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G66: Oilers @ Sabres - Just A Fool's Hope |
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Before we get into today's game blog I just wanted to send my condolences to the family of Ted Lindsay, as the man himself passed away yesterday. "Terrible Ted" was one of the toughest players to ever dawn a Red Wings jersey and helped lead the Red Wings to 4 Stanley Cups through the 1949-1956 seasons.
Due to his involvement with the creation of the Players Association and giving players more rights and benefits, the Lester B Pearson Award was renamed to the Ted Lindsay Award for most outstanding player as voted by the players. It is still given out to this day, with Connor McDavid most notably winning it the last two seasons.
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Is there any hope, Gandalf, for Frodo and Sam?
There never was much hope. Just a fool's hope.
In case it hasn't been made abundantly clear yet by my profile picture of dice, I am a huge geek. That's an exchange between Pippin and Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings, The Return of the King, as the two contemplate if there is any hope for their friends to succeed. Stick with me just a bit longer, I am making a point.
A fool's hope is exactly what the Oilers have to make the playoffs right now. According to sportsclubstats.com the Oilers currently have a 2.2% chance to make it into the second season...those numbers are less than spectacular, and not one I personally would bet on.
As long as the Oilers put in the same level of effort that they did against the Blue Jackets through the remaining 16 games, fans will at least have something to cheer for.
LINEUPS
OILERS
Draisaitl-McDavid-Kassian
Lucic-RNH-Chiasson
Rieder-Cave-Currie
Gagner-Brodziak-Rattie
Klefbom-Larsson
Nurse-Russell
Sekera-Benning
Koskinen
SABRES
Skinner-Eichel-Reinhart
Sheary-Rodrigues-Okposo
Wilson-Mittelstadt-Pominville
Girgensons-Larsson-Thompson
Scandella-Ristolainen
Dahlin-Bogosian
Hunwick-Montour
Hutton
4 KEYS TO VICTORY
1) Is Mikko A Starter? That is the question the Oilers need to answer throughout the rest of this season. It is far more important to keep playing Koskinen and see how he fares, than it is to hold the rights to Stolarz. Since trading Cam Talbot, Koskinen has played 8 games, gone 4-2-2 and has a 0.924SV%. The netminder is still far too streaky for my liking but he is rewarding the team right now with some strong play.
2) Two Fools Another team who has a slight chance to make it into the playoffs is the Buffalo Sabres. After going through the first three months of the season with a 21-13-6 record, the Sabres have slipped going 9-14-2 since the beginning of January. In that time they have allowed 20 more goals than they have scored. They will be looking to turn their fortunes around with a win tonight.
3) Currie Heating Up (Sorry, Not Sorry) As I wrote after the Columbus game, Josh Currie has become the feel good story for the Oilers this season. Not only has his own personal journey to the NHL been a nice story, but he has been rewarding the team with some strong secondary scoring. The current iteration of the third line with Colby Cave and Currie has managed to out-chance the opposition and gain some solid scoring chances..... also Tobias Rieder is also on that line. Edmonton needs players to score 10-15 goals a year on a third line and Currie is auditioning for that role.
4) Do That Again. Last time these two teams met, the Oilers pounded Buffalo to the tune of 7-2. During that game Kassian and Lucic both scored two goals. Lucic has played well over the past couple weeks and while he still is not producing many points, he has provided some strong defensive play and has not made the same errant plays he has made so many times before. It would be great to see him score a goal tonight.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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