Welcome to Hockey Central: Ask the Insiders where fans get to pick the topics. This week The Insiders answer four questions, two on the Oilers’ trade front, one on Edmonton’s front office question marks, plus the role of Chris Neil in Ottawa.
You can submit your questions by e-mailing us at asktheinsiders@sportsnet.ca or by using the hashtag #HCasktheinsiders.
This week’s questions:
JAMIE REDMOND ASKS: How would Luke Schenn fit in on the Oilers’ D in a package with Wayne Simmonds?
MORRISON: Luke Schenn would be an improvement to the Oilers defence and Wayne Simmonds is the gritty type of forward they really need. The obvious question is at what price? Do you give up one of your good young forwards? Tough call to make and is that return sufficient? Probably not.
SHANNON: No question that Schenn could be an upgrade for the OIlers. But one has to wonder, why the Flyers have soured on him so much since the trade with the Maple Leafs. He is now playing less than 16 minutes a game, and certainly isn’t viewed as a top-six forward with a struggling team. From a pure leadership perspective, many raved about his potential in Toronto. However, there have been some thoughts in Philadelphia that he plays the game with a bit of tunnel vision. One would have to hope, that if traded, he could dispel all the critics in Flyer land. A fresh start with the Oilers might be just the tonic for Schenn.
—
DALE SMITH ASKS: Would you agree that Chris Neil is no longer an asset to the Senators with players like Matt Kassian and Zack Smith?
MAREK: Nope, don’t agree at all. Chris Neil is a tough player who’s earned every inch of the ice he gets (that goes a long way in the room, by the way) who has developed into a solid bottom-six player. He can take a regular shift, can read the emotional timbre of a game and will stick up for his teammates whenever the opportunity calls for it. Every team should be so lucky to have someone like that. And trust me, you miss it when it’s gone. It’s one of those things that is far too easy to take for granted.
SHANNON: Dale, while I think like most people, I am a little disappointed with Neil’s play, it might be early to suggest he is no longer an asset for the Senators. His leadership and rugged style will play a part of Senators’ success at some point this season. And with all that Neil has given to this franchise over the past decade, I would suggest a little loyalty isn’t a bad thing.
—
RALOR9 ASKS: Does the emergence of Mark Arcobello, and the fact he can win a face-off, make Sam Gagner expendable?
SPECTOR: Darned right. In his rookie season, Arcobello is already adept in the faceoff circle (52.2 percent) while Gagner is a career 45 percent draw man. Gagner is, in the end, still a better player, but with his value on the market and the Oilers in dire need of a shakeup, yes, Arcobello’s emergence as a legitimate NHL player may give GM Craig MacTavish options.
—
MICHAEL SOLOBAY ASKS: Who will be the first person fired in Edmonton? Why haven’t they cleaned house yet?
SPECTOR: The Oilers have played that card too many times, firing four coaches in the past five years, and GM Steve Tambellini after last season. No more firings are imminent here, as much as fans want blood. If the team continues to lose, as departed Ladislav Smid predicted, expect GM Craig MacTavish to hit the trade market instead.
MORRISON: I don’t see anyone being fired any time soon in Edmonton. The ownership believes in Kevin Lowe and the team he has put in place with Craig MacTavish as general manager and Dallas Eakins as coach. They obviously didn’t expect the type of start they have had, but they also might have overestimated how close they are to being a legitimate playoff team. Clearly they waited to try to improve in goal, defence is an issue and the injuries down the middle to start, didn’t help.
MAREK: They can’t ‘clean house’ again and there is zero point in firing anybody right now. Face it, one of the things the Oilers need more than anything right now is consistency. They’ve had four different coaches behind the bench in the last five years. They’ve had coaches in their 60’s, 50’s, and now 40’s – that’s a lot of voices and different messages for those kids to absorb. They just can’t do anything with the coach and as for the GM, he’s in his first full season of operation. I understand that frustration is sky-high in Edmonton, and it should be. They’ve talked this team’s potential up for years and the tree has yet to bear fruit, but the issue is more in the room than behind the bench and in the front office. I don’t think it would be the worst thing to see one of those core pieces moved to demonstrate that this performance is not acceptable.
SHANNON: Here we are in the second week of November, and you’re re-building in Edmonton again? Sorry Michael, no one is going anywhere just yet in Edmonton. I was told at the beginning of the season, it would take 30 games for this team to buy into a new system with a new coach. That number appears to be accurate. It’s hard being an Oilers fan these days, but with a young team and a new arena on the horizon, it could be well worth it one day. The problem is, nobody knows when that ‘one day’ is.