Oilers Quick Hit Updates

Happy Halloween friends! One of the scariest things you’ll see on this edition of the spooky day is the Edmonton Oilers lines. A quick look at the unit from today’s practice shows Ryan Smyth playing defense and Ryan Jones on the top line. I like both those players, but those aren’t exactly their roles.

That said, there has been some Oilers news today and part of me thinks that there is another shoe to fall in the next 24 hours. Something isn’t right here…

Forwards:

The Oilers were minus David Perron today, who was battling a sickness. Coach Dallas Eakins said after practice today that Perron was actually over the illness, but is suffering from a sore back and neck after taking some shots these last few games. He’s hopeful that Perron will be back on the ice Friday for practice.

Ryan Jones skated on the top line with RNH and Hemsky, but I’d suspect Perron takes that spot tomorrow. That’s actually a line I really like with Perron there, but it doesn’t look nearly as good with Jones there. Gagner centers Yakupov and Eberle on line two, which really makes me scratch my head.

Yakupov on his off-wing isn’t working and Gagner clearly isn’t up to game speed yet. It’s a questionable line that I don’t think Eakins should be deploying. As for line three, Gordon centers Arcobello and Lander, which is a decent line. I think Jones will be here in Lander’s place on Saturday, and the Oilers can get by with that line.

Line four sees Gazdic, Acton and Eager together, but I think Lander moves down here on Saturday as part of the Perron return trickle effect.

Overall, these lines look pretty ugly but will get a big boost with Perron’s return. Ryan Smyth will probably be ready to play in a game on Tuesday, while Hall could be ready next Saturday. Ditto Joensuu, who is expected to be ready at the end of the upcoming road trip that starts next Tuesday.

I mentioned Anton Lander, because he was recalled earlier today from OKC. Lander wasn’t bad on Sunday night against the Kings, and he returns to give the Oilers some actual healthy bodies up front. The injury bug has bitten this team in a big way at both levels, and Lander having to come up shows that.

I suspect he plays a game or two then heads back down, but it should give the Oilers enough healthy bodies to roll with 12 forwards on Saturday night.

Defense + Goaltending:

Both Corey Potter and Denis Grebeshkov cleared waivers this afternoon, and both have been assigned to the Oklahoma City Barons of the AHL. No surprise that Grebeshkov, and his $1.5 M salary, found his way to the AHL, but it is a little bit of a surprise that Potter found his way down to the minor leagues.

The Oilers are only carrying six healthy defenders right now on their roster, which is a really questionable move. Add to that that Justin Schultz missed practice today and you have bad things, like Ryan Smyth on the blue-line, happening. It is a move that makes no sense to me, to have only six options up with the team, especially a team that is struggling at the position so much.

Part of me thinks another shoe has to fall here, and I wouldn’t be too surprised if another defender came walking through the doors sometime soon. It’s something being hinted at, and its the only thing that makes sense here.

On a goaltending note, all three guys, Jason Labarbera, Devan Dubnyk and Richard Bachman, saw time in practice today. When Dubnyk is ready I think we see Labarbera sent down through waivers. He was outperformed in the pre-season, and Bachman has out-done him in this small sample size of regular season games.

The three-headed goalie monster is a mess for any team to have, and I suspect the Oilers fix this situation as soon as they know Dubnyk is healthy enough to start.

Rumors:

A few Oilers rumors to chew on here. Bob Stauffer mentioned two interesting bits over the last two days, and both would help the team in some way. The first was adding a defender, like a Marc Methot, to help young Justin Schultz. By Methot, Stauffer was referring to a Methot type defender, not the player himself. That said, he did drop a name on air, and it was Columbus’ Nikita Nikitin.

Nikitin is a bigger (6’3” 217 lbs) defender who does play a decent shut-down game and has a hard shot. He’s not a sexy name or even a largely established guy, but Nikitin could be a decent add for the Oilers if the price is low. Plus, Scott Howson knows a thing or two about the player, and he seems to fit the mold of player that MacT is currently looking for to shore up the blue-line. Keep an eye on that.

Another name, dropped today, was Drew Stafford of the Buffalo Sabres. Stafford has long been connected to Edmonton and has been a decent forward throughout his career in Buffalo. That said, he has struggled recently and could use a change of scenery. Where would Stafford fit? I’m not sure, but he could be a replacement for Ales Hemsky, who even though I don’t want to move, I think gets moved at some point in-season.