Beers and Jeers #47 (Mar 20/09 vs. Chicago Black Hawks)

Well folks last night was a gooder. A 8-1 stomping of the Avs. It was sweet. Then this morning I received a message from the Oilers on Twitter, (yes the Jambalaya is now on Twitter) and it said that the Oilers didn't skate today. I'm hoping that that wasn't a bad decision.

It seems like MacT is going to roll with the same lines again today. And Roli was a last minute decision.

The good people of the OilersNation are whooping up tonight down at Hudson's on Bourbon Street. I'm sure that the party is good and I hope they raise some good money for Kids with Cancer. One of these days I'm going to have to make it to Edmonton to attend one of those Nation parties. I need to get some shirts.

-------------

1st Period

Well the game gets underway and the Oilers seem to be clogging up the neutral zone. Is this the trap? MacT you crazy man you. Well the PP gets to work early. 89,27,83,44,37 are out there for the Oilers. Penner scores! Yeah! 1-0 Oilers. (Penner from Grebeshkov and Hemsky at 3:12) Nice start boys. A short while later at 7:41, the Hawks do score. Boooo! 1-1 Tie Game. Then the dreaded 3rd line of 13, 34, 85 are out for the Oilers. Cogliano scores are another Oiler goal. Yeah! 2-1 Oilers. (Cogliano from Reddox and Pisani at 10:07) Well here we are in maybe another goal fest for the Oilers? Let's hope so. Last night was fun. For the last 10 minutes of the 1st, the Hawks are killing the Oilers. Come on guys... The 2nd line gets stuck in their own end and Grebs takes a holding penalty shortly after. But the Oilers do kill it off. With 1:30 left in the period the Hawks score. Damn. 2-2 Tie Game.

2nd Period

Good flow to start the 2nd. This game is really picking up the speed. Nilsson gets rocked near center ice with his head down by Campbell. Ouch! The 4th line comes out and starts rockin' it up. Ethan Moreau scores! Yeah! 3-2 Oilers. (Moreau from Penner from Brodziak at 6:03.) This is how the "good" teams become "great". Secondary scoring. In this case, 3rd and 4th 'dary' scoring. Awesome! Oh no. Smid was chasing down Havlat and clipped Roli and he goes down. It takes Roli quite a while to get up and ready to go again. But he will continue. Somehow on that play, Gagner takes an interference on the goalie penalty. Not sure where or when??? But the Oil kill it off. But the Hawks score again to tie it up. Boooooo! 3-3 Tie Game. An Oiler and a Hawk take penalties back to back and that makes a 4 on 4 situation. Just as Nilsson is rounding the ice behind his own net he spots Gagner at the other blue line. Bam! He fires a hard long pass to Gags. He busts in and shakes off a Hawk player and scores. Yeah! 4-3 Oilers. (Gagner from Nilsson and Roloson at 18:19) Great period by both teams. This sure has been fun to watch.

3rd Period

To start the period, O'Sullivan takes a slashing penalty. But the Oilers manage kill it off. With the 2nd line out, the Hawks score to tie it up. Again. Booooo! 4-4 Tie Game. Shortly after that Reddox gets hammered with what looked to me like a cheap shot to the head. This is the reason why we need Stortini in the lineup. Of course it goes unnoticed and without a penalty. The pace of the game really picks up now. LET'S GO OILERS!!! Staios hooks Toews and he is awarded a penalty shot. But Roli comes up huge again and the game is still tied. With 7:00 minutes left, the action is fierce. End to end action. So much for the trap. MacT seems to be going with 2nd line, 1st line, 4th line, 2nd line, 1st line, 4th line. What is the 3rd line chopped liver? **Reddox is out** Right at the end of the period, Gilbert gets hammered into the Oilers net and Seabrook takes a penalty. The Oilers will have about 1:40 of PP time in the OT.

Overtime

Well the Oilers send out 83, 27, 44 and 21. They have great passing and a few shots but don't manage to score. The overtime is very exciting but neither team scores. MacT sends out 10 & 34, 89 & 19, 12 & 13. This game is off to a shootout.

Shootout

O'Sullivan - scores glove high.

Kotalik - scores low glove. With that goal the Oilers WIN!!!

Gagner - no shot

----------------

GAME SUMMARY

EVENT SUMMARY

----------------

Tonight's Starting Lines

O'Sullivan Horcoff Hemsky (The 1st line was good for most of the game. I expected them to be clicking by now but maybe we need to be a little more patient. O'Sullivan looked good. His speed and his willingness to shoot from anywhere is a huge bonus for Hemsky. Hemsky looked ok. He still isn't like the same Hemmer from the 1st half of the season. But he's coming around. Horcoff was average. He did way better on the faceoffs this game. But this line wasn't really a game changer and the Oilers need them to be.)

