Beers and Jeers #49 (Mar 24/09 vs. Detroit Red Wings)

Hemsky's statement sure caused some feathers to be ruffled. I just can't find a reason to say anything at this moment. Nevermind saying that you are being used as a checker. You don't kill penalties. You barely come into the defensive zone, so who are you kidding? A checker? Really? That's the best you can come up with? If you want more ice time then be good. Every shift. Every time you step out on that ice, score. Make something happen and MacT would have you out there all game. Instead, I have seen you give up in the 1st 5 minutes of the game and not give a crap for the rest of it. This is simply fixed. Play good = play lots.

Roli will be playing his 29th straight game for the Oilers this year. The man never ceases to amaze me. He truly is awesome.

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GAME VIDEO HIGHLITES

GAME SUMMARY

GAME STATS

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Tonight's Starting Lines

O'Sullivan Horcoff Hemsky (Very good line. Lots of quality chances. But were on the ice for 2 goals against. Hemsky and O'Sullivan are ok together. Horcoff seems to be lost lately.)

Nilsson Gagner Kotalik (Had a good game. They were on the ice for a goal for and against. Nilsson didn't register a shot though. Gagner was sharp for most of the game and Kotalik scored a nice one.)

Pouliot Cogliano Pisani (Played pretty good. They didn't get worked over often. Pouliot was a non factor. Cogliano is starting to work well with Pisani. Pisani had 3 shots.)

Moreau Brodziak Penner (Another great game by this line. They are really gelling lately. Plus Penner has been good on the PP and Moreau is playing smart hockey. No penalties.)

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Souray Staios (Not the greatest night for this pair but not all that bad either. Staios was -3. While Souray took a ton of shots.)

Grebeshkov Gilbert (A pretty average game for this pairing. Gilbert had 4 blocked shots and Grebs had a goal and 3 shots. He did have 3 giveaways and that's not good.)

Strudwick Smid (They were good. Strudwick played somewhat smart hockey. Smid seemed to really play above average tonight.)

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Roloson (The MVP was stellar once again (except for a few seconds). The team would be a lot worse without Roli.)

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FINAL SCORE

Detroit Red Wings -3

Edmonton Oilers - 2

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BEERS

Dwayne Roloson - Roli was fantastic for 55 minutes. Then he had a strange goal beat him to tie the game. But regardless, Roli was good just like any other game in the last while. His lateral movement was working well. He was pelted with 44 shots and tried his ass off to win this game on his own. But the team came up short. So for another fine effort... Have a frosty Roli. Cheers!

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Ales Hemsky - After the statement I was expecting a standout game from Hemmer. He kind of delivered. He did manage one assist and had 2 shots. But he was also -2 at the end of the night. He did display some razzle dazzle that we have not seen in weeks, maybe months. He showed a confidence with the puck that we haven't seen in some time. He hustled, he didn't give up. He had a fairly strong game. That was Hemsky trying to be somebody. That wasn't MacT doing anything different. That was just Hemmer being good. Like I have said before, "Leadership is action... Not position" What we seen tonight was action. Not position. Heineken? Cheers!

Patrick O'Sullivan - I really liked his game today. He played like he is adjusting to this team and his teammates. I love how he shoots from all over the place. He had 2 shots tonight and they were from good area's to shoot from. It's just too bad that he ended up -2. I personally thought that he had a good game. Have a cold one with me Sully. Cheers!

Honorable Mention - Dustin Penner (The Fridge had a good game. He created that 1st goal by drawing two guys to him then he passed it off to Hemsky who passed to Grebs.), Ales Kotalik (Scored a nice goal to bring it back to 3-2.), Andrew Cogliano (He played solid. Bad on faceoffs but played solid.), Ladislav Smid (The Spaz had 4 blocked shots and 2 shots. His defensive game was good too.)

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JEERS

Denis Grebeshkov - I'm on the fence with him tonight. On one hand he scored the Oilers 1st goal. He played pretty good with an average of 1:01of ice time, but he ended up with 3 giveaways on the night. That's just too many for me to ignore. For that alone, here's a little one... Booo!

Steve Staios - Staios has good games and bad one's. Well he was not so good with a bad -3 rating. That just can't happen when you are on the #1 pairing. Maybe all the ice time is wearing him down? Maybe Smid should get a chance with Souray? So for the -3 tonight and a so so game... Booooooooo!

The Entire Team - For losing a game that was attainable... Boooooooooooooooo!

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Well that was the one that got away. We had it in our palms and poof! Gone in 60 seconds.

Next game is Thursday against the Coyotes. A must, must win. See you all then.

Beers and Jeers #46 (Mar 19/09 vs. Colorado Avalanche)

Well folks, I am very excited for this game. I am hoping for a 2 point night. Let's go Oilers!

