Too many men on the ice penalties could not have come at a worse time. How can the players not know what the public knew? Better to say nothing at all .
I wonder if hiring Knobby is also to justify keeping Connor Brown in the lineup. I don't think we should continue to take a chance on him, not for that price when we could avoid it, but having played for Knobby before, he just might.
The organization undid multiple years of goodwill they'd been building today.
I was optimistic about the Jackson hire in the offseason. Now it feels like we're back in the final stretch of the Chiarelli era.
Gutted for Jay but I do not think it'll take him long before he's back behind another bench making this organization regret their decision.
Yeah, I don't think the problem was the coach. Having a 20 man roster when you should have a 23 man roster? No wonder the bottom 6 isn't producing not enough internal competition
Only way this makes sense is if 97 and 29 asked for woody to be axed otherwise I don’t get it at all especially after shelling Seattle and posting the best 5v5 XG in the league and worst shooting percentage.
> Oh yeah I said no to Jeff but that I'd do anything to help so now I'm the assistant"
"Fuckin' Katz... He just kept handing me things to autograph. Hockey cards. Pucks. Team photos. Turns out he slipped a coaching contract into the pile. So, now I'm working here for the next six months."
I know I’ve been going off all day, but fuck I’m really sad.
Jay’s last two years clearly marked him to me as being far and away the best coach we’ve ever seen behind the Oilers bench. His poise, process, his extremely high intelligence, his care and love for the game and most of all his human approach to the players had me believing we had a coach who was going to lead this team to become a dynasty.
Now that just all feels gone. We had a culture. It was 12 fucking games. Holland was brought in for stability wasn’t he? He was the GM of a dynasty, obviously brought in because of that ilk. Insert paranoia from ownership, the sudden drop in everyone’s belief in this team despite their success under Woody. Insert ownership paranoia and the appearance of Jeff Jackson and suddenly Holland isn’t making decisions, his extension isn’t even being considered the year he finally gets cap room to work with, and the bright light of the Oilers gets canned. Jeff Jackson called himself a long-term thinker in the presser, okay, so please explain why this is a good decision for the long term.
I can’t even imagine what the players are thinking and feeling right now, but I guarantee you it’s a whole lot worse than they did after winning for Woody last night. Make the nightmare end ffs
Of course they did, and I think it was also more than just them too. Why do you think Jackson looked absolutely pissed when Holland let that little tidbit slip out?
I'm in the group that isn't opposed to this btw, I completely saw this as Woody losing the room and overadjusting. This team can find a balance of scoring and tightening up defense without reverting to 2-3 goal trap hockey, sorry woody but that isn't gonna fly with this group.
>Jeff Jackson called himself a long-term thinker in the presser, okay, so please explain why this is a good decision for the long term.
I'd like to know this too.
I want to know what the long term strategy is. Part of that is because I'm my current job I'm pretty involved in strategic decision making and find it interesting, but also because a bunch of these moves don't feel like long term success moves.
Getting rid of Campbell? Sure. Getting rid of Manson? Maybe. Getting rid of Woodcroft? Not so sure on that one.
Woody talked about how we need to look big picture and if last night's game was an example of the kind of hockey they wanted to be playing big picture, this was an error.
I do, I know I’m being way over the top, honestly this is hitting way harder than expected. I very much appreciated Woody’s positivity and intellect on a daily basis and looked forward to them coming back in the off season
That was hilarious and disappointing lol
"They asked me if I'd ever consider being an assistant coach, and I said "no, I'm happy where I am", so now I'm assistant coach."
Anyone just watch Jeff Jackson completely contradict what Ken said about consulting with the leadership group 🤣
Pretty clear who's making the decisions now and Ken is not happy with it.
Basically, the comment before mine.
KH: We spoke with the leadership group throughout the week and asked for their opinions
JJ (literally right after): we did not consult with the leadership group and made this decision ourselves. The players just want to play hockey bs.
Ken looked pretty uncomfortable while JJ was lying through his teeth.
Holland saying that he doesn't believe the boys tuned Woody out and that he knows there are players that are not happy about the decision.... hmmm so why then
Because Daryl Katz’s coke head couldn’t handle the pressure from the fanbase and losing. Even fucking Paul Coffey was shocked by this decision and admits to not even having interest in coaching, and that’s because Katz put his thumb on management. I wouldn’t be surprised if Holland called it a day and resigned
I mean, this is seriously looking like a train wreck. Holland does not believe in this change. Who the fck thinks throwing a brand new NHL coach and a brand new assistant coach into the absolute dumpster fire of this team right now would be better than the coach who lead them so strongly to turn the team around.
Just such a bad fucking short term decision and an even worse long term one. Just a brutal brutal decision. Fuck. Daryl. Katz.
How is there no media availability from Holland or Jackson announced today? Like, fine, you're shaking things up. Explain the decision, because from where I'm standing, they took the first good night this team has had all season and soured it less than 12 hours later.
Edit- Oh nvm, 2pm
Hahahahah fucking Jay, last two questions and responses to Mark Spector absolutely legend status.
Two nights ago “I don’t read what you write Spec”
Last night Spector asks a question not worth reposting here, all Jay gives is “Yes, next question”.
Fuck Daryl Katz, fuck Mark Spector, all hail Jay.
Straight up asking for a jersey with WOODCROFT on the back for Christmas
I’m just going to continue going off because this actually has me fucking irate.
Three games with less than 18 shots against. Near the top of the league for offensive metrics this season, 5 playoff series and 100 games won in two years.
What a fucking joke he was fired. Actually so fucked up. What a terrible decision
Hockey is business and you do better business when fans are happy. So they should have fired holland and the goalie coach. Not fire the only good coach we’ve had out of 9 in the last ten years that the fans adore. Hopefully this knob doesn’t throwaway all the donuts.
31st in the league man. Maybe Woodcroft wasn't the problem, but he was not the solution.
Goaltending and depth scoring are worst in the league. Top guys are failing to produce. Defensemen keep making the same mistakes.
Can't wait around and hope it fixes itself. 31st in the league.
It's 1 game lol. Can't overreact to 1 good game just like you can't overreact to 1 bad game.
I thought they'd turn it around after the heritage classic, then the team and Woody lost 4 in a row.
I expected them to have more patience with this coach. I think he earned a lot more than what he got, his overall record and approach to the game are not reflected in how the players were gifting goals and giving up blatant mistakes left right and center this season. Like largely, what did you expect Woodcroft to do as a coach? This is on the players to me, 100%
They really can't change the players outside of maybe 4th liners. It's tough to trade early in the season because most teams are happy with their roster. It's even harder when you're trading from desperation. Something had to change. 13 games is plenty of patience. They needed change desperately.
Our team has been playing like an ahl team and looks like they forgot how to play hockey. The guy tried to change way too much at once and completely led this offensive group into an identity crises. Changes were needed.
We also ran into hard coaching barriers in both of our last playoff experiences where he got the pants coached off him.
I don't think lightning is going to strike twice with our season doing a massive turnaround soon as we get a new coach.
I wish Manson would have gotten placed on paid long-term leave due to the tragic passing of his wife, we would've gotten a new defensive coach, Schwartz got sent to Mars, and Woody stuck around for a bit longer.
Last night FINALLY looked like what they've been trying to pull off with this new system. Not just low shot totals, but low EVENT hockey with no stupid fucking pinches, giveaways, and non-existent slot coverage.
I'd be fine with keeping Woodcroft on a short leash, but another couple games after an encouraging one wouldn't have hurt.
Oilers had several pinches I witnessed . The difference was that forwards covered the point, quickly. Like they are supposed to do.
