He's a great defenseman for us, but you guys are crazy if u think we shouldn't upgrade our d in the offseason! We need to make a huge push for suter or Shea, it just has to happen
Can you provide a post on here that says that we have no need to upgrade our defence this off season?
He's a great defenseman for us, but you guys are crazy if u think we shouldn't upgrade our d in the offseason! We need to make a huge push for suter or Shea, it just has to happen
I don't think anybody is saying that we don't need to upgrade on D.
Schultz has just been really solid recently and a nice surprise to quite a few fans.
Could be wrong, but I have yet to see a goal scored against while Schultz is on the ice. Incredibly steady. We haven't had this kind of low event type of defensive play in our own end since Chris Pronger was here. Nothing spectacular, just calmly make the right play and get the puck out.
Nice to see the initial frenzied whining posts gone when this trade originally happened.
Other than not being physical like Jason Smith. Schultz addition kind of reminds me of when we acquired Smith from the Leafs.
Schultz has been good, much as I thought he'd be. I just don't believe this team took much of a step forward by trading Gilbert. They needed a PMD, and they just traded one away. I would have been a lot happier if they had traded a forward to get Schultz.
Schultz has been good, much as I thought he'd be. I just don't believe this team took much of a step forward by trading Gilbert. They needed a PMD, and they just traded one away. I would have been a lot happier if they had traded a forward to get Schultz.
Well that clearly wasn't going to happen with Minnesota. Could you imagine their defense without Gilbert.
Gilbert was arguably the team's best defenseman this year when we traded him. There is very little to suggest that Schultz is our #1.
I'm not bashing Schultz, and I've suggested going after him for years. I just don't think trading Gilbert for him put us any farther ahead.
Argue all you want. Jeff Petry is the #1 Oilers defenceman and has been before Gilbert got traded. Gilbert had been playing 3rd pairing minutes. He had dropped to no better than #4 in the pecking order. Replaced on he PP unit by Petry. I'd have Petry, Smid and even Whitney out there before Gilbert. No one is saying Schultz is a #1 dman. But he is a steadying influence on our blue line that no one else provides, even steadier than Smid at this point. Unfortunately, there are too many other issues on this team to have his contribution really help us in the standings right now, but when things turn around, he will be a key piece, IMO.
Gilbert was arguably the team's best defenseman this year when we traded him. There is very little to suggest that Schultz is our #1.
I'm not bashing Schultz, and I've suggested going after him for years. I just don't think trading Gilbert for him put us any farther ahead.
Gilbert was a mess after he returned from injury. Other than this season pre-injury he has been a dog that we most likely would have had trouble giving away considering his cap hit.
umm that just doesnt cut it for me lol...I mean its okay, but its not as good as it should be!
I think he's saying that based on current contracts. Realistically that is what we might get due to the organization not willing to admit their errors for at least a year.
Tom Gilbert was a good defenseman. And that is probably what made him expendable. Everyone here is correct when they say our team needs a puck moving defenseman, the problem with Gibby is he was a very average point getter. Sure his two way play was impressive, but we need a Dman who can create a lot of offense from the back end. IMO this trade really makes sense if our GM has an eye on the off-season (trade or FA market.)
Gilbert was arguably the team's best defenseman this year when we traded him. There is very little to suggest that Schultz is our #1.
I'm not bashing Schultz, and I've suggested going after him for years. I just don't think trading Gilbert for him put us any farther ahead.
I've also argued Gilbert was our best defender last year. Certainly he was a valuable defencemen for us and at a position where we are sorely lacking. The view however on this board seems to be that Gilbert was the goat, responsible for us losing for years etc. As if mere association with the names of some of the longterm players means they are somehow junk.
I'll add to this as well is its odd how much conclusion is going on presently re: Schultz. Right now he's in the happy to be here honeymoon period. Unfortunately, as fans of this club, we know that this is a bad team to play for that is completely demoralizing for many players that do play here.
The gauge of Schultz of course being not how he's viewed presently but how he's performing say one year from now.
With that said I have to hand it to Gilbert for being the trooper that he is. I think he held himself to a higher level of accountability than say Horcoff.
Playing on the titanic year after year is hard on players. Lets see how Schultz does when that reality settles in.
Playing on the titanic year after year is hard on players. Lets see how Schultz does when that reality settles in.
I think he'll be fine because he's a professional hockey player whereas Tom Gilbert is a professional shoe shopper. Schultz was already on a crappy team. It's not like he was coming from the Penguins, Wings or Flyers or something.
I was so happy to get an actual NHLer back for Gilbert. I don't miss him at all.