As far as I have heard (lately) MacT is going with the same line's as last game. I really thought that Stortini would draw in for Reddox. It only makes sense. Right? Anyone? The Avs will play Laperriere so who do we have?

Why is it that MacT always rolls with the 4th line after an Oiler goal? The other team is pissed and want nothing more than to score on us and we send out the 4th line? Really? Oh well...

Let's Go Oilers!

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1st Period

The man that has been in my bad books scores the 1st goal of the game. Yeah! 1-0 Oilers. (Moreau from Brodziak and Penner at 4:02) Good start by Chopper. We needed that. But the Avs storm back and score one of their own against the Oilers 1st line. Damn! 1-1 Tie Game. Ryan Smyth takes a penalty and Horcoff pots one in the net. Yeah! 2-1 Oilers. (Horcoff from O'Sullivan and Gilbert at 9:38) Alright. A PP goal. I quite like that new 2nd PP unit of 10/19/12/21/77. Great period so far by the Oilers. The period ends with the Oilers out shooting the Avs 12-7. Yeah!!!

2nd Period

The 2nd started out looking good for the Oilers but they couldn't really muster much. Colorado was winning this period in the 1st half. But the Oilers started to maintain some momentum and started to really get going. All the lines look good tonight except for Strudwick/Smid. Struds may be tired. Maybe Peckham should have been given a chance. Out of nowhere Pisani pops one in the net. Yeah! 3-1 Oilers. (Pisani from Reddox and Gilbert at 14:35) Way to go boys. A minute later Gagner scores. YEAH!!! 4-1 Oilers. (Gagner from Nilsson and Kotalik at 15:39) *That was Ales Kotalik's 1st point as an Oiler* Holy crap. So this is what it feels like to be on the other side of the fence. Yeah! You can see the team relax after that goal. That period started out not looking good but ended up fantastic. 16-11 were the shots after the 2nd in favor of the Oilers.

3rd Period

All we have to do is hold them off and it's an easy 2 points. Well the Kotalik/Gagner show is in full swing in the 3rd as well. Kotalik scores. Yeah!!! 5-1 Oilers. (Kotalik from Gagner and Nilsson at 9:22) The flood gates are open now. With one of the Avs players in the box, the Oilers have another PP. Gagner scores now. Yeah!!! 6-1 Oilers. (Gagner from Kotalik and Souray at 12:31) This game is all Oilers now. I feel bad for the Avalanche fans because we have been there. Lots. With just under 5 minutes to go, Souray fires a bomb and scores. Yeah! 7-1 Oilers. (Souray from Staios and Penner at 16:43) He didn't even look like he was trying. But it went in anyways. Holy crap. Gagner scores a hat trick. Alright! Yeah! 8-1 Oilers. (Gagner from Nilsson and Kotalik at 17:20) Well that was fun to see all the goals. All the lines looked good. It was nice to be happy. :)

GAME SUMMARY

EVENT SUMMARY

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Tonight's Starting Lines

O'Sullivan Horcoff Hemsky (This wasn't the Oilers best line. It wasn't the worst either. O'Sullivan wasn't quite as sharp as last game but still looked good with Hemsky. Horcoff was ok. 3 shots and 2 giveaways. Shots good. Giveaways bad. Hemsky wasn't all that flashy either. But he needs to be the #1 guy.)

Nilsson Gagner Kotalik (This line was on fire. They were our #1 line tonight. Kotalik and Gagner have really seemed to hit it off. Nilsson was ok. He really didn't have many mistakes and played a simple game. It worked for him as he earned 3 assists. Gagner scores a hat trick and gets an assist. It really seems to me that he is going to take Horcoff's spot sooner than later as the #1 center. Kotalik had a goal and 3 assists. Nice way to get your 1st points as an Oiler. He seemed to match the style that Gagner plays. I hope it works out for the both of them.)

Reddox Cogliano Pisani (They played an ok game. It appeared to me that MacT was using them more as a 4th line rather than a 3rd line. Reddox was ok. He gets one assist and registers nothing on the stat sheet. Is that even possible after playing 13:18? Cogliano was ok. He did what he could with only playing 10:49. He seemed to be the MacT whipping boy tonight. Not sure it was deserved. Pisani scores and takes 2 shots. Glad to see him score.)

Moreau Brodziak Penner (I actually like this line. I wish it was the 3rd line. Penner played very good. He seemed like he wanted to do something out there. He showed some will out there. That was nice to see. Brodziak played another Brodz type game. He was good at what he does. Moreau has been in my bad books for a whle. But he played a real good game tonight. He scores a huge goal to start the game off. He plays a whole game without doing something dumb. He played like we all expect him to play every game. Good.)