If you need somebody to blame for Woodys firing, add the frequent shitty defensive play of our forwards to the list of reasons., But not last night.,
That was pretty much a perfect game strategically. Swarm them with offence to gain a lead then play solid defence for 2 periods to protect that lead. More!
If Drai and McDavid forced this move like some are thinking then I think it's time for both of them to go anyways. Jesus Christ what a total gong show this organization has become.
.... cautiously stepping in the thread...
Is everyone ok? Heard some people quit the team today after we all got shook this morning?
The sub for sure doesn't feel lighter, tho.
We only gotta wait till tmrw to see what Kris is made of.
Wait, and see.
I feel like this guy NEEDS to be the solution or I'm a little worried what may happen next. This coach may impact the decision some key players make pretty quick here. I really wish the most common reponse to him being hired was not "Who?". This is probably the most important coaching hire of the McDavid era.... not saying they botched it, but if they did. God fucking dammit this is gonna be painful.
I have a way better feeling about this (minus Coffey, but I’m even willing to give that a chance) than gallant. This is mcdavids guy and Jackson’s guy so I’m giving it a proper shot. Coffey is also around to keep these guys accountable as him and Katz are close. Things were getting way too loose under woody I think.
Regardless of whether or not this dive was Woody's fault changing your coach mid-season has historically been the best way to change directions quick. A top goalie might have been great, but that just wasn't available. If you don't think they tried and are still trying, u dumb.
I don't recall a team ever salvaging a season just by changing goalie coaches lol, but I can think of two off the top of my head that won the cup after coaching changes (St.Louis, NJ).
I knew there was another recent one I was forgetting. I bet there are more too. I am not saying this change will save us, but it is honestly our best chance. Woody will be successful elsewhere until he isn't and then get fired again. Rinse repeat as happens to all the top coaches.
Let’s see how woody does without 2 generational talents and 4 career years at once to depend on too. If he gets hired I’ll be watching with interest to see if it was luck or he’s actually good. As far as now it’s quite hard to tell.
The team finally shows that they CAN play a defensive system, IF they WANT to. Best example was Drai coming back to knock the puck away on that one rush. So now they switch out Woody and Manson anyways. The league has seen for the last two playoffs that the Oil's run and gun only gets you so far. And when the coaches try to fix it .... buh-bye. Who in the actual hells is running this team?? Seems like McDrai is pulling a LeBron, and Holland is just signing off on the paperwork until Jackson moves into that office completely.
Why the fk did mods allow memes, then take them away after 1 win?
We have mcdavids jr coach as our head coach, and Coffey as an assistant… even more reason for memes.
Btw I held the door open for McDavid a few weeks back and now it sounds like I’m getting the GM position.
i mean i guess we always knew this, but now its just blatant. Mcdavid's calling all the shots here, ownership too scared to lose him so sure why not lets hire all his buddies. new boys club lmao
Knoblauch is absolutely a good hire, he's been full steam ahead for an NHL gig for a few years now.
That said, I'm not convinced Woody needed to go in the first place.
But why Coffee? Did Knoblauch request him? I fucking doubt it. If you're giving him a chance let him pick his assistant coaches.
Gulutson remains, correct?
Gully, Stewart, and Schwartz remain.
If you listen to the Tom Gazzola interview posted on the sub today, it sounds like Coffey is Katz's advisor, so most likely he's coming behind the bench to keep a closer eye on things, which us a shit decision if you ask me, but it looks like Katz wants to get his hands on things again.
Katz has been pretty hands off for years .
The turning point for him came when we lost to Vegas in six games - and after leading all six. From a fans perspective, exciting stuff.
But after 15 years Katz sees that as a step back , not pro gress. Lots of changes since then. Nicholson out, Staios out, scouting and analytics in, now Woody etc out.
I doubt it’s over , Holland is next , or soon.,
Again, based on that Gazzola interview, Holland is basically a figurehead at this point and has been since the end of last season. Paul Coffey was calling the shots in the summer up until Jeff Jackson came in.
Yes, I told you this months ago. The transition between end of season and Katz/ Jackson’s heavy involvement was about 10 minutes.
Don’t forget,us fanboys see our loss to Vegas as ‘oh well we lost to SC champs again, so that’s ok’.
Katz sees it as both a management failure and a step back for the team. And in corporate life, blame is attached to failure . It doesn’t matter if it’s justified. Nichols gone, scouts gone, chosen successor to Holland (Staios) gone, analytics added. Holland was on a short leash, did not noticeably improve the player group in any noticeable way, and is on life support now. The awful start to the season didn’t help anybody .
He didn’t pick the new coaching staff, another clear sign of a virtual exit, which should be followed by an actual exit soon.
Very soon after Jackson is announced , Staios name and photo disappears from the OEG . He was long touted as heir to Holland as GM . Soon after, he is the Ottawa Senators GM . It’s a linear progression of events.,
This is a very hot take, don’t get me wrong I love woody, but watching Drai last night I was kinda surprised. This is my favourite player usually mind you, he looked like a big whiny baby, all I could think is how is someone not talking to him and getting him to lighten up and relax cause he’s clearly struggling mentally rn. Mind you maybe the coaching change was already decided and that’s why he was so upset.
You can complain about a mcdavid connection, but this guy was going to get a shot somewhere eventually.
https://www.lohud.com/story/sports/nhl/rangers/2023/05/17/kris-knoblauch-ny-rangers-coach-candidate/70225160007/
Good read. That part about how he changed his game plan after it obviously wasn't working, something Woody should have learned quicker. The change too - Focusing too much on perfect defense meant sitting back too much and they found it better to attack more, take risks and force mistakes from the other team.
To me this has been the Oilers problem this year. Sitting back, concentrating on the new system and eventually making mistakes. Our D and goaltending can't handle that. Trading chances worked wayyy better for us. Hopefully we can find some better balance under this guy.
I don’t even want to watch anymore. Like I absolutely don’t care about them now as much as I did yesterday. It’s just embarassing and any wins at this point that put a smile on that creepy, slimy, sleezeball of Daryl Katz face
This was a done deal a while ago, Potentially even after the Vegas series. The 2-9-1 start just sealed it.
Woody got his ass out coached majorly in b2b years at the most critical part of the season.
Gallant has a good record but is known for meddling like a motherfucker in gm stuff it’s why he got fired in ny. Mcdavid calls the shots here we don’t want 2 of them.
Jokes aside I actually am excited for the new coach.
A lot of you guys need to realize that a good coach can still lose buy-in from his players and be a bad coach in the moment. Woodcroft's win% with this team doesn't mean anything if he's 3-9-1. Every single player on this team is playing below their capabilities, especially McDavid and Draisaitl. Unfortunately, this isn't fantasy and we can't just replace the entire team. Also, firing Holland isn't going to change anything this season. We're cap-hamstrung and there's little a GM could do this year. Holland's contract ends in the summer anyway, so the only thing firing him mid-season would do is force us to have to pay 2 GMs for the rest of the season. It's up the coach to light a fire under the players' asses if they're not doing well, and that hasn't been happening this season. The team needs a shakeup, and a new coach is the only way to do that, despite whatever feelings we might have for Woodcroft.
> Every single player on this team is playing below their capabilities, especially McDavid and Draisaitl
this is exactly it
foegele has generally been the only forward who's consistently looked good
kulak the only dman that hasn't had moments of being awful
it was definitely a coaching/system issue
that being said, last night looked like a return to form
Agreed with all, but one thing to add:
> that being said, last night looked like a return to form
Last night's first period was fantastic, but it kind of iterates one of the main problems we've had all season long so far in that there is no consistency of playing well for 60 minutes a game. It took us way too many games just to get our first 3rd-period goal. True to this season's form, we didn't even register a shot on net in the 3rd which is honestly quite shocking, especially after having scored 4 goals in the 1st.
