Showing posts with label Erik Cole. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Erik Cole. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Hold the Press!!! **BREAKING NEWS** Cole traded


The Edmonton Oilers have dealt Erik Cole to the Carolina Hurricanes for (F) Patrick O'Sullivan (originally from the LA Kings) *Justin Williams was traded to LA Kings for O'Sullivan*
So Williams for O'Sullivan. Then O'Sullivan for Cole. Make sense?
More on the details later.

Good luck Erik. We will miss you here in Oil Country.
EDIT: I was late getting home to make the changes but here they go. The Oilers also was given a 2nd round pick from Carolina. The Oilers traded that to Buffalo for Ales Kotalik. Good deals today for the Oilers. I am however, still a little pissed that the Oilers trade another guy away that actually wants to be here. Go Figure?

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Beers and Jeers #40 (Mar 3/09 vs. Nashville Predators)


The day before the big day and not much is going on. Miroslav Satan, Brendan Morrison and Gary Roberts are on the waiver wire at the moment. Pretty big names, but I can't see the Oilers taking one of those guys. Is there not a way to claim them as insurance and then try to land a bigger name tomorrow? If you do land the bigger name then can you not the put that person back on waivers and it's no big deal?


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No Nilsson tonight? Why? Is his last game as an Oiler played already? Over Jacques? Over Pouliot? Strange...


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1st Period


Good early start by Oilers but Nashville scores at 6:22. 1-0 Nashville. Still good flow. The 4th line and the 2nd line are sure looking good tonight. Good pressure by the Oilers. Gagner scores! Yeah! 1-1 Tie Game. (Gagner from Smid at 9:55) "See ya Storts", says Gagner. With 7:30 left, Stortini has a great chance as Pekka Rinne sprawls out and loses his blocker. And the play continues. I have never seen that before. I just figured that the whistle would blow. Oilers score out of nowhere. Yeah! 2-1 Oilers. (Pouliot from Gagner and Cole at 14:25) The 2nd line is really buzzing now. Chances all over the place. Just when the game is looking more Oiler than Predator, the Preds score. 2-2 Tie Game. Grebeshkov didn't take the right guy and they scored. The 1st line sure isn't really doing anything. Maybe the change wasn't the right change?


2nd Period


Well it didn't take long for the first penalty of the game. At 3:58, Souray takes a hooking penalty and Nashville scores on the PP at 4:13. 3-2 Nashville. Right after the goal, the Preds take a penalty and now it's the Oilers turn at the PP. But the Preds actually kill theirs off. So much for a momentum change. Oh. It gets worse. Penner takes a penalty at 8:24. Then Staios takes a holding call at 13:22. Oilers kill off both and look rather crappy so far this period. Strudwick and Weber drop the gloves at 18:16 and have a pretty good tilt. With Nashville on the PK, the Oilers have some good pressure. Ler's hope the 3rd is better for the Oilers.


3rd Period


The Oilers start quick with a goal by Cogliano. Yeah! 3-3 Tie Game. (Cogliano from Pisani at 1:43) Now the Oilers have the momentum. As the 4th line comes out and causes some more havoc. Oilers score again. Yeah! 4-3 Oilers. (Jacques from Smid and Stortini at 5:15) That was JF Jacques 1st ever point and goal. He was robbed of an assist a couple of games ago, but he has that elusive point now. Good for him. The Preds have this back and forth passing play that they have been doing all night. It finally worked as they put one past Roli at 7:56. Very nice passing. 4-4 Tie Game. Now the game is in full out mode. Damn! Nashville scores again. 5-4 Nashville. But soon after it's PP time for the Oilers. But they can't really convert. Too bad. They needed a boost. Erik Cole scores! Yeah! 5-5 Tie Game. (Cole from Gagner from Strudwick at 13:52) What an exciting game.


Overtime


The Preds have the most pressure in the overtime period. Strudwick takes a high stick penalty at 1:25 and Nashville scores on the PP. Boooooo! Right before the Preds score, Roli takes a puck in the shoulder/collarbone area and gets hurt. But the play went on and the Preds score at 2:31. Game over. 6-5 Nashville. Crap...


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Tonights Starting Lines


Reddox Horcoff Hemsky (I didn't even know that this line played tonight. They were absolutely invisible. Horcoff played 20:13 and finished -1. Hemsky was not playing well either. He had 2 giveaways and no shots. Reddox was not noticed much. He played 10:36 and really did nothing)


Pouliot Gagner Cole (A real solid line tonight. They had some defensive miscues and some bad giveaways but were all out on the offensive side. Gagner was fantastic today. Well except he was terrible on the faceoffs. (0%) Not good man. Cole looked like he belonged here as an Edmonton Oiler. It makes you wonder if this is it? I hope not. Pouliot did a great job at fitting in with Gags and Cole. He managed a goal playing with them and was good on the draw at 57% *Team High* when he had to.)


Penner Cogliano Pisani (They played well together. Penner was caught a few times being a little slow but managed 4 shots *Team High*. Cogliano was good all around, he had 3 shots and 1 goal. Pisani seemed to be getting back into form with an assist and 3 shots.)


Jacques Brodziak Stortini (This line was a good consistant line tonight. They gave Nashville all kinds of trouble. Jacques scores his first NHL goal. Brodziak played well even though he ended -1. Stortini was also good as he picks up an assist and had 2 shots and 3 hits*Team High*.)


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FINAL SCORE


Edmonton Oilers - 5

Nashville Predators - 6


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BEERS


Sam Gagner - The little dude had one of his best games of the season. He seemed really focused and had a knack for finding the guys around him. He had 2 assists and 1 goal. It sure was fun to watch. I wonder who is going to be with him on Thursday after the deadline? For a great effort, enjoy a nice ice cold beer Gags. Cheers!


Ladislav Smid - People just don't give Smid enough credit for being such a hard working, do anything kind of guy. He has been asked to step up and in my opinion he has done that. Tonight he picked up 2 assists and was +3*Team High* I think that the Spaz deserves a frosty. He did good. Cheers!


Erik Cole - Well if this was his last game as an Oiler than he ended on a high note. He had a goal and an assist with a +2. He sure does play well with Gagner. If only he was here for 3 more years. Gagner would love to play with him for the beginning of his young career. So maybe for the last time... Have a beer with us Erik. Thanks. Cheers! *tear*


Honorable Mention - Zack Stortini (Storts was powerful tonight. He played a real hard nosed game and managed to cause a lot of room on the ice for Jacques and Brodziak), JF Jacques (He scores his first goal. Ever. Yay!) Dwayne Roloson (He really desrves a beer tonight. He was awesome. But he did look tired. And he was hurt in the last few seconds. Good effort Roli.)


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JEERS


Ales Hemsky - What the hell man? Where have you gone? Is it the concusion reapearing becuase you were great when you came back? I miss the old Ales Hemsky. But he proved my point tonight that he is only a wingman, not a team carrier. I hope he gets some help. But for tonight. Boooooooooooo!


