Team Togetherness

Some interesting quotes in today's news cycle:


"We need a new voice, we need a new start, we need new expectations, we need a new discipline, and it’s time to look forward here."

 Steve Tambellini, on expectations
***

"Mac really thought he couldn’t do any more with the group."

 Kevin Lowe, on accountability
[note how it is “the” group and not “our” group let alone “my” group]
***

"The thing that was maybe most disappointing for me was our culture took a hit, in terms of our work ethic and our selflessness."

 Craig MacTavish, on professionalism
***

"I’m always proud of the way I play, I’m always proud of the way I prepare and proud of the way I carry myself."

 Ethan Moreau, on himself
***

"If you’re in the NHL, if you want to have a good career, you should be able to motivate yourself."

 Ethan Moreau, on others
***

"We have some good veterans that hopefully want to be a part of this going forward. But I can tell you things are going to change as far as expectations and preparation from the players’ standpoint."

 Steve Tambellini, on the future
***

"We got behind the 8-ball right away, we took an undisciplined penalty. I love Scottie Hartnell’s emotion but he’s got to find that line of discipline and I don’t really think he did tonight. He’s a guy we count on to kill penalties, he’s a guy we count on a lot. ... He ends up in the penalty box way too much and that’s something we’re going to have to correct."

 John Stevens, coach of an actual playoff team, on Real accountability

The missing link

I know the pieces fit cuz I watched them tumble down

No fault, none to blame it doesn't mean I don't desire to

Point the finger, blame the other, watch the temple topple over

To bring the pieces back together, rediscover communication

Tool -- Schism

*****

I cited this tune over at Lowetide's place the other day, finding some of Maynard James Keenan's lyrics resonated with the (hotly-denied!) reports of a rift in the Oilers' room and with the state of the roster in general. Rather than dally with the rumours or try to divine the true intelligence behind Ethan Moreau's remarks, I focussed on matters of record, namely birth certificates. These reveal a stunning gap where the heart of the roster should be. To recap the findings of my previous post, here are Oilers players and GP by age group through 78 games in 2008-09:

Age
Group ..... # ..... GP ... AvGP .. %team
----------------------------------------
36-39 ..... 1 ..... 61 ..... 61 ..... 4%
33-35 ..... 3 .... 217 ..... 72 .... 15%
30-32 ..... 8 .... 332 ..... 42 .... 22%
27-29 ..... 1 ..... 20 ..... 20 ..... 1%
24-26 ..... 9 .... 443 ..... 49 .... 30%
21-23 .... 10 .... 343 ..... 34 .... 23%
18-20 ..... 1 ..... 72 ..... 72 ..... 5%
----------------------------------------
Total .... 33 ... 1488 ..... 45 ... 100%

I have added two columns. The first is simply the average number of GP for players in the given age group; the second expresses the percentage of team GP for each age group. Here's a crude graph showing that % of GP distribution, featuring a very odd double-peaked curve.


That looks not so much like a team, but two different ones.

Comparison is the next stage of the analysis; it is obvious at first glance that the current age distribution is out of the ordinary, but how much so? Surely the place to start is with the '05-06 Oilers, the last time we know the pieces fit. Here was the distribution by age of the House of Cards that Kevin Built.

Age
Group ..... # ..... GP ... AvGP .. %team
----------------------------------------
36-39 ..... 2 ..... 56 ..... 28 ..... 4%
33-35 ..... 2 ..... 43 ..... 22 ..... 3%
30-32 ..... 9 .... 536 ..... 60 .... 34%
27-29 ..... 9 .... 472 ..... 52 .... 30%
24-26 ..... 7 .... 235 ..... 33 .... 15%
21-23 ..... 6 .... 204 ..... 34 .... 13%
18-20 ..... 3 ..... 25 ...... 8 ..... 2%
----------------------------------------
Total .... 38 ... 1571 ..... 41 ... 100%

In each column there's a fairly normal Bell curve with a single peak. Almost half (18 of 38, or 47%) of the players who suited up for the Oil during that chaotic season were between 27 and 32; moreover the same group played more games per player than the other groups; combine the two and the 27-to-32-year olds played fully 64% of the games. It's an interesting contrast to 2008-09, where not only is that huge hole at the age 27-29 level, but the distribution within groups is strange. Players over 33 averaged 70 GP; those between 27-32 averaged just 39. In 2008-09 the 27-32 y.o. group comprised just 27% of the full roster and played only 23% of the games. Let's compare the two graphically, with the 2005-06 Oilers represented in copper, the '08-09 squad in blue.


