Skookum Jim wrote on Mon, 13 May 2024 17:48

Kr55 wrote on Mon, 13 May 2024 16:39 Skookum Jim wrote on Mon, 13 May 2024 17:37 Oscargasm wrote on Mon, 13 May 2024 16:25 ...Mike Smith with 1 good hip looked more agile than him. He’s a bigger goalie that plays small, he’s Darnell Nurse in goalie form. .. Ouch! I agree.. Oilers just need "reliable" goaltending right now.. not "hero" goal tending.. When low chance goals start going in it changes the skaters mind set.. like.. defence just think about; get the puck OUT.. dump it.. ice it.. forwards start laying back.. give up zone entry.. all because they fear any shot can go in.. That being said.. the Oilers as a whole don't seem to block a lot of shots in a game.. I can see not shying away from it in the regular season.. but in a playoff game.. winning teams sacrifice everything for a victory.. Struddie has a term for it.. he calls it "fake shot blocking" .. some guys that go down but don't really come out to the shooter.. or get in the direct line of the shot.. look like they are trying to block but don't really want to take the hit.. which he hates.. Speaking of Darnell. When did he start to have the stick handling talent level of John Scott? Guy was just strange last night, clumsily carrying pucks and taking super wide turns struggling to bring the puck with him like he was an 18 wheeler on ice. Working on stick skills used to be something he was pretty hardcore about. Seems like he took the last 2 summers off after getting his payday. Yeah hard to believe this is the same guy I saw play in the OHL on the greyhounds.. he was their top PP guy and good at handling the puck.. skated circles around guys.. now he can barely make a pass and looks indecisive with the puck.. too often.. He hasn't seemed to have progressed up to the NHL level .. he's fast skating forward.. but agility is average.. his pivots are weak.. not quick .. he takes too long to get the long legs moving.. especially as guys go past him.. sometimes even tangles them up.. he could probably fix it with some focused training.. and worst of all.. his physicality.. which was supposed to be his calling card .. is mediocre.. he loses a lot of puck and position battles.. doesn't tend to grease guys out like other better shutdown D in the league .. even his team mate Ekholm for example.. guy needs to acknowledge his weaknesses and get some coaching/training..

Seeing Zadorov turn from a pylon we used to own regularly into this total pain in the butt that is making his mark on every game is super annoying when I consider what we hoped Nurse would develop into.

I'm sure Nurse wants to be physical, but he uses every ounce of his brain power just trying to figure out what is happening around him. There is zero time left for him to do anything extra.

"We need to get better immediately. That starts today"
- Lowe, 2013

"Next year I would forecast as another developmental year"
- MacT, 2015

5 x $5,000,000