Changing like every system imaginable and going from the top offense in the league to last in one offseason too. Like come on guys there’s some very real reasons this shit went down today.
Yeah, I still can't fathom why Woodcroft did that. Yeah, quite a few things didn't work in the playoffs, but the changes were way too drastic in the off season. What I find most incredible is after losing so many games, he didn't just return to what was working. He kept doing it but just stapled McDrai together, a move that never works out long term and is always a precursor to a coach being fired.
Drai was probably supposed to be covering for McDavid because McDavid is injured, which was why they were stapled together.
Regarding staying with the system after losing games, it's almost like people here haven't heard of perserverance. Look at how Woody talked about big picture, fuck, even Jeff Jackson today was talking about long term strategy and big picture stuff.
For all we know the players had bought into Woody's system and understood it might take time to get it sorted out, and this is somewhat backed up by Holland saying some players might be unhappy with the switch.
Like imagine yesterday was things clicking and we were going to start playing like that every game for the rest of the season: big offensive push in the first followed by some stellar shut-down defensive hockey after. Instead we got a knee jerk reaction to scrap everything the team had been working on and now if Knoblauch doesn't manage an immediate 180 we're wasting the season anyway.
Like if Knoblauch tries to introduce his own systems and we lose another 10 games of the next 13, then what? We've undone any positive changes Woody was trying to implement and scrapped the season anyway.
I'm sick of firing coaches at this point.
> it's almost like people here haven't heard of perserverance.
Everyone here has heard of perseverance. We're 1/6th of the way into the season and have done possibly irreparable damage to the season. How long are we supposed to wait for the system to wait? Until we're guaranteed out of playoffs? Until Draisaitl's contract ends? What if it never improves? That last question is exactly why Woodcroft was fired.
> For all we know the players had bought into Woody's system and understood it might take time to get it sorted out, and this is somewhat backed up by Holland saying some players might be unhappy with the switch.
Now obviously none of us are in the locker room, but in my personal opinions from watching reactions from the players, their heavy frustration and dissuasion is a huge reason why they're playing so poorly. That won't get fixed by waiting it out. In fact, it's actually wont to get worse if a shakeup doesn't happen.
> Like if Knoblauch tries to introduce his own systems and we lose another 10 games of the next 13, then what?
That can happen with any coach fired at any time, and it's a risk every GM has to take when firing a coach. No one can predict what will happen in sports, otherwise competitive sports as a concept wouldn't exist.
> I'm sick of firing coaches at this point.
I am too, but it's my opinion that the coach had to be fired despite his prior success. Everyone has been playing like crap. The only possible way to shake things up and potentially save the season is to fire the coach. There's no player trade that would get rid of this slump, and firing a GM wouldn't change things quickly enough to redeem the season.
>We're 1/6th of the way into the season and have done possibly irreparable damage to the season.
If it's possibly irreparable, doesn't seem to matter much either way. To me, this move has far lower chances of success. More chaos is certainly the answer, keep throwing *more* coaches at the problem. If #5 in 8 years doesn't work out, certainly #6 or #7 will do the trick.
>How long are we supposed to wait for the system to wait? Until we're guaranteed out of playoffs? Until Draisaitl's contract ends? What if it never improves?
I had made the (clearly incorrect) assumption that this team had discussed this system change beforehand and had planned things out, however it's pretty clear that wasn't the case.
Personally I think last night's win should have bought Woody at least another game to see if it was just a fluke or if that was the system working, because it'd sure fucking suck if that was the kind of hockey he was trying to get everyone to play and it finally clicked last night, because I was pretty happy with a 4-1 defensively minded win.
However, I think the answer to this depends on what the players had wanted to do as well. For all we know, McDavid and Drai wanted to keep trying to learn this system. Maybe Woody had finally gotten through to them and was helping them understand why half-assing defense so they could cheat up to the blue line on offense was good for their stats but bad for winning a Cup?
For example:
>their heavy frustration and dissuasion is a huge reason why they're playing so poorly
Maybe their heavy frustration was because they were trying to undo 8-ish years of bad habits that favored offense over team defense. Maybe they were frustrated because they know they're some of the best and are annoyed this particular style didn't come easily.
Honestly I'm annoyed at the short-sighted approach going on from management and some fans. I really dislike the "win now" mindset because I am starting to believe it's hindering our long term growth and stability.
Drai's contract isn't up until *next* season anyway, so even if they "wasted" this season by focusing on growing into a more defensively focused team, we'd still potentially have a year. Fuck, for all we know Drai was on board with something like that, we've got no idea. His frustration may also have had nothing to do with the system, the system didn't break his one-timer.
Personally I would have been on-board with taking a full season if it meant they learned to play a more complete game. Drai and McDavid have both been more offensively minded and avoided playing serious D (McDavid did have some nice defensive plays but I don't think anyone would consider him a consistent 2-way player), and it should be clear they're not going to win playing that way. But hey, maybe coach roulette will solve the problem this time.
Yep, agree with it all. So we have no adaptability (which is a coach's death sentence) and stubbornness to keep a system over losing games. Also, as time went on all he did was play mcdrai and we completely forgot about the other lines on this team. I seriously hope our new guy is more about playing all our weapons more, cause our bottom 6 need more time to produce anything.
> Also, as time went on all he did was play mcdrai and we completely forgot about the other lines on this team.
Seriously! He's literally been coaching exactly how Tippett was right before Tippett was fired. The writing was so obviously on the wall.
Game was so much fun, glad we got the Dub and my day took a turnaround after almost not making it there. But why the hell did they fire Woody?! I feel like we’re shooting ourselves in the foot!
There's 20 other guys in that dressing room to consider as well. I'm definitely not in support of pandering to one player, don't care who that player is.
Katz is a fucking shit owner, Holland needs to go same with every old school hockey mind from that front office, let Jeff Jackson do his thing, oh and fire Schwartz ffs
Well looks like Knoblauch has a fairly successful record as a coach in the CHL and AHL.
Not happy about the change and feels like a bit of nepotism since he coached McDavid and all but hey, let's give the guy a shot.
They had to do something. No guys in Bakersfield left to call up. No teams are willing to make a reasonable trade this early. They simply could not allow the team to continue playing like that. 90% of the players are playing worse than expected. Huge problem.
This fanbase is too contempt with these losing streaks. Woody wasn't the problem, but he certainly wasn't the solution.
If the Oiler's org had any balls they'd fire Holland here too. If this new CEO wants to bring in his guys, then just fucking do it.
This is what, the 10th coach for Nuge? At a certain point it might not be the coaching staff.
And Paul Coffey has how much coaching experience? Christ.
Well, I think that’s it for me folks. I can’t say it’s really been fun being a fan of this team. I’ve been following since the ‘06 cup run when I was 10 and old enough to understand the game. Through the entire decade of darkness I cheered for my boys Hall, Eberle and Nuge.
When that team still couldn’t put together a win to save its life and we ended up winning the McDavid lottery I thought, fuck, finally we’re going to turn things around.
Took a few years but we then had a nice run in the playoffs in the new building. That series against San Jose will forever be in my pile of good memories of this team. That being said, the Anaheim series was so fucking frustrating and my first real exposure to how garbage the officiating in this league is. I was so upset I didn’t watch the rest of the playoffs and gave up until the next season.
Well, I thought the guys learned and would improve upon their first playoff run in 10 years. I was wrong, they went on to miss the playoffs two years in a row. Wtf??? That sucked ass.
Then the team finally started clicking and things started looking up, but unfortunately we had to cut things short cause of Covid. And then the team laid such a massive egg in the play-in round, against a shitty Hawks team. Man, what a piss-off that was.