Nilsson Gagner Kotalik (I am starting to like this line. Except they kind of suck in their own end. A few times tonight they were struggling to keep their head above water. But when they get out they are really dangerous. Nilsson seems to be on a roll since the press box sitting. Gagner had a good game. But 0 for 8 on the faceoff dot sucks. He tries like mad, but couldn't do anything there. Kotalik played well. He isn't looking as slow to me as he did the 1st few games. He does make Gagner look fast though.)

Reddox Cogliano Pisani (MacT treats this line like it's the 4th line. They saw limited ice in the last half of the 3rd (mostly because Reddox was hurt). But Cogs and Pisani saw the ice in OT. Reddox played ok. He played just under 6:00 and picks up an assist. Cogliano scores a nice one and ends the game with 4 shots. He also stunk it up on the faceoff dot (25%). Pisani has flashes of the old Pisnai. Then he goes back to average Pisnai. Tonight we seen both.)

Moreau Brodziak Penner (I really like this line. They play tough, yet they can move the puck. Moreau has played two good games in a row. Good on him. 3 shots and a goal is a nice way to help the team win. You don't need to try too hard in order to play well. Brodziak also played well. He does what is asked of him and tries his best. He was out for a lot of faceoffs tonight. Penner had another strong game. Keep this guy on this line. He seems to be a better player on the 4th line. He has a two point night and a couple of hits. He was great.)

Souray Staios (I don't mind this pairing. Souray is one of my faves this year. He plays like he wants to win every game. He always seems to show up. Staios has had a few good games lately. Tonight was another one. I had him written off at the beginning of the year, but he sure is making me change my mind.)

Grebeshkov Gilbert (I thought that this pairing was good as well. Grebs was played pretty good. The mistakes he did do, didn't really cost the Oilers that much. Gilbert played well. He

played over 23 minutes and blocked 3 shots. He had one slight hiccup but whatever, he has been good lately.)

Strudwick Smid (I don't like this pair at all. Smid is good. I like his game. Nothing wrong with him. It's Strudwick that freaks me out. I wish we had an answer for that. Peckham? They are about equal. IMO. But MacT loves Struds.)

Roloson (Roli was good. I am really liking the cut of his jib. He has showed that he is a pro and he comes to play. He rarely takes a night off and tonight wasn't one of them. Good game Roli!)

--------------

FINAL SCORE

Edmonton Oilers - 5

Chicago Black Hawks - 4

--------------

BEERS

Dwayne Roloson - Roli was rock solid again for the Oilers. Sure he had a few not so great moments, but was otherwise fantastic. The guy faced 43 shots. That's 39 saves. At first I thought that JDD was finaly going to start. But once again MacT makes the right decision. *ducks for cover* For a heck of a game Roli, you deserve a frosty. Cheers!

Sheldon Souray - I really like what he brings to this team. IMO He should be the Captain. He plays his butt off every game and is chnaging his game to make himself more effective. And it's working. 28:56 of ice time and he blasted 5 shots at the net. I think he deserves a nice cold one. Cheers!

Dustin Penner - The big guy was good toight. Maybe the 4th line mentallity is giving him the advantage of less pressure to perform? What ever it is I like it. He has played his best games as an Oiler lately playing with Brodz and Chopper. A goal and an assist tonight to lead the team. Good on you Penner. The big guy wants a Big Bear in a Brown Paper Bag? Cheers!

The Entire Team - Two huge games in a row. KEGGER!!!

Honorable Mention - Patrick O'Sullivan (scores a nice SO goal and plays a pretty decent game.) Sam Gagner (He continues his points streak by scoring again this game.) Ales Kotalik (He scores another SO goal. Plus he seems to be fitting in with Gagner)

-------------

JEERS

No one player really deseveres a boo. Am I wrong?

-------------

Well that was a great 4 point two nights. All very quick and exciting. A good two days for Oiler Hockey. The next game is Sunady at 1:00 in the afternoon against the Wild. Big Mac or Stortini should draw in for that game. 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!

--------------

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

--------------------

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.)

--------------

FINAL SCORE

Edmonton Oilers - 8

Colorado Avalanche -1

--------------

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.)

---------------

JEERS

There are none. We won 8-1.

--------------

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.

------------

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.

-------------

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?

-------------

Tonight's Starting Lines

O'Sullivan Horcoff Hemsky

Nilsson Gagner Kotalik

Reddox Cogliano Pisani

Moreau Brodziak Penner

----------------------

FINAL SCORE

St. Louis Blues - 1

Edmonton Oilers -2

---------------------

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.)

----------------------

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!

----------------------

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!!!

---------------

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

---------------

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?

----------------

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.

