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Edmonton Oilers Fire Dave Tippett

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The Edmonton Oilers have had enough, and Ken Holland has finally fired a coach. Dave Tippett is out, according to Darren Dreger of TSN, after another embarrassing loss last night. The Oilers managed 41 shots but fell 4-1 to the Chicago Blackhawks, allowing early powerplay goals in both the first and third periods. Dreger adds that Jim Playfair has also been fired, while Jay Woodcroft and Dave Manson from the Bakersfield Condors will take over as head coach and assistant respectively. In a release that followed, the team confirmed the dismissal of Tippett and Playfair, adding that assistants Glen Gulutzan and Brian Wiseman will remain with the team.

Tippett, 60, was in his third year as head coach of Edmonton and had thus far put up a 95-62-14 record. While that doesn’t look bad overall, the 23-18-3 mark this season just hasn’t been good enough for a team led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. The team has struggled to defend, has had a carousel of inconsistency in net, and still doesn’t have the secondary scoring required to contend for the Stanley Cup. While a lot of that is due to poor roster construction, Tippett will pay the price after some of his deployment concerns.

Mike Smith started both ends of a back-to-back over the last two days, despite him just coming back off an injury recently. He lost both, allowing four goals in each, and now has an .890 save percentage on the season. Smith has been connected to Tippett for years, and hasn’t been able to play to the level he showed last season.

Notably, the veteran coach’s contract expired at the end of the season anyway, one that was unlikely to be renewed given the way the Oilers have performed this year.

Woodcroft comes in as a fresh face, having never been a head coach at the NHL level. He has been in charge of the Condors since 2018 and previously served as an assistant with the Oilers and Sharks, but those aren’t the most interesting assignments on his resume. It’s the years he spent with the Detroit Red Wings that stick out here given he’s now being promoted by Holland. Woodcroft was a video coach with the Red Wings right after his playing career came to an end, and comes from that coaching tree that spawned Todd McLellan, who eventually brought him to San Jose and then Edmonton.

This is the first time that Holland has fired a coach in the NHL, something he has been vehemently against in the past. At a press conference earlier this year, he suggested that dismissing Tippett wouldn’t be the answer and that the Oilers couldn’t “keep whipping through coaches” to try and solve the problem. Well, they are now on the seventh coach since the 2012-13 lockout, as Woodcroft will follow Tippett, Ken Hitchcock, McLellan, Todd Nelson, Dallas Eakins, and Ralph Krueger trying to get the best out of a frustrating lineup.

Mikko Koskinen Placed In COVID Protocol

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The Edmonton Oilers got some good news when Mike Smith was activated from injured reserve today but it comes with a downside–Mikko Koskinen has now been placed in the COVID protocol. Jason Gregor of TSN reports that Stuart Skinner will be recalled as the second goaltender with Smith starting tomorrow against the Vegas Golden Knights.

That likely means that it will be Skinner on Wednesday against the Chicago Blackhawks as the Oilers try to string some wins together coming out of the break. Though Koskinen has seen his fair share of criticism this season, he should also get some serious credit for the run he had going into the break.

Over his last five games, Koskinen went 4-0-1 with a .920 save percentage, essentially saving the Oilers’ season from completely spiraling out of control. With him out, the team will have to hope that Smith–who has played three games since October–and Skinner can hold the fort and get them off to a good start in the second half of the season.

Edmonton is one of the teams with several games in hand at this point, having only played 42 to this point. The condensed schedule really comes quickly, as they’ll play five games by February 15. The worst part of this timing is that it’s added onto the end of the scheduled All-Star break, meaning it will be nearly two weeks from his last game when Koskinen is even eligible to return.