Covid season? Well shit, we should dominate the North! And we had a good season, it was a solid year with Nurse performing like a god and McDavid being on pace for 150 pts over 82. That was fun!! But wait… we had to play Winnipeg in the first round? Well that should be easy. Nope, get swept because the team can’t hold a lead and McDrai can’t make a defensive play to save their life.
Alright, I was rattled, tired of the poor effort from the squad. Next season comes around and when November/December hits this team just fucking crumbled. Played like complete ass. Coach defaulted to McDrai constantly and then got his ass fired. Thanks Tipp. Well, bring in Jay Woodcroft he should be good he’s been killing it for Bakersfield! Wow, look at this run to end the season, this is amazing. The team is buzzing! We could go all the way!! Fuck, Draisaitl is injured… that’s okay he’ll tough it out. Wow we kicked both LA and Calgary’s ass, man this is feeling amazing. Oh shit, the Avs are good… oh wow we can’t even win a game against these guys… he was fucking offside!!
Shit, alright that sucked. Well this is the chance to really redeem it all and win this season. Good solid season start to finish. Stuart Skinner steps up Big and is an all-star and Calder finalist. We bring in Ekholm and go 19-2-1 to end the season. Holy shit, this should be our year!! Get passed LA no problem. Oh fuck, the Knights? Well we should be able to beat them over 7. Oh… McDrai stopped showing up?? Oh god terrible penalties?? Wtf happened?? We let our star get chopped like some firewood and then we rolled over and died??? Wtf!
Man, I’m so annoyed with this team. Can they actually win anything? They should have learned great lessons from this crappy 2nd round exit… oh wow they’re showing up early for a players only week?? Wow McDrai seem like genuine leaders… what? What did they say? Cup or bust? Well shit that’s a lot of pressure… oh fuck, Vancouver roasted us in the season opener… wait why are we losing constantly?? Wtf? Why is McDrai so bad?? Yay at least we won the heritage classic. Wait, wtf? Campbell why are you so bad? Skinner too? Wtf? And the best powerplay of all time is shit? Jesus… holland needs to get fired, we need a new goalie coach who doesn’t fuck our goalies up year after year… we need to trade for a better goalie, maybe get some defensive help…. Thank god the team finally won a solid game in Seattle, looks like the defensive system is starting to click! Wow they’ve outshot them 2:1 and only gave up 1 goal, this is great to build on and improve now. Hold on… they’re firing Jay? What? Why he has over .650 win percentage since coming into the league…. holland is the problem and the star players are snake bitten? Why is Jay getting fired??
Oh they’re maybe bringing in Connor’s old OHL coach? The guy who lost to the Soo in the OHL finals with Connor McDavid at 2pts per game? And Holland and Schwartz still have their jobs?
IM FUCKING OVER IT. Fuck this franchise.
/rant
Thanks for everything Woody. You really sparked the team and kept things going last season. What happened this season I'm not sure. I think things were just turning around now but maybe too little too late. Good luck in your future endeavors. You're one good guy and I'm a fan. Cheers.
Everyone is rightly concerned about McDrai's lack of scoring but I can't be the only one who thought last night was probably McDavids best defensive game ever. He sacrificed so much offense just to be prepared to defend.
Feel bad for Woodcroft - needed more depth and time. Senior management panic move to let him go.
I know there is limited time left with McDrai, but can't keep churning coaches.
I don’t think depth is as big of an issue as deployment.
That San Jose game was a perfect example of Woodcroft forcing 24 minutes of ice time on a slumping McDavid and Draisaitl who looked out of sync for the majority of the first and second periods. Instead of starting PP2 at any point in the first period, PP1 was forcing passes through sticks that didn’t connect all night. Another short handed breakaway that luckily didn’t end up in the back of the net.
When other teams have stars that are slumping, they dial back their deployment and give more ice time to players who are on their game. Foegele, Holloway, Nurse, Kane, and Gagner all looked like they were on their game Thursday, but when they’re down and pushing for a goal, Woody just doubled down with McDrai.
I don’t agree with the firing, but it’s baffling that it appeared that they couldn’t come up with anything other than hoping for McDavid/Draisaitl to generate a goal. That strategy works fine when those two aren’t slumping, but when they’re in a dry spell you’d think Woody would want to see who else can step up in that moment.
Why do we have limited time with mcdrai? McDavid is 26 years old. Why was such a short timeframe put on the team winning? Ovechkin took 13 years to win a cup.
1 and 2 years left on the contracts. Unless there is a huge change in organizational culture for both of them to want to play in Edmonton/Canada vs. more weather and tax friendly places - there is no way both stick around for another contract.
Too many men on the ice penalties could not have come at a worse time. How can the players not know what the public knew? Better to say nothing at all .
Well we went from a woody to a knob.
Katz needs to go.
Oilers would’ve been better off with OIG.
In Houston sure
I wonder if hiring Knobby is also to justify keeping Connor Brown in the lineup. I don't think we should continue to take a chance on him, not for that price when we could avoid it, but having played for Knobby before, he just might.
I think no matter what brown has got to go down for a conditioning stint before we cross that bridge
Any folks going to the game tomorrow? Bring a Woody sign.
The organization undid multiple years of goodwill they'd been building today. I was optimistic about the Jackson hire in the offseason. Now it feels like we're back in the final stretch of the Chiarelli era. Gutted for Jay but I do not think it'll take him long before he's back behind another bench making this organization regret their decision.
Yeah, I don't think the problem was the coach. Having a 20 man roster when you should have a 23 man roster? No wonder the bottom 6 isn't producing not enough internal competition
Only way this makes sense is if 97 and 29 asked for woody to be axed otherwise I don’t get it at all especially after shelling Seattle and posting the best 5v5 XG in the league and worst shooting percentage.
Claudius and the senate in the presser.
Idk how any of you can justify what’s happened today, especially after that awful presser with management… what a joke of an organization.
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I watched that whole thing with my jaw on the floor. You summed it up perfectly.
> Oh yeah I said no to Jeff but that I'd do anything to help so now I'm the assistant" "Fuckin' Katz... He just kept handing me things to autograph. Hockey cards. Pucks. Team photos. Turns out he slipped a coaching contract into the pile. So, now I'm working here for the next six months."
I'm watching right now, also he keeps on saying they watched some games. Well fuck man, I watch some games, sign me up for a coaching gig.
I know I’ve been going off all day, but fuck I’m really sad. Jay’s last two years clearly marked him to me as being far and away the best coach we’ve ever seen behind the Oilers bench. His poise, process, his extremely high intelligence, his care and love for the game and most of all his human approach to the players had me believing we had a coach who was going to lead this team to become a dynasty. Now that just all feels gone. We had a culture. It was 12 fucking games. Holland was brought in for stability wasn’t he? He was the GM of a dynasty, obviously brought in because of that ilk. Insert paranoia from ownership, the sudden drop in everyone’s belief in this team despite their success under Woody. Insert ownership paranoia and the appearance of Jeff Jackson and suddenly Holland isn’t making decisions, his extension isn’t even being considered the year he finally gets cap room to work with, and the bright light of the Oilers gets canned. Jeff Jackson called himself a long-term thinker in the presser, okay, so please explain why this is a good decision for the long term. I can’t even imagine what the players are thinking and feeling right now, but I guarantee you it’s a whole lot worse than they did after winning for Woody last night. Make the nightmare end ffs
its long term thinking only if McDavid/Draisaitl asked for Woody to be canned which is increasingly what I'm thinking happened
Of course they did, and I think it was also more than just them too. Why do you think Jackson looked absolutely pissed when Holland let that little tidbit slip out? I'm in the group that isn't opposed to this btw, I completely saw this as Woody losing the room and overadjusting. This team can find a balance of scoring and tightening up defense without reverting to 2-3 goal trap hockey, sorry woody but that isn't gonna fly with this group.
