Penner Could Still Thrive Here

This guy gets the short end of the stick from the coach, fans, and the media. It's a common practice for people to take shots at those that appear bigger or stronger than them because if they can get away with it, it makes them feel better about themselves. Penner is getting fed up with it, you can see it when he's interviewed, and he's at a breaking point.

I hear people saying that he's happy as can be because his wallet is as fat as fans and media would like you to think that he is. This is a guy that was thrown to the wolves last year, big new contract, picks on the line, and the perceived replacement of long time fan favorite Ryan Smyth.

This season he was left for dead to start the year, from 1st line to 3rd and minimal PP time despite the fact that his big body presence improves the Oilers PP. A nagging knee injury has hampered him all season long. In the preseason he looked like a different player, speedier, and overall very effective.

IMO the injury as well as a back injury early in the year have limited his effectiveness. On top of it, the Oilers coach, fans, and media aren't willing to give him any slack what so ever. For Dustin Penner this season cannot end soon enough and he maybe at the point of no return.

Penner may never become a crash and bang kind of a guy on a regular basis, but he could still be an effective player. A change in coach would go a long way to mending Penner's relationship with Oilers nation. This player and Craig Mactavish simply cannot co-exist beyond this season. The cuts are too deep and there is obviously no love loss between the two.

As a matter of fact, if we were to hear about a player and coach getting into a physical fight behind closed doors, my money would be on these two being involved. My fear is that we will once again lose a key role player with a good upside because he didn't belong to club Mactavish.

A fresh start under a new coach, and a summer of healing could finally allow Edmonton a chance to see what Kevin Lowe and myself saw in Dustin Penner before the RFA offer sheet. A big player that is effective in front of the net and be a 30+ goal scorer while being a major contributor on the PP.

Too Much Expected of Penner

I can understand the teams frustration with his lack 0f progression to date and his inconsistency. HOWEVER it's not as if they didn't know what they were getting when they signed the undrafted and broad shouldered winger.

He was an inconsistent big body to play in front of the net for the Ducks and was an excellent 3rd wheel on the Getzlaf and Perry line at times. However in Edmonton, he is expected to be the 2nd wheel since on the top line Shawn Horcoff is also a guy that should be the 3rd wheel on a good 1st line.

The Oilers front office felt compelled to do something in the wake of the Ryan Smyth trade and their horrendous final 20 games after the deal. Instead of simply going into a short rebuild Lowe gambled and signed Souray, dealt Lupul and Jason Smith for Joni Pitkanen, and then he started to push the envelope by trying to poach RFA's.

I was actually for the Penner signing, however one has to keep in mind that a player could simply peak at a young age. It is a possibility and happens every year. Penner has had all of the pressure put on him and hasn't upped his game as people had hoped.

While I still believe that he will get better as a player, the question stands, is he a $4.25 million player now? Not likely. But Lowe mentioned when he was signed that he was paying for potential, so what was his plan if the potential was never realized? Allow the coach to further devalue the asset that he gave up a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd round pick as well as a 5 year deal worth $4.25 million per for?

It must also be understood that the Oilers management felt that coach MacTavish would mold him into what they anticipated him to be at his current contract. That has failed to date, yet the player bares all of the criticism while the former GM and the coach are made to look like victims.

Fact of the matter is that at the moment Penner would be a better fit for a 2nd line role or maybe even a 3rd line role if we had enough talent to support his offensive ability in that role.

This team has a bad habit of overpaying players relative to their past performance. It also has a bad track record of under performing players. Some of the blame lies at the feet of Mr. Penner, but as far as I'm concerned there's plenty enough blame to go around.

It maybe time to revamp the lines and let Penner play out of his slump.

Nilsson-Horcoff-Hemsky
Potulny-Gagner-Cole
Penner-Cogliano-Pouliot
Moreau-Brodziak-Stortini/Reddox

The Big Man is Back in Business!

4gp. 2-2-4 +2 since his return to the Oilers lineup in the injury absence of Fernando Pisani. Penner has displayed the skill that made him a coveted RFA by former Oilers GM Kevin Lowe. Soft hands, big body, and a knack of scoring around the net. Penner is a rare player that can help a team greatly offensively without registering a point. His size and strength makes him a formidable force in front of the net on the PP, when he combines that with taking the puck to the net, the guy is a dominant offensive force.