There are superficial similarities between the central curve of the '05-06 Oilers and the younger lobe of the current version, but there is a 5-year difference in maturity. More generally, the above starkly demonstrates the '08-09 Oilers have far more players near the beginning or end of their careers, while the '05-06 club had a critical mass of players near their peak.

Of course the 2005-06 regular season Oilers that stumbled and bumbled their way to 8th place was different from the leaner version that was wildly successful in that same post-season. Some guys were traded off mid-season; others who had a cup o' coffee at some point were out of the mix come playoff time, as was the case with all three 20-year-olds (Pouliot, Jacques, Syvret).

Age
Group ..... # ..... GP ... %team
--------------------------------
36-39 ..... 1 ..... 18 ...... 4%
33-35 ..... 1 ..... 24 ...... 5%
30-32 ..... 9 .... 169 ..... 37%
27-29 ..... 8 .... 130 ..... 28%
24-26 ..... 4 ..... 74 ..... 16%
21-23 ..... 2 ..... 42 ...... 9%
18-20 ..... 0 ...... 0 ...... 0%
--------------------------------
Total .... 25 .... 457 .... 100%

The 27-32 y.o. set comprised 68% of the active players and played 65% of the games, while the under-24s played an even smaller role with only Hemsky and Greene getting a sniff of playoff action. I won't show a graph, which varies but little between regular season and playoffs. I have noted for future reference that playoff rosters might provide a more streamlined methodology, a little less clutter with fewer players and a more constant "best possible" line-up. Of course, for that method to work the team in question has to actually make the @#$%^&* playoffs.

Which brings us back to 2008-09, where it's instructive to compare the Oilers with the competition. I'm using brute force, not code, so won't do the whole league. Let's just compare with geographic rivals and Northwest Division co-leaders Calgary and Vancouver. Here I have reduced each team to just the number of players in each age category, and the percentage of GP for each group.

Age ..... Edmonton .. Vancouver .. Calgary
Group ... # / %team . # / %team . # / %team
-------------------------------------------
36-39 ... 1 // 4% ... 1 // 3% ... 1 // 5%
33-35 ... 3 / 15% ... 3 // 8% ... 3 / 12%
30-32 ... 8 / 22% ... 3 / 14% ... 6 / 23%
27-29 ... 1 // 1% .. 13 / 38% ... 6 / 20%
24-26 ... 9 / 30% ... 5 / 16% .. 11 / 30%
21-23 .. 10 / 23% ... 7 / 21% ... 5 / 11%
18-20 ... 1 // 5% ... 0 // 0% ... 0 // 0%
-------------------------------------------
Total .. 33 /100% .. 32 /100% .. 32 /100%

The Oilers have gotten more GP out of guys 33 and older than either rival, and more GP from guys 23 and younger. In the middle both divisional rivals far outstrip the Oilers; note the 13 players Vancouver has used in the 27-29 group, compared to Edmonton's 1. Calgary's curve peaks a little younger, but fully 73% of their games have been played by players aged 24-32, compared to 68% for Vancouver and just 53% for Edmonton. Here's a graph showing Vancouver in green, Calgary in red, Edmonton in blue.

Next year Dustin Penner and Tom Gilbert -- dangerously assuming either is still around -- will turn 27; Pouliot, Jacques, Stortini, Reddox and O'Sullivan all "graduate" to age 24, and their whole generation of players will be one year older and presumably better. At the same time, Sheldon Souray, Lubo Visnovsky, and Fernando Pisani all turn 33, Steve Staios turns 36, and lest we forget, Dwayne Roloson turns 40. Whatever the validity of my artificial brackets, it's pretty tough to argue those guys on the far side of 30 will be getting much better; they'll just be getting older. The wheel of time keeps turning, but given the void of players cycling through the top of the career curve ours seems to be missing an axle.

It is incumbent on Oilers management to address this gaping hole in the coming l-o-n-g off-season. Such a hole cannot be readily filled from within.