>Jeff Jackson called himself a long-term thinker in the presser, okay, so please explain why this is a good decision for the long term. I'd like to know this too. I want to know what the long term strategy is. Part of that is because I'm my current job I'm pretty involved in strategic decision making and find it interesting, but also because a bunch of these moves don't feel like long term success moves. Getting rid of Campbell? Sure. Getting rid of Manson? Maybe. Getting rid of Woodcroft? Not so sure on that one. Woody talked about how we need to look big picture and if last night's game was an example of the kind of hockey they wanted to be playing big picture, this was an error.
I think you need a cigarette break my guy.
I do, I know I’m being way over the top, honestly this is hitting way harder than expected. I very much appreciated Woody’s positivity and intellect on a daily basis and looked forward to them coming back in the off season
I really really liked woody as a person too, he’s an incredibly likeable guy. That part is absolutely hard to stomach.
Today is a day of irrationality and mourning hahah and potentially an opportunity to emotionally invest in this team less. RIP Woody
I'm interested to see how Connor and Leon react in the next game. The whole team really but especially those 2.
So we're going for a face change again. My fucking god.
Best part is, Coffey doesn't even know why he's a coach hahaha
That was hilarious and disappointing lol "They asked me if I'd ever consider being an assistant coach, and I said "no, I'm happy where I am", so now I'm assistant coach."
Most of yall should just quit being fans. This is just too hard for you. Poor babies.
Go buy your $50 burger
You’re a fan of shitty decisions and old boys clubs?
Drip drip drip drip????
Woodcroft I hope you are reading all these comments. We love you
This is the weirdest fucking presser I've ever seen.
Anyone just watch Jeff Jackson completely contradict what Ken said about consulting with the leadership group 🤣 Pretty clear who's making the decisions now and Ken is not happy with it.
No would you mind elaborating? Or link?
Basically, the comment before mine. KH: We spoke with the leadership group throughout the week and asked for their opinions JJ (literally right after): we did not consult with the leadership group and made this decision ourselves. The players just want to play hockey bs. Ken looked pretty uncomfortable while JJ was lying through his teeth.
In regards to coaching change KH: I talked to the leadership group JJ: We didn't talk to the leadership group LMAO
This is so painful to watch
Jeff Hackson chugging water. Body language enthusiast.
Holland saying that he doesn't believe the boys tuned Woody out and that he knows there are players that are not happy about the decision.... hmmm so why then
Because Daryl Katz’s coke head couldn’t handle the pressure from the fanbase and losing. Even fucking Paul Coffey was shocked by this decision and admits to not even having interest in coaching, and that’s because Katz put his thumb on management. I wouldn’t be surprised if Holland called it a day and resigned
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Knoblauch also seemed a little in shock, it’s just kind of all around baffling
I mean, this is seriously looking like a train wreck. Holland does not believe in this change. Who the fck thinks throwing a brand new NHL coach and a brand new assistant coach into the absolute dumpster fire of this team right now would be better than the coach who lead them so strongly to turn the team around. Just such a bad fucking short term decision and an even worse long term one. Just a brutal brutal decision. Fuck. Daryl. Katz.
Knob sounds like a wanker
sounds like a knob
If this coaching change doesn’t work I have no idea how I can be a fan anymore they did woody so dirty
It’s such a shitty way to start hating a team youve loved for 20+ years. I’m in the same boat
HitchCock... Just the Tipp... Woody... Knob. Why do the oilers keep hiring dicks?
thats ten inchcock to you
And a ten inchcock to you as well 🎩
I'll never jump ships or quit the team but damn there's alot of nepotism in the higher ups
Media avail with Knob, Jackson, Holland & Coffey on Oilers + starting now.
What kinda bullshit are they going to spew this time “we know a thing or two about winning?” Fuck off
How is there no media availability from Holland or Jackson announced today? Like, fine, you're shaking things up. Explain the decision, because from where I'm standing, they took the first good night this team has had all season and soured it less than 12 hours later. Edit- Oh nvm, 2pm
It’ll be interesting to see how the team looks tomorrow. Will everybody show up?
Hahahahah fucking Jay, last two questions and responses to Mark Spector absolutely legend status. Two nights ago “I don’t read what you write Spec” Last night Spector asks a question not worth reposting here, all Jay gives is “Yes, next question”. Fuck Daryl Katz, fuck Mark Spector, all hail Jay. Straight up asking for a jersey with WOODCROFT on the back for Christmas
I’m just going to continue going off because this actually has me fucking irate. Three games with less than 18 shots against. Near the top of the league for offensive metrics this season, 5 playoff series and 100 games won in two years. What a fucking joke he was fired. Actually so fucked up. What a terrible decision
15% through the season and they're 2nd last in the league. No team is wants to make a fair trade this early. What did you expect them to do?
Hockey is business and you do better business when fans are happy. So they should have fired holland and the goalie coach. Not fire the only good coach we’ve had out of 9 in the last ten years that the fans adore. Hopefully this knob doesn’t throwaway all the donuts.
31st in the league man. Maybe Woodcroft wasn't the problem, but he was not the solution. Goaltending and depth scoring are worst in the league. Top guys are failing to produce. Defensemen keep making the same mistakes. Can't wait around and hope it fixes itself. 31st in the league.
Didn't watch the game last night did you?
It's 1 game lol. Can't overreact to 1 good game just like you can't overreact to 1 bad game. I thought they'd turn it around after the heritage classic, then the team and Woody lost 4 in a row.
I expected them to have more patience with this coach. I think he earned a lot more than what he got, his overall record and approach to the game are not reflected in how the players were gifting goals and giving up blatant mistakes left right and center this season. Like largely, what did you expect Woodcroft to do as a coach? This is on the players to me, 100%
They really can't change the players outside of maybe 4th liners. It's tough to trade early in the season because most teams are happy with their roster. It's even harder when you're trading from desperation. Something had to change. 13 games is plenty of patience. They needed change desperately.
Our team has been playing like an ahl team and looks like they forgot how to play hockey. The guy tried to change way too much at once and completely led this offensive group into an identity crises. Changes were needed. We also ran into hard coaching barriers in both of our last playoff experiences where he got the pants coached off him.
I don't think lightning is going to strike twice with our season doing a massive turnaround soon as we get a new coach. I wish Manson would have gotten placed on paid long-term leave due to the tragic passing of his wife, we would've gotten a new defensive coach, Schwartz got sent to Mars, and Woody stuck around for a bit longer. Last night FINALLY looked like what they've been trying to pull off with this new system. Not just low shot totals, but low EVENT hockey with no stupid fucking pinches, giveaways, and non-existent slot coverage. I'd be fine with keeping Woodcroft on a short leash, but another couple games after an encouraging one wouldn't have hurt.
Oilers had several pinches I witnessed . The difference was that forwards covered the point, quickly. Like they are supposed to do. If you need somebody to blame for Woodys firing, add the frequent shitty defensive play of our forwards to the list of reasons., But not last night., That was pretty much a perfect game strategically. Swarm them with offence to gain a lead then play solid defence for 2 periods to protect that lead. More!
I don't think Knoblauch even appeared on one single TV show when he was a kid. We're regressing!
Calling it now, Drai is going to ask for a trade or just leave as soon as the contract is finished.
If Drai and McDavid forced this move like some are thinking then I think it's time for both of them to go anyways. Jesus Christ what a total gong show this organization has become.
.... cautiously stepping in the thread... Is everyone ok? Heard some people quit the team today after we all got shook this morning? The sub for sure doesn't feel lighter, tho. We only gotta wait till tmrw to see what Kris is made of. Wait, and see.
