Wednesday's With Austyn

Hello Oilers fans, let me preface my first article here on BleedingOil with a little background information about me. My name is Austyn Luberda, a recent Bachelor of Arts graduate from the University of Alberta. I am a Vancouver Canucks fan turned Oiler fan mostly, in part to the rabid oilers fans that are around me in my everyday life (aka Jayson). For the past 4 years I have been loyal to the oil and my casual fandom has gradually become more intense and passionate as the years have passed. I now am titillated with excitement every Oilers gameday and it consumes 50% of my thoughts on that particular day.

Now, let's dive into how these weekly blogs will work. Each week I will write about 3 things that have stood out to me throughout watching the Edmonton Oilers play hockey. This can vary anywhere from a specific player, a prospect, a lineup combination really, whatever I feel about writing about whether it be positive or negative. In addition to these three things I will conclude with my Hump Day Hyperbole. You will get a feel for this when we get to this week's hyperbolic statement.

Let’s slide over to what has stood out to me the most thus far.

Dave Tippett’s Lineup Combinations

Are we sure he knows what he’s doing? I do not paint myself to be an expert and this may just be recency bias but, what the puck are these lineup combinations! Dave Tippett has done a poor job at reading the room and tinkering with the lineup.

Let’s take a closer look at yesterday’s decision to tweak the lines heading into a game against the Winnipeg Jets. Koekkoek has been arguably the best defensemen that the Oilers have played this season and the decision to scratch him for Caleb Jones made very little sense. It is even more of a head scratcher when you have Kris Russell right there! Just scratch Russell…. That is always the answer. Secondly, the decision to keep Larsson in the lineup was a choice. We will dive deeper into Larsson a little later.

Tippetts bizarre lineup tweaks can be perfectly summed up with the fourth line that the Oilers rolled out for yesterday’s game. That line consisted of Archibald, Khaira, and P. Russell. This might be the most confusing line I’ve ever seen. Josh Archibald has absolutely earned his way into the lineup but, the decision to play him on his weak side is not the right choice especially when you have two capable LW’s that are not dressed. This brings us to the main issue and that is choosing to play P. Russell at all. I do not care that he has been “the best player on the taxi squad” he is not an NHL caliber player and has no business getting any ice time especially over Nygård and Ennis. Finally, Jujar Khaira has demonstrated that he does not have the drive to be an NHL player beyond this season and is quite possibly the worst 5 on 5 player in the entire league. Haas cannot get healthy fast enough.

Accountability (or lack thereof)

It is quite clear that some Oiler players have a shorter leash than others. However, there are some skaters that quite simply aren’t held accountable for their poor effort and constant errors on the ice. There are two players who stand out above the rest for their poor play on the ice. Can you guess the two Oilers I am going to name? Hint: one got an unjustified large and lengthy contract midway through last season and the other we traded a former first overall pick for.

If you guessed Zach Kassian and Adam Larsson you are correct!

First up Zach Kassian, I don't even know what to say about him. He has stated that without fans it is hard to get himself motivated however, I struggle with the use of this excuse because everybody is dealing with this same issue and it clearly hasn’t been an issue for other energy guys. Look at Josh Archibald, he is constantly making his presence felt on the ice, he is third in the league in hits and is making sure the other team is aware of his presence. Kassian just continues to be a disappointment. I had a conversation with a friend that said “the Oilers organization wants Kassian to be to McDavid what Kunitz was to Crosby so bad”. When he said this I was flabbergasted because it is so true. However, he has yet to demonstrate that he is worthy of that role. His contract pains me.

Now let us revisit our favourite Oiler Adam Larsson. Where to start. His unforced turnovers in the Oilers zone, his inability to stick with someone, his go to defensive move of just laying on the ice. All I have to say is scratch Larsson for Bouchard. Please. Larsson is a 3rd pair RD on a good day and he hasn’t had a good day in quite some time.

Mikko Koskinen has been……. Good!?

He has played all 8 games and honestly, he has been good. Yes, he hasn’t been incredible but, he has done almost as well as you could have expected given the current circumstances. He has faced 269 shots in eight games. That’s an average of roughly 34 shots a game. The Oilers are allowing the fourth most SA/G and considering they have had one goaltender in net for all eight games, I applaud Koskinen because that is a large ask. He has been able to keep the Oilers in the fight for all of the games and I give him a thumbs up for his effort. He cannot be blamed for the defensive core in front of him that often leaves him high and dry with poor coverages or turnovers in their own zone.

HUMP DAY HYPERBOLE

I was debating about going positive or negative with this one and honestly, there has just been too much negativity surrounding the Oilers recently so let me leave you with something positive and joyous.

Jesse Pulujarvi is a cornerstone piece for the Franchise.

Who doesn’t love this man? His smile, his tongue, his energy, his bobblehead, his positivity, his tucked in jersey, he is everything. We must protect him at all costs. The way I view it he should be untouchable in the expansion draft. He can play alongside McDavid for the remainder of his career and be a line 1 RW for a Stanley Cup championship team. I am certain he will score 20+ this year once he gets the monkey off his back. I believe in him with all my heart, now make me proud son.