Although Game 1 may be seen as a disappointment by Edmonton Oiler fans, there were still many positives for the team build on after getting “goalied,” I mean this is the first chance since 2006 Edmonton has a shot at the cup and win it all. The Florida Panthers pressed the advantage by exposing the few flaws within the Oilers roster and Edmonton could not get one past Sergei Bobrovsky. But do not worry Edmonton fans, this article delves into minimizing those flaws via a combination of the 2023–24 superstar laden team and the 2005–06 folk hero blue collar team.
2023–24 Edmonton Oilers roster
| Forward | Defence | ||||
| Hyman | McDavid | Nugent-Hopkins | Ekholm | Bouchard | |
| Mcleod | Draisaitl | Perry | Nurse | Kulak | |
| Holloway | Henrique | Kane | Broberg | Ceci | |
| Janmark | Ryan | Brown | Goalie | Skinner | Pickard |
2005–06 Edmonton Oilers roster
| Forward | Defence | ||||
| Smyth | Horcoff | Hemsky | Pronger | Spacek | |
| Pisani | Peca | Torres | Smith | Staois | |
| Dvorak | Stoll | Samsonov | Bergeron | Tarnstrom | |
| Winchester | Murray | Harvey | Goalie | Roloson | Markinen |
Combined ultimate roster
| Forward | Defence | ||||
| Hyman | McDavid | Hemsky | Pronger | Bouchard | |
| Smyth | Draisaitl | Nugent-Hopkins | Ekholm | Spacek | |
| Horcoff | Peca | Henrique | Nurse | Smith | |
| Pisani | Stoll | Holloway | Goalie | Roloson | Skinner |
The easy decisions
Starting with the forward group, the top six is fairly easy to create as the combo of Zach Hyman and Connor McDavid remains together, but is paired with the uber-talented Ales Hemsky to add to their speed and grit. Next, Leon Draisaitl receives his own Hyman-esque player, as fan favourite Ryan Smyth jumps on the wing beside Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, creating a line of hardworking sharpshooters with a nose for the net.
The defence is slightly more complex to analyze. Creating two pairings that can both create opportunistic chances and limit opposing teams chances against, with a third shutdown pairing that will enforce their will on enemy forwards. The decision to pair Evan Bouchard with Chris Pronger is very easy, given the raw talent of Bouchard and Pronger’s ability to carry the play and shutdown top players every night. Although splitting Bouchard from Mattias Ekholm may not be well received, Jaroslav Spacek proved in his own career to be a very smooth skating, puck-moving minded defenceman who can carry play offensively. Lastly, putting Darnell Nurse with Jason Smith was simple—two stylistically similar players who can enforce their will continually throughout the game, whether that is with phsyciality, shot blocking or clearing the front of the net by any means necessary.
The tough questions
The defence combinations seems mildly easy comparing who to tend the twine. During the 2005–06 season, the Oilers traded a first-round pick for 37-year-old Dwayne Roloson, who went on to post a 2.43 GAA and .905 save percentage over 19 games before turning back the clock and backstopped the team to the Stanley Cup Final with a 2.33 GAA and .927 save percentage. However, Stuart Skinner proved against Dallas he commands more respect than received about goaltending during the regular season and playoffs, noting his regular season statistics: GAA of 2.62, SV% of .905; and playoffs: 2.47 GAA and .897SV%.
Additionally, the building of the depth was a hallmark of the 2005–06 roster, noting the additions of Shawn Horcoff and Michael Peca with Adam Henrique on a line. With Peca and Jarrett Stoll completing the spine of centreman, the Oilers have four legitimate centreman that not only drive the play, but in Peca and Stoll, completely shutdown opposing centreman and allow Edmonton to retain puck possession due to their strength in the face-off dot.
This may be a bit perplexing given the strength of the team is offence, although there is defensive capabilities within the units that would be very strong at penalty killing. For example, Peca and Stoll with upside playmaking of Henrique, Fernando Pisani (remember 14 goals during that run) and Nugent-Hopkins would provide a versatile defensive unit with gaol scoring potential.
The toughest position remains who will flank Stoll with Pisani. The argument could range from a wide variety, there could be the speed and physicality of Dylan Holloway, given his growth and development over the course of this season. Additional arguments could be made for the impact of intangible players, such as Raffi Torres or Evander Kane. If the game gets rough and messy, the talents of Torres and Kane could be a larger difference maker given their propensity to be physical, fight and intimidate opposing teams. I selected Holloway, given the upside in his game and Swiss army knife utilization. The selection over Kane and Torres is not easy due to their substantial physical impacts but due to the need for speed in the bottom six, Holloway is given the edge.
The possibilities are endless
Overall an extremely fun activity to complete, there are so many additional avenues to pursue, such as what the power play could dream off, for example Pronger over Bouchard or Smyth over Hyman. Please let me know your thoughts and how your lineup would be constructed in the comments below.
