FanNation - The Republic of Sport

this team is stocked full of soft players, which is unlike the OIl. Horcoff might be the only guy on the squad worth his salt. The captain can't play more than 10 games in a row. Their big free agent signing from last year played what, 15 games this past season? And has serious issues with his wrist. Pitkanen is afraid to carry the puck because he might get hit. Torres and Stoll are great players for the 12 games in a row they can play before getting hurt, but 12 games doesn't cut it. Penner couldn't be softer if he was made of silk. Steve Staios is good for this team, it was smart not to dump him at the deadline. Its a team stocked with gritty players, for sure, but they all get hurt like THAT's their goal. They gotta do something this off-season or they are going to be in the same position next season. Oh, and for the record, I LIKE the Oilers, I am not a hater at all, just don't like where I see this team going right now

They will probably have a losing season...

Gee thanks Baun-ded! I hope you're wrong ......

Souray was definetly worth the money haha... the Penner deal will haunt them for a long time though. To piss off the entire league by stealing someone else's guy, just so you can overpay Penner?!?! I can't believe the Oilers have stuck with Kevin Lowe for this long.

Oilers> my comment was more directed at the guy with the long winded opening comment based on a reference he made on another thread this morning.
I like the Oilers...not much of a fan of Lowe though for some of the comment provided by ShoNuf guy above.

Thanks Baun-ded, you'll have to forgive me missing the other thread, I'm almost dead from fatigue today (2 hours sleep isn't really long enough).
Guess I'm going to stay off here though, because it's hard to refute many of the comments. See you elsewhere!

p.s. I know I shouldn't start this one up again, but it looks like MacT has an octopus flying towards him ....

Great coach, understocked and over achieving team. Love them. Maybe they'll get Laraque back. He didn't want to go anyway.

nah, it ain't an octopus coming at him, Oil, its another losing season

nah, it ain't an octopus coming at him, Oil, its another losing season

Man that's mean. But it's nice to see you in a good mood today :)

Yeah, Oilers, I kinda feel a bit bad about it, but this team REALLY needs to turn itself around fast. Horcoff is a gem to build around, with the way he plays both ends of the ice, but I fear this team's goal is just to make the playoffs, and to me, that's bulls**t. Why would you aim for 8th place, if you have an entire off-season to improve? The status quo should be unacceptable in Edmonton right now, especially with the new, deep-pocketed owner. They need to make a POSITIVE splash is the FA pool this July 1, not just pick up Powderpuff Penner (who could turn out to be awesome, if he could find some toughness in his game). Too bad, I really enjoy watching the Oilers winning, so I am hoping they can do something here. Can't be much worse than last year's injury woes, I guess, but like I say, settling for 8th place should not be acceptable at all - unless your team plays in toronto I guess...

i could have sworn they finished 9th in the west when they were projected to finish 13th in the west...no credit at all...

They did finish 9th, ahead of Vancouver.

But they got all those lame shootout wins.

And they have zero chance of landing any serious free agents in Deadmonton. Pronger crapped on them, Souray is an Alberta boy but is ALWAYS hurt and Penner was a desperation move to get something, anything.

But nobody wants to go to Deadmonton. I'm not saying I agree but that's the way it is.

GoCanada, I hear what you say, I really do. But on mature reflection and considering all the angles ...... I'm going with bgm on this occasion.

Seriously though, I don't know whether we'll make the playoffs next year, that's a long way off and for sure there's lots of work to be done. But they are a gritty, young team and I don't believe that they would happily "settle" for eighth place. Now if only we can have a season without so many injuries, it's been brutal the last two years. Let's hope they can surprise you.

Yeah, very true goCanada!, Pitkanen is soft and his work ethic sucks too. He's lazy and doesn't take direction to improve his game. The most effective punch Fedoruk ever threw was the one on Joni's chin during practice. He does have untapped potential but no one in the NHL will ever see it.

...........Congrats to your Wings goCanada!

aaahhh!, it's so nice to be on top of the mountain!

the red wings are stanley cup champions, pitkanen is invited to the parade!

"Nobody wants to go to Deadmonton" - Hank - when were you last in Edmonton? Have you ever been there? E-town has become a different place to what it was even when Pronger was here. The major difference with the team is that they are now owned by a deep pocketed, deal making entrepreneur. The young ones stepped up last year and showed they can play.
E-town itself has grown beyond recognition. Red Blings should enjoy their short time on top. Expect the Oil to take some games off them next year on their way to the playoffs. 2nd round next year, Hello Stanley after that.

Eagleseye

You aren't paying attention. First off I'm an Oilers fan.

I simply said that big name free agents don't weant to go there. It is not deemed big league as a city. Basically percieved as a hinterland. There is certainly not a long line up of players stating their desire to go there. And they have to way over spend to get marginal free agents to come, guys like Penner.

I also said I didn't necessarily agree.

And yes I have been there, twice.

And no way the current Oilers make a dent in the playoffs next year or the year after. The stars aligned the year they lost to Carolina and they had Pronger.