Anyway,

continue.

I think part of it, though, what Bowman said was really interesting, too, about this is it's a short training camp this year.

Yeah.

You know, rookie camp starts on September 11th.

Never forget.

Happy birthday, Boardsy.

I'm not going to say Freddie's going to score 20, but could he get himself back into double digits again? Because that would be insanely helpful.

Who do you think kind of fills that void in the meantime?

Oh, man, that's a great question.

Um, you know, it kinda makes me wonder if we see Ryan Nugent-Hopkins back up on the top line, you know, with Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman.

That's kinda where I'd been penciling in, you know, Matt Savoy.

And the fact that he's gonna be missing training camp and, you know, roughly a month of the regular season as well, that's really concerning.

I mean, this is a time of year where you do not wanna be behind the eight ball, and we've seen it time and time again, when guys miss, um, pa- early parts of the season, it's really difficult for them to kinda find their game later on in the year.

I mean, look at what happened with Jake Walman last year.

Uh, what were your initial thoughts on this news, and are there any landing spots that you think make sense for both sides?

Who do you think kind of fills that void in the meantime?

Oh man, that's a great question.

Um, you know, it kinda makes me wonder if we see Ryan Nugent-Hopkins back up on the top line, you know, with Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman.

That's kinda where I'd been penciling in, you know, Matt Savoy.

And the fact that he's gonna be missing training camp and, you know, roughly a month of the regular season as well, that's really concerning.

I mean, this is a time of year where you do not wanna be behind the eight ball, and we've seen it time and time again when guys miss, um, par- early parts of the season, it's really difficult for them to kinda find their game later on in the year.

I mean, look at what happened with Jake Walman last year.

Uh, what were your initial thoughts on this news, and are there any landing spots that you think make sense for both sides?

But if we're talking about some of the prospects, like, who are some of the prospects, I guess, in the Oilers pipeline that, you know, have you guys excited?

Well, I mean, I think there's a, a really interesting storyline developing here in the last couple of days with Emil Vinni, right? I mean, I don't think anybody was really expecting him to be signing over in North America, you know, inking the, uh, AHL contract with the Condors.

You know, it's really interesting when you look at the goaltending ranks for the Oilers right now.

Obviously, you know, we're gonna have the three-headed monster here in Edmonton, but I kinda wonder if, you know, we might see something similar in the American League, uh, with the Condors.

You know, they got veteran Matt Tompkins there, 32 years old, got one year left on a two-year contract right now.

You know, Connor Ungar had a really great season last year.

I know he was talked about a lot.

Mm-hmm.

But if we're talking about some of the prospects, like, who are some of the prospects, I guess, in the Oilers pipeline that, you know, have you guys excited?

Well, I mean, I think there's a, a really interesting storyline developing here in the last couple of days with Emil Vinni, right? I mean, I don't think anybody was really expecting him to be signing over in North America, you know, inking the, uh, AHL contract with the Condors.

You know, it's really interesting when you look at the goaltending ranks for the Oilers right now.

Obviously, you know, we're gonna have the three-headed monster here in Edmonton, but I kinda wonder if, you know, we might see something similar in the American League, uh, with the Condors.

You know, they got veteran Matt Tompkins there, 32 years old, got one year left on a two-year contract right now.

You know, Connor Ungar had a really great season last year.

I know he was talked about a lot.

Mm-hmm.

As, uh, Oilers diehard, should we be a little bit worried about this guy being in our division for now a lengthy amount of time, or did we see this coming?

Well, I mean, with the breakout season that he had this year, you kinda saw it coming, right? I mean, 115 points in the regular season.

He's fourth in the NHL in scoring, um, behind and surrounded by some incredible offensive talents.

But you know, he was great at the world's, uh, at the world championships where he was named the second-youngest captain in Canada's, uh, men's senior team history.

You know, Sidney Crosby was on that team, Captain Canada, uh, the guy that's been the captain so many times over the years.