--------------------

GAME SUMMARY

EVENT SUMMARY

--------------------

Tonight's Starting Lines

Kotalik Horcoff Hemsky

Nilsson Gagner Pouliot

O'Sullivan Cogliano Pisani

Moreau Brodziak Penner

---------------------

FINAL SCORE

Colorado Avalanche - 3

Edmonton Oilers - 2

----------------------

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)

----------------------

JEERS

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

----------------------

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 #43 (Feb 12/09 vs. Atlanta Thrashers)

Well first off I need to apologise to all the Jambalaya Fans for missing the last Beers and Jeers. Now I know that this isn't much of an excuse, but I hurt my neck on Tuesday and that made it impossible to write more than one line. So that made me unable to write out the B & J. Gagner and Roli would have had beers. O'Sullivan would have been booed for taking a penalty in overtime. Some people would lay the blame to MacT for putting out the 4th line in the 3rd when Montreal scored. I do to a certain degree, but it's still the players responsibility to play a smart game. But still. The 4th line MacT? With the game on the line? Come on!

--------------------

The Oilers are playing sub par and for some reason still sit in 7th before this game starts. Nothing short of amazing.

--------------------

Sorry there will be no Period by period action. I missed the 1st and 2nd periods. (This is the most I have missed all season. Work. What can you do? *arms up*) However my bud Whitey is helping me out with the Beers and Jeers. Things will be back to normal next game. If you really need the break downs then check out these places. Jen Sharpe OilersNation JeanShortsBaggedMilk David Staples

GAME SUMMARY

EVENT SUMMARY

--------------------

Tonight's Starting Line's

Kotalik Horcoff Hemsky (Horcoff and Hemsky were pretty good. Kotalik still isn't fitting in on LW)

Nilsson Gagner Pouliot (This line is really working well together. Pouliot is playing very well. Gagner is still on fire and Nilsson scores and plays smart.)

O'Sullivan Cogliano Pisani (This line was average. O'Sullivan scores his 1st as an Oiler and plays a good game. Cogliano was not bad and not great, however he did cough up the puck in OT and that's not good at all. Pisani was also not so hot. He was kind of invisable.)

Moreau Brodziak Penner (This was a hard to judge line as Penner only played 5:03. All three were average except for Penner sticking up for Hemmer. That was good.)

--------------------

Atlanta Thrashers - 4

Edmonton Oilers - 3

--------------------

BEERS

Sam Gagner - He was real good tonight. He seemed to be on his game tonight. He manages 5 shots and has an assist with a +1 rating. Gagner is a gamer. Well... a at the end of the season gamer. Either way it's working for him. Have a beer little dude. Cheers!

Patrick O'Sullivan - He scores his 1st goal as an Oiler and looks good doing it. He really seems t be fitting in better than Kotalik is. It shows, as MacT had him out for 19:39 of ice time.. He does need to create more. Maybe a shift or two with Hemmer would fix that? But, today he deserves a beer. Frosty? Cheers!

Shawn Horcoff - The man was good. He seemed to do everything right. And he scores a pretty nice goal. All that in 22:42 of ice time. The workhorse needs a cold beer? Cheers!

Honorable Mentions - Robert Nilsson (He played pretty good, scoring a goal and was +1. He wasn't a waste of a roster space tonight.), Ales Hemsky (He looked good and managed to pick up an assist.), Denis Grebeshkov (He sure has changed since we picked him up from the Islanders. I hope he stays.), Sheldon Souray (The man was a force. I love the way he plays.)

--------------------

JEERS

Smid/Strudwick Pairing - They were on the ice for the 1st two goals. Not the best way to start a game. For that alone you deserve a Booooooooooo!

Craig MacTavish - It's getting real hard to defend you anymore. Bench Penner? For what? It just seems that he makes judgement errors at every game now. My hands are up in the air because I have no idea what to thunk of him anymore. Boooooooooo!

The Entire Team - Last time I checked, 2 points were not being awarded for losing in OT. 2 points = Playoffs. It's time to win a few. Booooooooo!

--------------------

Can't believe that Sakic, err.. Marty Reasoner scores the overtime winner. Only one point again. What the hell man?!? One point.

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?

---------------

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!

-----------------------

Game Summary (CLICK HERE)

Stats Sheet (CLICK HERE)

-----------------------

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.)


-------------------

Final Score

Tampa Bay Lightning - 3

Edmonton Oilers - 5

-------------------


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.)

-----------------


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!

-----------------

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!!!

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?

--------------------

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...

-----------------------

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.

-----------------------

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!

-----------------------

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.

-----------------------

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...

Beers and Jeers #34 (Feb 17/09 vs. San Jose Sharks)

Well how is everyone tonight? Good, good. It's game day again. This time versus those damn Sharks. Why do they have to be so good in the regular season? (we all know they suck come playoff time) This is going to be a very hard game for the Oilers. Let's hope we ride the Rolitrain for another stop. Whoot. Whoooooot.

