Trouble in Oil City
No Oiler fan could have thought that this season would be vastly different to the last one. Adding three unproven rookies to a squad that is low on confidence, fight and talent is not going to turn last year's worst team in the NHL into this year's Stanley Cup winners. However, I believe that many, myself included, thought that Edmonton would be doing better than they are. For one, the return of Ales Hemsky was supposed to be huge for this young team. His goals and assists were truly missed last season. However, despite being Edmonton's most talented forward, Hemsky has not been firing like we know he can this season which could be down to post-injury rust. Hemsky is currently ranked at 85th in the league for points with only 15 from his first 20 games. Compare that with Sidney Crosby who has amassed 41 points in his opening 26 games and leads the NHL in that category. Of course, no-one would be expecting Hemsky to be anywhere near Crosby, but the comparison shows just how far off the grade Edmonton's number 83 is. Whatever the issue is, Hemsky needs to be putting up far more points than he is if Edmonton are too break out of their current, highly inconsistent, funk. The three rookies who have been thrust into the team this year are number one draft pick Taylor Hall, Magnus Paajarvi and Jordan Eberle. While it would be far too harsh to have expected these three to vastly change Edmonton's fortunes, they still have not done enough. Paajarvi has talent, but his lack of confidence is letting him down in a big way. He only has two goals and four assists from 22 games. He is a hard worker, and more physical than his rookie team-mates, but he needs to start putting up far more points. Eberle has played very well in fits and spurts so far and has shown plenty of promise, however, like the rest of the team, he needs to be more consistent. Eberle actually has put up the same number of points as Ales Hemsky so far.
Taylor Hall, of whom much was prophesized, has simply failed to show up so far. He has had a very slow start indeed and, although he is getting better with every game, the team are looking for him to score more goals. While I believe that, despite the bad start, the experience these young players is getting is fantastic, there is the argument that constant losses and some really awful drubbings at the hands of other teams could destroy these young talents before they have had a chance to prove themselves in a team that can compete all over the ice. There have been some positives to talk about as well. Theo Peckham, who could also be considered a rookie given his limited playing time last season, has been quite impressive so far this season. He is a physical defensemen who plays hard and recently put in a fantastic performance against the Colorado Avanlanche. Tom Gilbert has been decent along with Ryan Whitney, who has put up 18 assists so far and is ranked 6th in the NHL in that category. There is hope that if the Oilers could go on a winning streak of even two or three games, things could turn around and those youngsters and play-makers could get the confidence boost they need. The recent 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators could prove to be that turning point in the Oiler's season. Although that remains to be seen given their inconsistent nature. Should fans be expecting the Oilers to get into the play-offs? Based on their early season form, no. However, I do believe that the team has enough about it to be far more competitive in the second quarter of the season. I think the rookies can only get better and the more games Ales Hemsky gets under his belt, the more of an impact he will make.
By: James Tennant > Find all of the NHL news & articles online from Pro Hockey Fans. |
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