Mike Smith To Return After All-Star Break

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  • Postmedia’s Robert Tychkowski examines some of the storylines for the Oilers for the second half of the season and naturally, goaltending is among them. While he notes that Mike Smith will be able to return – a welcome addition – even that may not be enough to sustain their goaltending situation.  Edmonton has 40 games remaining due to a lot of COVID-related postponements so they will need to rely on two goalies consistently, especially with Smith being 39 and just coming back from injury.  With that in mind, it wouldn’t be surprising to see GM Ken Holland try to shore up the backup goalie position over the next few weeks though they will need to offload Mikko Koskinen’s contract to be able to afford any newcomers.

Chicago Blackhawks To Interview Peter Chiarelli For GM Vacancy

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Buckle up, Blackhawks fans. As Chicago prepares to begin interviews this week for their current vacancy at General Manager, at least one big name has been confirmed as a candidate. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that former Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli will interview for the Blackhawks’ GM job. In fact, the club sought out the experienced executive, currently the Vice President of Hockey Operations with the St. Louis Blues, and requested that he apply. Dreger adds that the interview process could move quickly with the NHL Trade Deadline approaching next month. If Chiarelli is deemed to be Chicago’s top option, he could be named leader of the front office within weeks.

Even after more than three years removed from his last GM job, Chiarelli remains a polarizing figure in the hockey community. As a young GM, he built a Stanley Cup winner (and shortly thereafter a finalist again) in Boston – and that is something that can’t be taken from him. Chiarelli built the core of that championship team from scratch and his fingerprints are still all over the current Bruins. His efforts included signing Zdeno Chara, Marc Savard, Andrew Ference, and Torey Krug; trading for Tuukka Rask, Adam McQuaid, Johnny Boychuk, Mark Recchi, Dennis Seidenberg, and Nathan Horton; and drafting Phil Kessel, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand, Matt Grzelcyk, Tyler Seguin, Dougie Hamilton, and David Pastrnak. However, in building a winner he also made some questionable deals that cost the Bruins Blake Wheeler, Kris Versteeg, Boychuk, and most notably Kessel and later his return, top-ten picks Seguin and Hamilton. High-value picks he dealt away turned into the likes of Rickard Rakell, Jason Dickinson, current Bruin Derek Forbort and more. Chiarelli was also wrong more often than he was right in the draft, which wasn’t helped by his willingness to give up picks.

When Chiarelli arrived in Edmonton with plans on turning the historically bad club into contenders, he walked right in to drafting Connor McDavid first overall in 2015. While the book is still out on some of Chiarelli’s later draft picks, the obvious McDavid selection was one of his few hits, with Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto, and Tyler Benson hardly living up to their draft billing. Chiarelli also struggled in free agency, giving too much to old friend Lucic and unproven Mikko Koskinen while failing to provide McDavid and Leon Draisaitl with suitable wingers. Yet, what Chiarelli is most infamous for are his trades in Edmonton, with none more talked about than the Taylor Hall–Adam Larsson swap. He also sent away Justin Schultz, Jordan Eberle, and Ryan Strome in lopsided deals and gave away a first-round pick (Mathew Barzal) for Griffin Reinhart. Yet, the Oilers did improve under Chiarelli and his extensions for McDavid and Draisaitl now look like bargains. If he had just avoided a few of his mistakes, the Oilers might have made a run to the Cup just like Boston.

So is it time for another chance? Dreger notes that the Blackhawks do have many candidates and by no means does he insinuate that Chiarelli is already the front-runner. Current interim Kyle Davidson will get a look, as could Seattle Assistant GM Jason Botterill, who was reportedly the runner-up for the Anaheim job. Displaced interim Ducks GM Jeff Solomon could also be in consideration, as could a number of others who were in the mix for the recently-filled jobs in Montreal and Vancouver. However, there is no doubt that for entertainment’s sake, having Chiarelli back in the GM chair would be fun to watch.

Tyson Barrie Activated From Injured Reserve

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More often than not when a player goes on injured reserve, it creates an opportunity for a younger or less experienced option to make an impact. That’s exactly the case for the Edmonton Oilers, who finally saw some success after Tyson Barrie went on the shelf partway through last month. With Barrie out, Evan Bouchard took up a much bigger role on the team and the Oilers ended up winning four out of their last five games. Bouchard averaged a whopping 24:55 in those and recorded three goals and five points, including two powerplay tallies while seeing time with the top unit.