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FINAL SCORE

Edmonton Oilers - 8

Colorado Avalanche -1

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BEERS

Sam Gagner - The little dude had a 4 point night. He played like a 1st line center. He played like he wants to be in the playoffs. In my books that is worth a beer. Enjoy a frosty Gags. Cheers!

Ales Kotalik - Tonight he played like he belonged here. He showed some oomph. His vision for Gags was sick. Cole who??? JK Great game tonight Kotalik. Enjoy your 1st OJ Beer. Cheers!

Robert Nilsson - He rode the train we call Gagner and was able to play smart hockey. His passing was on the money and his plays were good. A Bud for Bobby? Cheers!

Honorable Mention - Dustin Penner (I liked his game. He played like a big guy. What? He is?), Ethan Moreau (Chopper was able to play a smart game as well. He scores a huge goal in the 1st.), Sheldon Souray (Our un-officail captain was solid. A goal and an assist and 3 takeaways.) Denis Grebeshkov (The man was good again. 24:41 of ice time to lead the Oilers.)

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JEERS

There are none. We won 8-1.

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That was a fun game to watch. I was surprised to see an outcome like that. Like I said, it is nice to be on the other side of the fence. 8-1 Yeah!!!

See you all tomorow when the Oilers take on the Chicago Blackhawks on Oilers PPV.

Let's Go Oilers!

Beers and Jeers #45 (Mar 17/09 vs. St. Louis Blues)

Thanks to Telus, the internet in my area was down last night just as the game was starting. I know... another excuse. But seriously, the Telus internet is good but it keeps cutting out every once in awhile. It's driving me crazy.

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Hello folks. Happy St. Patricks Day!!! Before this game starts the Oilers are sitting in 9th. I'm sure it will change a bit tonight. Hope it's up for us.

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There has been some changes in the lines and we shall see if they pan out. Mr. Irish, Patrick O'Sullivan is now playing with Horcoff and Hemsky. I don't mind this at all. He is a shooter.

Kotalik will be with Gagner and Nilsson. I actually feel bad for Gagner. Nilsson has been not helping him at all all year. Can't imagine that Kotalik will help much either. So, why did we pick him up?

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Tonight's Starting Lines

O'Sullivan Horcoff Hemsky

Nilsson Gagner Kotalik

Reddox Cogliano Pisani

Moreau Brodziak Penner

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FINAL SCORE

St. Louis Blues - 1

Edmonton Oilers -2

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BEERS

Dwayne Roloson - Roli the goalie came through once again. He was almost caught a few times (like the play where he was at the top of the circle). But he did what he does best. He stopped pucks. The guy is unbelievable. Frosty beer Roli? Cheers!

Patrick O'Sullivan - Sully was great on that 1st line. He seems like a fit for Hemsky. Thank god. He had a few great chances and was creating his own. At times though, he and Hemsky looked out of sync. But I'm sure that after a few games they will be rollin'. Have a frosty green mug o' beer Sully. Cheers!

Denis Grebeshkov - This guy has really became a fantastic player. He has made a believer out of me. I really hope the Oilers can retain this guy in the off season. He is slowly becoming one of my faves. He picks up an assist on the PP goal in the 1st and he led the team in hits with 3. All in all he was superb. Have a beer on me Grebs. Cheers!

Honorable Mention Sam Gagner (The little dude was good today. He even had a good day on the faceoff dot. 71%) Sheldon Souray (He was playing with an edge and I liked it. He scores a huge goal and unloads lots of bombs.) Tom Gilbert (5 blocked shots. Nice.) Ales Hemsky (He played good and seemed interested in playing tonight. Hope to see more of that.)

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JEERS

Ethan Moreau - I have two reasons why he gets a boo. First, now that you wear a visor that is fairly large and covers a lot of your face. You either can't fight anymore or you have to show respect and take off the helmet. I thought that it was cool to stick up for Hemmer but puching a guy while your face is covered made me boo you right then and there. Second, the penalty in the 3rd. What the hell man? Again. *hands in the air like I just don't care* Need New Captain. (NNC) Boooooooo!

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Well folks, let's hope the next Beers and Jeers goes smooth so I'm not making any excuses about where it is. So please... no more hate mail. jk

Beers and Jeers #44 (Feb 14/09 vs. Colorado Avalanche)

Happy 43rd Birthday to my Sister Wendy!!!

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Congratulations to my two Cousins (Dan and Mike) and my Uncle who won the Coy Cup in BC with the Williams Lake Stampeders. They played great and deserved to win the Championship. Yay! Here is video link. CLICK HERE

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Well here we are in the middle of March and the Oilers are sitting in 7th. Still... edit @ 9:51 pm :Dallas wins in OT. Oilers are now in 8th. I hear that MacT is changing up the lines tonight. I wonder for how long?