Shawn Horcoff - Man o' man. What to do with this guy? He gets the minutes like no other. He gets the praise from the coach that no one else gets. (other than Hemmer) Yet he seems to depend on Hemmer and Hemmer does the same to him. But it's not working anymore. Shawn needs to go to a place and find his inner hard checking, ass kicking Shawn Horcoff that he used to be. And do it soon because if we want to make the playoffs, we need a #1 line. And right now we don't have that. Boooooooooo!


The Entire Team - Take a lesson from the Preds tonight. Steve Sullivan had 2 goals. He also took 6 shots. David Legwand had 2 goals. But he took a whopping 8 shots. Every player on the Preds that scored had at least 3 shots. Tom Drake (coached me in Rossland) said to us one year, "If you don't shoot, you won't score. Shoot from anywhere and anytime. Always take the shot." Cogliano, Cole, Pisani and Penner were the only Oilers with 3 or more shots. Goals win games. Boooooooooo!


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Well that was a very up and down game. I was happy. Then mad. Then happy again. But I ended up mad. At least it was entertaining. But as the roadie continues, the Oilers need more than one point a game.


Everyone knows that tomorow is the big trade day. I'm sure there will be lots of news on OilersNation. That's where I will be. See you all Thursday. We are going to visit the Ottawa Senators. Maybe a new look Oilers team? Maybe not. I'm guessing not.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Beers and Jeers #37 (Feb 24/09 vs. Tampa Bay Lightning)


To begin, I predicted on OilersNation a 5-3 win. I usually don't like to say anything out load, but I'm changing it up a bit. Why not. What's it going to hurt?


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1st Period

Why is it that the crap teams come to E town and teach the Oilers a lesson on how to win games? I sure hope that that isn't the case tonight. *fingers crossed* So the game starts off in the favor of the Oilers. Erik Cole blasts down the right side and beats his man and scores his 15th of the year. Yay! 1-0 Oilers. (Cole unassisted at 2:20). Pretty much right after the ensuing faceoff, Big Mac and Koci drop the gloves. It was a pretty darn good fight. I would have to give the decision to Big Mac even though Koci fell on him at the end. At 5:40, Strudwick fires a knuckle puck and scores. Yeah! 2-0 Oilers. (Strudwick from Gagner) Unbelievable! This sure isn't how I pictured this game. The game then continues at a good pace. The Oilers clearly are the better team this period. It's kind of refreshing. TB takes a penalty at 13:09, and the Oilers fail to score. The PP did look a little better, so that's a good thing. The crowd seems to be unusually quiet tonight. Not sure why? The Oilers are winning 2-0. TB takes another penalty just as the period is about to expire. The Oilers will have 1:45 of PP time to start the 2nd. Hopefully another goal? As the period ends I can't help but think that the TB team has a fantastic 1st line. Beyond that they look like a beer league team. Wow! And the Oiler fans think we have it bad...


2nd Period

The Oilers don't score on the PP but they continue to play good. I hope our 1st line can get it going. We need them to be going every game. Scratch that. We need at least 2 lines going every game. If we want to be taken seriously that is. So the Oilers can't cash in on the PP and Nilsson takes a goalie interference penalty on the other end of the ice at 1:49. Wouldn't you know it. Tampa Bay scores. Boooooooo! 2-1 Oilers. Well that brings the Lightning back into the game. At 3:25, Gary Roberts takes a goalie interference penalty. Oilers can go up by two if they can score here. No dice. But Souray lets off quite a few bombs. Some hit the net. Some don't. Either way, if I am Dustin Penner, I probably stained myself a few times. Seriously... how scary must that be? During a face off, Gagner high sticks a TB player and then sits for two. Luckily for Gags, the Oil kill it off. Ok guys. Momentum time. But Steven Stamkos gets a breakaway and scores at 12:23. Booooooooo! 2-2 Tie Game. Glove High on Roli. Does everyone in the league know that it's five hole or glove high on Roli? However the Oilers storm back. Souray blasts another shot at the goal and this time it goes in. Yay! 3-2 Oilers. (Souray from Cogliano at 13:15) Right on. Back in the lead. Staios nails Recchi and makes the Lightning want to fight. No real takers but Souray let's all those female dogs know who the alpha dog is in this house. Make sense? Haha. A short while later Roli makes a huge save. Roli! Roli! Roli! Still 3-2 for the Oil. Just as the period is about to end, Cogliano busts in to the TB zone and gets hauled down. PP once again for the Oilers. But the period runs out.


3rd Period

Well they start out on the PP and the lightning kill it off. But at 2:20, Cogliano has the puck find his stick in the crease and pops in an easy one. Gooooooaaaaallll Oilers! 4-2 Oilers. (Cogliano from Stortini and Moreau) The period has some real good flow to it. The Oilers continue to fire the puck at the net. That is also refreshing to see. We usually get out shot. Nilsson slams his knee with a TB player and seems shook up. Hope he isn't gone for a long time. At 8:09, Souray and Koci each take a roughing penalty as they mixed it up in the Oilers zone. I love Souray for his hardcoreness. I wish all the defenseman on the Oil were like that. At 11:09, Halpern takes a penalty and the Oilers go on the PP. But seconds later, Gagner takes a Hi-sticking penalty to make it 4 on 4. There was some good chances but nothing really transpires for either team. At 13:46, TB does score. Damn! 4-3 Oilers. Oh no. I hope this isn't a waste of a game? Again. So the action picks up a little with the new found closeness in the score. Tampa Bay is trying hard to tie it up. At 18:15 Peckham and Reechi come together. They both take penalties and sit for two. What is it with Peckham and the Grandpa's? lol. *in my best Rosco P. Coltrane voice, "I love it, I love it"* So with a minute left in the game, TB has their goalie pulled, and Horcoff shoots it and St. Louis makes the save. What? Yeah... He didn't score. But just as the game is finishing, Souray shoots it from just past the red line and scores with 2 seconds left. Yeah! 5-3 Oilers. (Souray from Brodziak) What a finish. OILERS WIN!

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Game Summary (CLICK HERE)

Stats Sheet (CLICK HERE)

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Tonight's Starting Lines

Penner Horcoff Hemsky (This line had tons of ice but came up short in the goal department. Penner was actually not bad tonight. He wasn't the squeaky wheel tonight. Horcoff wasn't all that bad. He just wasn't all that good either. Faceoffs good. Shots good. -2 bad. Hemsky was not Hemsky tonight. He seemed weird to me right in the beginning of the game. He was hit a few times and that kind of made him puck shy. Maybe it's just PMS?)

Nilsson Gagner Cole (I liked this line tonight. (2nd best line) They were real strong in the begining of the game. They were playing as a unit very well. Nilsson was shaky at times, not quite himself tonight but still good. Gagner was good. He played his position well and got an asssist on the Strudwick goal. Cole was also good tonight. He had seemed to do everything right tonight. I really enjoy watching him play. Only 3 games left. :(

Moreau Cogliano Stortini (This was the best Oiler line tonight. They were awesome. Moreau didn't take a single penalty. In fact, he managed to finish up +3. Cogliano had a goal and an assist tonight. A real sloid game for him. Stortini only played 10:55 but was great. No dumb penalties for the big guy. Nice Game 3rd Line!)

