Lowetide

Takin’ Care of Business The Edmonton Oilers will have Adam Henrique available when the puck drops Wednesday night in Anaheim. The availability of Connor McDavid is unknown, he's banged up (as is Leon Draisaitl) and that will...

Oilers fans are restless, but is Stan Bowman?

lowetide.ca/2026/02/23/t...

Five takeaways for Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers from the Olympics What's to be learned by McDavid and the Oilers from the Olympic experience that wrapped up Sunday?

Five takeaways for Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers from the Olympics

www.nytimes.com/athletic/706...

AHL NHLE This is the 2015 NHL equivalency table for the Oilers prospect group at the time. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are miles ahead of the rest, and it has happened just that way. Darnell Nurse is als...

AHL-to-NHL equivalencies, bless you Olympians for giving us a wonderful show, and, perhaps too early, why I believe Canada chose wrong in roster construction.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/22/a...

Lowetide: Oilers hard target search for a second pair right-handed defenceman

Edmonton Oilers trade targets: A second pair right-handed defenceman

www.nytimes.com/athletic/706...

Travelin’ Man This is a graph that appeared on this blog the summer Darnell Nurse was drafted. It shows Nurse as a solid even-strength contributor in points, but we show as a power-play option. These things have re...

Nurse doesn't defend poorly, but he does defend too much. Plus, the Condors veterans are pushing hard as the college kids begin to fade.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/21/t...

What Paul Coffey’s return to Edmonton Oilers’ bench could change on defence As an assistant coach, Coffey was part of the success the Oilers enjoyed during the previous two seasons.

Paul Coffey can help the Oilers defence. He was in expert in NOT playing defence as a player, and that's exactly what this team needs now. Call it an obsession about possession.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/705...

Population of Finland: 5.63 million. Known for length of time in a sauna and kicking the crap out of more heralded opponents in hockey. Finns are fun. Just don't play hockey against them. :-)

The Grass Is Always Greener Over The Septic Tank Glen Sather, fall 1983: “Sammy Pollock used to say all jobs are open in Montreal but who was he kidding? Nobody was going to take Larry Robinson’s job or Guy Lafleur’s. In our camp I refuse to tell th...

A famous Glen Sather quote shows the difference between his era and the one we are witnessing now in Edmonton.
lowetide.ca/2026/02/20/t...

What Paul Coffey’s return to Edmonton Oilers’ bench could change on defence As an assistant coach, Coffey was part of the success the Oilers enjoyed during the previous two seasons.

What Paul Coffey’s return to Edmonton Oilers’ bench could change on defence
www.nytimes.com/athletic/705...

Split Screen Sadness Do you remember the 200 times I mentioned that players often spike after Christmas? Well, we're seeing some of that this season from Bakersfield Condors hopefuls, but we're also seeing some downbeat p...

Oilers prospects usually deliver performance spikes after Christmas. This year's spikes are a little crooked and no one is nails.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/19/s...

Like Steve McQueen For many years I've looked at AHL even-strength numbers as a possible guide to future NHL success. Conclusion: Doesn't work. Now, it doesn't work for boxcar numbers that include all game states either...

Like Steve McQueen, all you need is a fast machine.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/18/l...

Lowetide: What will Oilers' forward lines look like after the Olympic break?

A look at the Oilers lines coming out of the break. What it will look like, and what a reimagined four lines could be if the Oilers stopped rewarding miserable performances by veterans.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/705...

Strudel As I watched Germanys hockey men defeat France today, it occurred to me that Leon Draisaitl can find chemistry with two garbage cans and a strip of rebar. The guy is such a good passer he makes everyo...

Leon Draisiatl is Paul Bunyan on skates.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/17/s...

Ranking the Edmonton Oilers’ top 10 trade assets for 2026 deadline The Oilers may have to surrender some of their enticing young players at this year's deadline.

The Oilers are a borderline country song (the one about 'the money ran out and the engine blew') as the NHL approaches the trade deadline. Cap worries are one thing, but what assets can be dealt? Here are 10 names.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

Ranking the Edmonton Oilers’ top 10 trade assets for 2026 deadline The Oilers may have to surrender some of their enticing young players at this year's deadline.

