A Response: Unrealistic Expectations for the Edmonton Oilers?

Today I am dissecting an article from toomanymenonthesite.com by Diana Driscoll titled: Connor McDavid Gives Oilers Fans Unrealistic Expectations

To put it directly, there are a few parts of the article that I strongly disagree with.

Projecting McDavid

There is no denying his talent. He got a taste of playing with older, bigger players during the IIHF World Juniors Championship where he took home gold, but the NHL is a completely new landscape for the rookie. Even with all his talent, you have to expect that he will have to get used to the flow of the game, as well as get used to the fact that he is no longer a big fish in a small pond—talent will surround him.People don’t realize that it is a huge jump, going from the CHL or NCAA to the NHL. You’re playing guys who are faster, bigger, stronger and more adept to the level of competition.…it may just take him awhile to realize his potential at the NHL level.

My biggest question is that why can’t Connor McDavid adapt quickly to the NHL? This is a player that has been compared to be the next generational talent and yet there are questions if he would be able to handle the NHL game. Put it this way: every year people say the same thing for any first overall pick. Look at the draft history: I’m pretty sure that McDavid will be fine as a first overall pick, nevermind as a generational talent, to handle the stress of the NHL. Tavares did. Kane did. Stamkos did (although he had some poor coaching). MacKinnon did. If McDavid is as good as he is, why can he not produce like the other first overall picks? Driscoll is right: there will be talent to surround him. How is that a negative aspect?

He’s been playing against older players his entire hockey life. He will be fine against the fiercer opponents. People mention how it’s a man’s game and he will get crushed. I’m sure those people were saying the same thing while wiping away the egg from their face when it came to projecting Gretzky (and no, I am not comparing McDavid to Gretzky, but rather how people come up with the zaniest excuses to why either of them could not last in the NHL).

Now what the author leaves out: What are these unrealistic expectations? Playoffs? I’m pretty sure most people in Edmonton, who’s rooted for a team that’s missed nine straight years of playoffs, are pretty sure they are not contenders overnight. There’s a lot of growth for the Oilers to do as a team. I am unsure where these unrealistic expectations are coming from.

Maybe it’s from people expecting McDavid to produce like Crosby. Problem is….it’s difficult to find that.

For example, today there were two Edmonton Oilers blogs posted about Connor McDavid’s projections (which are outstanding reads). First was Jason Gregor at Oilersnation.com, who expects McDavid to put up around 74-77 points this season. Then, you have Alex Thomas of theoilersrig.com , projecting 76 points for McDavid. Finally, as a bonus, you have Allan Mitchell aka Lowetide who projects 62 points. Personally, I am projecting around 65 points for McDavid. I’m pretty sure those are grounded projections right there and each author gives some very valid reasons for why they came to that conclusion. Yes, there’s a considerable amount of hype for McDavid and the Oilers, but we are not planning the Stanley Cup parade by any means.

Puzzle Pieces

Near the end of Driscoll’s article, there was this part about the Oilers acquisitions:

And here is another thing. Aaside from acquiring McDavid, the Oilers have only added goaltender Cam Talbot and defenseman Andrej Sekera to the mix. Both, like McDavid, are important to the Oilers’ future, but they may not be enough to take this year’s 28th place team and make them one of the top eight in the Western Conference (we all know how competitive the Western Conference is).

“Only added”. Driscoll under plays the value that both Sekera and Talbot add to the team. Sekera is a legitmate top pairing option while Talbot has done everything besides playing as a full time starter. Forget about those. There were other pieces added to the puzzle, such as Reinhart, Letestu, Korpikoski but those aren’t even the biggest pieces added. The Oilers have transitioned quite a bit. From the start of the 2014-15 season to now, they went from Kevin Lowe and Craig MacTavish as President of Hockey Ops and General Manager to Peter Chiarelli (who missed the playoffs twice in the years at Boston, won a Stanley Cup), Dallas Eakins to Todd McLellan (who missed the playoffs just once as a head coach with San Jose). Yet, these moves, which are ever so vital, are ignored.

Yes, I know playoffs next season is a tad unrealisitc but the point is: I do not think many people are expecting that. What people are expecting however, is a competitive hockey team beyond November 2015. If you put it that way, considering the changes that the Oilers have made, those are not unrealistic expectations.

Next: Edmonton Oilers: How Good is Cam Talbot?

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