Erik Cole has been rumoured to be on his way out soon and that sucks. He fits well with Gagner and it's to bad that this season had to be so messed up for the Oil and him. If only Cole had a better experience here. He will be missed. Robin Brownlee wrote a good article about the destination of Cole. CLICK HERE

So I have a few questions to ask. Is tonight's game going to be that boring defensive game like yesterday? Is Hemsky going to razzle and dazzle tonight? Is Smid the next Pronger? Is Gagner going to fight another guy over six feet tall and 200 lbs? Is Roli finally going to score with his bat swing? Is this the last game for Reddox now that Jacques is ready to come back? Do the referee's have their glasses cleaned? Will Rob Brown ever finish off the hair plugs installation? Do we get the 6th point on this roadie? and finally... Is the sound going to cut in and out during the PPV broadcast again because I can not stand that?

---------------------

1st Period

The Oilers vs Sharks. Oh man. Are we ready for war? I am... I hope the Oil are? GAME ON!!! Just as the game starts the sounds starts to cut out again. *shakes head* And I pay for that. Anyways, the lines are the same as last night and we shall see how that works out. Well the first part of this period has been all Sharks. They are keeping the Oilers in their own zone. Geez... even their 3rd line is kicking our butt. (ROFL: the Ref fell and slid into Dan Boyle and they both go down.) Wow! The Sharks fire a puck from behind the net and Roli has to come up HUGE. Well Roli is ready to go tonight. That's a good sign because the players are a step behind so far in this game. With 9:00 minutes played, the 4th line and the 3nd line have had some good shifts but nothing really from the 1st line. At 10:08 they score!!! The San Jose Sharks that is. It was a good goal for them. High slot shot, glove high on Roli. 1-0 Sharks. It was a matter of time with the way they are playing. Come on Oilers... Yeah!!! Stortini now with a goal. Alright Storts! (at 12:18, Stortini from Brodziak and Gilbert) 1-1 tie game. Out of all the guys that should score the 1st goal, Storts would be my second to last pick. (he really is catching Gagner in goals) So I look at the shot count. All of he sudden the Oilers have some shots on the board. So now the Oil are back in this game. It took a while but they are here now. Gagner took a high stick to the nose and the refs glasses must have been foggy because he missed it. He was also 6 feet away. Soooo??? But the Oilers do get a diferent PP chance. And then the Oilers blast a puck in to the Shark zone and the puck takes a weird bounce and Erik Cole is in the right place at the right time and scores on the empty net. Yeah Cole! (at 19:08, Cole from Souray and Gilbert) 2-1 Oilers. The Sharks take another penalty and give the Oilers even more life. But the period is over and the Oilers are looking good. End of period score: 2-1 Oilers.

2nd Period

Let's start this one with a PP goal. Well that doesn't happen as the Sharks kill off the penalty. In fact they seem to gain a little momentum. Damn! The Sharks tie it up at 1:48. 2-2 Tie Game. Marleau with a nice shot, glove high on Roli. A few seconds later Pouliot takes a penalty. Sharks are on the hunt now. After a quick scramble in front of Roli, Souray takes exception on Michalek and gives him a hard left and sends him to the ground. Gotta love Souray. Next thing you know, San Jose takes 2 separate penalties and now it's 4 on 3 for the Oilers. Momentum keeps on swinging. Very exciting game tonight. Way different from yesterdays game. MacT calls a time out. Let's see what happens... Well the Oilers don't score with a 5 on 3, but San Jose does. What? yeah... Grier flies down and Marleau jumps out of the box and tic and toe it's in at 5:43. *shakes head* 3-2 Sharks. Well a may lay breaks out. Strudwick starts some shoving and tussling. Moreau is there tossing and tackling. And Theo Peckham was in there on the ground with Lemieux on top of him giving him the "I'm old and I deserve respect" shake. They work their way back up to their feet somehow and begin to talk. The next thing I know, Peckham throws a punch and he lands a few more on the old man. Then mocks the crap out of him and drives him mad. This could be a story a little later in the game for sure. THIS GAME IS GREAT! Roli makes a big save and another short skirmish happens. If I was a small guy in this game I would really be worried right about now. Staios takes a penalty for being too aggressive. And now Moreau takes a penalty. At least he took a guy with him. And now Horcoff takes a high sticking penalty. What's going on here? 5 on 3 for the Sharks. They kill off the Staios penalty, right on. And they also kill off the Horcoff penalty. Ok guys, let's try 5 on 5 for awhile. Now Moreau wants to fight again. It was not really much of a fight as they fell to the ground. He's gone for 5. The 4th line comes out now and Stortini fights big Semenov. Semenov lands a big uppercut and stuns Storts. Then Storts throws a few and they fall down. Holy cow! But the Sharks remember that this is more than the MMA on ice and score at 19:06. 4-2 Sharks. Well that is not how we want that period to end but at least we are going down swinging. So far the Oilers have 24 penalty minutes in the game. Oh. That was all in the 2nd. End of period score: 4-2 Sharks

3rd Period

Ding... Ding... Round 3. Well it looks like a hockey game broke out here. Decent flow to the 3rd. Back and forth action. I see Lemieux back out. I wonder if him and Peckham are going to get reacquainted? Well they are still playing hockey but nothing really to report. Chances we had by all and 10:00 minutes have been played. Awww crap. Horcoff takes a penalty. Let's go Oilers! They do it. Right on. A minute later 89/12/83 have a nice shift together. As the whistle blows Gagner gets a shove from Semenov. Gagner pushes back. Semenov pushes him again. Gagner sticks him in the middle area. Good thing that linesman came in between them. That's one big dude to fight. How can you not love Gagner? Well here we are now with 5:00 minutes to go and we are still down by two. Hemsky draws a penalty and it's PP time. This is when I miss #71 and #37. Staios on the PP is just never right. But the Oilers can't get much going and the game ends. That was a good game for the Oilers even though they lost. At least there was some fight to their game. We have been missing that for a long time. Welcome back.