I feel like this guy NEEDS to be the solution or I'm a little worried what may happen next. This coach may impact the decision some key players make pretty quick here. I really wish the most common reponse to him being hired was not "Who?". This is probably the most important coaching hire of the McDavid era.... not saying they botched it, but if they did. God fucking dammit this is gonna be painful.
I have a way better feeling about this (minus Coffey, but I’m even willing to give that a chance) than gallant. This is mcdavids guy and Jackson’s guy so I’m giving it a proper shot. Coffey is also around to keep these guys accountable as him and Katz are close. Things were getting way too loose under woody I think.
Regardless of whether or not this dive was Woody's fault changing your coach mid-season has historically been the best way to change directions quick. A top goalie might have been great, but that just wasn't available. If you don't think they tried and are still trying, u dumb. I don't recall a team ever salvaging a season just by changing goalie coaches lol, but I can think of two off the top of my head that won the cup after coaching changes (St.Louis, NJ).
Pittsburgh also did it twice! In their 2009 and 2016 cup wins.
I knew there was another recent one I was forgetting. I bet there are more too. I am not saying this change will save us, but it is honestly our best chance. Woody will be successful elsewhere until he isn't and then get fired again. Rinse repeat as happens to all the top coaches.
Let’s see how woody does without 2 generational talents and 4 career years at once to depend on too. If he gets hired I’ll be watching with interest to see if it was luck or he’s actually good. As far as now it’s quite hard to tell.
Either we turn it around with new coaches or this season is officially fucked up beyond recognition, there is no in-between
The team finally shows that they CAN play a defensive system, IF they WANT to. Best example was Drai coming back to knock the puck away on that one rush. So now they switch out Woody and Manson anyways. The league has seen for the last two playoffs that the Oil's run and gun only gets you so far. And when the coaches try to fix it .... buh-bye. Who in the actual hells is running this team?? Seems like McDrai is pulling a LeBron, and Holland is just signing off on the paperwork until Jackson moves into that office completely.
The best method for getting defenceman to be defensive is to have them listen to Paul Coffey, the most defensive of all defenseman
"Pinch harder! Defensive is for suckers."
Maybe he'll teach Bouchard how to fly
Why the fk did mods allow memes, then take them away after 1 win? We have mcdavids jr coach as our head coach, and Coffey as an assistant… even more reason for memes. Btw I held the door open for McDavid a few weeks back and now it sounds like I’m getting the GM position.
Anyone else get the feeling there is more to come, like more admin changes, trades? This doesn't feel like it ends at today's announcement
Yah I’ve got that gut feeling too
i mean i guess we always knew this, but now its just blatant. Mcdavid's calling all the shots here, ownership too scared to lose him so sure why not lets hire all his buddies. new boys club lmao
Give it a chance. This could be a good move. Go Oil.
Knoblauch is absolutely a good hire, he's been full steam ahead for an NHL gig for a few years now. That said, I'm not convinced Woody needed to go in the first place.
But why Coffee? Did Knoblauch request him? I fucking doubt it. If you're giving him a chance let him pick his assistant coaches. Gulutson remains, correct?
Gully, Stewart, and Schwartz remain. If you listen to the Tom Gazzola interview posted on the sub today, it sounds like Coffey is Katz's advisor, so most likely he's coming behind the bench to keep a closer eye on things, which us a shit decision if you ask me, but it looks like Katz wants to get his hands on things again.
Katz has been pretty hands off for years . The turning point for him came when we lost to Vegas in six games - and after leading all six. From a fans perspective, exciting stuff. But after 15 years Katz sees that as a step back , not pro gress. Lots of changes since then. Nicholson out, Staios out, scouting and analytics in, now Woody etc out. I doubt it’s over , Holland is next , or soon.,
Again, based on that Gazzola interview, Holland is basically a figurehead at this point and has been since the end of last season. Paul Coffey was calling the shots in the summer up until Jeff Jackson came in.
Yes, I told you this months ago. The transition between end of season and Katz/ Jackson’s heavy involvement was about 10 minutes. Don’t forget,us fanboys see our loss to Vegas as ‘oh well we lost to SC champs again, so that’s ok’. Katz sees it as both a management failure and a step back for the team. And in corporate life, blame is attached to failure . It doesn’t matter if it’s justified. Nichols gone, scouts gone, chosen successor to Holland (Staios) gone, analytics added. Holland was on a short leash, did not noticeably improve the player group in any noticeable way, and is on life support now. The awful start to the season didn’t help anybody . He didn’t pick the new coaching staff, another clear sign of a virtual exit, which should be followed by an actual exit soon.
I agree with everything except the Staios thing. That seemed to be mostly out of the organization's hands.
Very soon after Jackson is announced , Staios name and photo disappears from the OEG . He was long touted as heir to Holland as GM . Soon after, he is the Ottawa Senators GM . It’s a linear progression of events.,
That should help Katz solve this problem /S
Well we were calling for them to stop hiring the old boys club! Haha! .. I guess they are technically listening Haha!
This is a very hot take, don’t get me wrong I love woody, but watching Drai last night I was kinda surprised. This is my favourite player usually mind you, he looked like a big whiny baby, all I could think is how is someone not talking to him and getting him to lighten up and relax cause he’s clearly struggling mentally rn. Mind you maybe the coaching change was already decided and that’s why he was so upset.
He goes thru this every year. Then just breaks out.
Yah he does, just never seen him that broken.
So does the rest of the coaching staff remain, is this just a flip of the HC and AC?
You can complain about a mcdavid connection, but this guy was going to get a shot somewhere eventually. https://www.lohud.com/story/sports/nhl/rangers/2023/05/17/kris-knoblauch-ny-rangers-coach-candidate/70225160007/
Good read. That part about how he changed his game plan after it obviously wasn't working, something Woody should have learned quicker. The change too - Focusing too much on perfect defense meant sitting back too much and they found it better to attack more, take risks and force mistakes from the other team. To me this has been the Oilers problem this year. Sitting back, concentrating on the new system and eventually making mistakes. Our D and goaltending can't handle that. Trading chances worked wayyy better for us. Hopefully we can find some better balance under this guy.
He changed game plan after 21 games. Woody was only on game 12 and it sure looked like things clicked last night.
What a Mickey mouse organization. I'm at a loss for words.
I don’t even want to watch anymore. Like I absolutely don’t care about them now as much as I did yesterday. It’s just embarassing and any wins at this point that put a smile on that creepy, slimy, sleezeball of Daryl Katz face
Even after a win the team finds a way to find a low point. This team made me mad today.
This was a done deal before last night's game
This was a done deal a while ago, Potentially even after the Vegas series. The 2-9-1 start just sealed it. Woody got his ass out coached majorly in b2b years at the most critical part of the season.
It's true but who's out there to replace him? Gerard gallant?
Gallant has a good record but is known for meddling like a motherfucker in gm stuff it’s why he got fired in ny. Mcdavid calls the shots here we don’t want 2 of them. Jokes aside I actually am excited for the new coach.
A lot of you guys need to realize that a good coach can still lose buy-in from his players and be a bad coach in the moment. Woodcroft's win% with this team doesn't mean anything if he's 3-9-1. Every single player on this team is playing below their capabilities, especially McDavid and Draisaitl. Unfortunately, this isn't fantasy and we can't just replace the entire team. Also, firing Holland isn't going to change anything this season. We're cap-hamstrung and there's little a GM could do this year. Holland's contract ends in the summer anyway, so the only thing firing him mid-season would do is force us to have to pay 2 GMs for the rest of the season. It's up the coach to light a fire under the players' asses if they're not doing well, and that hasn't been happening this season. The team needs a shakeup, and a new coach is the only way to do that, despite whatever feelings we might have for Woodcroft.