Reddox Brodziak MacIntyre (Ahhh... it's the 4th line. They really didn't do much as a line. Reddox was ok but not really noticable. Brodziak wasn't that bad. He did earn an assist at the end of the game. Big Mac only played 2:03. He did fight though. And a good one at that.)


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Final Score

Tampa Bay Lightning - 3

Edmonton Oilers - 5

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BEERS

Sheldon Souray - The man was awesome tonight. He was a mean hitting machine. He was a shot firing cannon. He was a true team leader on the ice. The Edmonton Oilers are damn lucky to have a guy like Sheldon Souray on this team. He represents the team well. Have a frosty beer Souray. Great Game. Cheers!

Andrew Cogliano - The speedy center was due for a good game. And today was the day. He scored a pretty easy goal, but a goal nonetheless. He also had an assist tonight for his efforts. A 2 point night and 12:55 of ice time. He did have 3 giveaways but I'm turning a blind eye and I must have missed them. *wink* Have a beer Cogs. Cheers!

Ethan Moreau - I have been giving Chopper a hard time all year, but tonight he showed me who the real Ethan Moreau is. He was excellent all over the ice. He played a real smart game and took no penalties. I'm sure people were waiting for it. I was. But for ending the night at +3, that deserves a nice cold one. Cheers!

Honerable Mention - Erik Cole (He had his legs going tonight. The goal he scored was a real factor in this game. It gave the Oilers the momentum.), Sam Gagner (The guy was pretty good all around.), Steve Staios (he did what he had to. He played a simple game and that works for him.) Zack Stortini (Is this the same Huggy Bear? This guy is impressing me.)

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JEERS


The 1st Line - When the game looked like they were playing a beer league team, I thought that the 1st line should kill these guys. But they didn't. In fact they looked average. This line needs to click every game in order for the Oilers to make it to the playoffs. Boooooooooo!

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That's all folks. That was an exciting game. I am relieved to get the 2 points. As of right now the Oilers are tied with 3 other teams for 7th. Minny, Anahiem and Dallas are tied with us with 65 points. One game at a time boys.

Next game is Thursday against the Columbus Blue Jackets. We need this win as well. Let's Go Oilers!!!

Monday, February 23, 2009

The Water Cooler #3 (Smyth/Souray/Cole/Lecavalier/Prucha)


*pours water into coffee cup* Oh... hello there. Welcome to the Water Cooler. I have some gossip today regarding some players. "Like what?", you say. Ok. Have a water and read on.


While it has been slow on the trade front (trades and news), the deadline is fast approaching. Is this going to be a big year for trades? I don't think so. The GM's now seem to have these damn cap problems of the modern era. Too many high salaries. Geez... who would have thought that the GM's would screw themselves again (pre lockout)? Maybe by the 3rd time around they will figure out that the large contracts are just plain silly. It's their own fault though. No one else to blame but themselves.


So with all the hype and hoopla that surrounds the TDL... don't expect much to happen. But it's still exciting as always. I always get fired up. Then I get dissapointed. What will happen this year?


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On the 17th of February, Eklund from Hockeybuzz.com reports (CLICK HERE) that Petr Prucha may be heading to Edmonton. No word on who would go the other way. (of course!) And I quote, "I am told that Prucha to Pittsburgh or Edmonton" Take it for what it's worth... mostly bull plop IMO.


Also on that same page, Eklund talks about how Vinnie Lecavalier maybe coming to Edmonton. And I quote, "Don't believe a word from anyone who says Vinny is not available. The Lightning aren't pushing the agenda to move him, but they have let it be known 100% clearly that the door is very open and pretty much exactly what the cost of entry is. I have been around enough trade deadlines to know how crazy people get. I would put it at 80-90% that Vinny is gone bny March 4th. The deals will be too big to look away from. The Lightning could be completely set up for years to come. And whenever the Rangers and Canadiens are involved you can be assured that the Leafs, Canucks, Flames, Oilers, and Flyers will have discussions as well. This is a chance of a lifetime for those teams and a golden opportunity for a new look Lightning team to emerge."


I guess we shall see if and where he goes. Not here...


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Here we have Ryan Smyth possibly returning to the Oilers. Eklund (CLICK HERE) claims this on February 19th. And I quote, " The Calgary Flames are an interesting possible landing spot for Ryan Smyth, and where there is smoke ther may just really be fire. However, don't rule out completely a return to Edmonton I am told for Smyth." I would love it, but I don't see it actually happening. Too bad.


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Now the most craziest one I have heard from Eklund. It came on the 21st of February. Sheldon Souray to the New Jersey Devils. (CLICK HERE) And I quote, "The Devils first choice is definitely trying to grab BOTH Neidermayers, they like Morris, but also like Leopold and Horton. They also would love to grab Souray out of Edmonton for a major league prospect and a roster player." I really don't see that ever happening. Ever. Come on Eklund. Get real!


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As far as Erik Cole rumours go... They are everywhere. It seems like if you keep on spitting names and teams around that eventually someone will claim to be right. He is linked to Carolina, Boston, Pittsburgh, Toronto, Washington. So really it's anyone's guess on where he goes. It's more of a question on who we will get in return.


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Well folks that is all that I have found. And here comes the boss so we better not get caught standing around the water cooler. Maybe see you next time at coffee break. Cya...

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Beers and Jeers #36 (Feb 21/09 vs. Calgary Flames)


Well folks... As we sit around our TVs and celebrate Hockey Day in Canada, we are fortunate enough to have that team from the south (the Calgary fLames) playing against us instead of some other Canadian team. Why you ask? Because I love a good Battle of Alberta. Nothing can compare to a game like this. (I hope) I predict a 4-2 Oilers win. Gagner, Cole, Hemsky, Stortini scoring the goals. MacIntyre, Stortini and Peckham all fight tonight. Maybe even Gagner. (Maybe Andre Roy? jk) Let's go out there Oilers and kick some Calgary fLame ass.


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Due to me having company over, I won't be going as hardcore with the period summaries. Sorry, but I need to drink with my friends tonight.


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On a side note: we need to win tonight because the Nucks won in a shoot out (Damn you Sundin!) against the Leafs. The Leafs can't do anything right. :(


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1st Period


Boy the Oilers looked fired up tonight. Sporting the retro jersey's once again. MacT started the game with some line changes. Cole with Horc and Pens. And Hemmer with Gags and Nilsson. They really do look sharp so far here. All 4 lines look good. Smid nails Iginla and gets the crowd roaring. Yay Smid! The 4th Line gets a good chance with Big Mac crashing the net. But... the Oilers take a penalty. Guess who? Moreau for cross checking. But lucky for him the Oil kill it off. At 10:19, Smid drives to the net and draws a penalty. PP time for the Oil. But they can't convert. But shortly after the penalty expires, Erik Cole scores!!! Yeah! 1-0 Oilers. (Cole from Souray and Horcoff at 12:26) This is turning into a great idea by MacT. (about time) The Oilers do get another chance on the PP at 15:29 but once again they can not convert. 0 for 2 on the PP. Roli has made some great saves already in this game. But at 19:02 Gilbert takes a holding penalty. All in all, it was a good period by the Oilers. Let's see how the 2nd transpires.