----------------

Tonight's Starting Lines

Penner Horcoff Hemsky (They were not really that dominant. Penner was sort of lazy again. Horcoff was playing like a checker. Hemsky was strange tonight. He didn't suck... but he wasn't the same.)

Nilsson Gagner Cole (This line wasn't bad tonight. Nilsson was a little above average. Gagner took 8 shots with 4 hitting the net and played hard. Cole scored a lucky one and had 5 hits.)

Moreau Cogliano Pouliot (This was not much of a line. Moreau was good. Hitting and whacking anyone in site. Cogliano was riding the pine. Not sure why? only 7:58 of ice time. Pouliot is a head scratcher for me. Pisani can come back any day now...)

Stortini Brodziak Reddox (What a good line. They were causing greif all over the place. Stortini scores and fights. He just needed the assist. Brodziak was ok tonight. Reddox was not bad. I didn't yell at my TV because of him so that's good.)

-------------------------

FINAL SCORE

Edmonton Oilers - 2

San Jose Sharks - 4

-------------------------

BEERS

Tom Gilbert - Gilbert was very good tonight IMO. He didn't seem to have much faults in this game. Which is good because he has had some relapses lately. But tonight he picks up 2 more assists while logging 26:23 of ice time. He also managed 2 blocked shots and 2 takeaways. So for having a productive game... Have a frosty Gibby. Cheers!

Zack Stortini - Huggy Bear is on the loose. He tried his big thugery butt off tonight. He scored a goal that was instrumental to the Oilers in getting into the game. He had a fight with the big guy Semenov. He did what he could. And that's all that we can ask for. Miller time Storts? Cheers!

Ladislav Smid - Who would have guessed that Smid would be in a top 4 pairing and actually not look out of place? He was a very smart player tonight. He jumped up at the right times. He had 3 hits and the Spaz even managed to get in to the kerfuffles after the whistles. And he logged 18:48 in ice time. I think he deseves a beer. Cheers!

Honerable Mentions: Sheldon Souray (he was the workhorse again tonight. People worry about Roli and all the work. What about Souray? 29:10 of ice time.), Theo Peckham (He is starting to win my heart. I know that sounded gay, but he really is impressing me. He's tough and he doesn't seem to be scared of people.), Sam Gagner (even though he was -2, I thought that he was good. It's crazy to see how old he plays sometimes. Wait till he is older and how good he is going to be.)

------------------------

JEERS

38% team faceoff percentage - Booooooooooooo!

------------------------

Even though the Oilers lost, I thought that it was a good game for them. The answerd the bell for themselvees and for their team mates. It was good to see. But we still have 4 points out of 6 on this trip and that isn't so bad. I wonder if Roli is playing in Dallas on Thursday? Of course he will. We need the W.

So thanks for stopping by and reading the madness. We shall see you all next game. Until next time...

Beers and Jeers #33 (Feb 16/09 vs Phoenix Coyotes)

Well not much has changed since the last game. Everyone is healthy and ready to play so that means the lines will not change. It looks like Roli is going to get the start tonight. I wonder if he is going to play in both games? Hardcore if he is. Before this game starts, the Oilers are sitting in 9th with 60 pts. Vancouver is in 5th with 62 pts. So this game is important that we pick up these 2 pts.

------------------------

1st Period

The Oilers start the game off well. Good jump to their step. The 1st 5:00 minutes flew by like nothing. No real chances for either side other than the first few quick shots by the Oil. But good flow. At 5:58, Souray takes a penalty and the Coyotes are on the PP. Good thing the Oilers kill that off with no real good chances by the Coyotes. This is one of those periods that the time is going quick and the action is plenty, but no real big chances yet which makes it kind of boring and there is 8:15 left. It gets hard to describe a period when the play is like this. I mean come on... I want to boo something. Or cheer. Shots are 11 for Phx, and 7 for Edm. Ok... speaking of action. The Oilers get some PP time. Let's hope for a quick goal here. Well, Bobby Nilsson gets a nice breakaway chance. But can't score. Nice try though, very exciting. If someone can throw a big hit, the momentum will swing in their favour. The 4th line comes out and lays out some hits but not quite the "big one". So far this period all the lines have been good. All steady and stable. Then near the end of the period Jokinen throws a puck to the net and it bounces off of Souray towards the net. Roli had to be sharp and stick out the big toe to make a fantastic save. Yay Roli! So that is the end of the 1st period and the score is 0-0. The shots are also tied at 13 a piece. Let's hope the Oilers get fired up during the intermission. End of period score: 0-0 Tie Game