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1st Period

Good pace to start the period off. The Oilers are flying early. The 2nd line has a good rush and with a little bit of luck they score. Yeah! 1-0 Oilers (Nilsson unassisted at 3:09) Shortly after the goal at 6:34, Peckham drops the gloves with Colorado's Stewart. Good tilt for both guys. A lot of good punches thrown. Hemsky has had a few good chances early in this game. He is really on the ball tonight. Gagner is also looking sharp. Pisani takes a penalty at 13:19 and Colorado scores on the PP at 15:02. Crap. 1-1 Tie Game. Come on Oilers. Pretty good period for the Oil. It could have been 3-1 Oilers. But it's not. We shall see what happens in the 2nd.

2nd Period

Well it's all Colorado in the 1st half of this period. The Oilers didn't carry any of the momentum that they had in the 1st. At 8:59, Pisani sits again for 2:00 minutes. Luckily enough the Avs don't score. The Oilers really need to get going here. Stastny takes a penalty at 14:47 and the Oilers have the chance that they were looking for. Good puck movement but no goals. At the end of the period the shots are 17-12 for the Avs. Let's go Oilers!!!

3rd Period

This is a period where I hope that the real Oilers show up. It seems as if MacT has switched things around. Here are the new lines (19 89 83, 27 10 34, 12 13 78, 18 51 21) I think?!? Let's see how this plays out. Well Souray takes a brutal penalty and wouldn't you know it. The Avs score on the PP. 2-1 Colorado. Damn! The Oilers are not making a lot of clean passes. It's going to bite them in the butt if they are not careful. At 11:02 the Avs take a penalty. The Oilers have 19 89 83 44 37 out. They do a real good job at moving the puck around but can not score. Damn guys. The crowd is starting to get impatient and frankly, so am I. The Oilers need more shots. Way more shots. 22 (Avs), 15 (Oil) is not good enough. **As of right now the Oilers have been bumped down to 9th in the standings.** The OILERS SCORE!!! Sheldon Souray. Yes! 2-2 Tie Game. (Souray from Brodziak and Staios at 14:40) Awwww... Penner high sticks a guy and sits for two at 14:50. But the Oilers kill it off and apply some pressure to the Avs. The crowd is chanting "Let's Go Oilers!". With a buck forty left, the Avs call a time out.

Overtime

Well he we go again. The Oilers playing in an overtime? No way! 10 and 34 start out for the Oilers. Out comes 83 and 19. And just like that. The Avs score and it's over. Good lord boys. *shakes head* It's always five hole on Roli. 3-2 Colorado. Final shots. 30-20 for the Avs.

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GAME SUMMARY

EVENT SUMMARY

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Tonight's Starting Lines

Kotalik Horcoff Hemsky

Nilsson Gagner Pouliot

O'Sullivan Cogliano Pisani

Moreau Brodziak Penner

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FINAL SCORE

Colorado Avalanche - 3

Edmonton Oilers - 2

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BEERS

Sam Gagner - Gags was playing bigger than he is tonight. Well sort of. He still gets knocked down but he was playing huge. His vision and awareness has been really sharp these last few games. It's just to bad Cole's not here to enjoy it. For a pretty good game tonight you deserve a frosty. Cheers!

Shawn Horcoff - Horc was pretty crafty tonight. He was hard working and creative but couldn't manage any points. But for him trying hard and not really looking bad, he can have a frosty mug o' beer. Cheers!

Sheldon Souray - Other than the untimely penalty in the 3rd he was great. He was blocking shots (5) and firing pucks (5) and scores the tying goal in the 3rd. He even showed his nasty side a few times. Good game tonight Shelly. Beer? Cheers!

Honorable Mention - Denis Grebeshkov (he blocked a few shots and played pretty good.), Dwayne Roloson (Roli faced a lot of shots again. He really is the MVP of this team. Maybe he should be the captain?), Patrick O'Sullivan (The speedy new guy was pretty good. I liked his game tonight)

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JEERS

The Entire Team - Just for losing another game. Boooooooo!

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Well that was an ok game. We did manage the overtime point, but it wasn't the 2 that was needed. After this game is over the Oilers are back up to 8th. Let's hope the Oilers can actually pull out a win next time. Maybe they should start a 2 points handshake or find a new song or something? Let's Go Oilers!!!

Beers and Jeers #42 (Mar 7/09 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs)

The Oilers are starting this game in 9th. Two points out of 8th. This is definitely a must win.

This is going to be the 21st straight game for Roli. A new Oiler record surpassing Fuhr. That sure is something.

