal Canadien's Travis Moen due to Moen's injury.

1:11 Confirmed - Andy Sutton has signed a one year contract extension with the Edmonton Oilers. Details to come. This could mean he is off the trade market or is a signal for a sign and trade with another team...

2:35 (sorry for the lack of posting. Just no rumors for me to write about...) Rumor - NYR are interested in Hal Gill as well.

Coaches are being targeted no?

The Buffalo Sabres' Lindy Ruff has had a bad day today. The Buffalo News' Adam Harrington describes it best...

Leopold was working in a 1-on-1 drill with Ville Leino and lost his balance, sliding to the ice and barreling into Ruff from behind. Ruff went airbone and landed hard on the ice, letting out a scream as his body crumpled that echoed through the empty arena.

After X-Rays, he has three broken ribs... He is still expected to be at practice tomorrow. What a trooper!

The Edmonton Oilers' Tom Renney had a bad day as well... He took a puck off the face today during practice. He will not be behind the bench tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Assistant Coach Ralph Kreueger will be behind the bench tonight. 

Wayne Gretzky's Record Broken!

The Edmonton Oilers' Sam Gagner set a franchise record for being part (actual goal, assisting) of 11 straight goals beating Wayne Gretzky's record of 10.

Sam Gagner's 8 Point Night

Last night Oiler's center Sam Gagner had a night he won't forget. He had 8 points, 4 goals and 4 assists. His 8 points in one game is tied with the Oiler's record of points in a game. He ties the great Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey.

Elliotte Friedman of CBC is reporting that the Edmonton Oilers are intrested in a defenseman. Like always with defenseman, the Toronto Maple Leafs' abundance of D-Man are mentioned. He also reports that don't be suprised Preds GM David Poile announces that Ryan Suter won't be traded.

Gilbert Brule To Phoenix

The Phoenix Coyotes have picked up C Gilbert Brule on Re-Entry Waivers from the Edmonton Oilers.

Analysis: He is a draft bust. Period. Taken 6th Overall, above the likes of Anze Kopitar (11th Overall), Jack Skille (7th Overall), and Devin Setoguchi (8th Overall). He's a third line player that can have rare flashes of brilliance that can make him a second liner at times. He's a lot like a Kyle Turris the fact that they are both draft busts and had such great potential. Comes at a lot cheaper price though.

Christmas Wishlist: Edmonton Oilers

Team Wishlist: Ryan Hugent-Hopkins (RHN) to win the Calder. This one is probably the easiest to do. RHN (we're calling him that. his full name is too much to write.) is still the team leader in points and he's only 18. He could have played for Canada at the World Juniors but it was kind of obvious that he won't be. He is the hands down favourite to win the Trophy this year. The team probably wishes right now is 2013. They have a nice young core of Hall, Eberle, and RHN. They don't really need to do much but let these players develop like how they should. The Oileres are doing well developing them, they always have, and I fully expect them to be a Stanley Cup contending team in just a few years. So I guess Santa can go easy on this one. He can borrow Paul Gaustad's right? You know children, sharing is caring!

Fan Wishlist: Develop Devan Dubnyk. He played well last year and this year lost the job to a hot goalie in Nikolai Khabibulin. He's doing well but he's gettin old. The Oilers are a hip, young team, but this old goalie is not letting the goalie of the future develop.