What the H-E-double hockey sticks is going on in Edmonton right now? As of today the Oilers are tied for first place in the western conference with the upstart Dallas Stars and the Chicago Blackhawks. That’s right; the same oilers who have finished last in the league for the past 2 years! Can someone please explain to me what is going on with this team? Here is a list of the three players most responsible for the rise to the top of the Edmonton Oilers.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
RNH is playing an excellent brand of hockey right now averaging 1 point per game (5 goals, 6 assists) through his first 11 NHL games. With fellow first overall pick Taylor Hall and 2008 first rounder Jordan Eberle at his side, this seems like a legitimate first line, one of which the Edmonton Oilers have not had in past seasons. But it’s not only RNH’s offensive flair that is impressive but also his plus-4 rating. Hopefully Nugent-Hopkins’ hot play will continue for the month of November after being named NHL rookie of the month this October. The real test for this young line will be the upcoming six game road trip and if they can keep up the chemistry shown since the beginning of the season, they might come back to Edmonton as one of the best lines in the NHL.
Ryan Smyth
Captain Canada is back in Edmonton this year and he’s back with a vengeance. The 35 year-old is off to a hot start after putting up 10 points in 11 games (5 goals, 5 assists) during the month of October after scoring a measly 47 points (23 goals, 24 assists) for the Los Angeles Kings in 2010-2011. Not only is Smyth back to his scoring ways but he is also helping Shawn Horcoff (who is also playing considerably well) mentor the “kids”, if you can even call them that and believe it or not but it seems to have brought out a younger and more energetic Smyth. The last few years the Oilers have seemed uninterested and seemed to lack motivation and energy during extended periods of the season and that is where I think Ryan will have the most impact; he is a player who works hard every shift and a true team player and people will be held accountable for their play while he is on this team.
Nikolai Khabibulin
This summer Oilers fans would have paid teams to take Khabibulin off their hands, but not anymore. The Russian goaltender, who last year was arrested for DUI while in the United States was written off by most fans as a drunk and a bum but has bounced back this year to put up unbelievable numbers. As of this writing, Khabibulin leads the league with a 1.12 goals against average and a .960 save percentage. If Khabibulin, who has a history of injuries, can stay healthy for the entire season I believe he gives the Oilers a legitimate shot at making the playoffs.
Key to being successful
As surprising as it might seem, the Oilers’ success is not entirely based on their scoring ability but on their defensive play. Consider this; the oilers are averaging 1.46 goals against per-game (1st in NHL) after allowing a 3.17 goals against per-game last year (28th in the league) even though their number 1 defenseman, Ryan Whitney, has only played in 4 of their 11 games this year. Could defense win a championship in Oil Country this year? Maybe this road-trip will give us a better indication of who these Oilers really are.
Predictions for road trip: 4-2
Mathieu Latourelle
n one of the most prolific teams alongside Manchester United and Chelsea. Terrific players such as Thierry Henry, Dennis Berkhamp and Patrick Viera have had a big role to play in Arsenal’s success. It goes without saying that players of this caliber are very expensive to purchase which is why teams with infinite budgets tend to be successful. Over the years, Arsenal’s ‘cracked open the piggy bank’ on more than one occasion. Thierry Henry was purchased during the 1999-2000 season for the sum of 10.5 million pounds. A few years later, the Gunners paid 11.2 million pounds for Aleksandr Hleb. Samir Nasri and Andrei Arshavin followed, costing approximately 15 million a piece. Arsenal’s always been a buyer rather than a seller. But that hasn’t been the case for the last few years. Out went the likes of Aleksandr Hleb, Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure. In came young and promising players rather than pricey experienced players. Those players stepped up and were able to keep Arsenal afloat. When news came last summer that two of those young talents, Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri were about to leave Arsenal for astronomical figures, everyone expected The Gunners to use all the transfer money they had accumulated to buy the top available players. That did not happen. Arsenal only bought one marquis player: a star from the french league known as Gervinho. In doing so, they put a ton of pressure on their young talent (Aaron Ramsey, Theo Walcott, Emmanuel Frimpong, etc.) to deliver. A draw and a loss in both opening regular season games made Arsenal fans more and more worried. However, the tipping point was an 8-2 defeat against the rival Manchester United side. The tabloids and supporters were infuriated and pointed to the lack of spending as the primary reason for the team’s early trouble. In a last-ditch effort to save what seemed to already be a lost season, the Gunners picked up veterans Per Mertesecker and Mikel Arteta to stabilize the back line and the midfield respectively. All seemed good when Arsenal beat Swansea the following week and got off to a 2-1 lead against the lackluster Blackburn Rovers. That glimmer of hope was quickly eliminated, as Arsenal gave up that lead and managed to lose the game 4-3. They now find themselves in 15th place with what seems like an insurmountable 10 pts to make up in order to meet Manchester United at the very top.
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