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1st Period

Both teams start out the period playing pretty safe hockey. Not my kind of style but I guess it works. Smid takes a skate to the head and goes down. He ended up going back to the dressing room, my guess... for stitches? At 11:21 the 4th line comes out on full out mode. Reddox makes a nice play. Stortini throws a hit. Next thing you know Storts has dropped the gloves. Good tilt. Storts wins that one. The Leafs almost score but Cogs was there to save the day. Lucky for Roli because he thought that he made the save. And just as the period starts to wind down, Gilbert takes a Interference penalty. The period ends tied 0-0.

2nd Period

Smid has a concussion and will not return it is reported. That's too bad. Smid has been very good this year. Well the Leafs waste no time on the PP. The Leafs score at 1:08. Damn. 1-0 Leafs. But the Oilers also waste no time replying back. Hemsky goes in on a breakaway and scores. Yeah! 1-1 Tie Game. (Hemsky from Horcoff at 1:29) Now the pace just seemed to be turned up a bit. The MacBlender seems to be on slow mix. Gagner out with Kotalik now. It's tied MacT. Don't panic. But here comes the Oilers 4th line with that pressure and they score. Yeah!!!! 2-1 Oilers. (Brodziak unassisted at 8:34) He tips it by the defender and goes in on a mini breakaway. Scores 5 hole. This 4th line is really moving tonight. Now the 3rd line comes out and scores. Alright Boys!!! 3-1 Oilers. (Pisani from Grebeshkov and Cogliano at 10:45) The Leafs look screwed now. They are really trying to answer back. What a good period if your an Oiler fan. I hear a lot of them in the stands tonight. That's good to see. errr.. Hear. It was reported that Cogs has 50 people at this game. Including his Grandpa who has never seen him play in the NHL live. And Cogs already has an assist. Awesome.

3rd Period

The 3rd is in all out, don't lose the game mode. The Oilers are playing very safe hockey. And why not? We are up 3-1. The game progresses with a few penalties and no scoring chances. This has been a pretty solid period by the Oilers because there is 5:00 minutes left in the game and there is not much to report. At 16:50, Souray and Kubina get together and both take double minors. I love the way Souray gets mean. He's freaking scary. Well the Leafs have pulled their goalie and Brodziak hits the empty net. Scores! 4-1 Oilers. (Brodziak from Hemsky and Horcoff at 19:32) All of the sudden Strudwick is throwing those fast rabbit punches on Ben Ondrus. Ondrus probably didn't know that he punches like that or he wouldn't have fought him. Struds wins that fight. OILERS WIN!!! Yeah.

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Tonight's Starting Lines

Kotalik Horcoff Hemsky (This line still hasn't clicked. I don't care that they were getting points. That's great. They just don't look like a unit yet. Hemsky did look pretty good though. He was looking great, then something wouldn't go his way and he would look like he was pouting. Horcoff was average. Kotalik was still trying to fit in out there.)

O'Sullivan Gagner Pouliot (This isn't working either. O'Sullivan isn't clicking with Gagner. But you never know what an extra day of practice and getting to know you team mates might do to help. Gagner was looking good. But couldn't really finish anything. Pouliot was Pouliot.)

Penner Cogliano Pisani (This line was effective at times. They seem to be understanding each other. Not sure if that is bad news for Chopper? Doubt it. It's more like what do you do with Dustin "Donair" Penner? Penner was the whipping boy tonight. He played the least with 8:16 and only saw 5 on 5 time. Cogs was trying hard to impress his "fans in the stands". He played good. This was the best Pisani has been since returning. He scores the back breaker goal in the second.)

Reddox Brodziak Stortini (This 4th line seems to be the better line on a regular basis. Reddox was good. He didn't do much, but he also didn't cause anything either. Brodziak was quite good tonight. Him and Storts really have good chemistry. Storts was fighting, crashing the net and even played more than Penner did. Great line again.)

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FINAL SCORE

Edmonton Oilers - 4

Toronto Maple Leafs - 1

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BEERS

Steve Staios - He played a smart game and blocked 5 shots. He took no stupid penalties. He played tough yet was restrained. Staios plays games like these every once in a while. Tonight was one of those nights. Good game Steve. Have a frosty. Cheers!

Dwayne Roloson - Solid again. Roli made 39 saves to keep the Leafs down to one goal. He has been great for a while now. Thank god we didn't trade him for a bag of pucks like everyone wanted to eh? Roli! Roli! Roli! Have a nice cold one Roli. Cheers!

Kyle Brodziak - He played a nice safe game. His line was on fire and it had a lot to do with #51. He scored a nice on in the 2nd and later scores on the empty net. Good job Kyle. Have a Pilsner. Cheers!