2nd Period

Well the Oilers look like they want to have a better period. The #1 and #2 lines came out with some quick chances. Even Penner tried to "stick handle in a phone booth". Well that's what Kevin Quinn said anyways. There has been good flow to this game. No one has stood out as 1st star yet (other than Roli), and I think something is going to have to give. Over at OilersNation I predicted 6-1 Oilers. And so far that is not happening. At the halfway mark the shots are 2 for the Oilers and 1 for the Coyotes. I am not sure why everyone looks for the pass and not the shot? Well Nilsson gets another breakaway chance. No goal again. But right after that Peckham has words with Goertzen because he ran into Roli. Next thing you know, Peckham is putting up the dukes. Good fight. Kind of a draw. But Goertzen ends up getting a penalty for the Roli run and sits for another 5 for fighting Peckham. PP Oilers. Good momentum changer. The Kid line has a great shift together but Phx kills it off. A little while later Phx takes another penalty. Another chance for the Oilers. Penner picks up the puck in the right corner and he brings it out to the front of the net. He shoots... rebound. Hemsky scores! (Hemsky from Penner and Horcoff) 1-0 Oilers. But at 16:48, Nilsson gets another chance to score but decides to grab a stick in the corner and takes a penalty. Damn! That's not all... at 17:23, Moreau takes another bad timing penalty and puts the Oilers down to 5 on 3. But the Oilers kill both penalties off and that is nothing short of amazing. But Ethan Moreau takes another penalty at 19:48 and gives more chances for Phoenix to score. And they do with 2.6 seconds left in the period. 1-1 Tie. All that hard work for nothing. But as the whistle blows, Stortini gets into it (14th of the year) with Fedoruk. Nothing really happens but a few punches are thrown. Fedoruk falls and Storts wants to crank him but doesn't. End of period score: 1-1 Tie Game

3rd Period

So here we are tied and ready for some action. Souray takes the 1st shot of the period right off the hop. Hey, that's a good way to start. Chopper tries a wrap around and almost scores. A few shifts later MacT sends out 18, 51, and 85. This line gives Phx some serious pressure. A couple of chances but they don't come out with a goal. Oh! Coyotes take a penalty. Oilers have a bit of momentum and a good chance here to get up by one with the man advantage. Yes! Souray with the bomb from the blue line. Oh yeah... 2-1 Oilers. (at 5:33, Souray from Hemsky from Gilbert) Well now we will have to see how the Oilers respond to the lead change. Phoenix battles hard with the Oil for the next while until Penner takes a penalty at 12:06. Phx should have been called just before that as Hemsky was high sticked, but it was missed by the refs. During the PP the Coyotes crash the net and Souray flips and starts swinging. Amazingly, he doesn't get a penalty. Roli makes some great saves and seems to be one of the best Oilers once again. The excitement level is rising in this game now that there is only 5:00 left. The 2nd line comes out firing on all 8 cylinders. Then Smid with his head down gets hammered by Goertzen in front of the Oilers net. Ouch! Now here is Phx with a little momentum. Roli has to come up with a huge save to save the score from being tied again. Then some smack talk happens and a kerfuffle happens. Souray wants to kill. Hemsky is swearing at people. Penner is grabbing people. But nothing happens. So now that the intensity level is flying high (quite the change from the 1st) Gilbert tries to chip the puck out and does just that. Out and over the glass. PP for Phx. Damn! During the PK, Souray fires three times at the empty net but misses. That's ok. As long as it's not in our net. With Gilbert coming out of the box, Horcoff picks up the loose puck and shoots it in the empty net at 19:36. 3-1 Oilers. Awesome! (Horcoff from Gilbert) That will be the game folks and now we are sitting in 6th place with 62 pts. Wooooooo! 4 out of 4 points so far on this roadie. Nice job Oilers! MacT for Mayor? Just sayin'...

----------------------

Tonight's Starting Lines

Penner Horcoff Hemsky (This line was good tonight. Penner didn't look lazy. Horcoff was earning his money. Hemsky was Hemsky but without the flashy moves)

Nilsson Gagner Cole (This line was also good tonight. Nilsson was fast and on his game. Gagner is becoming the next Hemsky... but better. Cole was pretty effective in all situations.)

Moreau Cogliano Pouliot (This line was kind of not noticeable. That's a good thing if you are a defenseman but this is the 3rd line and that's not good. Moreau took a couple of penalties that killed momentum. Cogliano only looked great when he was with the Kid Line on the PP. Poliuot is the week link here. Reddox would fit better.)

