The Oilers Rig Picks of the Week

Welcome back, loyal readers, to the Oilers Rig picks of the week. Every week we take some time to seek out our favorite blog posts from around the world of NHL blogging and share them with you.

What a great week it was! With the Toronto collaspe approaching its culmination, the ongoing battle of good vs evil advanced stats vs traditional commentary, the Oilers turning in a few strong performances bucking the tank trend and teams all over the league scratching and clawing their way to playoff births or better position. I had a hard time narrowing down what my pick was going to be as there was some high quality content out there.

Without further adieu, here are our selections!

Dave’s Pick

Best Farm Practices, MacTavish and Green on the Move

By Romulus’ Apotheosis on April 5, 2014

Dave says: A great post by Romulus’ Apotheosis (Coppernblue.com fan posts) detailing one of the many things that Craig Mactavish is doing to change the structure of the organization. It’s too early to tell, but the hiring of Bob Green to seek out prospect from around the world may one day pay off in spades. There is a movement among NHL teams to think outside the box when it comes to finding new and useful talent. Craig MacTavish and the Edmonton Oilers might be ahead of the curve on this one.

Shawn’s Pick

G76 Oilers vs Sharks: Stockholm Syndrome

by Matt Henderson on April 1, 2014

Shawn says: This is a shorter blog post than I would usually pick. It does have a key to the game and preview on it, but I chose this post because of all the other content. It’s humorous and very well written. He also touches on the “True Fans” letter (which I thought was an absolute atrocity as well). A very entertaining read.

Alex’s Pick

Edmonton 0ilers – New York Ranger5 Post-Game

By Benjamin Massey on March, 30 2014

Alex says: So I know the Oilers won their last game before this was posted, and they played well in San Jose and Anaheim… BUT… this last stretch of hockey has still been a flat out disaster. To me, this blog post from Ben Massey is everything I’ve wanted to say about this group. The summary at the start… “We have almost built the bridge for our sadistic captors, the trains are rolling, the monsoon is approaching, all that remains are a few formalities before we are machine-gunned into our shallow graves” is nothing short of brilliance. If you haven’t read it yet all I have to say is you absolutely gotta read it. Pure gold. The best post-game post I’ve read in a long, long time.

Jeremy’s Pick

The Great Debate: Tim Murray Reads Us And Offers Some Thoughts On Hockey Analytics

By PPP (@mlse) on April 2, 2014

Jeremy says: I don’t have any true skin in the game of analytic analysis vs the MSM, but man am I rooting for the analytic guys. If you’ve been paying attention to the wonderful collapse that is the Toronto Maple Leafs, then I am sure you are aware of the eternal battle mentioned above. If you are aware, then this post is for you. If you are not aware, then this post is also for you.

PPP takes an interview done with New Buffalo GM Tim Murray and goes through it with a fine tooth comb. They cover the background of the battle, what Murray’s acknowledgement of advanced statistics means, how a billion dollar company that has an 80 year old brand can ignore data that works and so much more. A thorough scalpel job of what may be the hockey story of the decade. The 2013-14 demise of the Leafs.

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Take some time out over the next few days and have a good read. Share you thoughts with us in the comments and feel free to share any links you may have, that we may enjoy.

Thanks for reading!