Fans of the Edmonton Oilers have suffered through a decade where it would have been generous to call the team “listless” on most nights. While one or two players may have seemed engaged the group as a whole often looked content (conditioned?) to accept a losing outcome. Many fans and local media claimed the lack of engagement was due to the team lacking any players with toughness who could play more than a few token minutes a night. There was no push back.
Times have changed.
It is clear from the moves that GM Peter Chiarelli has made that he is looking for not only size but a measure of push back in the lineup. He has admitted as much and, whether the moves are celebrated or not, no one can claim that the Oilers are now a group who will be, “easy to play against.”
Music to the ears.
There was a time a spirited debate could be had on Twitter or in the Oilogosphere on whether or not the presence of a player like Luke Gazdic could be a difference maker for the Oilers. Some fans and pundits felt the big man’s presence would act as a deterrent. The other point of view, of which this writer subscribed, claimed that players like Gazdic simply did not play enough minutes against good players to have any sort of measurable impact.
Stats, insults, and arguments from fan’s experience were traded (ex. “Gretzky didn’t mind having Semenko,”) and a resolution was never universally agreed upon. The team still managed to finish as a lottery team with or without Gazdic, Hendricks, or countless others.
Of course team toughness was but one of a myriad of factors leading to the seemingly never-ending stream of hapless seasons. Poor goaltending, porous defence, rushing rookies, and a revolving door at the head coaching position are a few of the pertinent examples which come to mind.
“We Need Someone Like Lucic”
However, the type of player Chiarelli has stockpiled is different than what fans have witnessed over past seasons. Fans probably remember when a theme running through the city was, “we need a Lucic type player.” The same fans will probably also remember when Mitch Moroz was drafted and it was hoped by some he could become a “Lucic type player”. When Zac Kassian was acquired for Ben Scrivens some were hoping he could still develop into a “Lucic type player”. When Patrick Maroon was acquired the comparison was the same. Then on July 1st the Oilers acquired the genuine article while keeping both Maroon and Kassian.
What fans were really asking for was “functional toughness” which is a shorter way of stating, “players who push back, play with an edge, and can play regular minutes.”
It is now conceivable with the addition of Lucic and the way that Maroon finished the season that the Oilers now have two wingers on their top two lines who fit that description. One is the actual prototype of what fans have been asking for and the other a player who proved he can play and be productive on a line with McDavid.
Kassian is still a wildcard, but his draft position and his ability to score at different points during his NHL career suggest they could have a third player in the same mould. If he can at least reach a level where he can play on a line with Nugent-Hopkins or Draisaitl his presence on the roster could give the Oilers three offensively minded lines which will also include a physical element.
Can anyone remember the last time that happened?
What isn’t guaranteed is that the addition of functionally tough players will move the Oilers up in the standings. The other moves made by Chiarelli don’t guarantee anything either. What is guaranteed is that the style of play at Rogers Centre will be a tougher and more in-your-face brand of hockey than fans have become uncomfortably accustomed to. Hopefully this new attitude breeds a competitive team beyond New Year’s day and into April.
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