Stortini Brodziak Reddox (The 4th line was trying to be destructive tonight. But this line isn't really a game changing line. Unless of course it's with a big hit or a big fight, and that didn't really happen)

----------------------

FINAL SCORE

Edmonton Oilers - 3

Phoenix Coyotes - 1

-----------------------

BEERS

Dwayne Roloson - He was solid tonight. He looks to be in top form which is great if your an Oiler fan. He sure has put the naysayers to rest since the Garon trade. Good for him. I couldn't imagine being told that you suck every other day and still show up for work. But he is a gamer and he wants to play. So for another stand up game... have a frosty one Roli. Cheers!

Sheldon Souray - This guy was a workhorse toonight. 26:35 of ice time is a lot for a guy that didn't have to play that much a week ago. But he is showing us why we paid him so much to come here. He did everything right tonight. He kicked the crap out of net crashers and jerks. He scored with his big bomb (6 shots). He combed his hair in between periods to look good for the ladies. He is awesome! Have a nice cold one Souray. You're probably thirsty. Cheers!

Ales Hemsky - He was pretty good today. Not the flashy Hemsky that we are use to. But the useful Hemsky that gets things done even when it looks like he's not trying. He had a goal and an assist tonight, and that's about it (according to the stat sheet). But he had good vision and controlled the puck very well. I think that Hemmer deserves a beer. Cheers!

Honerable Mention - Steve Staios (he did well considering he played 25:57. That's a ton of ice for guy that was lucky to break a sweat most games), Shawn Horcoff (he sure earned his $$$ today. He was stellar all game. 2 Points), Sam Gagner (the little dude was good.), Robert Nilsson (had some great chances but couldn't convert), Tom Gilbert (he had 2 assists but was shakey at times.)

-------------------

JEERS

I really don't have any. Well other than the usual shoddy reffing. But what good is that to complain about? They don't care.

-------------------

Well that game started out good, but boring. Then the second period was the same, but a little better. It wasn't untill the 3rd, when the intensity and the action went up a few notches. The next game is tomorow at 8 pm. PPV game. And it's against the San Jose Sharks. This is going to be a tough game. Hopefully we ride the Rolitrain to another win. See you all next time...

Beers and Jeers #32 (Feb 14/09 vs. Los Angeles Kings)

Well what a nice day for a hockey game. Beautiful skies and love is in the air. Cuddling with your loved ones sitting on the couch. Awwww.... how nice.

However the Oilers need to not worry about love. They need to hate. Hate the Kings like they are the Flames. Hate them like it's game 7 of the SCF. Hate them like it's their abusive step daddy. Yes the team needs to get fired up for this one. The Kings seem to be hot lately and the Oilers need to get off to a good start on this 4 game roadie. Time to put a string of wins together. Time to get playoff ready.

-----------------------

On a side note, Theo Peckham has been recalled and will play tonight. Denis Grebeshkov will be out for 4 to 6 weeks. That sucks. Expect Smid to excel now.

-----------------------

1st Period

The game gets off to a good start. Fast pace. In the first minute and a half, Souray bombs one off the Kings post and nearly scores. Then L.A. has some real good opportunities on Roli. But Roli seems up for the task today. I just hope they can piss him off somehow. Then at 4:58, Hemsky tries to make a pass to Horcoff. He misses it and Penner bangs it in for the goal. Wicked! 1-0 Oilers. Off to a good start. Shortly after that the Kings #1 line puts tons of pressure on the Oilers. They get some really good chances but once again Roli comes up huge. The play continues to be fast and furious. At 13:11, the Oilers on the PP, Hemsky makes a nice pass to Penner in front of the net. Instead of shooting a backhand shot, he keeps passing it to Horcoff. He shoots and scores. 2-0 Oilers. Yeah. Then the rough stuff starts. After it's all over Horcoff goes to the box. What? A goal AND a penalty. Strange. But the action is just going to get better from here on out. Oh... and it does. At 15:08 more rough stuff begins and next thing Gagner and Jack Johnson are fighting. Yeah that's right. Gagner. He starts off not too bad but ends up getting worked over a little. But who freaking cares!!! That takes balls. Sam Gagner is moving up in my books. Maybe instead of a beer he gets an ice pack. So with that done you would have to expect a heavyweight fight soon. 17:20 Stortini and Ivanans. Good tilt. Stortini sure has improved his fighting skills. No more Huggy Bear. Thank god. At least now he is scary. Storts gets some high fives from the boys on the way to the dressing room. The game is getting intense now. Near the end of the period Souray tries to get Dustin Brown to go. Brown is a chicken turd and refuses. I mean really.... I wouldn't want to be one punched by Souray. Would you? Great period by the Oilers. The fans should be happy with that. I am. End of period score: 2-0 Oilers

