Arcobello To The Rescue?

Craig MacTavish has done a lot to this Oilers roster this summer. He’s added two NHL defenders and a depth option, and added a number of solid NHL wingers with solid possession numbers. That’s not a sexy summer, but it’s what Edmonton needed. Naturally, there are still holes left and the big ones are second and third line center.

Leon Draisaitl, the third overall pick from June’s draft, is an option for NHL employment, but it seems like the Oilers want him on a sheltered third scoring line. That fills one hole, but still leaves the spot right behind Ryan Nugent-Hopkins wide open. The free agent options are basically all gone, and only trade remains to add a useful player.

What about from within? What about Mark Arcobello, who filled in for Sam Gagner quite nicely last year, and dominated the AHL this past spring.

The Case For Arco:

Mark Arcobello isn’t a sexy name, but he’s a player that has paid his dues and has a little bit of NHL experience as well. Arcobello started his pro career during the 2010-11 season with the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder, the then affiliate of the Oil, posting 20 points in 33 games before getting called up to the AHL, where he posted 22 points in 26 games and added two more in six playoff contests.

The following year, Arco made the jump to full-time AHL’er, posting a solid 43 points in 73 games during the 2011-12 season, grabbing a spot in the Barons’ top-six forward unit. During the 2012-13 season, where Hall, RNH, Eberle and Justin Schultz all started the year in OKC, Arco had a break-out year, posting 68 points in 74 games and doing most of his damage after the stars left.

Arco made his NHL debut in 2012-13, getting into one game, before making the jump full time this past season thanks to Sam Gagner’s injury. Arco played in 41 games before getting sent down to the AHL, where he dominated until suffering an injury.

Arcobello was not sent down due to bad play, but was sent down because there simply wasn’t a spot for him on the roster. He wasn’t over taking RNH or Boyd Gordon, and the Oilers were set on giving Sam Gagner reps at second line center even though he clearly was hurting the team. Arco didn’t fit in with the team’s fourth line either, so he ended up being the odd man out.

In the 41 games he played, exactly half a season, Arcobello put up 18 points, and was a -7. He only had four goals, but his 18 points would be 36 over a full season, which isn’t bad at all for a rookie who was undrafted just a few short years ago. It was a good step forward.

It wasn’t just the scoring numbers, which were average, but it was the rest of his game that kept him around for 41 games. Arcobello is small, standing in at five-foot-nine and 165 pounds, but he plays like a big man. He’s willing to get physical, and he’s a decent battler as well. He won his fair share of battles and played hard every night. Winning battles is important, and he did that.

Arcobello is also a smart player when it comes to knowing his assignments, and his hockey IQ is one of his major assets. Arco’s ability play average to solid defensive hockey made him a pretty good stop-gap center, and actually helped him out preform Sam Gagner during the 2013-14 season. He didn’t nearly make the amount of mistakes that Sam did, and was better when it came to defensive assignments.

Arcobello’s Corsi For % was 48.1% this past season, which is better than most of his teammates. He was a solid possession player when on the ice, and clearly that is something that the Oilers value. While he isn’t going to score a ton of goals, he has the ability to set goals up, evident by his 14 assists, and has the ability to play a solid possession game. The Oilers need both of those qualities.

Mark Arcobello isn’t a sexy pick up for the Oilers, but he’s a solid young player that is entering his prime and has room to improve. He’s shown improvement at every level, every year of his pro career, and proved last fall he can handle the NHL game. He’s a good defensive forward and has average offense while being able to play a decent possession game. It’s not ideal, but it’s also not bad.

The Case Against Arco:

There is also a case against Arcobello in this spot. It’s quite clear that he does not possess an NHL level shot, evident by many missed opportunities this past year that he simply didn’t cash in on. He’s also prone to making the usual mistakes that Oiler fans are far too used to seeing from young players making the transition to the NHL game.

Sample size is another argument against Arco too, because he’s only played in 42 NHL games. Sure he’s been very good in the AHL, but the NHL is a rather large step up from the AHL, and Arco did tail off towards the end of his stint in Edmonton, although that is likely due to the reduced role he played from December on.

As mentioned, Arco only played in 41 games last year, 42 total in his career. Combine that with Leon Draisaitl, who I think makes the team regardless of what happens, and the Oil are rolling with 42 games of NHL experience in the second and third line center spots. That’s a lot of inexperience in a very key area, and it could cost the Oilers big time during the season.

There’s of course the size issue too. Is Arcobello big enough to survive playing second line center for a full year against guys like Joe Thornton, Ryan Getzlaf, Henrik Sedin, Jonathan Toews, and the other beasts of the west? I’m not sure, and while I do beleive size can be overrated to a degree, it’s worth asking.

The Final Thought:

It’s looking highly unlikely that the Oilers go the free agency route for help at the center position as no one is left, and a trade is starting to look a bit unlikely too. That means the Oil will need to fill a major roster hole from within, and Mark Arcobello is the man in the on-deck circle. Whether or not it’s the right move we won’t know until a few months into the season.

I’m not against giving Arco a chance in this spot, but MacT and Dallas Eakins better be sure that he is ready to handle this key role if they turn the keys over to him.