Adam wrote on Sun, 06 March 2022 12:18

Kr55 wrote on Sun, 06 March 2022 11:17 stemhovlichski wrote on Sun, 06 March 2022 01:33 Kr55 wrote on Sun, 06 March 2022 00:15 Adam wrote on Sun, 06 March 2022 00:09 Kr55 wrote on Sat, 05 March 2022 23:29 Oscargasm wrote on Sat, 05 March 2022 21:29 So Smith to LTIR and Skinner recalled? Was supposed to be available for media post game but did not come out, was receiving medical treatment. Stauffer’s pet posted on twitter that Smith to IR and Skinner recall. There is no way that Smith is not going to try his best to play next season too, is there? Battler gonna battle. It would be ineptitude of the highest order if the Oilers allowed him to come back again, but I really don't think I'd bet on them not doing it. I'm still not going to be shocked if Koskinen/Smith is the tandem to start the year again next year, because these guys never learn. Does Smith have a no-move clause? I thought he did, but I can't see one on CapFriendly, so maybe I'm imagining that. It would be not ideal if he can block assignment to the AHL... As I said though, if I'm managing the team, I'm working hard to convince him to accept an assignment to LTIR permanently. Lol, I wonder what Smith wanted for just a 1 year deal. 2.5M instead of 2.2? We may regret not paying up! The crap we've been hearing lately about him insisting on playing. I have a feeling Smith might be one of those rare guys that would refuse to play ball with LTIR or retirement. He'll just keep insisting on coming back like an annoying bastard (battler). I guess it happens to even the best of them. I think Andrew Ladd kept insisting on coming back with the Islanders and Lou had to take a loss in a trade to move him. So let me get this straight: Smith played his ass off last season to give us hope while everyone screamed ditch Koskinen. Smith gets hurt early in the season, comes back with no conditioning stint, sucks, then wins, gets overplayed and sucks again. Incredibly weak defence for the most part. Insanely bad PK and declining PP because of coaching and/or player performance issues. Bad enough that the coach gets fired. A major systemic failure in filling holes in the lineup with plenty of cap space plus decades long developmental failures of our farm system. The 2nd line out injured. A culture that holds no one accountable. AND WE EXPECT IT TO CHANGE???? Oilers goalies let in one turkey per game. We have the two best players in hockey (pointwise is all I will concede on that fact) and are piling up L's when we need to secure a playoff spot. MIKE SMITH ISN'T ON THE PP. MIKE SMITH DOESN'T GIVE UP BREAKWAYS ON A FLAWED PP STRATEGY. MIKE SMITH DOESN'T PLAY THE "I" FORMATION ON THE PK. MIKE SMITH DOESN'T COLLAPSE IN THE SLOT UNDER PRESSURE (OK, I'll concede on that point without too much argument, but you get my point). MIKE SMITH DOESN'T FILL ROSTER SPOTS WITH BLOWN CAP SPACE. MIKE SMITH DOESN'T LEAVE HIMSELF IN NET WHEN THE ENTIRE WESTERN HEMISPHERE SEES HE'S HAVING A BAD NIGHT. MIKE SMITH DOESN'T COAST THROUGH THE NEUTRAL ZONE, DUMP AND NOT CHASE, PLAY WEAK IN THE CORNERS, LEAVE THE SLOT OPEN (at both ends), OR FAIL TO SCORE WHEN HE'S EXPECTED. Crapping all over Smith is so typical of us here - looking for scapegoats to cover the real organizational suck on this team. We've run so many goalies out of this city to protect GMs and coaches and asst coaches instead of punishing systemic failure. SMITH SUCKED TONIGHT. SO PULL HIM, WOODCROFT!!!! But no, hang him out to suck, so the heat is on the G and not the rest of the schmucks playing minimite hockey, coaching by blender and playing favourites instead of rewarding success, and running this team like Anita McCambridge. I think we all know what Smith is here. Not a good solution if we want to win for extended periods of time. Definitely not smart to have him signed next year. That's pretty much it. How the team plays in front of him doesn't really change things. The bad results he has a major hand in are annoying. Watching him flop around, chase guys out of his net, be almost inside his net for a 25 ft shot, super annoying too. Team is certainly not built to be able to consistently play perfect hockey so he never gets a chance to do goofy stuff. I don't think I've ever been accused of being soft on management, and no mistake, it's Holland's fault that Smith was re-signed at all, that he was re-signed for too long, and that he keeps getting the push and hasn't been sat down for a heart-to-heart before now. But Smith's not getting the job done. He was saved by the video judge a couple of times, including on one where the off-side had nothing to do with the scoring play. He fished a lot of pucks out of his own net last night and it's not like that's an anomaly. He's been shelled almost every game since he returned. He clearly shouldn't be back in the goal any time soon, and given his age, it's probable that he should never start another game for the Oilers. Last year was an anomaly in a short season where he caught lightning in a bottle. He should have retired and gone out on top.

Nope, definitely not calling you out for being soft on management! Smith was brutal, so why didn't they yank him? Day off today and short trip south tomorrow so resting Koskinen isn't an excuse. We all pretty much agreed that one year of Smith with 20-25 games played was expected, but Holland is still learning the ropes I guess and showed us how it's done. If we have a minor leaguer who's a major leaguer and a major leaguer who's a minor leaguer - DEAL WITH IT OILERS! Embarrass the GM for a crappy deal, force him to deal with cap space by moving players and making it fit, get rid of some useless baggage, reward success and punish failure.

Restored: "We're sucking hind banana here." - Pat Quinn, Jan 18, 2010

"...the Oilers have been rebuilding for so long that it’s hard not to be cynical." - NBC's Ryan Dadoun Jan 2, 2015