Do you remember the post I published on the twelfth of October–the one in which I listed several bold predictions for the 2016-17 Oilers?
*crickets*
No?
*thinks quickly how to spin this so not to feel utterly embarrassed*
That makes sense because most predictions are made and then quickly forgotten–though some still stick in our memories.
Here’s an update on my twelve bold predictions.
1. Jordan Eberle will lead the Oilers in goal scoring. Uh, let’s move on to the next one.
2. Connor McDavid will win the Art Ross Trophy with 93 points. This prediction looks a lot better than that last one! Number 97 currently leads the NHL with 40 points. And he’s on pace for 96 points. There’s also been talk that McDavid is the favourite to win the Hart Trophy.
3. Matt Hendricks will not finish the season as an Oiler. Instead, Hendricks and his extra coarse grit will be dealt at the trade deadline for a fourth round pick. It looks like Hendricks’ better day are behind him. It’s time for guys like Anton Slepyshev to take his spot in the lineup. Does Peter Chiarelli see it as I do? We’ll have to wait and see, but I’m sticking with my prediction.
4. Leon Draisaitl will be a top 20 NHL scorer. Draisaitl currently has 30 points, eleventh best in the league. He’s been piling up the points lately as McDavid has cooled off somewhat. Didn’t someone once say that Draisaitl is another Joe Colborne? Haven’t heard from that guy lately.
5. Nail Yakupov will not score 15 goals. Thus the draft pick acquired from the Blues will remain in the third round, not the second. Poor Nail. Everyone likes Nail, but he just can’t seem to put the puck in the net. Right now he has only 3 goals. Unless Yakupov goes on a tear–which history tells us is extremely unlikely–the Blues will be sending the Oilers a third round pick this spring.
6. Jesse Puljujarvi will score 10 powerplay goals for the Oilers. Puljujarvi has scored only one goal, but it was a powerplay goal. I get at least a little bit of credit for that, right?
7. Anton Slepyshev will play at least 40 games for the Oilers. The Russian winger has appeared in 15 games so far this season. Will he get to 40 games? A development in last night’s game (see next prediction) might help him get there.
8. Tyler Pitlick will be out with an injury before this weekend. “This weekend” was the first weekend of the season. This prediction was a joke, but no one’s laughing now. Pitlick injured his leg last night and is expected to be out of action for quite a while. That’s a shame because he’s had a great start to the season, scoring 8 goals and playing a physical game.
9. A popular MSM narrative will be that the Oilers won the Taylor Hall-Adam Larsson trade. We heard some of this talk earlier in the season when the Oilers were winning more games. Lately, not so much. Hall has played 23 games and has a total of 20 points (8 G, 12 A). That offensive production would have been nice on the Oilers this season, but let’s not get into this debate again.
10. The Oilers’ goal differential will be between -5 and +5. Remember that the Oilers’ goal differential was -42 last year. At this moment it’s +8. That’s a huge improvement.
11. The Oilers will increase their point total by 16, finishing with 86 points. However, they will miss the playoffs once again, getting eliminated in the final week of the season. Right now the Oilers sit in a playoff spot, thanks to a great start to the season. They currently have 39 points. At this point last season, they had 30. They’re third in the Pacific Division and sixth in the Western Conference. The Oilers have been picking up points lately and look like they’ll be in a fight for a playoff spot at the end of the season.
12. The Oilers will finish ahead of both the Flames and the Canucks. In fact, Vancouver will finish dead last. So far, so good! The Flames have heated up lately and are only 3 points behind the Oilers. The Canucks? They’re fourth worst in the league. I’m sure you all feel bad for the Canucks and their fans.
Final tally: It looks like I’ll be way off on the Eberle and Puljujarvi predictions, but I’m looking pretty good on the others. You didn’t think I’d bring up these predictions if they made me look like a fool, did you?
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