Sorry for the lack of writing over the weekend, enjoyed one of the last free weekends of the summer with good friends! Tonight we get back at it with a look at Edmonton’s third line and quick look into some rumblings heard around the way regarding the Oilers the last few days.
Line Three: I think most of us can agree that the Oilers will be slotting newly acquired center Boyd Gordon in the center spot on this line. Boyd played mainly on the second and third line in Phoenix last season, and while his offensive numbers aren’t great he is a very good defensive center and will be a stalwart on the Oilers PK unit.
We can debate the price point and the term, but Boyd Gordon upgrades what Edmonton had last year, and I truly believe that. He’ll be a good number three option behind RNH and Gagner.
On the wings, the Oilers have a lot of internal options, but none of them are truly ideal. The best is by far Ales Hemsky, the skilled winger is in a contract year and a pretty odd spot, and most seem to believe he will be moved at some point during the summer.
Hemsky isn’t the ideal third liner, but there could be much, much worse for the Oilers. He’s not bad at getting the puck out of his own zone, he’s not soft (injury prone maybe, but not soft) and he has offensive skill. Seems like a great fit right? His two-way game isn’t great, but Hemsky is a good NHL player.
Ryan Jones was re-signed, and while he does have a lot of good qualities for a bottom six player, he too isn’t ideal. Jones is a threat to score, evident by two seasons recently where he scored in the high teens. He brings it every night, and can be a physical player as well. It’s reasonable to expect a bounce back year here too.
Jesse Joensuu was signed on July fifth, and is a very interesting option here. He has size, some skill, decent hands, and according to reports is good on the forecheck. Only problem is he has yet to really have any NHL success. He will be a name worth watching in training camp, especially for a third line role.
Ryan Smyth is also on the depth chart, but I think we can all agree that he won’t be playing more than fourth line minutes. In his natural left wing spot and on the bottom line, I actually think Smyth will be a useful player this season. Just need to watch his minutes.
Mike Brown is not an option for the third line, and the same goes for Anton Lander, Marc Arcobello and Andrew Miller.
Free agent wise, there is very little left that could help Edmonton in this spot. Dustin Penner would be an upgrade over any in-house left wing option, and while he does make a ton of sense for the team I can’t see him signing in Edmonton.
Chad Larose could be a decent option at a cheap dollar value. Damien Brunner has been tossed around, but I’d be shocked if Edmonton signs him, and rumor has him close with the Devils. Jagr? Don’t see the fit here, same with Milan Hejduk and Peter Mueller.
Outside of Penner, there really isn’t any legit options for the Oilers on the third line, and sadly that’s the reality of the situation.
So What Will It Look Like?: Hemsky will most likely be traded within the next month for a third line winger, so it’s very likely the Oilers fill one of these holes with a winger more equipped for the role through trade. Ideally, Edmonton adds a player with the same skill set and build as a guy like Montreal’s Brandon Prust.
I believe that Ryan Jones will also be on the third line and that MacT is banking on a bounce back season for the veteran. Jones’ eye injury no doubt played a role in his decline this past season, and he does have a lot of good qualities to his game.
A line of TBA-Gordon-Jones appears to be the route the Oilers will go, and depending on the TBA, that might not be an awful thing.
Rumblings: There were lots of rumblings over the weekend about the Oilers possibly being interested in Maple Leafs defender Dion Phaneuf. This rumor has been getting slammed by Oilers fans for the last 72 hours, but I’m in the minority, as I feel it will be a terrific addition. I’ll have a piece up on this during the week discussing why I feel the Oilers could really use Dion.
Craig MacTavish was on a podcast for Bradcast Sports Sunday night and made a few interesting statements, one which discussed being somewhat comfortable with what he has done so far and that he might be done.
I personally don’t think MacT is done yet, but I also don’t think he has anything imminent or even close just yet. I still expect Hemsky to get moved at some point, and I do still think the Oilers add a defender at some point. One thing this interview did uncover however was that nothing appears to be close with the Oilers at this point.
I’ll be back with something that has been on my mind, how much of a chance does Edmonton have right now at a playoff spot. I’ll take a look into that later on. In the meantime, follow me on twitter @Alex_Thomas14
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