A room divided?

In 2006 the Oilers made a thrilling run to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. It was a veteran group: 19 of the 25 players who dressed during the playoff run were aged 27 or older, the other 6 age 25 or younger.

Fast forward three years, and just 6 players remain from that Cinderella crew. 5 of them were, and remain, veterans: Dwayne Roloson, age* 39; Steve Staios, 35; Ethan Moreau, 33; Fernando Pisani, 32; Shawn Horcoff, 30. Of the youngsters, only the enigmatic Ales Hemsky, now 25, remains an Oiler.

( * - "hockey age" as of Feb 1, as per Hockey-Reference.com)

Brad Winchester and Marc-Andre Bergeron were in the pressbox during those Stanley Cup Finals and were gone within a year. Of the four key youngsters of that run, last summer's trades of Raffi Torres (now 27), Jarret Stoll (26) and Matt Greene (25) gutted the squad of three of them. One of the departed players was moved for yet another unproven youngster, the other two netted a valuable but now injured veteran. Whatever the return, what was lost was an important link between the older and younger members of the team.

The 2008-09 Oilers are rumoured to be a fractured squad, with a significant group of 30-something vets, a larger group of youngsters with collectively little success in their pro careers, and not much in between to bridge the gap. Here's a breakdown of the 33 players who have suited up for Oil this season:

Age
Group ..... # ..... GP
----------------------
36-39 ..... 1 ..... 61
33-35 ..... 3 .... 217
30-32 ..... 8 .... 332
27-29 ... 1 ... 20
24-26 ..... 9 .... 443
21-23 .... 10 .... 343
18-20 ..... 1 ..... 72

----------------------

Total .... 33 ... 1488

That's right, a great big hole right in the centre of the Bell curve, which even the gigantic Steve MacIntyre cannot begin to fill. Other than SMac and his 67 minutes of ice time, there's not a single player on the roster in the prime age bracket of 27-29.

And when the likes of Ethan Moreau -- or Craig MacTavish for that matter -- looks around the room, he sees a bunch of 30-something guys who have been through the wars, many of them together, and then a bunch of youngsters whose history with the Oilers is one of failure. Is it any wonder there are rumours of a disconnect in the room?

Guest rant

Got a beauty email from a friend, let's call him "Dave", who has been a season ticket holder for a number of years. Other than his association with me, Dave doesn't frequent the Oilogosphere. It was interesting to read his independent conclusions, so much so that I asked and received his permission to post his comments here. I thought it would be a nice change of pace for my blog to have a post that featured short sentences, each one that actually had a point.

***

As for the Oilers:
Color them dark brown, as in done like a Sunday roast.
The two Minny games and the Phoenix game amply pointed out the prime problems.
There's no passion. The Coach yawns through games.
This is a a passive collection of individual players, not a team.
There's no real leadership, starting right at the top, but mostly behind the bench.
There is no obvious focus, strategy, game plan or set of tactics other than passive defence and inflexible offence.
The penalty kill consists of a simple box with no puck pressure.
The power play consists of "ring around the rosie" then pass to Souray.
Defence is "active sticks'" positional play with little physical play or puck pressure.
A one goal lead is protected by single player forecheck and "back up like mad" defence.
Breakouts are based on multiple in-zone passes until the other team is organized, followed by slow movement through the neutral zone.
Offence consists of drop passes and making plays at the offensive blue line.
Nobody is encouraged to dump and chase.
Leaving a defensive position to recover a puck broken loose by a good forecheck or hit is discouraged. They never outman the defence in the oh-oh zone.
The best scoring player is harangued by the coach to play defence.
The +/- leader is relegated to the 4th line while the No. 1 line is deep in the +/- hole.
The line blender get turned on every second period.
The big bruiser gets left in the press box so the skilled players get pushed around.
The No. 1 goalie gets worked until he starts giving up bad goals from fatigue.
Four lines get played regardless of the score, until the 3rd period at least.

I hope they finish 12th. Maybe that will finally push the owner into making the necessary changes in management, the coach for non-performance and Mr. Lowe for not recognizing the fundamental problems and dealing with them. At least I wouldn't waste money in a fruitless first playoff round and the possibility that the futility would continue next year.