2nd Period


Oilers get out of the gate quick. Brodziak gets a nice chance in the first few seconds. (We are on the PK still.) Through the first 8:00 minutes of the game there has been good flow with both goalies making some good saves. At 8:14, Hemsky takes a lazy penalty and puts the Oil down by a man. But the Oilers manage to kill it off (fLames are 0 for 3 so far) and next thing you know the fLames get nailed with a Too Many Men penalty. They manage to kill that off but the 4th line comes out again and again causes havoc in the crease. (Why not play them more MacT?) But wouldn't you know it... Iginla scores at to tie it up. Damn! 1-1 Tie Game. MacT now has Cole with Horc and Hemmer and Penner with Gags and Nilsson. For the record... Smid is AWESOME tonight. He is doing everything right. With some exciting play the period ends. Let's Go Oilers!


3rd Period


The Oilers have the peanut butter and jam tonight. The 3rd starts off much like the 2nd ended. Fast and furious. Holy crap! Hemsky scores! 2-1 Oilers. (Hemsky from Horcoff and Strudwick at 1:46) Well this gets everyone fired up. Cole gets a breakaway and Iginla takes a penalty. Not sure how that's not a penalty shot? But whatever... the Oilers are on the PP once again. I'll tell ya! The MacBlender is rolling tonight. Every shift is a little different than the last. Oh MacT... you and your crazy mind. Shortly after the Iggy penalty, Phaneuf takes a penalty. 5 on 3 for the Oil for the next 50 some odd seconds. They manage only one good shot from Souray. Boooooo! Cole sure has been great tonight. (I'm trying to enjoy his last few games with us. I am hoping he doesn't get moved.) With very little time left in the period, Calgary's Boyd and Moss collide in their own zone. The crowd goes wild. So with one minute left, the crowd chanting for the Oil, Mark and Marc mention that the crowd is anticipating an Oiler win tonight. A second later, Lombardi scores to tie it up. 2-2 Tie Game. Why in the hell can't people keep their mouths shut until the game is over? But Lombardi takes a penalty at 19:09. Overtime now with a little bit of a PP. Go Oilers!


Overtime


The fLames kill of the penalty and it's back to 4 on 4. With 2:30 left, Souray nails Adam Pardy and sends him and his helmet flying. Why do these guys have their straps so friggin' low? Are you guys retarded? Are you? So with the time winding down, Cammalleri busts in on a breakaway and Roli makes a HUGE save to keep the game tied. Shootout time.


Shootout


Gagner - loses the puck in the slot area. No goal.


Nilsson - gets poke checked by Kipper


Hemsky - also gets poked checked by Kipper


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Tonight's Starting Lines


Penner Horcoff Cole (Penner was pretty good tonight. Horcoff was great tonight. Cole was great tonight.)


Nilsson Gagner Hemsky (Nilsson was above average. Gagner was pretty good. Hemsky was good.)


Moreau Cogliano Stortini (Moreau was below average. In fact rather stinky. Cogliano was average but fast. Stortini was below average.)


MacIntyre Brodziak Reddox (MacIntyre was limited to 3:25. Brodziak had some good shifts. Reddox was good tonight as he ended up taking Stortini's spot on the 3rd line.)


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FINAL SCORE


Calgary Flames - 3

Edmonton Oilers - 2


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BEERS


Shawn Horcoff - The guy was fantastic tonight. He played 26:07, had 2 assists, 4 shots and 2 hits. He seemed to do everything right. He was 23 wins, 9 loses for 72% on the face off dot. He was on fire. So to put out the fire, have a cold frosty Horc. Great game... Cheers!


Ladislav Smid - The Spaz was good again. He made smart and reliable plays. He was laying the body whenever he could. And he managed to log 19:26 of ice time. He even found time to block 4 shots. Good job Smid. Have a beer with me. Cheers!


Erik Cole - I am missing him already and he hasn't even left yet. He was good tonight. Scored a nice goal to get the game going. He made some good body checks. Heck, he even warranted 22:50 of ice time for all the hard work. Erik Cole... you have been a great Oiler. Enjoy another beer with me. Cheers!


Honerable Mentions

Liam Reddox (He was good tonight. He did what he could to help this team. I know. I feel wierd even saying it.), Dwayne Roloson (Gramps was a force tonight. Even I was chanting Roli, Roli, Roli from home.), Strudwick/Peckham (this was a pretty solid defence group. I liked them a lot tonight.)

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JEERS


To be honest, I don't want to boo anything tonight. We did good. We just had a bad relapse with the time running out in the 3rd. Ok. Just a little one for that. Booooooooo!


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Well what a great game that was. Tons of action and lots of speed. A true Battle of Alberta. It's just to bad that we ended up on the losing side. Damn fLames!


Next game is Tuesday vs. Tampa Bay. Is this Vinny's last game with the Lightning and his first as an Oiler? Stay tuned...

Sunday, February 15, 2009

The Water Cooler #2 (Cole/Smyth/Whitney/Guerin/Hemsky/Jay Bo)


**Remember, these are rumors. Nothing more. Do not believe any of this. This is for entertainment purposes only. I would seriously be shocked if any of this becomes true.**

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*REAL* Just to start off it's being reported by TSN that the Penguins have fired their coach. Michel Therrien has been replaced by interim coach Dan Bylsma the farm team coach. The Penguins have a 27-25-5 record this season and are sitting five points out of the playoffs.

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Here from Hockeybuzz we have Erik Cole going to Pittsburgh for (D) Ryan Whitney. I actually think that this is a fair deal if done as one for one. We will see where this goes.

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This what I found at Spector's Hockey. And I quote "Jay Bouwmeester and would likely get a roster player, prospect and first round pick. The Flyers, Blackhawks, Oilers, Rangers and Devils are rumored to be interested..." Duh!!! Thanks for the tip Spector.

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Here is a Hockey Leaks Feb 13/09 rumor statement. And I quote, "The Oilers are apparently willing to include Hemsky in a deal to bring in Bouwmeester." You have got to be kidding guy that wrote this. You seriously believe this? Hemsky? Really? *shakes head* If they balked at giving up Cogs or Gags then why Hemmer?

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Now there is no mention of the Oilers in this link, but I think the Oilers should look at bringing #94 home. He worked well with Hemsky and Horcoff. Just a thought. I would do it. But it is up to Ryan Smyth as he has a NTC. Last I heard, he wasn't keen on coming back. But what do I know?

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Also from 4th period, It appears that the Oilers have shown interest for the Ottawa Senators d man, Filip Kuba. I'm not sure if he is what we need. I'm hoping for a North American player.

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A few days ago I heard about Bill Guerin maybe coming back to Edmonton from Hockeybuzz. And I quote, "*With Doug Weight out for six weeks, one source has informed me that the Oilers may be reaching into their past for veteran leadership to the OTHER Islanders American star, Billy Guerin." Cool. I liked him. But doesn't he play RW? And don't we need a LW? Doesn't make sense. So don't count on it.

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Well that's all I have found for now. TSN has a site that is ready for the Trade Deadline. It's not bad. March 4th is coming quick. Who do you want?