And then at the Olympics too, he was tremendous there.

So you know, we kinda saw it percolating throughout the course of the season here.

Uh, Oilers, looking at the roster right now, if there was an over, under on how many players' names would be different on game one of the regular season as what we're seeing now with the roster, and that over, under was one, would you take the over or under? [laughs]

What do you think of the Oilers roster right now? Do you think they need to continue to look to add, or do you think they can keep their, quote unquote, "powder dry" for the time being?

Well, for one, I really like the Colton Dach signing.

I think getting two years on him is, is solid work from the Oilers.

I really liked his game last year after they picked him up from, from Chicago.

You know, a big physical guy.

Um, a- and I think the Oilers really needed some more of that down in the bottom six.

You know, PuckPedia has got the Oilers at about $4.7 million in cap space.

Mm

What do you think of the Oilers roster right now? Do you think they need to continue to look to add or do you think they can keep their, quote-unquote, "powder dry" for the time being?

Well, for one, I really like the Colton Dach signing.

I think getting two years on him is, is solid work from the Oilers.

I really liked him last year after they picked him up from, from Chicago.

You know, a big physical guy.

Um, a- and I think the Oilers really needed some more of that down in the bottom six.

You know, Puckpedia has got the Oilers at about $4.7 million in cap space.

So, Cameron Otwell says, "Personally, I would like to see Howard given some games on Draisaitl's wing." How would you respond to that, Zach?

If they don't, he goes to Philly and he's the highest player in the league.

What's going on? Poison pill.

That's what it's all about.

So the Anaheim Ducks are really interesting.

Their general manager, Padraig Beek, former player, for years has been notorious for grinding his RFAs to a bone.

He will grind them for every single penny that he can.

and this off season it kind of came back and bit him in the ass a little bit because he went out and he made some questionable acquisitions grabbing like AJ Greer for four and a half million bucks there was another one or two that was mentioned as well and they had a lot of cap space 33 million dollars and they played a hard ball with Leo Carlson here and opened themselves up to this offer sheet Somebody who covers the Edmonton Oilers.

They could be top 10 picks a couple of those years.

If they don't, he goes to Philly and he's the highest player in the league.

What's going on? Poison pill.

That's what it's all about.

So the Anaheim Ducks are really interesting.

Their general manager, Padraig Beek, former player, for years has been notorious for grinding his RFAs to a bone.

He will grind them for every single penny that he can.

And this offseason, it kind of came back and bit him in the ass a little bit because he went out and he made some questionable acquisitions, grabbing like AJ Greer for four and a half million bucks.

yeah

How do you kind of recap that day?

I think it was one of the sharper days we've ever seen from this organization.

Like they didn't overpay for anybody.

They played the waiting game with Darnell nurse and waited it out until they got a deal that they liked when he finally waived his no trade clause and they didn't overpay.

And it sounds silly to kind of circle back and emphasize that twice.

But again, you look at the money that's been thrown around here these last couple of days and the orders have been a team as everybody listening to this podcast well knows who has spent to the cap.

Every single year for eternity now.

But I want to know what you've been kind of working through because it seems like you're getting close here.

You got pinstripe camo on right now.

It's very odd, but the hat makes the outfit.

What a look.

That's awesome.

I know.

Grand Prairie, Alberta, it says.

For those on YouTube, we'll see it during my sports updates.

Yeah, I offered

Any other takeaways from the Oilers' presence at the draft? Obviously, we didn't have a first-rounder, but...

Yeah, I mean, it's hard to feel like you were successful in the draft when you don't have a first-round pick, right? I think they did a good job.

They clearly stuck to their guns.

This Rudolf Bolksons, I haven't even tried to pronounce his name yet, so cut me some slack, everybody.

This big Latvian guy, 6'4", 202, he's big.

Not a lot of offensive upside at this point in his career, but a real pain in the ass to play against.