Bruised Black and Blue Dave

Oilers 5, Ducks 3 -- player gradings

Dwayne Roloson gigantic in Oil crease

I have offered to assist in David Staples' latest project over at Cult of Hockey, namely to grade the Oilers' players on a game-by-game basis. This is a collective effort, I'm just one member of a team of markers.

The scoring system is as follows: 10, perfect game; 9, extraordinary game; 8, great game; 7, good game; 6, above average game; 5, average game; 4, below average game; 3, bad game; 2, terrible game; 1, trade this player or send him to the minors.
***

Well that was a wild affair in Anaheim last night, an intense game with lots of bad feeling, especially after the whistle. The long-overdue returns of Zack Stortini and J.F.Jacques helped the Oilers hold their own in the physical battle, as both made their presence felt in limited ice time. Oilers rode a pair of two-goal outbursts early in the first and second periods and as they tend to do, tried to sit on the leads for the whole rest of the game. Shots on goal were one-sided at 54-20, and shots AT goal even more so at an astonishing 93-30. In the third period alone, Anaheim directed 39 shots towards Dwayne Roloson, the Oilers just 4 at Jonas Hiller, and eventually 1 into an empty net that finally allowed Oiler fans to breathe easily for the last dozen seconds. I had long since turned blue at that point, as had the air in my living room with various oaths directed at Chris Pronger, Corey Perry, the officials, and whoever was the latest Oiler to not get the puck out of his own end. But we'll take the two points, and the big zero looks good on Anaheim too. To walk into their building trailing them in the standings and to leave with a one-point lead is a sweet outcome.
***

Ladislav Smid – 6: Ladi was one who had occasional difficulties clearing the zone, but played some strong defence and took his job of clearing Roli’s crease seriously as Todd Marchant discovered. Got a rare shift on the powerplay and forced a fine stop from Hiller with a well-placed shot. Finished the night +1.

Shawn Horcoff – 6: Workhorse led all forwards on both teams with 23:53, including 7:51 on the PK unit which spent much of the night in chase mode but wound up killing 8 of 9 Duck powerplays. A key assist on the game’s first goal, +1, and a very creditable 15-9, 63% in the faceoff circle on a night when 9 (!) other Oiler forwards won just 32% (12-27) of their draws combined.

Andrew Cogliano – 5: Made a nice pass to Pisani for the 2-0 goal, but spent much of the night riding the pine, posting just 7:42 TOI, as his linemates Pisani and Moreau contributed to an overworked PK unit. Just 1-4, 20% on the dot which is all too typical for Andrew.

Ethan Moreau – 5: One of the more effective penalty killers when he wasn’t in the box himself serving his 999th and 1000th career penalty minutes for another careless stick foul. Did not perform well at even strength, posting a team-worst -12 Corsi number, and was one of just two Oilers (also Gagner) to wind up -1 on the night. Contributed a humorous moment when he received a perfect breakout pass in his own zone and with nobody around, performed a spectacular pratfall and turned it over.

Patrick O’Sullivan – 6: Oilers actually outshot Anaheim 5-4 with O’Sullivan on the ice, one of just 2 Oilers with a positive figure (linemate Penner being the other). O’Sullivan also made a strong contribution on the PK, especially on a 3-on-5 late in the first with Horcoff in the box.

Ales Kotalik – 6: A fairly strong performance with 3 shots capped by the empty netter. Kotalik drew two Anaheim penalties, however took two of his own although I’m prepared to give him a pass for that cheap puck-over-glass infraction when he scooped a dangerous rebound from Roli’s crease. He plays a fairly robust game, and Oilers need as much of that as they can get.

J-F Jacques – 6: A rambunctious return. His first four shifts covered just 0:22 of TOI combined, yet in that time he had a fight and threw a booming hit behind the net which led directly to Brodziak’s game-winning goal and drew a retaliatory penalty besides. I’m sure David Staples will grant an unofficial assist to both JFJ and Stortini for their involvement in that “unassisted” goal. His careless four-minute high-sticking penalty midway through the third docks him one full mark.

Steve Staios – 5: Trademark gritty effort, but Oilers were outchanced 8-2 with Steve on the ice at evens and 9-0 on the penalty kill. Puck was in our end virtually all the time he was out there. He and Souray miscommunicated on Perry’s goal that made it 4-3 early in the third. 2 hits, 2 blocks, and somehow wound up the night +1.