Thursday, February 12, 2009

I Like The Cut Of Your Jib #3


Well with all the speculation and basically a bleak future for some of the guys around here, I have decided to write this before he has been traded. Yes folks... Erik Cole will most likely be traded sometime between now and the trade deadline on March 4th, 2009. Unless, of course he signs a new contract before the deadline. But we all know that that is unlikely. He will fetch more in the open market than the Oilers are willing to pay. Too bad. I like him.


Erik Cole was acquired in the Joni Pitkanen trade before the season started. Since he has been an Oiler, the Oswego, New York native has been pretty good in my eyes. While most people have been disappointed with his goal output this year, I for one have really enjoyed watching his gamesmanship and effort night after night. (Check out past Beers & Jeers) His relentless hits on our opponents day after day. Erik Cole has been a real eye opener for me. He has showed me that hard work and a little dedication to making yourself and others around him better can win the hearts of the people of Edmonton. (Ok. Maybe just me.) He has been class throughout his stay with the Oilers. From the news interviews that I have watched, to the newspaper clippings that I have read, he has for the most part enjoyed his time here. He liked the fact that he was able to build his Son a back yard rink. He seemed to be adjusting to the city. But all good things come to an end eventualy.


But for whatever the reason (money/warmer climate/homesick), there just doesn't seem to be interest on either party to extend this "marriage". I personally would rather have a $4 million dollar Cole than a $4 million dollar Penner. But I don't get to decide those kind of things.


Erik Cole has been the team leader in hits this year. That's awesome! (and something that this team will miss when he is gone.) He is sitting 9th on the team in points with 22. (not so good) 5th in goals with 12. Considering the leader is Hemsky with 17, that's not bad. Not great... but not bad. It's not like he hasn't tried, he is 3rd on the team for shots with 126.


Bottom line: Erik Cole in my eyes is 100% a Jib Cutter. I am going to miss him very much. I just hope that some day the original Pronger trade can come to a rest. (Brewer for Pronger, Pronger for Lupul, Lupul for Pitkanen, Pitkanen for Cole, Cole for ?)


So thank you Mr. Cole for the hard work, effort and class that you showed here and I truly do Like The Cut Of Your Jib!

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Beers and Jeers #31 (Feb 11/09 vs. Montreal Canadiens)


Welcome back everyone. Life has been interesting. Lubomir Visnovsky has a dislocated shoulder and is out for the remainder of the season. Ouch! Both literally and figuratively. It's a huge loss and I'm not sure how the Oilers plan on replacing him. A trade? Minors? What's the plan?


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The Oilers are sitting in 10th with 56 points. Not great, but really... not bad considering that Dallas is in 5th with 59 points. Still time left for a good push. I am still not hitting the panic button. Yet.


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Jaromir Jagr may just be an Edmonton Oiler after all. Not this year, but very much a possibility for next year. David Staples broke the story yesterday and I was also sucked into the excitement. But even though it won't be able to happen this year, I have no doubt that we should take a chance on him next year. What's it going to hurt? Just not Sundin/Hossa money please.


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1st Period


The game is starting and I still can not believe how many Habs fans there are. Montreal gets out to a great start by getting the 1st shot away. This game seems like it's going to be a good one. But soon after (4:30) Gagner draws a penalty. MacT sends out the Kid line. Gagner ends up whacking in a rebound and scores. 1-0 Oilers. Gagner (5:41) from Nilsson and Cogliano. I love being the 1st team to score. It feels nice. It seems like all the lines are working tonight. At the 11:00 minute mark Hemsky looks like Hemsky and pulls off a sweet toe drag move but..... didn't score. Nice move though. Holy crap! The 4th line does score... Stortini scores his 3rd of the year. (watch out Gagner!) They provided good pressure to the Montreal defence and managed a goal. Stortini (13:31)from Gilbert. 2-0 Oilers. 10 seconds later the Oilers score again. Cogliano scores the 3rd goal of this game assisted by Moreau and Pouliot. Crazy!!! 3-0 Oilers. Montreal is stressing out now. But I guess we all know how that feels, right Oiler fans. It feels nice to be on this side of the fence for once. Oh no. Hemsky scores now. Geez... 4-0 Oilers. Hemsky (19:34) from Penner and Horcoff. All 4 lines have scored a goal in this period.(well sort of. Gagner's goal was on the PP with 12 and 13). 10 seconds later the Habs do get on the board. Dandenault is the goal scorer. End of period score : 4-1 Oilers.


2nd Period


Well that was the best period the Oilers have played in.. in... a long long time. Let's hope the 2nd goes as well. No mercy boys. No mercy. The start of the period has good flow until Stortini takes a high sticking penalty at 2:35. But shortly after that, the Habs fall into penalty trouble. Twice. The Oilers have a 5 on 3 Power play for 1:32. And they blow it. On a side note: Quinn and Brown say that Grebs won't be retuning today. (I wonder if Reddox can take his spot. Jk.) With Smid in the box a little while later, Brodziak gets a short handed breakaway (11:40). Scoooorrrreeeesss! Holy cow. 5-1 Oilers. Brodziak from Strudwick and Gilbert. This is awesome. But do you know what isn't awesome? Taking a puck in the face. Ouch! Souray takes some rubber to the nose. No worries. It builds character. Then at 17:19 Penner hits one of the crossbar and in. The Oilers score again. Penner from Hemsky and Horcoff. Is this the Chicago team that has been here? 6-1 Oilers. Right at the tail end of the period Souray takes a penalty and one minute will be carried over to the 3rd. End of period score : 6-1 Oilers


3rd Period


The 3rd period started of pretty good for the Oilers. Killed off the rest of the Souray penalty. The flow from all 4 lines has been exciting to watch. The Habs started to get into penalty trouble again. At 5:53 Reddox scores to make it to seven. 7-1 Oilers. Reddox from Gilbert and Brodziak. This is crazy. However, 4 minutes later the Habs finally pop their 2nd goal. 7-2 Oilers. The part I hate the most is when there is a break in the game and Quinn and Brown carry on with some dribble of banter. Most of the time they make no sense. Or they state the obvious. Well... Montreal takes their 7th penalty of the game. And the Oilers smell blood. What's going to happen? A freaking huge save by Roli that's what. WOW! That was highlight reel stuff. Roli! Roli! Roli! 3:34 left in the game and I still can't believe that the score is 7-2 Oilers. Awesome stuff. It's about time that it's us and not the other team running up the score.


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Tonight's Starting Lines


Penner Horcoff Hemsky (This was a good line tonight. Hemsky was looking back to normal. Penner was full of energy. Horcoff was better than we have seen in awhile. Very Effective line.)


Nilsson Gagner Cole (This was also a pretty good line. Well Cole wasn't that good. But Gagner and Nilsson looked really energized tonight. Good speed. Effective Line.)


Moreau Cogliano Pouliot (This line was pretty decent tonight. They worked hard and it payed off with a goal for Cogs. All three were good. Effective Line.)