Honorable Mention - Denis Grebeshkov (He was +4 at the end of the night and also had an assist. Solid game.), Tom Gilbert (He also redeemed himself tonight with a +3 and an assist.), Ales Hemsky (Had flashes of his old self. He managed a break away goal and an assist.), Shawn Horcoff (also had a good point night with 2 assists.)

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JEERS

Not much really to boo tonight. They played a good game and they won. What more can we ask for? The Oilers really just need the new guys to start meshing/producing as soon as possible.

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The next game is Tuesday against the Habs. We need the 2 points and that is going to be a tough game. Hope the good Oilers show up. See you all next time.

Beers and Jeers #39 (Feb 28/09 vs. Minnesota Wild)

Well it looks like Bobby Nilsson is going to sit out this game and Pouliot is getting the nod. Is this really the best plan? Pouliot? on the 2nd line? Really? I wonder what Towel Boy has to say about that?

I hope the crowd can get into this one. They really need to get chanting. Come on folks. The team needs the help.

No Bogeyman... no Big Mac. Too bad. I wanted to see a gooder tonight. Maybe next time. I guess we can always count on Gagner to fight someone.

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1st Period

To start the game the Oilers had a contest (not tonight) and the winner was given a chance to sing the anthem before the game starts. The kid (Justin Wack) came out and did a heck of a job. He seemed pretty thrilled by the experience. Good flow in the game until Pisani takes a tripping penalty at 5:19. As the Oilers are killing the penalty off, Mark and Marc (M&M) start talking about how great the Oilers have been lately on the PK. Why talk about it guys? Seconds later the Wild score at 6:14. Thanks M&M. 1-0 Wild. Let's go Oilers! At the 10:00 minute mark this game is way better than the last one by a long shot. A little while later, Grebeshkov nails Brunette and he gets hurt. The whistle should have been blown but it wasn't. Gilbert takes it and passes to Horcoff who finds Hemsky. Scoooorrreeeessss! 1-1 Tie Game. (Hemsky from Horcoff from Gilbert at 12:47) That was a lucky break for the Oilers. Finally at the 14:00 minute mark the crowd starts to chant. Bout time folks. At 15:42 Smid hits the puck into the netting and sits for 2:00 for delay of game. A short while later at 17:46, Staios takes a penalty and the Wild score on the man advantage at 19:25. 2-1 Wild. Crap. Not the best way to end a period. But it isn't like last game. We actually look good tonight.

2nd Period

The period starts off once again with good flow. But the Wild get careless and take a penalty. Good time for the Oil to score a PP goal. But... they don't. Good passing but they can't capitalize. But the 4th line comes out and puts on some great pressure. Stortini scores!!! 2-2 Tie Game. (Stortini from Reddox at 5:03) Yeah!!! The 4th line does it again. And that's #5 for Storts. **knock, knock. Hello? Storts is catching Gagner** This game really is not bad considering we are playing the Wild (a trap team). With 6:00 minutes left, MacT is rolling a Hemsky/Horcoff/Reddox line. It's tied MacT. No need to panic yet. So with the Oilers buzzing, the Oilers have some slick passing going on. Gilbert scores! Yeah! 3-2 Oilers. (Gilbert from Reddox and Grebeshkov at 15:22) Now we are looking like we want to see some ice in the spring. With Reddox on the 1st line now, Penner is rolling with Brodziak and Stortini on the 4th. As the period winds down, it's great to see some real life in this Oilers squad. The Wild take a penalty with only 32 seconds left and that will give even more life to the Oilers when they start the 3rd with a PP. The shots are tied at the end of two periods with 27 each.

3rd Period

The 3rd sure started with some jump. Minny had some chances. Oilers had some chances. Roli has had to be sharp tonight. Twice in the first 7:00 minutes, Roli has had to make some HUGE saves. The crowd gets fired up and the Roli, Roli, Roli chants break out. Roli really has been the MVP of this team this year. Hemmer is close... but Roli is king. Wow the action is all out now. It seems weird that the Wild are playing this way, but they are. Real back and forth action. The crowd is really into this one now. Chants keep popping up. Horcoff has a real bad stinker of a giveaway and the Wild ring it of the post. Your lucky Horcoff. Lucky. The play continues to be fast paced and exciting. Hemsky takes a tripping penalty and Zidlicky goes for diving. 4 on 4 for two minutes. With 20 seconds left, Miettinen sticks Moreau in the eye *ouch!* and takes a double minor. (That didn't look good for Chopper) So much for the Wild comeback. That's the game folks. Oilers win!!!

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Tonight's Starting Lines

Penner Horcoff Hemsky (The 1st line was average in the first half. Reddox replaced Penner and they seemed to play a little better. Did you really need to eat that extra chicken breast at lunch Penner?)