Dustin Penner – 8: Oilers’ best skater in his old barn, and posted the only positive Corsi of the night (+3). Also was the only Oiler to be on for more scoring chances for than against at even strength, and the only player who recorded +2. (Pronger was at the other extreme, posting a game-worst -3.) Penner led the team with 4 shots and more importantly, 2 goals, both of them giving the Oilers the lead. Landed 2 hits, went into the high traffic areas and paid the price to score the powerplay goal that put Oilers ahead to stay. Also drew a penalty with some dogged work along the boards.

Fernando Pisani – 6: Scored the 2-0 goal on a wicked snapshot, otherwise spent a lot of the game in Oilers’ end, especially on the PK where he played over 8 minutes. Seemed to be running on empty more than once at the end of too-long shifts. His experience and composure shone through at key moments.

Dwayne Roloson – 9: Sorry Roli, no shutout, no perfect 10. All you did was win the game for us. Of all the Oilers who played 6 games in 6 cities over 9 nights, the oldest one had the most energy and focus. A fantastic game for the team MVP when his club needed him the most. Dennis at MC79hockey had the scoring chances at 41-17 Anaheim, including no fewer than 19 chances with the man advantage where shooting percentages are significantly higher. Usually. The axiom about the goalie being the team’s best penalty-killer was never truer than last night on the Pond.

Denis Grebeshkov – 6: Spent a little too much time on his heels, and had a couple of his occasional episodes with the puck, including a brutal giveaway in the opening seconds of the game. Led the team in TOI at 24:47, and in blocked shots with 4. Grebs’ crisp pass to Hemsky allowed Ales to gain the zone with speed on the play that led to Penner’s powerplay goal, surely earning one of David’s unofficial assists.

Jason Strudwick – 6: The veteran delivered everything he’s capable of, a dozen minutes of grit and effort. Slower than tectonic plates, Struds kept the play to the outside for the most part, cleared the crease, and contributed a team-leading 3 hits. Surprisingly, co-led the club in attempted shots (4, tied with Horcoff and Penner).

Sheldon Souray – 6: Solid effort. A presence in the defensive zone who contributed big minutes on the PK unit. Didn’t have a big night offensively, in fact did not so much as attempt a shot on goal which may be a first. Nonetheless scored a late assist for his key shot block off of Perry’s last dangerous rush which led directly to Kotalik’s empty netter.

Zack Stortini – 7: Returned from a wholly-undeserved 8-game layoff to do what he does, which is exactly what this team needed. Levelled Wisniewski with a great open-ice hit, then came back hard on the backcheck and eventually intercepted Parros who was heading for Roli’s doorstep with malice aforethought. The subsequent fight was no surprise, but Zack winning it decisively was a little unexpected. Later crashed the net hard and created a commotion that was instrumental in Brodziak’s game winner getting through. One camera angle indicated pretty decisively that Stortini actually deflected that shot.

Kyle Brodziak – 6: Back in his comfort zone playing on the Plumb Line with Jacques and Stortini. Scored the winner on his only shot, blocked 3 shots and contributed to the overworked penalty kill. Just 5-8, 38% in the circle, which led to some of the extended zone pressure the Oilers endured.

Tom Gilbert – 5: The Ducks appeared to be targeting Gilbert for heavy forechecking, and Tom was coming out second best in the battle for puck possession a little too often for my liking, including on the first Ducks’ goal. Seemed to raise his battle level a little as the game went on.

Ales Hemsky – 6: His line with Gagner and Kotalik was outplayed for the most part, outshot 9-2 with Hemsky on the ice, and outchanced 8-2. Did make a nice play to Gagner that led to Penner’s powerplay goal, and a great play while being tripped to clear the zone on Kotalik’s empty-netter. Missed an empty net himself a few minutes earlier which would have alleviated my dangerously high blood pressure.

Sam Gagner – 5: A hard night for the kid. While he won’t back down from anybody, the boy against men aspect sometimes shines through in physical games like this one. 3-5, 38% on the dot. Did earn a powerplay assist on a smart feed to Penner on the doorstep.