With Barrie back, activated off injured reserve today, it will be interesting to watch how he’s deployed and whether the Edmonton coaching staff has permanently elevated Bouchard. The team takes on the Washington Capitals in one final game before the All-Star break and could potentially pass the San Jose Sharks for fifth in the Pacific Division

Barrie, 30, was brought back in the offseason on a three-year, $13.5MM contract after leading all NHL defensemen in scoring last year. He hasn’t come anywhere near that 48-point performance this time around, however, making his new $4.5MM cap hit look a little unreasonable. In 35 games he has 17 points, which include just seven even-strength assists. His powerplay time has remained strong, but head coach Dave Tippett hasn’t been able to trust him otherwise; Barrie averages just 16:38 at even-strength, fifth among regular Edmonton defensemen.

If there is any risk at all of him losing the top powerplay spot, it seems as though Barrie’s usefulness on a cap-strapped team is also waning. How he’s used tonight and after the All-Star break will be an interesting sign of what’s to come, even just a few months into his new deal. The Oilers already have more than $71MM committed to next season because of Darnell Nurse’s extension, and will likely have to cut salary from somewhere if they want to bring in any new talent.

To make room on the roster for Barrie’s activation, the team has sent the recently-waived Slater Koekkoek to the AHL.

Slater Koekkoek Clears Waivers

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Feb 2: Koekkoek has cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the minor leagues.

Feb 1: The Edmonton Oilers have placed Slater Koekkoek on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Koekkoek, 27, was signed to a new two-year contract in August, but has already found himself on the outside looking in for the Oilers. Originally selected 10th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2012, the 6’2″ defenseman has never really been able to establish himself as a full-time NHL option.

In Edmonton, nothing changed, as Koekkoek averaged just over 11 minutes a night in his 19 appearances this season. That included recent games against the Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames, but with the emergence of William Lagesson he once again found himself out of the lineup.

The fact that Koekkoek is owed $1.1MM next season–his contract carries a cap hit of $925K–might make him a very unattractive claim to teams around the NHL. If that’s enough to get him through waivers, the Oilers could potentially stash him in the AHL and bury his entire cap hit. That would give them a little more financial wiggle room with Mike Smith nearing a return from long-term injured reserve.

Colton Sceviour Clears Waivers

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Saturday: Sceviour has cleared waivers, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports.  He was assigned to the taxi squad with Lagesson being brought back to the active roster.

Friday: The Edmonton Oilers had to clear a roster spot for Evander Kane, who is expected to play tomorrow night against the Montreal Canadiens, so Colton Sceviour is the odd man out. Sceviour has been placed on waivers today by the team, while William Lagesson was also assigned to the taxi squad.

Sceviour, 32, played just 7:57 last night against the Nashville Predators, receiving just 12 shifts and none in the final six minutes of the third period. His role on the team had diminished throughout the season, and he’s now available to others for the low cost of a waiver claim.

Signed to a one-year, two-way contract that carries a cap hit of $750K at the NHL level, he could potentially be a nice fourth-line addition for teams dealing with injury problems or inconsistency from their depth players, as Sceviour does have more than 500 games of experience. In 30 games this year for Edmonton, he has five points and was a key penalty killer for the club, getting almost 20% of his ice time short-handed.

Evander Kane Signs With Edmonton Oilers

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8:16 pm: The team has now made the deal official — Evander Kane is an Edmonton Oiler. The team has yet to confirm the official details of the contract.

4:25 pm: The Edmonton Oilers are expected to sign Evander Kane to a one-year contract, following the conclusion of the NHL’s latest investigation. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the free agent forward will now earn a prorated league minimum salary of $750K, plus a signing bonus of $625K. It will also include a full no-movement clause. Because the deal is being signed partway through the season, Kane’s cap hit will be just over $2.1MM and he will earn a total of $970K.