Reddox Brodziak Stortini (This line was WAY better than I could have ever expected. Stortini seems to be on a real tear right now. Brodziak has also been good since the dog house bit with MacT. Even Reddox scored. Pretty Effective Line.)


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Final Score


Montreal Canadiens - 2

Edmonton Oilers - 7


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BEERS


KEGGER!!!


All the boys really deserve a beer. I don't really want to single anyone out. But Hemmer and Roli were great. Sam Gagner was slick tonight. Gilbert had 3 assists. Stortini was a man on a mission. MacT didn't make any changes during the game. Life is all good now. So Cheers everyone! It's kegger time.


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JEERS


No one was really stinky tonight, so no Boo's from me. Although I wonder what is up with Erik Cole? He wasn't great tonight and didn't really play much but he did block 3 shots. So is he hurt or just crappy right now? Or maybe he wants out?


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The next game will be on Saturday at 2:oo vs the LA Kings. They are hot right now, so that will be a good test for the Oil. Hopefully this win tonight can instill a little more confidence on this team as they prepare for the stretch run. Go Oilers!

Monday, February 9, 2009

The Water Cooler #1 (Cole/Bouwmeester/Gagner/Penner)


This is a little segment that I like to call the "Water Cooler". This is a place where I can relay some of the stuff that I heard or read about the Oilers. And hopefully you can share with us if you find anything as well. I have no inside info. I just find it fun to speculate on what is going to happen with the Oilers. The other teams I could care less about. Oilers ONLY! For those of you who have never been to any of these rumor sites, do not believe them. Most speculation is just that. Speculation. Never trust a rumor.




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This 1st link is from Eklund. (He is wrong 99% of the time.) click here Vermette to the Oilers. But of course he never says who is coming back. What he means is that the Oilers have called Ottawa about Vermette. Nothing more. But very interesting as I think I would give it a shot with him. What do you guys think?




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Also from Eklund. Here we have Erik Cole going to Buffalo. click here Again no one going the other way. I really don't know what Buffalo has to offer that we need? On the 5th he reports that Cole may be going to Boston (click here) , Pittsburgh or Ottawa. (click here) Which could bring Vermette our way? Maybe Lucic from Boston? Sykora or Staal from Pittsburgh?




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This Eklund guy is a strange guy. He gets people to pay $20 to be a member to see his *Rumor Chart*. But if you look hard enough, someone has posted it for free. CLICK HERE He has quite a few different people linked to the Oilers. Some for good reason. (Bouwmeester). Some I have no idea. (Niclas Havelid from Atlanta) What?!? Check it out. Again... DO NOT TAKE SERIOUSLY!




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Jay Bouwmeester is going to be an Oiler. Everyone keeps saying it. Why trade for him and then lose assets? Let him go to wherever and he can come home in the summer at no cost to the Oilers. click here I am looking for more links for this.


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Here is Hockey Leaks. click here Read and scroll down. Lots of Oiler Stuff. Like Gagner and Penner for Bouwmeester. lol. Or Gionta to Edmonton. For who? We can't forget the Vinnie debacle.


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Anyways... I think that Cole's days are numbered. Too bad. I do like him. Unless he signs before the deadline he will be traded.


As far as anyone else... Schremp, Brule, Strudwick, Roy, Nilsson, Penner, Pouliot, Brodziak, Grebeshkov, Gilbert, Staios, Smid, Jacques, Potulny, Peckham, Chorney. I would suspect that they are all available to some degree. Hemsky, Gagner, Cogliano and such would have to be involved for something big. Everyone can be sold. Who will it be this year?
Here once again is Jason Gregor's list of people that ARE available. CLICK HERE

The Deadline is approaching... Who do you want?

Thursday, February 5, 2009

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.

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Beers and Jeers #26 (Feb 1/09 vs Nashville Predators)


Nothing like waking up and turning on the tv for some Oiler action. It makes for a nice reason to start drinking before the Super Bowl a little later on in the day. Isn't everyone drinking?


So the game begins. Nice flow. The play goes back and forth, with the Oilers with the most forth. The Oilers looked quite good. At first I was bummed right out that Big Mac wasn't in the line up. Then 30 seconds later Sportsnet reports that Tootoo is out for the next while. Ok. Redemption will be a little later in the season I guess. But Strudwick MacT? Why not Stortini? I guess he likes to keep us guessing. All in all the 1st period was entertaining. The 2nd line was the best line, while he 1st line was the worst. Pretty sad when Penner can bring down the whole line. End of period score: 0-0.


The 2nd period started and so did the MacBlender. Brrrrrmmrmm... By the time I realised that Mac had the blender on (I thought it was sloppy line changes) Nashville scores. Crap! 1-0. Almost instantly the Oilers turn up the intensity. That continues until the period raps up. The 2nd line was still the best line when together. End of period score: 1-0 Nashville


The 3rd started and I was curios what MacT was going to do. He did the obvious... he benched Penner. So Nilsson took his spot on the 1st line. Moreau moved up to the 2nd line in replace of Nilsson. About half ways through the 3rd Nashville scores again to make it 2-0. One minute later Hemsky scored to make it 2-1. Nice shot, top corner. The game gets more intense as the game wears on. It ended up being close but no cigar for the Oilers. They came close at the end but with no avail. I suppose the lines will be different for next game. I could see Penner on the 4th line. I mean, he should be on the 4th line.


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Tonight's Starting Lines:


Penner Horcoff Hemsky (This line is drastically dragged down by Penner and his half ass play. Hemsky deserves better than this. Expect Nilsson to be on this line next game.)


Nilsson Potulny Cole (I really liked this line. Potulny looked good playing with Cole. Even Moreau seemed to fit on this line.)


Moreau Cogliano Pouliot (Pouliot is dead weight to the Oilers right now. He hasn't contributed in awhile. Brodziak may be a better fit.)


Strudwick Brodziak Reddox (This line had one good shift where they were in a good puck cycling mode. Other than that a waste of a line.)


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Final Score:


Nashville Predators - 2

Edmonton Oilers - 1


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BEERS

Ales Hemsky

- He scored a nice goal from a nice feed from Nilsson. Hemsky did what he could tonight although we all know he could have done more. He can thank the old ball and chain Penner. He played 23:17, took 6 shots and had terrible line mates all while scoring a goal. You deserve a beer my friend. Cheers!


Erik Cole

- The man of hustle and hard work showed up again today. He could have been dynamite if Gags was playing today. But he didn't and life goes on. Even though he had no points today I though that Cole was very effective. He played 22:00, took 3 shots and had a team leading 6 hits. Good job today Cole and thanks for the stick tape secrets. Frosty? Cheers!


Ethan Moreau

- Chopper was a shooter today. He took 14 shots only to hit the net 9 times. Wow. When did he become a shooter? He was good today. Pretty mistake free. All that in 15:39 of playing time. I think that's worth a frosty cold one. Cheers!


Honorable Mentions

- Dwayne Roloson (I thought Roli was great again. He did what he could and that was a lot. But if the guys in front of you don't score then it's hard to win as a goalie)


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JEERS


Tom Gilbert

- The flub in the 2nd period cost the Oilers the 1st goal and quite possibly the game as the momentum shifted to Nashville. The Oilers played pretty solid up until that point. Gilbert did play a ton today however, and mistakes are bound to happen. But still... Booooooooooo!