Craig MacTavish – 6: His decision to insert Stortini and Jacques, while overdue, was the right choice for a physical opponent like the Ducks. The way his team backs up when it has the lead drives me crazy, but at this point of the season it’s all about results. Oilers got two points, the Ducks got none, and MacT gets a passing grade.

Paging Mr. Hemsky … white courtesy telephone please

Ales? Ales? Are you there, Ales?

For the second year in a row the Oilers are engaging in a second half playoff run with their putative star player seemingly missing in action. Last year Hemsky scored some on the powerplay, but bled goals against at evens, posting a brutal -13 rating after the All-Star break. This year the +/- isn’t so bad, but the scoring has dried up including on the powerplay where production from Hemsky is essential to production from the unit.

It’s interesting to compare the production of Ales Hemsky, first line right winger and team leading scorer, with that of Zack Stortini, 4th/5th line right winger and 9-minute a game grinder. Entering this afternoon’s game at Minnesota, this is what the two have done over their last 15 games played:

Hemsky : 15 GP, 3-4-7, -2
Stortini:15 GP, 4-3-7, +2

Now I’ll readily admit this is cherry-picking to some extent, that 15-game run is by far the best production of Stortini’s career, although somehow not enough to prevent a wholly-undeserved five-game vacation in the press box. But the point is that Hemsky is being paid, and played, to produce, and he hasn’t been doing it. 15 games is a significant enough segment of the schedule that he should be far ahead of the likes of Zack Stortini.

Let’s dig a little deeper:

Even strength
Hemsky : 223:33, 3-1-4, 1.07 ESP/60
Stortini:133:06, 4-3-7, 3.16 ESP/60

Powerplay
Hemsky : 59:02, 0-2-2, 2.03 PPP/60
Stortini: 1:18, 0-0-0

Two points, both secondary assists, in 15 games for Mr. Power Play. One assist in 15 games at even strength for Mr. Playmaker. One assist on an empty netter.

Ales looks frustrated out there. Even the acquisition and insertion of his buddy and fellow Ales, Kotalik, on his line accomplished nothing. Is he hurt? Or just in another second-half funk?

Groundhog Day was six weeks ago, Ales. The time to wake up is Now.

Oilers 8, Avalanche 1 -- player gradings

I have offered to assist in David Staples' latest project over at Cult of Hockey, namely to grade the Oilers' players on a game-by-game basis. This is a collective effort, I'm just one member of a team of markers.

The scoring system is as follows: 10, perfect game; 9, extraordinary game; 8, great game; 7, good game; 6, above average game; 5, average game; 4, below average game; 3, bad game; 2, terrible game; 1, trade this player or send him to the minors.

***

After four consecutive overtime nailbiters, the Oilers were due a blowout one way or the other, and this one went the good way. Oilers rode goals from each of the four lines to stake out a 4-1 lead through 40 minutes, then tacked on four more in the third to turn it into a laugher. Where were those third period goals last week when we really needed them?

Hard to read too much into a game where the Avalanche had guys named Vernace, Galiardi and Peltier where Sakic, Stastny and Foote used to be. Still, we’ll take the two points, and hope that the offensive eruption kick-starts the offence for the stretch drive.
***

Ladislav Smid – 6: Had a tough couple of shifts early in the game including a dubious interference penalty, but got stronger as the night went on. Took yet another headshot, a cheap elbow from Laperriere that knocked Ladi down but not out. I hate to say it, but the way guys run him every night, he needs to learn to bring his stick up to protect himself. Right now he’s way too much fun to hit.

Shawn Horcoff – 6: A solid effort which wasn’t rewarded at even strength, but did contribute the game winning goal on a first period powerplay. As usual, led all forwards in TOI, a relatively light 17:22 as MacT rested his first line in the third period when they could have been out there fattening up their stats.

Robert Nilsson – 8: His line with Gagner and Kotalik had the puck on a string, especially in the second half of the game with Colorado losing interest. Earned his three assists with beautiful passes. He can be a gamebreaking playmaker when he’s on, and he appears to be coming around during the stretch drive for the second year running.

Andrew Cogliano – 5: Didn’t make a whole lot happen. Oilers were outshot 5-1 with Andrew on the ice, yet he wound up +1. Posted another dismal night in the faceoff circle, just 4-10, 29% which actually improved his faceoff percentage for the month of March. It’s hard to understand how he’s actually getting even worse on the dot, but he is.