Pouliot Gagner Cole (The 2nd line was a real solid unit tonight. Lots of grade A chances. They seemed like they were trying hard, but faded near the end of the 3rd.)

Moreau Cogliano Pisani (Moreau and Pisani played well. Cogliano just wasn't quite the same as he has been playing as of late. This line needs all three to be rolling or it just isn't going to be a shutdown type line. But still, all in all they were good.)

Reddox Brodziak Stortini (This line was smokin' when it was still this line before Penner was switched. Stortini seems to be on a streak lately. Good for him.)

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FINAL SCORE

Minnesota Wild - 2

Edmonton Oilers - 3

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BEERS

Dwayne Roloson - Gramps was stellar once again. The Oilers MVP was doing it all tonight. (other than score) He was making those acrobat style saves all while being that silent leader for the team. Again. You deserve a nice cold one Roli. Cheers!

Tom Gilbert - The guy that has been making mistakes the last few games, was really good tonight. He seemed to do a lot while looking like he wasn't. He had 1 goal and 1 assist with a +2 rating. A pretty solid night for Gibby. Have a beer? Cheers!

Denis Grebeshkov - For not playing in a while he sure was good. He had a huge hit, an assist and was +2. His only real knock was his giveaway's. But his effort was good enough to deserve a beer. Frosty beer? Cheers!

Honorable Mention - Liam Reddox (He played a good game tonight. He even managed to sneak back up to the 1st line. A 2 assist night for Liam.), Ales Hemsky (He scored and was ok. Still not back to normal), Zack Stortini (His momentum changing goal was huge for the team to get going. He's been very good for the past few weeks.)

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JEERS

A win is a win and I don't have much of a reason to jeer tonight. Penner was questionable but I still think that MacT just needed to bench someone. The Hamburglar was the one today.

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Well that was a good action packed game. Not like the boring crap of a game we had to watch last game. The Oilers pick up the almighty 2 points and move up to seventh tied with the Ducks. Who's next? The Predators of Nashville. We need two wins on this 4 game roadie. If we can come home with 4 points the team will still be in it. If we don't than it's only going to get harder from here on out.

See you all next time... Until then. GO OILERS!!!

Beers and Jeers #28 (Feb 5/09 vs. St. Louis Blues)

Before the game starts I hear Penner is back on the 1st line. My 1st thought, "Why?". He was brilliantly average last game. He drives MacT/fans crazy yet when ever MacT panics he reverts to the 27/10/83 line. But whatever makes MacT happy I guess. I don't get to choose.

I was hoping that the game was going to be a gooder. I think that the fans really need a pick me up. We need something. Anything.

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1st Period

The game started with a good pace. St. Louis looked ready to play tonight. This looks like it going to be a tough/skating type of a game. The first 10:00 minutes of play were solid back and forth chances. With St. Louis gaining the edge. We killed a penalty, they killed a penalty. Then at the 13:00 minute mark Cam Janssen and Zack Stortini decided to drop the gloves. This was actually a really good fight. Storts was giving Janssen some nice rights. And some really nice jersey hold chin rabbit type of punches. No hugging. After the bombardment of shots the fighters went of to the box. Their knuckles looked broken, beat and scarred. (yeah... Metallica reference) A little while later St. Louis started crashing into Roli. By the 4th time that was it. Everyone snapped. Including Roli. Thank you St. Louis. You made him mad. We win. Haha. The period finished up and for the first time in a long time, I felt good about the period that this team just played. A full 20 minutes. End of 1st period: 0-0 tie.

2nd Period

The first 10 minutes in the 2nd were exciting back and forth hockey much like the 1st. Then at the around the 1/2 way mark, Nilsson gives it away and luckily enough the Blues don't score. Scary moment. But Roli is playing solid in the 2nd as well. He really is surprising me on how awesome he can be. Where was this last year? Not really sure why MacT decided to put Nilsson back on the 2nd line. I really thought that he was staying on the 1st line. Maybe Horcoff is the stinky one on this line? :) So with 3 minutes to go, Souray takes a nice drop pass from Nilsson and snaps it in the net. Oilers lead 1-0. Sweet. I always like to be the team that scores 1st. Always. Great period by the Oilers. Nothing like going to the 3rd with a lead. End of 2nd period: 1-0 Oilers

3rd Period

Ok, so the 3rd is getting under way and they announce that Horcoff and Gilbert are injured and will not return. (Shades of 2 years yonder...) Oh boy. Prepare for a rough 20 minutes. MacT moves Brodziak up to take Horcoffs place. The saddest part is... He looked no different than Horcoff. They play very similar and yet he's cheaper. It was weird watching him there. Although in a strange way, Penner looked more comfortable with 51, rather than 10. The MacBlender did come out a little. More out of nessesity than anything. The Oilers seem to really band together and finish the "job" as a team. Then the Blues score to make it interesting. It was 5:29 and they made it a 1-1 game. Damn! Gut check time. The tempo seemed to pick up a little after that goal. (BTW, it was a nice goal by McClemment) But both goalies continued their hotness all through the game, right up to the end of the period. The 3rd period ends in a tie. 1-1

Overtime

Overtime was also exciting. Lots of action but no real good shots by the Oilers. Well one. Souray nails the post with a hard shot. But that's it. I had that feeling that it was a shoot out night.

