LGD: #HereComeTheOilers
By Jon Steitzer
8 years ago
Tonight the Leafs are playing against a team that wins the lottery more than Ms. Cleo’s best customer. They are playing against a team that figured the backup goaltender for the Presidents Trophy winning team must have been just that good that he can be their number one. The Leafs are playing against a team that traded Jeff Petry and Martin Marincin while having the worst defense in the league and replaced them with Andrej Sekara, Eric Gryba, and Griffin Reinhart and declared they’ve improved. Tonight the Leafs play against the only team who Leafs fans can pity the fans of.
#HereComeTheOilers
The Leafs
Over the past decade, when the Leafs have been at their worst you could always still count on a win against the Oilers. Tonight really shouldn’t be any different. It doesn’t matter that Garret Sparks is making his NHL debut, it doesn’t matter that the leading goal scorer has come down with a case of being Joffrey Lupul, and it doesn’t matter that Roman Polak is unfortunately still a thing we have to overcome on a nightly basis. It’s the Oilers and the two points are gift wrapped and ready to be delivered.
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 James van Riemsdyk |  Nazem Kadri |  Leo Komarov |
 Shawn Matthias |  Tyler Bozak |  P.A. Parenteau |
 Daniel Winnik |  Nick Spaling |  Michael Grabner |
 Peter Holland |  Byron Froese |  Brad Boyes |
| Defensive Pairings | |
|---|---|
 Jake Gardiner |  Dion Phaneuf |
 Matt Hunwick |  Morgan Rielly |
 Martin Marincin |  Roman Polak |
#FreeCorrado
The Oilers
Remember when Oilers fans were busy reminding everyone who’d listen that nothing else matters because they got Connor McDavid? That was fun. What was even more fun was when the Oilers managed to still be terrible with him, and now have retaken their rightful place in the basement without him. I’m sure the number one thing motivating McDavid to heal and return to the lineup is that he can play enough games this season to knock a year off of unrestricted free agency eligibility and get out of Edmonton a year earlier.
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 Taylor Hall |  Leon Draisaitl |  Teddy Purcell |
 Benoit Pouliot |  Ryan Nugent-Hopkins |  Jordan Eberle |
 Lauri Korpikoski |  Mark Letestu |  Iiro Pakarinen |
 Jujhar Khaira |  Anton Lander |  Matt Hendricks |
| Defensive Pairings | |
|---|---|
 Darnell Nurse |  Andrej Sekera |
 Oscar Klefbom |  Mark Fayne |
 Brandon Davidson |  Justin Schultz |
Really take the time to savour those defence pairings when you look at this lineup, they really are quite amazing. The bottom six forward group is astonishingly bad too. I’d say they are still about five more first overalls away from icing a competitive team.
Starting Goaltenders
VS.
What to Expect?
- The AHL Game of the Week
- Oilers fans saying “At least Draisaitl looks good”
- Leafs fans saying “At least Rielly looks good”
- Some mention of Edmonton winning the Grey Cup and everyone in Toronto being confused by what that is.
- Some mention of arts and culture and everyone in Edmonton being confused by what this is.
- Sparks going to for a celebratory burrito after the game
What the Enemy Is Saying…
Our friends at Oilers Nation know they need defensive help, they just aren’t willing to pay for it…
If the Predators come calling with Seth Jones, perhaps none of that matters. Maybe it’s so important to shore up the right side of the blue line that trading a quality 22-year-old two-way centre makes sense if the possibility arises. I don’t believe in “untouchable” lists and there are certainly deals where it would make sense for the Oilers to part with their 2011 No. 1 pick.But caution is vital here. Nugent-Hopkins is far from superfluous, and the best case scenario would be if the Oilers can solve their defensive shortcomings without giving up on the lovely one-two-three combo they have at centre. Edmonton fans have seen how a lack of depth down the middle can hurt a team; it’s a lot easier to find a Teddy Purcell-type player who can play on the wings with a good centre than it is a good centre to fill a void if one develops.Trading Nugent-Hopkins may turn out to be the best possible decision at some point. But it should certainly be a last resort.
In other words, “long live Justin Schultz!”
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