A favorite whipping boy of many because of his overweight appearance, Dustin Penner has no more of a motivation issue than most of the Oilers do. When he was called on his lapse play, he made it a point to come out and play hard and make things happen. While he maybe a little overweight, that is acceptable as long as he busts his tail on the ice. I don't ever see a 220lb. Dustin Penner out there on the ice for us. However if he will be a 240+ lb. guy for us he has to play like it and use that extra mass to his and the teams advantage. Right now he is doing just that.

It doesn't hurt that he's right back where he belongs, on the top line and in front of the net on the PP.

Penner Gets Singled Out and Trashed

Coach Craig Mactavish lambasted Dustin Penner today. He called out Penner for his complacency, his lack of fitness, his lack of consistency, his lack of "jam", and in essence told Penner that until something changes he's out of the lineup.

Penner had a solid preseason and IMO was solid until about the 3rd game of the season. I had heard on a telecast that Penner had back issues. I am unsure if the injury has been lingering, or if Penner is 100% healthy. I would hope that he is 100% healthy or else the coaches blasting of said player is unwarranted.

Penner has been playing poorly for much of this season, there is no disputing this, however could he really be playing THAT bad if he was 100% healthy? If he is healthy, he should be ashamed of himself for the effort that he has been putting forth.

However I must add to this that other players have given similarly poor efforts, players like Shawn Horcoff for example up until recently. While others have played hard but gotten minimal accomplishments, players like Erik Cole.

I also have to wonder if Mactavish is starting to see the writing on the wall that his job is on the line. Perhaps he's just trying to throw underachieving players under the bus to make himself look like a victim of a bad crop of players while trying to salvage his job.

Dustin Penner in his current form is an untradeable asset, if he is healthy and this is how he plays when healthy, he belongs on the 3rd or 4th line in the AHL. I however don't buy this. Penner, Nilsson, Garon, how many other players is our coach tearing into not named Horcoff, Cole, Gilbert, Grebeshkov, Roloson, etc.?

It seems to me that the players have had it with MacT's damning sermons. These could be the end of days for the helmetless one.

Improperly Utilized

Dustin Penner is a big man that casts a large shadow on opposing goaltenders. He isn't a sniper, he isn't an incredible playmaker, he isn't a prolific hitter, but he is a useful player when properly utilized.

What Penner is at this point in his career is a respectable defensive player who can do damage against opposing teams 2nd and 3rd defensive pairings at even strength, and against anyone on the PP.

Make no mistake about it, this guy was and is Ryan Smyth's replacement. We should start thinking of him as such. A guy for the front of the net who is a specialist. He can play on any line, but unless it is with players who can cycle well and shoot the puck with him wreaking havoc in front of it, we will be wasting our teams 3rd highest paid player in a less than ideal situation.

He does well with Horcoff, but not Hemsky. And it could also be said that he doesn't play too well with any 2 of Nilsson, Gagner, and Cogliano. So what do you do? You have a guy that makes $4.25 million and is signed for 3 more seasons after this one. IMO you change the teams way of thinking. Horcoff and Hemsky maybe better off on separate lines. Either that or it's time to get some skill playing with Penner in a lesser role.

Here are a few options...

#1-Separate Horcoff and Hemsky

Penner-Horcoff-Cole
Nilsson-Cogliano-Hemsky
Moreau-Pouliot-Pisani
MacIntyre-Brodziak-Gagner

#2-Bring in more skill to roll with 3 true scoring lines and a checking line

Nilsson-Horcoff-Hemsky
Penner-Cogliano-Cole
Moreau-Pouliot-Pisani
Schremp-Brodziak-Gagner

#3-Drop him onto a line with less responsibility

Nilsson-Horcoff-Hemsky
Schremp-Cogliano-Cole
Moreau-Pouliot-Pisani
Penner-Brodziak-Gagner


The bottom line is that we are wasting at least 1 players talent every time that Stortini and MacIntyre suit up, or even if just 1 of them suits up.

A Dustin Penner that pots 20+ goals from the bottom 6 would greatly improve the Oilers. Why fight the abundance of skill and try to turn offensive players into checkers? This is a player that 2 seasons ago had 20 even strength goals for Anaheim. Simply add more offensive players to get that kind of production out of him again. I can think of a few guys on the farm that would be chomping at the bit to play in an offensive role in the NHL.