Dustin Penner

- You must be some kind of a joke right? I know your a funny guy but come on. Try a little hard work once in awhile. I bet his report cards were like mine. "(Ray/Dustin) is a pleasure to have in class, but he needs to focus on better work habits in order to be sucessful." How MacT even let you play 13:26 today is beyond me. Your on the 1st line. The 1st line! Any other team and you are not. My patience is out on this guy. Boooooooooooooooooooo!


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Well I have to prepare for my own game tonight. It's a good thing I don't write B&J for my team. I would be Booed out of the arena. I hope I am not too bad tonight because the wife and kid are coming to watch. Yikes! I want to be a Souray but I'm more of a Smid. (but less spazzy)


See everyone one on Tuesday. Until then...

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Beers and Jeers #24 (Jan 27/09 vs. Buffalo Sabres)


Well that was one of the most crappiest starts that I have ever seen. 1st goal in 10 seconds?!? 2nd goal a minute later!?! 3-0 by the 10:00 minute mark. This is the 1st period still. And it's Buffalo in the lead. Way to go guys! The Oilers couldn't even score on the couple of Power Play chances that they had. This team fell flat and it's going to be hard to get back up. The best part of the 1st period was when Roli was pulled and Deslauriers came in and actually made a save. (Although I don't pin the crap start entirely on Roli) The crowd responded with a cheer. So what went wrong? Staios was terrible. Falling and giving the puck away like a peewee hockey player. By far the worst Oiler. In fact that period alone is getting him a nice brand new shiny Boo. Hemsky was the best Oiler, if you can even say that.


And how do we start the 2nd? Pissed off and mean? Maybe a fight? No. Buffalo scores. Again. And again. And again. Well you get the picture. Not a good night in paradise. 7-1 for the Sabres after the 2nd. Erik Cole tried to give the team some life by scoring a nice wrister. But to no avail. Deslauriers didn't fair any better. Not a good night to be an Oiler goalie.


The 3rd was just as stinky. At points you wonder to yourself why am I still watching this? Because I have to. The team needs us. (I feel a little responsible here. We were 5w - 1 L since I bought my new hat. But... I had to cut my mullet because it was just to shaggy. I think I screwed the team. I should never have cut my hair.)


So all in all that was a terrible game. There was a few bright spots. Erik Cole was not bad. He did look a little lost without Gagner. Hemsky wasn't bad either. But I don't think that anyone deserves a beer tonight. But I am sure I can round up some Jeers though.


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The Lines Tonight


Penner Horcoff Hemsky (Hemmer was a one man show. Horcoff won faceoffs but then that's it. Penner was Penner. Lazy)


Nilsson Cogliano Cole (Cole and Nilsson seemed good. Cogs seemed out of place with those two. Maybe Gagner is important to this team?)


Moreau Pouliot Reddox (The dynamic MacT shut down line. Awesome! But they didn't shut anyone down. So what good were they?)


Strudwick Brodziak Stortini (Stortini was the best on this line. Brodziak played an awkward game. He just didn't look comfortable. I barely noticed Strudwick)


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FINAL SCORE


SABRES - 10

OILERS - 2


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BEERS


There is none.


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JEERS


Steve Staios

- This guy was a real terrible hockey player tonight. Bad plays. Falling all over the place. Chasing guys around. The stats don't really show what I seen, but Steve Staios was bad tonight. Very bad. Boooooooooooooo!


Shawn Horcoff

- At $7 million next season, a game like this isn't going to cut it. As a leader of this team you can not afford to have nights where you are not noticable. Unfortunately for the fans and the team, this has happened a lot this year. I hope a change is in order here. You suck Horcoff. (Except for your faceoffs tonight. That was good) Boooooooooooooooooooooooo!



The rest of the Edmonton Oilers

- BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!


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See you all Friday. If I pay for that game and it turns out to be like this one I... I... damn it. I will still get the next one. "sigh"

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Oilers Jambalaya #3 (Random Thoughts)


Hello everybody. The All Star weekend is in full swing and lame as usual. Well, ok... only parts of it was lame. I just have a hard time seeing this weekend as a "showcase" weekend for the NHL. This (skills competition and game) is not really what the NHL is about. I get confused when I watch this stuff. Like why would you tell the public that the goalie that you brought in for the Breakaway Challenge was told "not to try"? That's just weird. I did however enjoy the final elimination shootout. And who wins that? The guy I said shouldn't be there instead of Hemsky. But what do I know right? The Hardest Shot was a good one. It's to bad Souray didn't connect like he can. But there is always next year.


Andrew Cogliano was the NHL fastest skater. Since when did they let the YoungStars participate in the Skills? I don't remember that from last year but I may be wrong here. Too bad Erik Cole couldn't have participated. But good job Cogs. You fastest skater you!


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CBC really blew it when they decided to not re new the HNIC song. Sure the guy that won the contest was from Edmonton but, the song sucks. The only "hook" of the song is the bag pipe intro. But it is soooo quiet you barely hear it. Why not Stompin' Tom? That really would have been better. And did you notice that the 5 finalists were songs that were keyboard type songs. Think of all the people that did all that hard work to write, record and release songs (Rap/Rock/Alternative/Electronica) that CBC new fully well that they were looking for a "copy" version of the old song. Thanks for wasting peoples time CBC. Why not just say that that is what you were looking for? Get a new song for next year please!


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Why is there not a cut off date for free agent signings? I mean really... Forsberg again? Neidermayer last year. Kind of Sundin this year. I think the NHL needs to change something here. This is getting ridiculus.


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All this complaining about fighting in the game is starting to bug me. This isn't the NBA. We don't hug our "Homeys" after a game. There is no "Keep it real yo!".


No, the NHL is not like other sports. We do not need to compare this great unique sport to a pile of oranges. We fight to protect ourselves. We fight to spark our team. We fight because sometimes that's out job. (well not Me.) The NHL is different and that is a good thing. I see more damage to guys on icings. That my friends is the real problem. Not fighting.


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My final question today...


Why are the Oilers locker room stalls not old guy/young guy/old guy/young guy? That may have some chemistry building mojo going on? I don't know. Just wondering.


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Next Oiler game - Jan 27/09. That's Tuesday.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Beers and Jeers #22 (Jan 18/09 vs Phoenix Coyotes)


What a fun evening that was. Started with the Glenn Anderson Ceremony and ended with a Moreau Hat trick. The ceremony was good for the most part. Whoever wrote the Kevin Lowe speech really sucked. Lame jokes and re-used lines from past speeches. But all in all it was a good show. So #9 is gone now. Never again can it be used. Who's next? #4? #30? #27?


The game was a barn burner. Action right from the beginning. I must say the effort level was there from the get go. The team really had a shot in the arm when Hemsky came back to the line up. I think Penner and Horcoff showed their true colors when Hemmer went down for those games. Penner is overpaid and Horcoff is NOT an all star and overpaid. I would love to see a Penner/Cogliano/Hemsky 1st line. Shawn Horcoff can take the 3rd line position. I bet Cogs would be a 70 point guy too.


