It’s something that we have complained about for years now. It’s been an issue on the ice, and it’s kept the Oilers from competing against teams like LA, Anaheim, and San Jose. That’s changed a bit this off-season, thanks to both additions from free agency and trades, and internally, with key players bulking up a bit, namely RNH and Martin Marincin.
The Outside Adds:
The Oilers went to market on July 1st looking for secondary scoring and defensive help. In addition to that, the team was looking to bulk up a bit in order to stand up to teams like the Kings. What did they comeback with? Forward Benoit Pouliot, and defenders Mark Fayne, Nikita Nikitin and Keith Aulie.
On the trade front, MacT brought home Teddy Purcell, and at the draft he came away with center Leon Draisaitl.
The Oilers bulked up in a big way here. Pouliot stands in at 6’3” and 198 pounds, and plays like a bigger boy. He’s willing to be physical, and he’s willing to go use his size from time to time. He’s not going to be the hard player that Ethan Moreau was, but he’ll provide size and will give the Oilers a capable size and skill player.
Teddy Purcell stands in at 6’2” and 198 pounds, close to what Poliout is. Purcell isn’t a physical player, but he provides size, skill and is willing to use his size when he has to. Again, we aren’t getting Ethan Moreau here, but we are going to be seeing a solid player that won’t get run over like the small players we have grown used to.
Draisaitl is the biggest of the group. He comes in at 6’3” and 210 pounds, plus he has room to grow. This is a player that, while not overly physical, knows how to use size to create offense. He’s another one of those players that gives Edmonton a combo of size and skill. Not a big grinder like Steve MacIntyre, but a guy that is big and skilled. On top of that, he’s a great possession player.
On the back-end, Edmonton brought in a defender that has size, and a history of success against top competition out east. His name is Mark Fayne, and he is 6’3” and 216 pounds. He’s physical and plays a shut-down role. He’s the type of defender Edmonton has been looking for since they traded Smid, only this is an upgrade.
Nikita Nikitin is 6’4” and 196 pounds, while Aulie is a massive 6’6” and 217 pounds. Nikitin is a top-four defender, while Aulie is a number six or number seven defender.
Notice the theme here? Each one of these players is over six feet, and every one of these guys is right in the neighborhood of 200 pounds. That’s different than what we are used to in terms of Oiler additions.
The Internal Development:
Center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has been a hot topic among the fanbase since his draft-day back in 2011. The debate was never about the skating of Nuge, or the skill of Nuge. The debate was always about the size and physical maturity of the player. Nuge has grown quite a bit, and came into camp at 192 pounds this year according to Ryan Rishaug of TSN.
This is much closer to the weight Nuge needs to be at, and it allows him to compete for pucks in the corner against the top-dogs much easier. Will this result in Nuge immediately becoming an elite player? No, but it’s going to help him keep the puck and get the puck. That’s highly important.
The other one? Martin Marincin, who had a fabulous rookie year last season. Marty is up 15 pounds, standing in now at 203 pounds. That’s pretty good considering his size. He’s a tall guy, and needed to add some muscle on his frame. 15 pounds is quite a bit of muscle to add since April. That will help him physically and allow him to compete better with the big-dogs out west.
The Overview:
The Oilers won’t become a playoff team by simply getting bigger, it doesn’t work that way. That being said, getting bigger certainly was on the to-do list for GM Craig MacTavish this past off-season. The Oilers addressed that, and they did it in a different way than we are used to. No more are the enforcers and grinders, and in come the big and skilled players.
These guys will all help the Oilers become harder to play against, and will give Edmonton a better chance to win those puck battles and battles in the hard areas that they have been losing in recent years. It’s a step in the right direction, and you best believe it will help this team improve this coming season. It won’t make or break the Oilers, but it’ll certainly help in their quest to return to the playoffs.
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