Shoot Out

Nilsson - Goes wide to the right and cuts in front and shoots it top left corner. Nice shot.

Gagner - Comes in fast and starts his magic hands. I think Mason thought he was going to do his full move but he didn't. He stopped at the second juke and finished with the backhand deke. Scores. Oilers win an over time shootout. Yeah!

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Tonight's Starting Lines

Penner Horcoff Hemsky - I thought that this line was going to do better than it did. Hemsky wasn't that great tonight. (I believe in Karma and superstitions and all that jazz, and I believe that MacT shouldn't make claims that are a little wacky. It may haunt a person. I mean look at him since this was printed. Hemsky hasn't been very good.) All in all, this wasn't the best line nor the worst.

Nilsson Gagner Cole - I thought this line was good at points and below average at points. Mostly good though. This was the line that really didn't change much. Gagner was playing better this game. Cole was a shooting and a hitting machine tonight. He played well.

Moreau Cogliano Reddox - A strange line choice. I may have put Penner here instead of Reddox. This was a not bad line, but not real great either. No real mistakes for these guys.

Potulny Brodziak Stortini - Hard to grade a line that isn't really a line. Storts did his job. Brodziak was moved around elsewhere. Potulny was sat for some reason? (Reddox probably scraped MacT's driveway before the trip. He now gets his reward. Ice time.) **probably not true. But you never know? Right?**

All the lines pulled their weight tonight. We pulled out an old fashioned team win. No hero's. Just some hard work and a little effort.

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BEERS

Dwayne Roloson

- This man is turning into one of my favorite drinking partners. He played a solid game. Made big saves when needed. Got physical when needed. Became a game breaker when needed. Let's drink a Molson Canadian Roli. Cheers!

Sheldon Souray

- When Visnovsky went down we as fans thought oh crap. But lucky for the Oilers we still have the other "big" guy. Mr. Boom. He scored a real nice one tonight. He played hardcore all over the ice. He was a leader for the team. He can have a big beer. Cheers!

Denis Grebeshkov

- I think that this maybe a first for Grebs. Finally on the beer list. Well I thought that he was really good. He looked really comfortable out there with Souray on the PP. He was a good defenseman, for the entire game. Amazing. So have a beer on me. Cheers!

Honorable Mention

Ladislav Smid (he played really good too. He didn't make to many mistakes.), Robert Nilsson (I thought that he was good except for that brutal giveaway. Scores the winning shoot out goal), Erik Cole (he may not get ponts but he shoots a lot and he hits a lot. I really hope he resigns with the Oilers before the trade deadline)

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JEERS

Ales Hemsky

- My wife wants me to boo you. It's hard to disagree. He hasn't been the same since MacT compared him to #99. Well horcoff has been a stink pot for awhile so it's hard to blame just Hemmer. But you know you are not really the "man" in a game when MacT chooses Reddox over Hemsky in a shoot out. Sorry dude. From the Burnt household. Booooooo!

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Not much else to say here. Good game by the Oilers. We were due. Next up... Detroit Red Wings, Saturday @ 1:00 in the afternoon. See ya then.

Beers and Jeers #2 (Dec 3/08 vs. Dallas)

BEERS

Dustin Penner

- The big man played a great game tonight. He was actually skating hard, laying the body and making some sweet passes. He made that 1st line look good. Good on ya for keeping this up since the MacT lashing. Here's a big frosty mug of ice cold beer. Cheers!

Robbie Schremp

- What can I say about the guy. He was way better than I think anyone could have expected. He was hitting guys. Took a few shots. Made some really nice plays. If he keeps this up he may just stick with the big club. Right on Rob. Beer? Cheers!

The Entire Team

- Wow. They played a whole 60 minutes. See what happens? You win. We need more of that. Here... split a keg. Cheers!

JEERS

Not to much to complain about here. But...

Denis Grebeshkov

- Way to many giveaways dude. Sorry man but, Boooooooo!

That's it folks. Great game by the Oilers. We will see you next time. WoooOOooOoo!!!!!

SRB