Kane, 30, was issued a 21-game suspension at the start of the season for a breach of COVID protocols and providing a false vaccination card. When that suspension ended, he was not welcomed back to the Sharks roster, but placed on waivers in order to send him to the minor leagues. Kane played in five games for the San Jose Barracuda, recording eight points, until another COVID-related transgression resulted in his contract being terminated.

The league conducted an additional investigation into his actions in the minor leagues. They released the following:

The report prepared in connection with the investigation, which was conducted by Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, concluded that there was insufficient evidence to “conclusively find that Mr. Kane knowingly made misrepresentations regarding his COVID-19 status or test results in connection with his international travel.”

As a result, the League has determined not to pursue any additional League-imposed discipline against Kane at the current time.

That means he was free to join any team in the NHL and play immediately, a condition the Oilers needed in order to sign him today. Edmonton was immediately linked to Kane when he became a free agent, with general manager Ken Holland quickly confirming that he had been in touch with agent Dan Milstein. While the Washington Capitals were linked to Kane in recent days, the Oilers always seemed like the frontrunner to land his services–services which are desperately required as the team tries to get back into the Pacific Division playoff picture.

There’s no doubt that Kane is a force on the ice. Over his 769 career regular season games, the 6’2″ forward has racked up 264 goals and 506 points, including an outstanding 22-goal, 49-point campaign in last year’s shortened season. He’s also twice led the league in penalty minutes, delivered more than 1,700 hits and averaged close to 19 minutes a game throughout his long career.

That is a heck of a player to plug in beside Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl (or both) for the stretch run, especially at such a low cost. But there is risk, obviously, given his history of off-ice issues. Just last offseason, Kane was involved in three different investigations, as allegations of gambling on NHL games, domestic abuse, and COVID-related infractions all surfaced. Though he was cleared of the first two, the NHL came down hard for the third, handing out the 21-game ban that effectively ended his time with the Sharks. When the suspension was announced, Kane released a statement through the NHLPA:

I would like to apologize to my teammates, the San Jose Sharks organization and all Sharks fans for violating the NHL COVID protocols. I made a mistake, one I sincerely regret and take responsibility for. During my suspension, I will continue to participate in counseling to help me make better decisions in the future. When my suspension is over, I plan to return to the ice with great effort, determination and love for the game of hockey. 

Just two months later though, he allegedly broke protocols again by traveling to Vancouver during a period of mandatory isolation following a positive COVID result. The NHLPA has filed a grievance on Kane’s behalf after the Sharks used this latest breach to terminate his contract, one which now seems to have merit based on the findings of the NHL’s latest investigation.

For now, Kane joins the Oilers on a short-term deal once again looking to prove he can be a reliable, valuable member of an NHL organization. He will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Edmonton Oilers Place Tyson Barrie On IR, Activate Zach Hyman From Protocol

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The Edmonton Oilers announced a flurry of roster moves Thursday night. Left wing Zach Hyman has come off COVID protocol, defenseman Tyson Barrie lands on injured reserve, defenseman William Lagesson comes to the active roster to replace him, and goalie Olivier Rodrigue comes up from the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors to the team’s taxi squad.

Hyman hasn’t played much in the last month or so due to injuries and COVID protocol, so his return to the lineup is much-anticipated. Through 32 games, the first-year Oiler has 11 goals and 20 assists for 21 points on the year. He’s one of four Oilers with ten goals, joining Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Jesse Puljujarvi.

Barrie exits the lineup just as the team’s defense had returned to full health. While not the world-beating production he had last year, Barrie still has 17 points in 35 games, playing mostly in a shielded role more suited to his defensive weaknesses.

The Oilers will likely have Lagesson enter the lineup, but he’s been used sparingly this year. In just 10 games, the Swedish defenseman has two assists and is averaging a meager 11:31 per game.