He gave me a heartattack every time he was on the ice because you knew the brainfart that would directly result in a goal could happen at any moment. For a PMD he was awful at getting the puck out of our zone compared to the efficiency of Schultz. He gives me peace of mind.
I don't know why everyone's crying about Gilbert. We couldn't trade him and his crap contract for a 7th a year ago and now that he has a decent 12 months we were able to get an actual NHLer for him.
Gilbert wasn't the problem but it's not like he was a part of the solution either. He was only half decent when out there with Smid because he did the heavy lifting. He was a nightmare out there with Potter, his boyfriend Whitney or anyone else.
Last edited by plikestechno: 03-15-2012 at 05:15 PM.
Also it's interesting when people complain that we traded him while he was playing some of his best hockey. That is a lot better than trading him when he's playing poor hockey. The whole concept of buy low sell high may have been at work here. Let's not forget that he's 29 years old and getting paid around the same money as some other amazing defenseman. Comparing his contract value to many in the league will make this trade look better.
This may be a little off topic but I just have a feeling that Kevin Lowe will be our GM this summer. And similarly to 2006 we make a big move for a stud defenseman. I'm not sure how I would feel about Lowe being GM, but he may actually be a better GM than Tambellini (not saying much.)
Tom Gilbert was a good defenseman. And that is probably what made him expendable. Everyone here is correct when they say our team needs a puck moving defenseman, the problem with Gibby is he was a very average point getter. Sure his two way play was impressive, but we need a Dman who can create a lot of offense from the back end. IMO this trade really makes sense if our GM has an eye on the off-season (trade or FA market.)
Exactly. Do we need a PMD? Yes. Was Gilbert a PMD? No. Was he a stay at home defenseman? No. Did we need a solid stay at home defenseman? Yes. Is Schultz? Yes.
Exactly. Do we need a PMD? Yes. Was Gilbert a PMD? No. Was he a stay at home defenseman? No. Did we need a solid stay at home defenseman? Yes. Is Schultz? Yes.
We as fans should ask ourselves how much Gibby contributed to the power play? It's actually a little sad that Gibby couldn't even keep a spot on the first PP unit over Potter. Now imagine the power play with a real PP QB, he doesn't even have to be elite. The only real worry here is if management doesn't have the ability to bring in the right player in the off-season.
I've also argued Gilbert was our best defender last year. Certainly he was a valuable defencemen for us and at a position where we are sorely lacking. The view however on this board seems to be that Gilbert was the goat, responsible for us losing for years etc. As if mere association with the names of some of the longterm players means they are somehow junk.
I'll add to this as well is its odd how much conclusion is going on presently re: Schultz. Right now he's in the happy to be here honeymoon period. Unfortunately, as fans of this club, we know that this is a bad team to play for that is completely demoralizing for many players that do play here.
The gauge of Schultz of course being not how he's viewed presently but how he's performing say one year from now.
With that said I have to hand it to Gilbert for being the trooper that he is. I think he held himself to a higher level of accountability than say Horcoff.
Playing on the titanic year after year is hard on players. Lets see how Schultz does when that reality settles in.
Amazing how some people get so emotionally attached to a traded player they lose all sight of what that player was. Instantly, they view him as a former star on the team, and spew garbage that he can never be replaced. And then accuse others as blaming the player soley for all of the teams ills. Fact is, neither Gilbert or Schultz can fix what is wrong with this team by themselves. But moving one of them to get an improvement in a particular area is precisely what this team needs to have the balls to do, in order to go forward longterm. Sitting in muck and spinning your wheels hoping for the best is not what is required.
Schultz is playing exactly like he played all those years in Minnesota. Unfortunately for him, most of the good defensive talent was moved, so he had to deal with a very young core, and his plus/minus suffered. Here, there is some decent offensive upside to counter his solid play. Injuries aside, he is what he is, and there is no reason to think his play will deviate from what it is down the road. Neither flashy or robust.....just solid and dependable. Just what a young growing team needs.
So far, from what I have seen of Shultz, I like this deal. I don't miss the horrendous giveaways and poor defensive coverage of Gilbert. Schultz seems to have that part of the game down and, he plays tougher than Gilbert as well.
Huhh??? dont care what your smoking, i just wanna know where to get some!
He was very good for the first 30ish games, physical, smart, and making good decisions. After his injury he was as bad as he has ever been. Back to the soft play and turnovers.
Gilbert was arguably the team's best defenseman this year when we traded him. There is very little to suggest that Schultz is our #1.
I'm not bashing Schultz, and I've suggested going after him for years. I just don't think trading Gilbert for him put us any farther ahead.
Gilbert was our clear #3 when he was traded behind Smid and Petry. He wasn't the same after returning from injury and in fact, he and Whitney was likely our worst D pairing at that time.
