The Oilers Rig Picks of the Week

Welcome to a new series here at The Oilers Rig. Once a week our writers will be sharing their favorite post from the world of hockey blogging. I’d imagine that most of the time we’ll be picking Edmonton Oilers related content but we have encouraged ourselves to also spread the good word about other NHL blogs we read.

We hope you enjoy and feel free to paste any links of great articles you’ve read in the comment section.

Jackie’s Pick

http://oilersnation.com/2014/3/21/wait-til-next-year-and-this-time-we-mean-it by Lowetide

Lowetide made some valuable points in this article. While I’m not totally on board with losing a guy like “Ordanjay Eberleway”, I’m a realist and I know that if the return is good enough to further advance this team in the long run, then sadly it has to happen.
The most intriguing comments he made surrounded the 2015 pick and the fact that the Oilers could very well be in a situation where they are choosing high in the draft again. If MacT is willing to move this pick, as Lowetide said, the acquiring team might have an option to pick up Connor McDavid…and could bring back exactly what the Oilers need.

Lowetide hit the nail on the head with comparing the aggressiveness required on the part of MacT over the summer to Jason Bourne. Completely accurate! MacT has shown already that he is capable of trading up as opposed to sitting on his hands like his predecessor Tambo, so I’m looking forward to those bold moves from MacTavish that we have been waiting all season for.

Lowetide’s article had me nodding my head in agreement with every point he made…and even managed to make me cringe, shed a few tears and eventually give in to the prospect of losing Eberle. I’m certain I heard Wanye sobbing in the background as I read that and picturing him clutching his Eberle doll and wrapping himself up in his Justin Bieber beach towel, looking for some comfort actually made my heart hurt.

All in all, Lowetide provided a great summary of what the Oilers need to do, what the options are and how they can move forward and finally be the team that these Edmonton fans deserve.

Shawn’s Pick

http://oilersnation.com/2014/3/24/organization-needs-fixing by Jason Gregor

It’s a great piece on what Gregor thinks is wrong with the Oilers’ organization as a whole. How giving a player like Gagner money for one decent, shortened season was wrong. How the organization was too worried about the future and not focused on making hard decisions on players in the “now” to help the team turn the corner this season as they should have been. He also rants on further, getting fired up and criticizing management concerning their penchant for getting overly defensive in the face of criticism; a practice which usually makes matters worse ala Kevin Lowe. Just a very good article recognizing the organizational errors that has brought the team to this point. As a bonus he takes a shot at Tambellini’s “sit in a room and pray” approach to managing a hockey team. A very good summary of Oilers’ fans pains and the team’s numerous transgressions.

Dave’s Pick

http://oilersnation.com/2014/3/23/from-top-to-bottom By Robin Brownlee

Brownlee take’s a post Calgary blow-out shot at Oilers management. He frames his post by starting in agreement with fans that the ” team’s plummet to rock bottom these past eight seasons begins at the top”. He also grabs hold of the big comments from National media last weekend, quoting Bruce Arthur & Dave Hodge, and asks the question that is on all our minds “How can Katz not make that change this off-season?” concerning the dismissal of Kevin Lowe. His post captures the state of mind of many Oilers fans succinctly.

Jeremy’s Pick

http://new.livestream.com/aict/mact (Michael Parkatti and Sunil Agnihotri)

My pick is a video entry. If you haven’t had a chance, and have an hour to waste, you should take the time to sit down and watch the presentation these two gentlemen gave this past week at the U of A’s downtown campus. The delve into the basic workings of “advanced” hockey analytics and give a look through the stats window into thoughts behind why they work. A must see for all who want to know more about fancy stats or have any doubts about their applications.

We will be back next week with more fun from around the world of hockey!

Thanks for following;)