Strong defensive center.

little bit.

Any other takeaways from the Oilers' presence at the draft? Obviously, we didn't have a first-rounder, but...

Yeah, I mean, it's hard to feel like you were successful in the draft when you don't have a first-round pick, right? I think they did a good job.

They clearly stuck to their guns.

This Rudolf Bolksons, I haven't even tried to pronounce his name yet, so cut me some slack, everybody.

This big Latvian guy, 6'4", 202, he's big.

Not a lot of offensive upside at this point in his career, but a real pain in the ass to play against.

Strong defensive center.

little bit.

Mm-hmm.

Um, you know, they wanna get that money freed up here as soon as they can.

So, you know, they know what they're looking for heading into Wednesday.

Um, you know, in terms of where he's gonna land, I mean, it, it seems like a bit of a dart throw.

I know Elliotte Friedman had some comments on 32 Thoughts podcast today.

I haven't had a chance to fully dive into them.

But, you know, kind of circling back on some of these teams, you know, Pittsburgh, he's reporting, you know, wants the Oilers to take back some salary.

Mm-hmm.

I don't know that we got there, but what's your take on how Babcock might deploy, uh, the twin, uh, elite centers in McDavid and Draisaitl? Do you think we'll see them apart more or less often than they were with Kris Knoblauch?

I mean, I wouldn't be surprised to see them apart more.

Uh, I think it's something that the Edmonton Oilers need.

There's always gonna be times where they're gonna play together.

You know, they're gonna get the minutes on the, the top power play unit.

They're gonna get minutes, you know, coming off of an Oilers penalty kill, uh, when the Oilers will throw them out there to try and get some more momentum.

Or at least that's what's happened in years past.

And then number two, uh, for players who are, you know, either before the season or preseason or in season, who are not up to game playing shape, will he play those players like the Oilers have, or will those players be sent to the press box until they're ready?

But what's your take on how Babcock might deploy, uh, the twin, uh, elite centers in McDavid and Draisaitl? Do you think we'll see them apart more or less often than they were with Kris Knoblauch?

I mean, I wouldn't be surprised to see them apart more.

Uh, I think it's something that the Edmonton Oilers need.

There's always gonna be times where they're gonna play together.

You know, they're gonna get the minutes on the, the top power play unit.

They're gonna get minutes, you know, coming off of an Oilers penalty kill, uh, when the Oilers will throw 'em out there to try and get some more momentum, or at least that's what's happened in years past.

You know, it'll be curious to see what the total number is for their five-on-five ice time together.

Equal housing lender.

Like, do you think this is just a really good fit in both cases?

Yeah, I think so.

I mean, both of these guys showed well in Edmonton in the brief time.

You know, Murphy had a little bit of a rougher time in the regular season, but kind of seemed to find his game in the playoffs.

You know, Dickinson, it's kind of unfortunate what happened to him because he was looking solid for the team.

And then he breaks his foot against the San Jose Sharks, blocking a Connor Murphy shot, ironically enough.

So, you know, he kind of struggled through, you know, those four or five playoff games that he drew in for.

Do you think Bennett with Kachuk on either side of them could go down as the most hated line in NHL history if they all play the way they play?

Do you think this is just a really good fit in both cases?

yeah i think so i mean both of these guys showed well in edmonton in the brief time um you know murphy had a little bit of a rougher time in the regular season but kind of seemed to find his game in the playoffs you know dickinson it's kind of unfortunate what happened to him because he was looking solid for the team and then he breaks his foot against the san jose sharks blocking a a connor murphy shot ironically enough so You know, he kind of struggled through, you know, those four or five playoff games that he drew in for.

But hey, I'll never forget the game one performance of Jason Dickinson scoring two goals against the Ducks.

Like that was pretty unbelievable.

Right.

So I'm a big fan of these moves for the Oilers.

It provides some solid defensive stability for this team.

