Nuge to UFA part 2

Hmmm. There’s a lot going on between both posts. I like majority of it but some of it seems wishful thinking. Holloway making the team with no or next to no ahl time that’s very interesting conversation. We see him in a different spot in line up I see 3c option for a few reasons one being from my understanding he’s darn good on taking draws. Second reason being he’s got a ton of speed which is very helpful in the middle of the ice. Third example is mcdavid seems to have a big say on who he plays with. There’s been a few examples of this it’s why jp got next to no chance on his first tour of duty. That’s the only explainable theory to why nuge doesn’t play with Leon and yam. Your a stats guy I’m sure noticed the difference in nuges with Leon night and day difference. Tippett can’t be the one making that decision I don’t think that is right but it’s becoming obvious on that’s just the way it is. Holloway will have to gain mcdavids blessing which is dumb and I’m sure sounds dumb but so is keeping nuge away from Leon.

Isn't that what this site is for?


A lot of high-end guys start at wing in the NHL and move to center after a couple of years. Being a center at the NHL level is very difficult, especially for a guy who is going directly from the NCAA to the NHL. The Oilers need a defensively responsible 3C and 4C to take the majority of the defensive zone / PK work off the top-6, and while I have a lot of confidence in Holloway's abilities I don't want to put that responsibility on him right away. In this AGM I have a hard-minutes 3rd line and an easy-minutes 4th that won't see a lot of TOI. I don't want Holloway in either spot.


I don't know how the lines would shake out with these players (they'd change game-to-game anyhow), but I want Holloway (the strongest LW) with Yamamoto (the weakest) to balance things out. It's less critical for Draisaitl I suppose, but for McDavid its certainly something to think about: he needs speedy forecheckers to get the puck and win board battles while also being skilled enough to play tic-tac-toe with him, and Holloway + Yamamoto fit the bill. Of course, so do Forsberg + Puljujarvi, so I'm not that concerned how it shakes out. Note: Hyman has a very good track record playing with skill, Savoie and Lavoie are snipers. The coach has tons of options here.

Hyman we have gotten to see more of this year than normal and I really like that signing he could slot into mcdavids line very easily IMO. Kass and maroon have had success there because they were able to use their size to retrieve pucks in the corners and go hard at the net that’s what I would see in Hyman if looking to sign. I think brilliant option. Holloway is very tough to predict a good spot in line up since hasn’t even signed elc yet. So predicting top six wing job right away he’s gotta hit it out of the park and really impress which is possible but also some wishful thinking. I look at what traits he brings that could be overwhelming enough to make the jump right away. The one trait I see in him that can translate easier than the production is winning draws I’m seeing him as 3c but it’s very hard to predict that right now.

You do know this is a 22-23 roster, right? Draft+3 for Holloway? He turns 21 at the 2022-23 training camp, he's not a kid here.

Ahhhh my mistake. Was thinking of next year.