Yeah, Horq said that. In theory, having interchangable parts is an excellent idea, especially with such a young team. Remember Sather did it a lot. Everyone got their shifts with Gretz. It can be quite frustrating for us fans tho.
Things don't gel when you keep stirring them. This team doesn't have the luxury of skill that Sathers teams did.
With a team like this I feel it causes confusion. With low skill I feel you need familiarity and team work every night.
I'm not saying don't make changes. Just think longer before making them and perhaps give them more of a chance. With exception of York on the PP point.....I feel he gave that enough of a chance. Although at one point I felt York would have to break BOTH wrists for MacT to change his mind.
My prediction: Oilers are gonna win all there home games this year, be shutout in half there road games, and tie or OTL the rest. You heard it here first.
Things don't gel when you keep stirring them. This team doesn't have the luxury of skill that Sathers teams did.
With a team like this I feel it causes confusion. With low skill I feel you need familiarity and team work every night.
I'm not saying don't make changes. Just think longer before making them and perhaps give them more of a chance. With exception of York on the PP point.....I feel he gave that enough of a chance. Although at one point I felt York would have to break BOTH wrists for MacT to change his mind.
I hear ya, and have gone "wtf" many times when the MacT blender started churning. However, I think we have higher overall skill than we've had in many, many years. These boys don't seem to be as confused as in past years when MacT seemed to 'roll the dice to decide the lines'.
I'm more willing to take a 'wait and see' approach this year. If practical application can prove the theory, our team will be stronger. The 'blender' can then become a tool that is only pulled out when it's needed. (margaritas anyone?)
I only caught the last half of the second and all of the third, but I saw some good things tonight:
1. I like the new lines. Torres on the 1st line? I wouldn't have thought of that.
2. Smyth played his best game of the season so far
3. Dvorak played his best game of the season so far
4. MAB was a little psycho hobbit out there. He really gives 'er out there, there's no doubt about that. Once he learns a little more about the NHL game, I could see him as a quality #4 PP specialist. Notice how he was out in the last minute of the game? Yeah, we were up 4-1, but still...
5. Conks. Wow. He's better than Salo at finding the puck amidst a bunch of legs when it's lying on the ice. Solid puckhandling skills as well.
I like his gamesmanship...he seems to be focused, intense, and has some desire. Good find for the Oil...he has potential, even though he's a really late bloomer.
Also:
Ray Ferraro was simply excellent tonight. He even sounds a little like Simmer. Great comments, very astute. He has a really good "color voice", and I think he is a fantastic addition to Sportsnet.
I caught about one-half of tonight's game. Ethan Moreau was a standout in all facets of the game. Great forechecking (along with Reasoner), strong anticipation on the defensive side, and very good positioning. And a nifty move at the Sabres blueline to create a scoring opportunity. Great game from a valuable role player.
Dvorak looks on the verge of breaking out. Strong skating and forechecking. I think he is still shaking off the rust but looks like close to finding his game and scoring touch. Torres and Laraque continue to impress me. Finally, Conklin stepped up and won a big game in his debut. Solid play throughout the game and should build confidence from this outing. Will also give a shout out to the Oiler defense. Staos was solid and will also set myself up with praise for Cross who played a good game.
On the minus, I'm still waiting for Mike York to show up. And the defense must hit the net with their shot. Far too often, the point shot either doesn't get through or is blasted wide of the net. Gotta hit the net to score.
Overall, this is a great confidence builder for this struggling team. Big test comes on Saturday night.
2. How long before we call it the Raffi Torres trade instead of the Janne Niinimaa trade?
I have watched every game so far this year and i really like Raffi. He is mean and talented. The niinimma deal is still up in the air, but if he keeps even playing like this every second game it is going to be a great deal for the oil.
Wow. He's better than Salo at finding the puck amidst a bunch of legs when it's lying on the ice. Solid puckhandling skills as well.
