Monday Monday

As far as I'm concerned, unless the Oilers get hit with the flu starin that hasn't been spreading around the room in the meantime, Monday against the Islanders should see the Oilers nearly up to snuff. Tired, weaker, leaner, but willing to kick some tail. If they end up winning one of the games before then, it would have to be considered a major moral victory IMO.

What I've gathered from the last 2-3 games, our "bigger guys" not named Smid have been sucking wind out there, Penner and Jacques have not looked the same and sometimes big guys get hit harder with these types of bugs as they need more air to get those big bodies moving at high speeds. Brule hasn't looked nearly as fast either and the speed game is a major part of what made him a very effective player pre-flu.

Hopefully by Monday Lubo will be feeling better, unfortunately I have to play the part of pessimist as Lubo has been paired up with Smid and has been closer to him on the ice than most other Oilers. Let's hope that Lubo doesn't have H1N1 and that if he does it doesn't hit him harder than it hit Smid and that he's the last Oiler to get it.

The Oilers need to get well so that once they finally kick the flu bug, they can get back to playing like they did before the flu sidetracked them. The team isn't playing uninspired hockey, they are playing energy lacking hockey. Basically it takes the flu for the Pat Quinn Oilers to look as pathetic as the Mactavish Oilers. Better times are around the corner once the flu goes away. That'll be a matter of weeks, the last virus that the Oilers had took 8 years to get rid of.

Checking Up On My Pre Season Expectations Of MPS and Anton Lander

Prior to the start of the season I put my hopeful expectations of our top 2 draft picks from the '09 draft on here, let's see where they are at in relation to where I had hoped that the Timra teens would be come years end statistically.

MPS
My preseason hopes:
53gp. 12-18-30

Current stats:
12gp. 5-4-9

Projected over 53 games:
23-18-41

+11 goals and +11 points over what I would consider to be a successful season for MPS. I must say the fact that he is lighting the lamp with such regularity after having his goalscoring ability questioned to no end prior to the draft is a huge relief. MPS is on target to have a Backstrom-esque 18 year old season although he'd be lower in terms of points per game and assists while scoring a lot more goals.

Anton Lander
My preseason hopes:
51gp. 6-9-15

Current stats:
12gp. 1-1-2

Projected over 51 games:
4-4-8

-2 goals, -5 assists, and -7 points from my estimation of what would be seen as a successful season from Lander. Unlike MPS, Lander is under producing and would actually be on the score sheet less than he was last season. Lander needs to step it up offensively. He was not drafted as an offensive player like MPS was, but like Shawn Horcoff, Lander is expected to add some offensive pop along with his defensive play.

Time For A Reality Check For Some Fans

If you don't think that Horcoff has sucked, that the Oilers flu and injury woes haven't been the biggest factor in stopping the Oilers surge out of the gate this season, and if you think that the new coaching staff is at best equal to the MacT era. Get some smelling salts, brew some coffee, take a gulp of whiskey, and put your tongue on a bare wire plugged into a 110 volt outlet if the first three remedies didn't work.

The message? Wake the hell up and welcome to reality. And oh yeah, Dustin Penner is our best player followed by Lubo and Khabibulin. All 3 have been superb as has Smid. This team misses Souray's presence on the blueline and Strudwick's ass off the ice. 2 of our best players this season are guys that were crapped on by our former coach, so if you think that either Penner or Smid would be having the same success with the worlds largest fly trap agape on the bench instead of Quinn and Renney, lick that bare wire again.

In the meantime this team needs to weather the storm as best they can, get healthy again and get back to banging bodies and skating with speed. The funny thing about all of this is that for this years Oilers to look as bad as last years version they needed injuries and the flu bug. Last years team just needed to hear MacT's motivational speeches (which probably were as helpful as being awakened by the joyous sounds of alley cats in love at 3AM after working a 12 hour day). But hey, the record at this point is the same so all is equal right? If you believe that, take your right hand, grab the back of your neck, bend over as far as you can, and insert your head directly into your ass. That seems to be how you like to watch your games so the position is likely a favorite of yours.

The sky isn't falling and this sure as hell isn't the same team that we've had the last 8 seasons prior to this one. The players maybe the same for the most part, but the team is far from the same.

Ryan Stone, A VERY Poor Mans Darcy Tucker, Tucker Ruled As A Leaf!

Ryan Stone likes going for the big hit, likes getting under the oppositions skin, can play the PK, and has decent hands for a pest. Like I said in the thread title, he's no Darcy Tucker but he brings an element that the Edmonton Oilers have missed for some time, a guy that can take the oppositions top players into a very unhappy place.

A bottom 6 with Stone, Jacques, and Stortini in it won't win the Oilers too many popularity contests around the league, all 3 are willing and able to dish out physical punishment to varying degrees. These 3 are all young, relatively inexpensive, and have offensive upside (again to varying degrees).

Pat Quinn has transformed the Oilers from a team that was perceived to be a bunch on wimps minus a select few players, to a team that is ready, willing, and able to initiate a bloody battle on the ice. It is amazing what a new approach and a few new additions can do. Quinn seems to encourage momentum changing physical play. The Oilers are just lacking Theo Peckham on the blueline to complete the metamorphosis into a team full of junkyard dogs ready to rip a chunk out of trespassers asses and legs if they as much as see them look at the fence.

The Oilers once again are not a team that opposing teams would look forward to facing in the post season, because once again, win or lose, the Oilers will leave their mark on their team. The Oilers need to make sure that Stone remains with the team when the injury bug gets fumigated. Also of note, the Oilers have been the physical aggressors without big Steve MacIntyre on the ice or his predecessor Georges Laraque. The Oilers have enough beef in their lineup and enough willing combatants that the aggressive mentality has spilled over to the smaller guys on the club.

Also of note, this years club seems more willing to stand tall alongside each other, for the first time in quite some time, the Oilers are becoming a TEAM instead of a team of individuals.

But they still suck crap compared to my beloved Maple Leafs.

GO LEAFS GO!