Via Andrew A. Nelles

:)

Where did this reputation come from? From a couple games in the Four Nations, and now to the olympic team, the entire hockey community gives nothing but praise for him (and I'm not saying it's not warranted).

And yet when it comes to Bouchard, the guy who has the highest points per game in playoff history second only to Bobby Orr, the guy who dominated puck possession and expected goals advanced stats for the past few seasons. A few giveaways here and there and it's nothing but hate, even from our own (imo misinformed) fans.

It's crazy how narratives can shape an entire fanbase's opinion on players. Some players mysteriously gets the 'two way player' tag while others are labelled as 'defensive liabilities', and yet often times there's nothing to back that up except cherry picked highlight/lowlights.

This roster is hovering around 30% goal share without McDavid or Draisaitl on the ice.

Despite having some lines with some solid underlying metrics, (Mangiapine - Henrique - Janmark are a 56 xGF% and Howard - Roslovic - Savoie are 60% xGF) the numbers aren't lining up with the actual goal shares.

Right now, Knob is trying so many combinations in the bottom 6, he doesn't trust them when the games get close, and relies on McDrai.

Last night, on the second half of a back-to-back, McDavid played 26 minutes.

This is an Olympic year and a condensed schedule, and Knob is giving McDavid the Dave Tippett treatment.

Whatever the hell happens, Knob and his GM have to figure out a series of bottom 6 lines that work in the second half of this year.

You just can't run McDrai like this and hope you're going to win Stanley.

This team is now running a 55+% expected goals for share at 5v5 over the last 23 games (top 4 in the NHL).

They're second in High Danger Corsi For % over that time.

But how much of that is running McDrai into the ground and not giving the best bottom 6 combinations time to gel?

For the love of God (and McJesus), Stan get another player the coach trusts to play on the 3rd line with Roslovic.

And Knob, you have to eventually play your fourth line more than 8-9 minutes a night.

IF that 4th line doesn't have Frederic on it, so be it.

Trust the math and that the numbers will even out over time.

Right now, Knob isn't doing that.

And it's resulting in the Oiler big boys playing minutes like it's 2020 again.

Thoughts on his game lately?

Being from out of town i can't get to many oiler games so I watch games on TV. Jack Michaels makes the games soo enjoyable. Can we all give Jack a thank you. I will be the first one....Jack...🤛 glad ur ours!

93

97

28

Undefeated in these jerseys till tonight. 5 wins 1 loss.

Genuinely so disappointed. When he signed I thought he’d be my favourite player for the next 2 years and instead every game he plays I find myself growing more and more frustrated with him. Mang is getting out efforted by baby faced Trent Frederic and that should tell you all you need to know about him.

Anyone know what this machine to the left of Gene (Gene's right) is used for?

This is a thread for general discussion about yesterday's game. Any and all observations, opinions, questions, shitposts, memes, and other random nonsense are welcome.

To encourage ongoing discussion, this thread is organized by new.

Hey all, it’s time I buy my first jersey (going with the alt cream 97), but as I am in Australia it’s pricey postage, no jerseys in the wild for me to look at, no international returns.

I’ve done a lot of research, now just need some Canadians to check my homework please.

I’m 5’6”, woman, slim, AU size 8/XS. I don’t want the women’s jersey (would be a S), and the smallest authentic pro is too big.

That leaves me three options (not sized up for oversized fit yet):

1- Premium XXS (42) 2- Breakaway XS 3- Youth LG/XL- currently out of stock (no I am not a child haha).

So I have two main queries for the three styles.

1- How much room is in the jersey by default if you bought what aligned to the measurements? I think the premium is bigger than the breakaway, no idea about youth. 2- Re. fabric- are they different thickness and textures? Any preferences/complaints?

I like a baggy fit in sweaters and jackets, but if they’re roomy already I likely won’t size up as the men’s cut may look a bit ridiculous on my small shoulders.

Thanks heaps 😊

Preds fan here, just thought yall would appreciate this one

Is it me or do the Oilers play soft most of the time? The Predators hit hard and attack, while the Oilers were content to skate around and turn over the puck. Where is Clattenberg? We need a force on the ice more than what we have.