Quoting: LoganOllivier
Chiarelli hasn't made any good moves since he's become an oiler, he has made several terrible trades and signings and is now standing pat because he really has no other choice. He's going to get fired in the very near future. I'm also not at all giving a pass to the guys prior too Chiarelli, Edmonton has been mismanaged for years, he's no better than what they've done. The one successful year was a fluke, like Ottawa's run to the conference final 2 seasons ago.
The reality is this, McDavid is so good that he takes over the game when he's on the ice. There are very few players who've managed to get the best of him. But he's one guy and most of the rest of the lineup is made up with bubble players who wouldn't make any of the deep teams in the league. It is entirely fair to say that McDavid is being squandered, especially since they didn't trade out players who won't be there in 3-5 years, or even the next couple of seasons. If Chiarelli had any idea how the league is moving, he'd make any move available to get rid of older, and slower guys and replace them with speed and skill. If they just got faster they'd have a chance to be more competitive but Chiarelli is so far hanging his hat on his plan.
Edmonton will miss the playoffs again this year. McDavid will score 100+ points and Chiarelli should be fired.
I think you’re either misinformed, ill-informed, or forgetting a few moves. In addition to the trades and signings that are popular subject for fans to rant about, Chiarelli has pulled of some good moves too.
He signed Klefbom long-term for less than $4.2M per; he picked up Maroon for a song and managed to convince the Ducks to retain salary; then he flipped him to New Jersey instead of watching him go home to St.Louis and receive nothing in return; he got Kassian in return for Scrivens (a minor win); and he swung a decent trade for Talbot. Those are all good moves.
It’s also worth remembering that most people thought signing Sekera was a great move back in the day. The only criticism I recall was that the salary was maybe $500k too rich. His first season wasn’t very good, but he was very good after that and until his injury in Anaheim.
Signing Lucic was also considered a good move at the time. Term and the NMC/NTC were concerns, and there was some worry about his age and potential to have a drop in performance after 3 season or so.
It’s easy to criticize after the fact, but that’s hardly fair. Most teams have bad contracts on their books.
Consider that Edmonton joined the NHL in 1979, with Wayne Gretzky on their roster. They drafted guys like Jarri Kurri, Mark Messier, Paul Coffee, Glen Anderson, and Grant Fuhr before they won their first Stanley Cup in 1984. They may have been a consistent play-off team before that cup win, but back then the league had only 21 teams and 16 of them made the play-offs. Fact is the Gretzky Oilers were mediocre, at best, during their first few years in the league.
Consider that team led by the greatest player ever, who was surrounded by future hall of famers, took 4 years to become a cup contender and 5 years to win a cup while playing in a 21-team league.
Today, you are of the opinion that the Oilers, two seasons removed from tying the league record for play-off futility, led by Connor McDavid, should be able to out-perform the last great NHL dynasty in a league with 31 teams and a far more challenging play-off format.
That sounds reasonable to me.....
Regardless, this team is in trouble. Their early season schedule is brutally tough, Sekera is out again, and most of the guys on the roster are returning after disappointing seasons. There is slim hope, and if it doesn’t work out then for sure Chiarelli will be brushing up his resume. We can agree on that.