Ron Pollock

@KnowsPuck @TheMugNHL

@ronp11 @TheMugNHL It’s not the number 1 power play because of Rnh lol

Just a thought here, The Edmonton Oilers should use Isaac Howard on PP1 next season over Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. RNH is still effective, but they need someone new to play the bumper position who has a quicker release, and Howard is that guy.

@TheMugNHL Your colourful little cards of made up valuations doesn’t mean much to me. I watch every shift and that’s what I’ll base my opinions on. If you think RNH had an awful year than we see hockey in a fundamentally different way. Which is ok, but you’re wrong and I’m right. 😂

@ronp11 He was pretty awful this season actually, aside from some PP production and being a merchant, and even that dropped.

@TheMugNHL Yes. They should run back the best PP in the NHL. What a concept! RNH was top 20 in PP pts, has elite passing touch in tight. Have a look at the players who were 20-50. His year was fine he’s a 60 pt player, and touches all sides of the game. The 100 pt year is the outlier.

@ronp11 So the Oilers should run back the exact same thing as they did last season, with a declining RNH who has rough underlying numbers and was the clear issue at times on PP1?

@OilersEVERYTHIN …yes, in top 6 in Bakersfield. This is not a development year. I don’t get why Oiler fans would want to rely on an unproven rookie in Connors (potentially) last year.

Ike Howard with a strong first period at the worlds, he looks like he’s ready, hoping whoever the next coach is utilizes him correctly…. #LetsGoOilers

@amato_mike Who cares? The ‘sunk-cost fallacy’ applies here. To continue on with a coach when you feel there are better options to be had, just because they may have fired coaches too soon in the past, is a self defeating strategy.

The next Edmonton Oilers head coach will be the 10th for Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in 15 seasons. All with the same organization.

@Oil_Drop On Hyman, yes, thank god we have him. A big piece of the puzzle On Howard, thinking he is gonna be a difference maker in the top 6 next year is delusional. He’s small and needs time, do we wanna develop or do we want to win. bring in another 7-8m scoring winger to help 97/29

@ronp11 Howard is a shooter and garbage goals is what the majority of teams score in the playoffs. Just saying

When you look at the Oilers upfront, barring any deals, they have 2 spots to fill. Preferably with guys who play with an edge, can help on the pk, in the dot & are good skaters: Savoie - McDavid - Hyman Podkolzin - Draisaitl - Howard RNH - ? - Frederic  Dach - Samanski - ?

@Oil_Drop I get that the numbers say they score enough, but when you have 97/29 I don’t think they do. Find another dynamic shooter for them to leverage that talent. Hyman is a garbage goal specialist. Need a shooter. Savy, Howard, Hutson, Pods, aren’t gonna cut it if the goal is the cup.

@ronp11 This team can score plenty. They're main issue is keeping pucks out via team D and better goaltending. If all goes well, you add a T6 winger at the deadline.

@itsWozzz A ‘Solid lineup’ is big stretch for a team that should be going for the cup in 97s last for sure year. Savoie, Podkolzin, Howard, Hutson, Kapanen, are not top 6 forwards on a true contender. Not terrible players, but lower your expectations if that is who they go with.

On paper, the Oilers have a solid lineup, but I felt that under Kris Knoblauch, the lineup lacked identity. The frequent line-blending, calling up young players, & barely playing them for 10+ minutes. A lot of inconsistencies in deployment and overplaying 97 & 29.

@jimmathesonnhl I don’t think fans are near as concerned how it went down than the legacy media types in this town are, just because a coach who was nice to them got fired. Maybe do some reporting on who leaked the Vegas info to trip up Bowman for something every GM has done.

I wish Kris Knoblauch well. Yes he has about $7.5m that Oilers owe him not to coach their team but there was and still is lots of blame to go around for this past season: team prez, GM and let’s not let players off the hook. Bad, bad look the way this coach firing went down

@Oil_Drop I may be crazy, but Jarry isn’t dead. Goalies are voodoo. It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s pretty good next year.

As bad as the Jarry trade has turned out, had the Oilers simply made it Tristan for Skinner with the Pens retaining money, it's not as big of a deal. Something tells me Pitt still jumps at that deal. Unfortunately, Bowman was desperate & took whatever Dubas threw his way.

@staceybrotzel Clueless. If attracting investment to Alberta is important to you, the separatists are a drop in the bucket of negatives compared to Ottawa.

The world is watching. How many businesses want to invest heavily in Alberta, knowing this is turning into an utter mess?

@rushicrypto How many of the 82% rely on the 18% for employment, entertainment, and the pursuit of happiness? and don’t resent the 18% for getting to where the 82% want to be.🤔

“tax the rich” offends too many people in a country where 82% of adults make less than $100k a year

@Oil_Drop If they aren’t winning, consistently, joy is not an option. The culture doesn’t allow it. If they were rolling with a .750% (which they’ve never done) maybe they loosen up. But I doubt it. 🍻

I'll say this about Draisaitl & McDavid come '26-'27. On far too many occasions, they come across as being so damn serious. I get they want to win, but the NHL regular season is a grind. Have a little fun gents & crack the occasional smile. The entire group will benefit #Oilers

@RajBauer @Lowetide @EdmontonOilers Did Holland make them get to the finals in ‘24 and then sleepwalk for g1-3 ? Did he make them roar back with 3 wins to force G7? Did he make them only score 1 goal and allow 2 in G7? Did Bowman make them get back in ‘25? It’s a coin flip and you call it mismanagement. Dimwit.

Steve on @Lowetide show today is nuts. He is actually blaming McDrai as the reason the @EdmontonOilers don’t have a cup. This is completely on Katz, Nicholson, Chiarelli, Holland and Bowman. Stop blaming the two elite athletes and not the stupid management 🤦🏽‍♂️

@revingev Context: If you watch every shift, you’d see that defence doesn’t come easy for him. His decision making in down low coverage is not strong, he has to focus to manage it, and for stretches he does well, but it’s not a strength. If the numbers suggest it is, they are flawed.

Since you’re not willing to do your homework, let me help you. 🧵 Evan Bouchard isn't just a "power play specialist." He put up 95 points, but only 33 (7G, 26A) came on the man advantage. More importantly? All 21 of his goals were scored against a goaltender—zero empty netters. Let’s talk defense. Bouchard’s Expected Goals Against (xGA) is in the elite tier (top 15% of NHL D-men). He isn't giving up high-quality looks; the puck is going in because he’s dealing with a .888 on-ice SV% while guys like Hughes and Makar benefit from .910+ goaltending. The best defense is never having to play in your own zone. Bouchard ranks in the 87th percentile for Defensive Zone time—meaning the Oilers spend significantly less time defending when he’s on the ice compared to the league average. He’s elite in high-danger prevention and top 25% in shot blocking. Facts matter. You can't push a narrative using a snippet while ignoring the context of the whole story. #Oilers #NHL #BouchBomb

@OilersNation If money is equal I’d rather sign Roslovic. But certainly not both.

Some decisions will require weighing the options, but re-signing Kasperi Kapanen should be an easy one to make, and extending him should be at the top of the priority list. More here: oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-…

@BleedOilBlue Even if he gets canned, he has most overwhelming ‘I’m gonna take a year off and go from there’ case in hockey. It’s a pipe dream, (hope I’m wrong)

The Perfect Coach 👀

@OILfanincowtown Katz is a great owner but if he is making the decisions below POHO level, then that is a bad thing.

I think we see how serious Katz is about winning in the next 7-10 days… should see some changes in that timeframe imo