Ranking the Edmonton Oilers’ top 10 trade assets for 2026 deadline

www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

Hocus Pocus by Focus I'm finding it difficult to work up a lather over Matt Tkachuk's trolling of Leon Draisaitl during the USA-Germany game yesterday. I remember when the NHL first allowed microphones at ice level, it la...

Next time you see Leon Draisaitl on the ice in a game, ask yourself who and what could intimidate this individual? It sure as hell isn’t Matthew Tkachuk.

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Yes.

Condors impact wingers are struggling since the recall of Josh Samanski.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/15/t...

Fixing the outrageous drag of the Edmonton Oilers’ third and fourth lines A third line that could punish the opposition's lesser players during the playoffs would be key for the Oilers.

Fixing the outrageous drag of the Edmonton Oilers’ third and fourth lines

www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

The Metro Backgammon Club is inviting players of all skill levels to their next meet up on Sunday February 22 at Bonnie Doon Shopping Centre at 1:00 PM.

For any backgammon players in Edmonton. ;)

metrobackgammon.wordpress.com

Why the U.S., Canada or Sweden could be eliminated early from Olympic men’s hockey It's now highly likely that two of the best three teams in the event will face one another in a do-or-die quarterfinal next week.

Column: Explaining what the path looks like for the U.S. and Canada with all the chaos in the Olympic bracket

www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

Tall Trees I wrote this a few days before Craig MacTavish exited the scene as Edmonton Oilers coach: “(MacT) refused to discuss his future aside from saying it was under discussion with “Steve” and he had the lo...

Instead of chasing famous names at the deadline, maybe Oilers management should just find players the coach will use.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/14/t...

Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl make their long-awaited Olympic debuts memorable Both Oilers stars started their Olympics with a win, with Josh Samanski also playing a huge role for Germany alongside Draisaitl.

The Olympic break allows us a good look at McDavid, Draisaitl on the big stage and possible developments immediately following the conclusion of the Games. Prepare for loud noises.

www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

My son, who knows this stuff, said you don't need a special computer but will need to download. Computer needs 4GB RAM, a dual-core CPU, and 25GB of free storage. I don't know what any of these words mean, but there you go. :-)

Gulls at Condors, G57 2025-26 The Condors are back in action tonight, with the All-Star break now a memory. This edition of the team owns a 25-14-7 record and could hit 40 wins for the first time in franchise history. The list of ...

Gulls at Condors, and Atro Leppanen's hockey future.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/13/g...

Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl make their long-awaited Olympic debuts memorable Both Oilers stars started their Olympics with a win, with Josh Samanski also playing a huge role for Germany alongside Draisaitl.

Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl make their long-awaited Olympic debuts memorable
www.nytimes.com/athletic/704...

The problem is I got old. I could be my Dad, who loved Roy Acuff and Hank Sr, or embrace the idea that music progresses while I stayed in 1975. So, yeah, I miss Earth, Wind & Fire plenty, but it would be sad if my kids couldn't have their own, unique 1975.

bsky.app/profile/murd...

OILERS ROOKIES 2025-26: SECOND LOOK I like to monitor rookie hopefuls before, during and after each season. The first look for 2025-26 is here, but you don't have to click on the link unless you want to read the comments. The comments a...

A second look at the Oilers 2025-26 rookies. It has been a fascinating winter for the department of youth.

lowetide.ca/2026/02/12/o...

Oilers can’t afford to ignore Ike Howard as a potential goal-scoring solution Edmonton's nuclear option is no longer as nuclear as it once was. It's time to give their young offensive dynamo another shot.

The Oilers off-season moves seemed to acknowledge a need to add youth to the lineup. However, the season rolled out with a veteran-laden squad, same as it ever was. Ike Howard is leaping tall buildings in the AHL, is anyone in Edmonton noticing?

www.nytimes.com/athletic/703...

Hamates are a thing of the past. The future… is hamNINEs