Kyle Brodziak had a good night in the faceoff circle. (12-2) 86%. But that's pretty much it for him. But, game after game I notice Erik Cole takes 3 or 4 faceoff's a game and usually only loses one. Why not try him out at taking the draws? He doesn't need to play center, just take faceoff's. Worth a try don't you think?


I couldn't believe that Steve MacIntyre wasn't playing. I really wanted to see him fight Carcillo tonight. For one, it would have been an easier test than say Boogaard. And two, I wanted to see him (Carcillo) get his ass kicked. I wonder if Big Mac was able to meet his hero Marty McSorley today? I hope so. This is the best season ever huh Big Mac? Lucky S.O.B.


Well let's hope that all this Oiler nostalgia and alumni guys being around for the last couple days really rubbed off on the team that we have now (young and old). I said at the beginning of the season that the Oilers are going to the SCF this year. I feel it. I believe it. And I still do. As of late, (since the closed door meeting) that the team seems to have changed. They have a hand shake clap thing that they have going on. Some guys are rocking mustaches. (Penner/Gagner). The lines are mixed now more old with new players. So I see that the team is starting to have fun again. And the ball will roll. Believe...


The lines tonight:


Penner Horcoff Hemsky (Horc/Pens suck without Hemsky. Tonight they looked great. Surprise!?!)

Reddox Gagner Cole (Are you serious? Reddox? I suppose that if you score like Schremp or Potulny or Brule you then go to the 4th line or pressbox. I just don't get it MacT? Anyone but Reddox please)

Pouliot Cogliano Moreau (the best line that played as a group. They all complimented each other nicely tonight. Nice to see Moreau play a good full game)

Strudwick Brodziak Brule (This doesn't even look right on paper. This is the line Reddox should have been on)


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BEERS


Ales Hemsky

- I can not believe the impact that this guy has on his linemates, his team and his fans. He was amazing tonight. You could hear the crowd buzzing after he would do something. Very exciting to have him back. 2 goal night. +3. Solid all around. Welcome back Hemmer. Have a cold one. Cheers!


Ethan Moreau

- Quite possibly his best ever game as an Oiler. I cheered for him tonight. To think that that was his 1st hat trick. Good for him. Maybe this is the confidence that he was looking for? Let's hope we get the same guy for the rest of the year. Have a triple sized beer Chopper. Cheers!


Ladislav Smid

- The guy was an animal tonight. He drops the gloves again. He really is not bad at fighting. In fact, he looked like he knew what he was doing. Plus he ends up with an assist. Maybe he was trying for a Gordie Howe hat trick? At any rate he was fantastic. He was dumping the puck in and was the 1st one on the puck in the corners. At times I thought that he was a forward. One of our best d men tonight. Here's a frosty beer and an ice pack for the knuckles and the ass bone. Cheers!


Honorable Mentions

- Tom Gilbert (quietly picked up a couple of assists.), Andrew Cogliano (had a nice 3 assist game. He looked really good tonight), Steve Staios (had a 2 assist game. Played hard), Erik Cole (he really tried hard tonight.), Dustin Penner's mustache (that is one nice porn stash. Looks good.)


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JEERS


Rob "Plugs" Brown

- He is slowly turning into my #3 behind McGuire and Crawford in the dipturd catagory. Do everyone a favor sometimes and shut up. He spits out random stuff so that hopefully he looks like he knows what he is saying. eg: 10:00 left in the 3rd. "I'm sure Roli will have to make another big save for the Oilers before this game is over." No kidding smart guy. Need I say more? Oh yeah... Your bald. Deal with it. Booooooooooooooo!

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Beers and Jeers #19 (Jan 13/09 vs Washington Capitals)


That was a better game than last game. I still don't like to be out shot but the win is good. There were a few guys that looked like this was their team. There was a few guys who were tweeners. And of course there were the last few that were stinkers.


I am a little amazed that with all the inner troubles on the team, our Captain Moreau isn't more of a captain and has dealt with it. I have been the captain of a few teams. I have had to be the middle man lots. No big deal. That is part of being a captain. But he hasn't been doing that. Sure there was a closed door meeting. That doesn't mean that Chopper shouldn't have already dealt with this. As a captain. On his own. There has been talk that MacT is to blame for this mess. Wanye Gretz over at Oilersnation.com wrote a nice piece about this. I still blame the leaders (Moreau, Horcoff, Staios) for the sub-par play but it's a good read and a different point of view. Plus he has inside info and I don't.




Back to the game. The Oilers were good tonight. I really didn't think that this game was going to go well. I guess I was wrong. The 2nd line was clearly the 1st line tonight. As the games go on MacT is starting a love affair with Cole. Bout time. I still do not understand the Reddox situation. I feel embarrassed almost when fans from the other teams ask me what is going on. I don't even want to answer them. I shrug my shoulders and smile. I don't make the lines.


Anyways it was a fun game to watch all around. Let's get on with the booing and beer drinking.


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BEERS


Steve MacIntyre

- Well Big Mac scored his 1st ever NHL goal. Awesome. I bet that is what he said too. One shot, one goal. Not bad. I was a little sad that he didn't fight, but oh well. We win. He played a whopping 3:40 and even though he really didn't contribute a whole lot... He deserved a beer. Not any old beer but a big beer. Cheers!


Erik Cole

- This guy is getting my vote for MVP of the team. Hemsky is good but no one puts out an effort like Cole does. The guy gives his all. When you play with Cole you can't help but bust your butt as well. That is one of the main reasons why Gagner is excelling right now. It's like a yawn... it's contagious. Cole had the most shots on the team tonight. He also had 2 takeaways to go with the 3 goals. Once again I sit and drink with Cole. Frosty mug time... Cheers!


Kyle Brodziak

- A great all around game from Brodziak. He was the old Horcoff. (geez, I hope he doesn't ask for $7 million too.) 2 assists, +4 and 3 blocked shots. Now I am not a real big Brodziak fan, but if he could play like this every game he would be a favorite of mine. Good game tonight. Have a beer. Cheers!


Honorable Mentions

- Gilbert Brule (He played a solid game. 2 point night.) Steve Staios (excellent shot blocking on #8. He played well too.) Dwayne Roloson (Another beauty from Gramps.)


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JEERS


Not much to really boo here. That was a pretty good game. Lots of hustle. Not quite a 60 minute game but real close. The team really does need to get more shots. To see Ovechkin blast them from all over, he really made it look easy. Why can't an Oiler do that?


There was however a few players that were not playing above par. These players were not very good IMO. Shawn Horcoff, Ethan Moreau, Liam Reddox, Dustin Penner, Tom Gilbert and at times MA Pouliot were all pretty stinky.


Gilbert made some bad passes. In fact I think somewhere Robin Brownlee is laughing

Reddox looked like a bantam player.

I only noticed Horcoff because he plays so much.

No real physical jam from Chopper. He did however have 0 hits. Awesome.

Pouliot didn't look right all night. Except for that one PP where he was with Cogs and Gags.

Penner. Did he play?

Now that I think of it all six of you deserve a jeer. Boooooooooo!

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