BLITZ 07 TEAM REVIEW - EDMONTON - B LEAGUE

[LA Robbie]

EDMONTON OILERS - BLITZ 07 B LEAGUE

COACH: MINPIND

TEAM LINK: http://www.blitz94.com/draftab/rosterinfo.asp?team=EDM

TEAM OVERVIEW

Edmonton disappointed in Blitz 06, finishing in 10th place in the B league in spite of Alexandr Mogilny's 124 goals! NHL94Dan has left for Snes land and Minpind takes over the team in his debut Blitz season.

The team has been totally rebuilt, with only 2 names remaining from the Blitz 06 roster. The offence looks great, they have a superb goalie and Minpind is a coach who is making great strides all the time, as his end of season form in Classic B league shows. The defence looks like it could be a problem, but this is still an exciting, attacking team and it'll be interesting to see how far they can go.

TEAM MAKE-UP

With Edmonton's low placing in the draft it was always going to be difficult for Minpind to construct a team with too much star power, but you have to say he looks to have done a pretty good job. Gone is Mogilny and his backups Geoff Courtnall & Paul Ysebaert. In come Steve Larmer along with big forwards Brendan Shanahan & Rod BrindAmour. It's a front line that has classy skills, muscle and the ability to score. When you see that those 3 are going to be backed up by Michael Pivonka, Dirk Graham and Bob Carpenter you realise that Minpind has done a really good job of giving the Oilers a varied, deep offensive roster with something for almost everyone.

Larmer looks to be the classy playmaker the team will be based upon. There can't be anyone in the '94 community who doesn't appreciate what Larmer brings to the table can there? 4's across the board, coupled with 4 checking and 6 Def Aware make him a very complete player. Classy skills and the ability to score aswell as provide. Despite a slow start in Blitz's 1-3 he's averaged over 2 points a game for Blitz's 4-6, and last season was his first 100+ point season. He's like a fine wine, getting better with age!

Alongside Larmer, Brendan Shanahan looks possibly the best choice at C, with his 4/5 shooting. With his 10 weight he's going to be a nightmare to knock off the puck too, and with 4 passing he can also set them up. His 3/3 speed lets him down a bit, but the overall package shouldn't be under estimated here. Like Larmer he's also coming off a career best 100+ season, and averages over 2 points a game in his Blitz career. Rod BrindAmour completes what you imagine will be the Oilers' starting offensive line. Similar to Larmer with his 4/4 shot & 4 passing, but a little slower with 4/3 skating, but with his 9 weight and acceptable checking he also offers decent defensive play. It's surprising that apart from a 107 point season in Blitz 05 his career record is actually pretty poor, averaging less than 1.500 points a game. Minpind will expect more if he's to form part of a team that can make a playoff push.

So, on to the backups. Michael Pivonka was brought in on a trade from Washington, with Paul Ysebaert going the other way, which raised a few eyebrows perhaps, but he's a personal favourite of Minpind and he may be able to find the best in him. His 8 weight makes him another sturdy player when running it and his 4 passing will be useful despite his other average qualities. Dirk Graham represents the best checking ability on the roster, despite his middleweight, and he also adds solid, if unspectacular skills too so he wont let anyone down if called upon in a tight game to sure up the D. Bob Carpenter doesn't have great shooting, but he may actually be a useful addition to this squad. His 4 passing is as good as any of his team mates, but his 4/4 skating is actually better than all except Steve Larmer. There's not a great amount of speed here, so Carpenter looks a good option in games against slow defences if the Oilers are struggling to get behind them.

On D Glen Wesley is the biggest defensive name for Blitz 07, one of only 2 to have been retained from last season. A really nice, solid D man. With his 5/4 skating and 4 passing he's going to be a great counter-attacking option, breaking out and setting up the offence. He gets regular assists and fits this Oilers team's offensive look perfectly. With an 8.125 checking effect he's not the biggest of hitters, but actually represents the best checker on the Edmonton D, so he's going to be massively important at both ends of the rink. Jyrki Lumme looks the most likely partner for Wesley, which will be the first time he's really been a first choice Dman in his Blitz career. At 7 weight he's light, and doesn't check too well, so Minpind will have to have the B check working well, but with 4/3 skating and 4 passing he's another Dman who's capable of contributing to the team's attacking play. He may not be the best on defence but again, he will play his part in Edmonton's likely attractive offensive plays.

Sylvan Cote is the only other survivor from Blitz 06 on the Oilers roster. With just under 0.500 points a game in his career he actually has a very good record for someone that only plays a bit-part. He's another with nice solid skills, with 3/3 skating and 3 passing, but at only 6 weight he's not going to dominate the opposition. Completing the defensive line is Neil Wilkinson, yet another light Dman, but yet another with nice skills including 3/3 skating and 4 passing. They all follow the same pattern of guys who are going to keep possession and play their part in the offensive plays. It looks an attractive group, but there's definitely no physical presence here.

The effects of such a puny D line may be made up for with the influence of Felix Potvin in goal though. Elite goalkeeping to give this team a firm rock to build on. He may just be Edmonton's best player, and if he plays to his undoubted potential he will be worth a number of points to the team this season. Mark Fitzpatrick backs up Potvin...........forget him, he wont play. lol

STARS

I'm starting with the goalie here. Potvin is going to be massive if this Edmonton team are to be successful this season. With such an offensive team, offering so little on the defensive side of the puck Potvin is going to be busy this season, but if he can pull out the big saves it could form the platform for the offence to win the games.

Larmer & Shanahan look the biggest names on offence, and will both need to follow up on their career best Blitz 06 seasons to give Edmonton a playoff chance. Supported by BrindAmour & Pivonka they'll have good support too.

On D, Wesley has to have a massive season. With such little physical presence on D he'll need to lead the team and give Potvin some much needed protection.

WEAKNESSES

Ive mentioned it a few times already. With the puck they've got some big guys who'll be tough to take possession from, but without it they look vulnerable. Dirk Graham is the biggest hitter on this team with a 9.375 checking effect, and Glen Wesley is the biggest hitting defender with an 8.125 checking effect. There's just not the ability here to physically dominate other teams, and the fact that 3 forwards check better than Wesley show's the vulnerability is there.

On offence you have to mention the speed too. Only Larmer & Carpenter have 4 speed, everyone else is slower. This is a team that needs to get into your offensive zone to be effective. Challenge them high up the ice and it may be possible to nulify the threat from the good technical players they have.

PRE-SEASON PREDICTION - PLAYOFF CONTENTION WITH AN ATTRACTIVE STYLE

I think Minpind is going to win a lot of friends this season for his style of play and attacking mentality. They have 3 or 4 players who can interchange and play any of the 3 positions on the forward line, making them very unpredictable. Edmonton will be competitive and may surprise a lot of teams.

Can they make the playoffs? It's a tough call. The decision to load up on useful offensive players above creating more of a balance between defence and attack could prove to be the biggest weakness for them. It's going to be a fun ride, and everything looks to depend on their ability to withstand pressure on defence. Don't be surprised if they achieve big things.

[minpind]

Awesome Write-up! yeah pivonka is the closest thing to my main man kvartalnov, im hoping larmer and his 6 def awareness can help any week spots in my d