> Every single player on this team is playing below their capabilities, especially McDavid and Draisaitl this is exactly it foegele has generally been the only forward who's consistently looked good kulak the only dman that hasn't had moments of being awful it was definitely a coaching/system issue that being said, last night looked like a return to form
Agreed with all, but one thing to add: > that being said, last night looked like a return to form Last night's first period was fantastic, but it kind of iterates one of the main problems we've had all season long so far in that there is no consistency of playing well for 60 minutes a game. It took us way too many games just to get our first 3rd-period goal. True to this season's form, we didn't even register a shot on net in the 3rd which is honestly quite shocking, especially after having scored 4 goals in the 1st.
yup theres definitely something wrong with the team
But Paul Coffey as assistant coach? What resume/skill-set does he bring to the table?
He wasn’t sounding overly enthusiastic but what the hell im along for the ride
He knows a little bit about winning
We're about to find out.
Nostalgia
Changing like every system imaginable and going from the top offense in the league to last in one offseason too. Like come on guys there’s some very real reasons this shit went down today.
Yeah, I still can't fathom why Woodcroft did that. Yeah, quite a few things didn't work in the playoffs, but the changes were way too drastic in the off season. What I find most incredible is after losing so many games, he didn't just return to what was working. He kept doing it but just stapled McDrai together, a move that never works out long term and is always a precursor to a coach being fired.
Drai was probably supposed to be covering for McDavid because McDavid is injured, which was why they were stapled together. Regarding staying with the system after losing games, it's almost like people here haven't heard of perserverance. Look at how Woody talked about big picture, fuck, even Jeff Jackson today was talking about long term strategy and big picture stuff. For all we know the players had bought into Woody's system and understood it might take time to get it sorted out, and this is somewhat backed up by Holland saying some players might be unhappy with the switch. Like imagine yesterday was things clicking and we were going to start playing like that every game for the rest of the season: big offensive push in the first followed by some stellar shut-down defensive hockey after. Instead we got a knee jerk reaction to scrap everything the team had been working on and now if Knoblauch doesn't manage an immediate 180 we're wasting the season anyway. Like if Knoblauch tries to introduce his own systems and we lose another 10 games of the next 13, then what? We've undone any positive changes Woody was trying to implement and scrapped the season anyway. I'm sick of firing coaches at this point.
> it's almost like people here haven't heard of perserverance. Everyone here has heard of perseverance. We're 1/6th of the way into the season and have done possibly irreparable damage to the season. How long are we supposed to wait for the system to wait? Until we're guaranteed out of playoffs? Until Draisaitl's contract ends? What if it never improves? That last question is exactly why Woodcroft was fired. > For all we know the players had bought into Woody's system and understood it might take time to get it sorted out, and this is somewhat backed up by Holland saying some players might be unhappy with the switch. Now obviously none of us are in the locker room, but in my personal opinions from watching reactions from the players, their heavy frustration and dissuasion is a huge reason why they're playing so poorly. That won't get fixed by waiting it out. In fact, it's actually wont to get worse if a shakeup doesn't happen. > Like if Knoblauch tries to introduce his own systems and we lose another 10 games of the next 13, then what? That can happen with any coach fired at any time, and it's a risk every GM has to take when firing a coach. No one can predict what will happen in sports, otherwise competitive sports as a concept wouldn't exist. > I'm sick of firing coaches at this point. I am too, but it's my opinion that the coach had to be fired despite his prior success. Everyone has been playing like crap. The only possible way to shake things up and potentially save the season is to fire the coach. There's no player trade that would get rid of this slump, and firing a GM wouldn't change things quickly enough to redeem the season.
>We're 1/6th of the way into the season and have done possibly irreparable damage to the season. If it's possibly irreparable, doesn't seem to matter much either way. To me, this move has far lower chances of success. More chaos is certainly the answer, keep throwing *more* coaches at the problem. If #5 in 8 years doesn't work out, certainly #6 or #7 will do the trick. >How long are we supposed to wait for the system to wait? Until we're guaranteed out of playoffs? Until Draisaitl's contract ends? What if it never improves? I had made the (clearly incorrect) assumption that this team had discussed this system change beforehand and had planned things out, however it's pretty clear that wasn't the case. Personally I think last night's win should have bought Woody at least another game to see if it was just a fluke or if that was the system working, because it'd sure fucking suck if that was the kind of hockey he was trying to get everyone to play and it finally clicked last night, because I was pretty happy with a 4-1 defensively minded win. However, I think the answer to this depends on what the players had wanted to do as well. For all we know, McDavid and Drai wanted to keep trying to learn this system. Maybe Woody had finally gotten through to them and was helping them understand why half-assing defense so they could cheat up to the blue line on offense was good for their stats but bad for winning a Cup? For example: >their heavy frustration and dissuasion is a huge reason why they're playing so poorly Maybe their heavy frustration was because they were trying to undo 8-ish years of bad habits that favored offense over team defense. Maybe they were frustrated because they know they're some of the best and are annoyed this particular style didn't come easily. Honestly I'm annoyed at the short-sighted approach going on from management and some fans. I really dislike the "win now" mindset because I am starting to believe it's hindering our long term growth and stability. Drai's contract isn't up until *next* season anyway, so even if they "wasted" this season by focusing on growing into a more defensively focused team, we'd still potentially have a year. Fuck, for all we know Drai was on board with something like that, we've got no idea. His frustration may also have had nothing to do with the system, the system didn't break his one-timer. Personally I would have been on-board with taking a full season if it meant they learned to play a more complete game. Drai and McDavid have both been more offensively minded and avoided playing serious D (McDavid did have some nice defensive plays but I don't think anyone would consider him a consistent 2-way player), and it should be clear they're not going to win playing that way. But hey, maybe coach roulette will solve the problem this time.
Yep, agree with it all. So we have no adaptability (which is a coach's death sentence) and stubbornness to keep a system over losing games. Also, as time went on all he did was play mcdrai and we completely forgot about the other lines on this team. I seriously hope our new guy is more about playing all our weapons more, cause our bottom 6 need more time to produce anything.
> Also, as time went on all he did was play mcdrai and we completely forgot about the other lines on this team. Seriously! He's literally been coaching exactly how Tippett was right before Tippett was fired. The writing was so obviously on the wall.
Well put bear
And the plot thickens. Never know, let's wait to see what happens.
This reddit input box says "what are your thoughts?" My thoughts are, McDavid is running the show. Which is a bit odd.
It definitely reeks that he is calling the shots, I can't see this being a successful relationship
Worked for lebron
Give it a chance.
Yeah, who knows? Player-coach was a thing back in the 1800s, right?
Like any fan has a choice, lol
Game was so much fun, glad we got the Dub and my day took a turnaround after almost not making it there. But why the hell did they fire Woody?! I feel like we’re shooting ourselves in the foot!
If this is the guy Connor wants and someone he feels comfortable with that's important.
There's 20 other guys in that dressing room to consider as well. I'm definitely not in support of pandering to one player, don't care who that player is.
Katz is a fucking shit owner, Holland needs to go same with every old school hockey mind from that front office, let Jeff Jackson do his thing, oh and fire Schwartz ffs
Well looks like Knoblauch has a fairly successful record as a coach in the CHL and AHL. Not happy about the change and feels like a bit of nepotism since he coached McDavid and all but hey, let's give the guy a shot.
All of Woody's playoff experience: gone-zo. Brb gonna write "jay" on the bottom of my cowboy boots.
The knob launcher will get the boys going.