Do you think Bennett with Kachuk on either side of them could go down as the most hated line in NHL history if they all play the way

So what actually happened?

So this was when I was working for the Calgary Herald Sun.

So before I came and moved up to Edmonton, I was working for the Herald Sun covering cops and crime.

And we'd gotten a press release in our email box that the RCMP in Bowdoin, where they have their canine dog training facility, was going to be unveiling the new batch of canine puppies that they were going to, you know, put into training and stuff like that.

And so they were also going to honor like a police dog that fallen in the line of service like 40 or 60 years ago that they'd kind of never knew about sort of a thing.

And so I went to my city editor at the time, Steve Jenkinson, and I said, Steve, please, can you send me to this? Like, I want to go see the puppies, right? He's like, no, I'm not sending you to this.

I was like, please, please, please.

Yeah.

Right.

Like, I r- I will never forget him sitting there being like, "Yeah, I just really didn't wanna do this," but, you know.

And same thing, it felt like, last year where it was like all of a sudden he's parachuted down.

Does he really wanna run a bench for an int- for a full year like that? I mean, I think he might be the most logical choice for that.

You know, Joe Pavelski's name surfaced this weekend out in Toronto.

Apparently, they're considering interviewing him for head coach.

I don't think he's a guy who'd wanna do, like, a one-year stint as a head coach somewhere.

Mm-hmm

If push comes to shove and they really believe that Cassidy is the right guy for the Oilers, is it possible or is it wise for them maybe to offer an asset, uh, in trade to Vegas? Or is that a bridge too far for you?

I think it's a bridge too far, and I don't even think it's a bridge that's possible.

Um, I had checked with Hart Levine at PuckPedia about that a couple of weeks ago, and he said that that wasn't something, uh, that you could do anymore in these kinda situations.

So the Oilers are kinda just hoping that, you know, by the good graces, you know, the Vegas Golden Knights allow for the permission to be granted.

But the, the more this goes on, the longer it goes on, the less likely I feel like that's gonna be.

Um, Vegas seems more than happy to just kinda sit there and pay $4.5 million to Cassidy to not let him coach the Edmonton Oilers or, you know, maybe if a team pops up in the East that has interest in him, um, you know, maybe he would let him go, they would let him go out there.

You know, I think the Oilers really need to kinda start to crank up this coaching search here, right? I mean, the one name that we've heard that, you know, has been confirmed is Craig Berube for an interview, and that's really it.

I think Cassidy is an exciting option, but after that, the excitement level drops off, uh, mightily, uh, and, and we get back to the idea that, that, you know, Kris Knoblauch's, uh, exit was, was, you know, without having a sure thing, uh, wa- you know, was interesting, but m- m- maybe this becomes a struggle, uh, should, should the, uh, Cassidy option not be there.

What did you make of, uh, some titles that, you know, were added, maybe some, um, uh, personnel being added, uh, to the team? Uh, just your overall thoughts on yesterday's announcement.

announcement.A step in the right direction for the organization.

Um, deepening the analytics group that they have here, deepening the player experience that they have here, deepening the scouting in Europe and the operations that they have over there.

You know, it seems like they're really expanding in some areas that have become strengths for this team.

You look at the, the free agent guys the Oilers have picked up over the last couple of years.

Um, you know, their, their new base in Europe is gonna help with that certainly.

Um, you know, Michael Parcati getting a, a nice promotion and, and getting some new guys working underneath him as well, uh, is great to see as well.

Yeah.

Yeah.

They got bumped in the first round of the playoffs.

They were a terrible regular season team this year, and it was really interesting to hear them be so candid about that.

And I think it's gonna be a fascinating summer here in Edmonton to kinda see the fallout of, you know, these comments.

You know, what do they do with the coaching staff, the management staff, you know, the roster turnover that's gonna come.

It, it's gonna be a really interesting summer here.

Mm-hmm.

Matt's boy stepping into a bigger role.