Ethan Moreau – 7: Opened the scoring, later added an assist, helped out on a PK unit that recorded a clean sheet for the first time in 9 games, and didn’t add to the workload by taking any penalties himself. This was the “good Ethan”.

Patrick O’Sullivan – 6: Did everything but finish, forcing Budaj’s best (only?) save of the night after a sweet Hemsky feed. Showed good vision at times and very nice hands at others. It seems a matter of time before he and Hemsky start to click.

Ales Kotalik – 8: After six scoreless games, the shootout winner against St.Louis may have lifted the piano off his back. Looked excellent on his natural right wing with Gagner and Nilsson, driving to the net to finish one beauty pass from Gagner, then returning the favour with a sweet goalmouth feed of his own. 4 points, +3 in just 11:10 TOI.

Steve Staios – 7: Has played by far his best hockey of the season since the injury to Visnovsky bumped him into the top 4. “Heady Steve” was on the ice for 4 even strength scoring chances for, just 1 against; contributed 3:39 to the PK unit, posted an assist, and finished the night a tidy +2.

Dustin Penner – 6: The big guy barely made a ripple on the event summary – 1 shot that didn’t get through, 0 hits, 1 takeaway, 2 blocked shots, 1 won faceoff -- but finally hit the scoresheet with 2 assists, ending a 12-game pointless drought. Finished the night +2 at evens while contributing to a solid power play unit. Played a strong game along the boards and always seemed to be to be in the right position, driving play in the right direction.

Fernando Pisani – 6: Low event game, just 1 scoring chance for, 2 against at evens. Made the most of that one chance, potting a goal on a wicked shot over Budaj’s shoulder. Had a strong game on the PK.

Dwayne Roloson – 7: Allowed a weak, weird goal early, but slammed the door after that. Did his puck batting routine a couple of times, hitting one clean single to centre and one weak dribbler to the second baseman that caused a little defensive zone grief. Picked the right night to fool around a bit.

Denis Grebeshkov – 6: Led all players on both teams with 24:41 TOI. Skated miles, 2 shots, 2 hits, 2 blocked shots, +1. Oilers were significantly outshot and outchanced with Grebs on the ice, however.

Jason Strudwick – 7: A solid effort from the journeyman. Played 18:14, including over 16 minutes at evens when the Avalanche generate just one scoring chance. 1 takeaway, 2 blocked shots, a team-leading 3 hits, +2.

Sheldon Souray – 8: The Oilers’ big bomber was firing away, leading the club with 4 shots on goal and 9 attempted shots. One of them found twine, his 21st of the season, tying Ales Hemsky for the club lead. Had a solid defensive game with 3 takeaways, 0 giveaways. With Souray on the ice, the Oilers outchanced the Avs 4-1 at evens, 3-0 on the powerplay, and 2-1 even while shorthanded.

Kyle Brodziak – 6: A decent performance centring Moreau and Penner, contributing to the perfect PK unit, and dominating in the circle (10-5, 67%). One assist, +2.

Tom Gilbert – 6: Some trouble in Oilers’ zone, including a misread on the lone Avs goal. Made up for it at the good end with 2 assists to pass Hemsky for the club lead with 36.

Ales Hemsky – 5: Somehow generated zero points and posted a -1 in an 8-1 romp. The Oil didn’t need their leading scorer on this night, but they are going to need him soon. He did make at least three beautiful passes to set up scoring chances, but the pucks are not bouncing in for Ales and his linemates just now.

Liam Reddox – 6: A fairly vanilla effort but nonetheless effective. Made a fine cross-seam pass to setup Pisani’s goal, and another to set up Souray’s shorthanded rocket which rang off the post and shook the cage. Also chipped in on the PK unit.

Sam Gagner – 9: I’ll give him a bonus point for his first (official) career hat trick, after he narrowly missed an earlier hat trick on a controversial video review in Ottawa. He and his linemates Kotalik and Nilsson had the puck on a string, racking up 11 points on the night, albeit much of the damage was done after the Avs had seemingly given up. Scored on all three of his shots. Sam has gotten hot down the stretch for the second year in a row, posting an impressive 7-5-12, +8 in his last 8 GP.