2nd Period

This period should be as intense as the last. The Kings start out with some good pressure and the Oilers take a penalty. During the PK, the Oilers take another penalty. Oh crap! So with Peckham and Staios sitting in the box, Roli comes up huge, but L.A. eventually scores. Damn. 2-1 Oilers. But the Oilers kill off the last penalty and now it's time for retribution. The 27/10/83 are really dynamite so far this game. It's great to see. I was getting worried about Hemsky, but he is looking good now. I can see now why this L.A. squad is on such a roll. They are really good. Really fast. Very similar to the Oilers. Ok... At 10:59 the Kings take a penalty. Time to make a move Oil. Time to go. The 1st line gets some great chances but can't score. The kid line comes out and they can't score either. However, Smid shoots the puck over the glass and sits for 2. But Roli is still on a roll and they kill it off. 23 to 7 are the shots for L.A. at the 3:30 mark of the 2nd. Wow! I guess it would be safe to say that the Kings won this period. End of period score: 2-1 Oilers

3rd Period

Well I love it when the Oilers are riding the wave to a win. But this wave is rough. This period has started off hard hitting and spirited much like the other two periods. PP time for the Oilers. But no goals again. At 7:18 L.A. takes a penalty. Just as the Oilers are trying to get it out of the zone, Tom Gilbert gives away the puck at the blue line and sends the King player on a break away and Roli was blessed by the post gods. Thank you post gods. There sure have been some huge hits in this game. Dustin Brown levels Smid and a few seconds later (13:22) Moreau absolutely nails Brown. Helmet and gloves go flying and so does Dustin. Haha! Chopper manages a penalty for fighting Matt Greene, but oh well. Point taken huh Brown? The game play is really good this game. The pace hasn't slowed all game. All the lines are playing well and this is a good start to the 4 game roadie. More massive hits and a penalty by Cogs has been making this final few minutes really exciting. Can we hold them off? Can we score another? Let's go Oilers! L.A. net is empty... 6 on 4 PP for the Kings. What kind of Ref calls an intentional offside with 30 seconds left? I'll tell you. A MORON! Faceoff in the Oilers zone. L.A. scores. Geez... 2-2 tie game. I can't believe that. Why would Horcoff want to be offside. The net was empty. *shakes head*

Overtime

This game should be over, but it's not. But the Oilers do get a point this game so that's good. *plays the Jefferson's Theme Song. Movin' on up!* So here we go. Let's win this Oilers. The action continues to be the same as what we have already seen. Like I said earlier these Kings are a good team. But the overtime solves nothing with both teams trying hard in the OT period. Off to the Shootout.

Shootout

Sam Gagner - He goes to the right, cuts back in and shoots it glove high and scores.

Robert Nilsson - Goes wide as well and just as he cuts to the left he stops and sneaks it in on the right along the ice. Scores! Game over. Wooooooooo....

Ales Hemsky - did not shoot.

-----------------------

Today's Starting Lineup

Penner Horcoff Hemsky (The best Oiler line. They all played well together)

Nilsson Gagner Cole (This line was pretty solid as well. Cole was still not quite himself)

Moreau Cogliano Pouliot (Pretty decent 3rd line. Had big hits and they were fast.)

Stortini Brodziak Reddox (Not really a line that stayed together much. But were effective when they were.)

-----------------------

Final Score

Edmonton Oilers - 3

Los Angeles Kings - 2

-----------------------

BEERS

Sam Gagner - I thought that Gags was really good today. He made a few mistakes but his fight was instrumental in getting the team fired up. He takes a beating all game and still comes back for more. Then he gets picked for the shootout. And scores the winner. Nice Sam. You deserve a beer. Cheers!

Ales Hemsky - I thought that the real Hemsky was here at this game today. He played pretty good offensively and a real decent defensive game. He was a huge factor for this team to win today. He deserves a nice cold one. Cheers!

Dwayne Roloson - Roli the goalie was stellar once again today. He has really taken this team on his shoulders and really ran with it since the Garon trade. He seems to be in the best mental and physical shape since the '06 run. Vintage Roli today. Enjoy a frosty Roli. Good game. Cheers!

Honorable Mention: Shawn Horcoff (my whipping boy was excellent today. His play was real solid.), Sheldon Souray (he was the mean tough guy that we have grown to love. He can shoot and kick you ass. Nice.), Ethan Moreau (absolutely killed Dustin Brown with that hit in the 3rd.), Dustin Penner (a solid game from Penner)

-----------------------

JEERS

The Ref that called the Intentional Offside on Horcoff - MORON! Who wants an offside call when the goalie is pulled and you can score on an empty net? Boooooooooooo!

Tom Gilbert - His giveaway was almost a game killer. He seemed to fumble the puck at our blue line quite a bit today. He needs to be better with the two guys out. Booooooooooooo!

-----------------------

Well that was a fun game to watch. On one hand I like afternoon games. But on the other I hate it because now I have to watch some other crap teams play on HNIC tonight and not the Oilers. Oh well. There is always alcohol. And it's Valentines day so I am sure some people are getting lucky tonight.

Next game is Monday @ 7:30 vs Pheonix. This should be a "W". See you then...

GO OILERS!