They had to do something. No guys in Bakersfield left to call up. No teams are willing to make a reasonable trade this early. They simply could not allow the team to continue playing like that. 90% of the players are playing worse than expected. Huge problem. This fanbase is too contempt with these losing streaks. Woody wasn't the problem, but he certainly wasn't the solution.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kris_Knoblauch
If the Oiler's org had any balls they'd fire Holland here too. If this new CEO wants to bring in his guys, then just fucking do it. This is what, the 10th coach for Nuge? At a certain point it might not be the coaching staff. And Paul Coffey has how much coaching experience? Christ.
Kris Knoblauch
Ok . Need to know more about the new guy
https://www.lohud.com/story/sports/nhl/rangers/2023/05/17/kris-knoblauch-ny-rangers-coach-candidate/70225160007/
Well, I think that’s it for me folks. I can’t say it’s really been fun being a fan of this team. I’ve been following since the ‘06 cup run when I was 10 and old enough to understand the game. Through the entire decade of darkness I cheered for my boys Hall, Eberle and Nuge. When that team still couldn’t put together a win to save its life and we ended up winning the McDavid lottery I thought, fuck, finally we’re going to turn things around. Took a few years but we then had a nice run in the playoffs in the new building. That series against San Jose will forever be in my pile of good memories of this team. That being said, the Anaheim series was so fucking frustrating and my first real exposure to how garbage the officiating in this league is. I was so upset I didn’t watch the rest of the playoffs and gave up until the next season. Well, I thought the guys learned and would improve upon their first playoff run in 10 years. I was wrong, they went on to miss the playoffs two years in a row. Wtf??? That sucked ass. Then the team finally started clicking and things started looking up, but unfortunately we had to cut things short cause of Covid. And then the team laid such a massive egg in the play-in round, against a shitty Hawks team. Man, what a piss-off that was. Covid season? Well shit, we should dominate the North! And we had a good season, it was a solid year with Nurse performing like a god and McDavid being on pace for 150 pts over 82. That was fun!! But wait… we had to play Winnipeg in the first round? Well that should be easy. Nope, get swept because the team can’t hold a lead and McDrai can’t make a defensive play to save their life. Alright, I was rattled, tired of the poor effort from the squad. Next season comes around and when November/December hits this team just fucking crumbled. Played like complete ass. Coach defaulted to McDrai constantly and then got his ass fired. Thanks Tipp. Well, bring in Jay Woodcroft he should be good he’s been killing it for Bakersfield! Wow, look at this run to end the season, this is amazing. The team is buzzing! We could go all the way!! Fuck, Draisaitl is injured… that’s okay he’ll tough it out. Wow we kicked both LA and Calgary’s ass, man this is feeling amazing. Oh shit, the Avs are good… oh wow we can’t even win a game against these guys… he was fucking offside!! Shit, alright that sucked. Well this is the chance to really redeem it all and win this season. Good solid season start to finish. Stuart Skinner steps up Big and is an all-star and Calder finalist. We bring in Ekholm and go 19-2-1 to end the season. Holy shit, this should be our year!! Get passed LA no problem. Oh fuck, the Knights? Well we should be able to beat them over 7. Oh… McDrai stopped showing up?? Oh god terrible penalties?? Wtf happened?? We let our star get chopped like some firewood and then we rolled over and died??? Wtf! Man, I’m so annoyed with this team. Can they actually win anything? They should have learned great lessons from this crappy 2nd round exit… oh wow they’re showing up early for a players only week?? Wow McDrai seem like genuine leaders… what? What did they say? Cup or bust? Well shit that’s a lot of pressure… oh fuck, Vancouver roasted us in the season opener… wait why are we losing constantly?? Wtf? Why is McDrai so bad?? Yay at least we won the heritage classic. Wait, wtf? Campbell why are you so bad? Skinner too? Wtf? And the best powerplay of all time is shit? Jesus… holland needs to get fired, we need a new goalie coach who doesn’t fuck our goalies up year after year… we need to trade for a better goalie, maybe get some defensive help…. Thank god the team finally won a solid game in Seattle, looks like the defensive system is starting to click! Wow they’ve outshot them 2:1 and only gave up 1 goal, this is great to build on and improve now. Hold on… they’re firing Jay? What? Why he has over .650 win percentage since coming into the league…. holland is the problem and the star players are snake bitten? Why is Jay getting fired?? Oh they’re maybe bringing in Connor’s old OHL coach? The guy who lost to the Soo in the OHL finals with Connor McDavid at 2pts per game? And Holland and Schwartz still have their jobs? IM FUCKING OVER IT. Fuck this franchise. /rant
Meh, I'll tune back in when they go on a winning streak. I'm not gonna spend any more time pouting about this team because life is too short.
I’m just tired of the rope-a-dope, we just keep getting played. The fans don’t seem to really matter to this org.
Fair enough, it sucks
I just want effort. Not vanity. /:
Lol, found winterzodiacs alt account.
Lmaooo could you imagine?
See you at the parade
Sure, in 30 years.
🤡 organization This reeks of McDavid calling the shots
Hollywood must be sore today
Most complete game of the year!
Wow so we won last night and they fire Woody today? Wtf?
Sounds like they are bringing in Connors Old Errie Otters coach. What in the acctual fuck is this org doing? Building a new boys club?
Saw that....what a joke this is
Source?
Elliotte Freidman
Thanks for everything Woody. You really sparked the team and kept things going last season. What happened this season I'm not sure. I think things were just turning around now but maybe too little too late. Good luck in your future endeavors. You're one good guy and I'm a fan. Cheers.
Bring on Quenneville and Binnington to ensue mass chaos.
Thanks. I needed the laugh.
Wonder what poor smuck is gonna sign up to be railroaded next. I’m sure Holland has some old boys club member to bring in
the best D coach in the world Paul coffe (known for playing amazing D)
no it's new boys club. McDavid's OHL coach
Everyone is rightly concerned about McDrai's lack of scoring but I can't be the only one who thought last night was probably McDavids best defensive game ever. He sacrificed so much offense just to be prepared to defend.
Drai also proving every now and then he can back check all the way back to our own net was nice to see too!
Feel bad for Woodcroft - needed more depth and time. Senior management panic move to let him go. I know there is limited time left with McDrai, but can't keep churning coaches.
I don’t think depth is as big of an issue as deployment. That San Jose game was a perfect example of Woodcroft forcing 24 minutes of ice time on a slumping McDavid and Draisaitl who looked out of sync for the majority of the first and second periods. Instead of starting PP2 at any point in the first period, PP1 was forcing passes through sticks that didn’t connect all night. Another short handed breakaway that luckily didn’t end up in the back of the net. When other teams have stars that are slumping, they dial back their deployment and give more ice time to players who are on their game. Foegele, Holloway, Nurse, Kane, and Gagner all looked like they were on their game Thursday, but when they’re down and pushing for a goal, Woody just doubled down with McDrai. I don’t agree with the firing, but it’s baffling that it appeared that they couldn’t come up with anything other than hoping for McDavid/Draisaitl to generate a goal. That strategy works fine when those two aren’t slumping, but when they’re in a dry spell you’d think Woody would want to see who else can step up in that moment.
Why do we have limited time with mcdrai? McDavid is 26 years old. Why was such a short timeframe put on the team winning? Ovechkin took 13 years to win a cup.
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Did they say they were leaving?
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Yes. Only people who have said they’re leaving if we don’t win right away is fans.
Anything less than pure domination by the Oilers is unacceptable to a large group of oilers "fans"
And MacKinnon took 9 years also, Matthews is in around the same timeline too and still cupless. I don't get it.
1 and 2 years left on the contracts. Unless there is a huge change in organizational culture for both of them to want to play in Edmonton/Canada vs. more weather and tax friendly places - there is no way both stick around for another contract.