Rodrigue, the team’s 62nd overall selection in 2018, has a .886 save percentage in 13 games with Bakersfield this year.

Trade Rumors: Chiarot, Oilers, Coyotes, DeBrusk

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While the Marc-Andre Fleury-Washington Capitals connection was the highlight of the most recent “32 Thoughts” column from Sportnset’s Elliotte Friedman, the insider had plenty else to say about the burgeoning trade market. Though just a small note, the inclusion most likely to come to fruition is Friedman’s report that several teams are pursuing Montreal Canadiens defenseman Ben Chiarot. Chiarot’s name has been out there among trade candidate all season and it isn’t going away. As the top impending free agent on the NHL’s worst team, Chiarot is a near lock to be dealt. Friedman reports that the Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, and St. Louis Blues are among the teams confirmed to have interest in Chiarot, but Friedman also keys in on another possibility: the Toronto Maple Leafs. The rumblings out of Toronto suggest that the Leafs are targeting a defenseman at the trade deadline and they may very well need one to escape the ultra-competitive Atlantic Division. Friedman notes that the club kicked the tires on Chiarot when he was a free agent and could be a top contender to land him this time around.

  • Another report that is hardly outside the box is Friedman’s suggestion that the Edmonton Oilers have looked into just about every goalie that could potentially be traded this season. Among the list of names are some who have already been linked to Edmonton, such as Columbus’ Joonas Korpisalo and Dallas’ Braden Holtby and Anton Khudobin, but other interesting targets include Philadelphia’s Martin Jones and Washington’s Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek. However, the key piece of Friedman’s report is that the Oilers may end up empty-handed if they aren’t willing to improve their offer. Friedman hears from potential trade partners that Edmonton is not willing to move their first-round pick and increasingly hesitant to move their second-rounder as well. Without a third- or fourth-round selection this year, the Oilers are seemingly only peddling late-round picks, with top prospects likely off the board as well. That won’t get it done in a sellers’ market.
  • One goalie who likely won’t wind up in Edmonton is Arizona’s Karel Vejmelka. Though there have been few bright spots in the Coyotes’ dismal season, Vejmelka’s play has given fans in the desert some hope. The 25-year-old rookie, an unheralded import from the top level in Czechia, has performed well this season. By league standards, his .901 save percentage and 3.40 GAA may not seem like much to be excited about, but as a first-year NHLer playing behind one of the worst rosters in the league, the keeper has held his own in 25 appearances. Rather than quickly flip Vejmelka to another team, the ’Yotes seem insistent on extending the goaltender instead, including him as a core piece in their rebuild.
  • Still in Arizona, where rumors circle the struggling squad, Friedman reports that young forward Lawson Crouse is unlikely to be traded despite recent speculation. The hulking power forward is not without his flaws, but with 10 goals and 20 points in 40 games, Crouse is well on his way to a career year. Although the Coyotes have shown their willingness to move on from high-potential players for the right price by placing Jakob Chychrun on the block, Friedman states that they have begun telling suitors that they would prefer to keep Crouse.
  • Elsewhere, The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa writes that the market for Bruins forward Jake DeBrusk is in fact as cold as it seems. There was a flurry of speculation when DeBrusk first requested a trade, but it has quieted down significantly since Boston’s play improved in the new year. This isn’t because the Bruins aren’t listening though. Instead, Shinzawa reports that teams seem hesitant to make the commitment to DeBrusk, at least at the Bruins’ asking price. While his play has improved of late, it is still far off his performance earlier in his career and not up to the level that his $4.41MM qualify offer demands. The challenge for the Bruins is to find a team willing to pay the asking price that either is willing to qualify or otherwise negotiate an extension with DeBrusk or conversely a team that sees him as a rental, as recent rumors have suggested the New York Rangers might. Neither the Bruins nor DeBrusk want to extend their relationship, but it may be easier said than done to find the right deal.

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