Anyone else feel bad for Dallas Eakins?

[tas]

i love watching every other canadian team struggle.

[Gerbera]

I always laugh when people compare the Oilers to the Penguins or the Hawks. They are in no way the same.

When Pittsburgh was at the bottom of the league and they got all those high draft picks they got Crosby, Malkin, Staal, Fleury, and Whitney (who they turned into Chris Kunitz). Edmonton has gotten Hall, RNH, Yakupov, and Eberle (he was drafted 22nd overall though). None of those guys are on the same level as Crosby or Malkin.

When Chicago was at the bottom of the league who did they get? Kane and Toews. None of the guys the Oilers have gotten are on Kane or Toews' level.

I've said this before but the Oilers picked the wrong time to tank and get high draft picks. If the Oilers would have tanked right now they would have been unstoppable in a couple years. Can you frickin imagine if they would have gotten last years 1st overall pick (MacKinnon or Jones), this years 1st overall pick (Ekblad or Reinhart), and then Connor McDavid next year? That would have been absolutely horrifying. They could of had a team with McDavid as the 1st line centre, MacKinnon or Reinhart as the 2nd line centre, and either Jones or Ekblad as your number 1 d-man.

Also it looks like the Oilers have absolutely completely messed up drafting in the later rounds. After the obvious 1st overall choice they have completely bombed in the later rounds. Look at who Chicago drafted in the later rounds of the drafts before their emergence:

2002 - Keith (2nd round pick), 2003 - Seabrook (2nd round), Byfuglien (8th round), 2004 - Bickell (2nd round), Brouwer (7th round), 2005 - Hjalmarsson (4th round), they then got Kane and Toews the next two years.

You really do build through the draft. And Edmonton is horrible at drafting.

EDIT: ALSO the Oilers have no veteran leadership on the team. Ference is the veteran on that team and that is just sad. When Crosby and Malkin first made the NHL the Penguins had Lemieux, Dr. Recchi, Roberts, and Guerin during their first few years there. Those guys had a huge impact on Crosby and Malkin. The Oilers have no one like that. Also Malkin was a Russian coming into a foreign environment and he had Gonchar there to help him. Yakupov has no one. I know some of you guys think it's not a big deal but it really is. I guess for Yakupov he played in the CHL before the NHL but even then he had his Russian buddy (I forget his name) on that team. They have no leadership in Edmonton.

SO to sum up: the Oilers are a complete mess.

Yakupov's Russian buddy is Galchenyuk I believe.

[AFrame14]

I blame the Oilers for being disloyal to so many coaches. Quinn, Renney, Kreuger - all hired and told they'd have a long leash. All fired prematurely and never given a chance to succeed. The team is the problem, not the coaches. And yet the team has gone through coaches faster than we've gone through linemates for the Sedin twins! Eakins shouldn't be getting too comfortable in Edmonton.

Yea I agree, not sure why they ever got rid of renney,I thought he was doing a good job...

Lol imagine of their first rounders were in 08-10 instead of 10-12... Stamkos Tavares hall lol

[Broccoli]

He looks like the squirrels that show up on my porch looking for nuts lol

[BanTSN]

i love watching every other canadian team struggle.

It's the only source of joy in my life.

Well, not really. But hockey-related? Yeah...

[Gollumpus]

I think Eakins is a big boy and he knew what he was getting himself into.

As to the Oilers, that is all on the head office guys (Lowe etc). I believe they were enamoured with the idea that they could re-create the Gretzky era by drafting the guys they did. The Oilers with Seguin, Landescog and Murray would be miles ahead of where they are now.

regards,

G.