Steve MacIntyre: The new Mister Zero
by Bruce McCurdy on Nov 6, 2009 5:43 PM MST
in Analysis
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PrintWe got guys who got a stat line of zero, zero, zero, zero, zero.
-- Sam Mitchell, (former) head coach, Toronto Raptors
... which pretty much describes Steve MacIntyre's contribution to the 2009-10 Edmonton Oilers. Not that he doesn't want to contribute -- Steve, if you're reading this and I run into you at Safeway, it's really not aimed at you -- but the evidence is clear he does not have the confidence of his coach.
On four occasions that Pat Quinn has had no choice but to dress every healthy body on the roster, MacIntyre has played 2:44, 0:51, 1:19, and 1:24. Twelve shifts in all, for 6:18 of total ice time. Otherwise his stat line is completely zeroes: zero goals, zero assists, zero points, zero shots, zero hits, zeroes as far as the eye can see, with the exception of 7 minutes of penalties. 6 minutes ice time, 7 minutes penalties, nice ratio. SMac had the big fight with McGrattan pictured up top which, while quite a show, accomplished pretty much zero within the context of that game; and he had an early tripping minor last night which could have hurt, but didn't.
What does hurt is that on a short-staffed team that has needed help in many different areas -- scoring, checking, penalty killing, hitting -- MacIntyre has provided pretty much Zero except the occasional glower from the bench or (more often) press box. Why do the Oilers have a guy who the coach refuses to use on the active roster, while Chris Minard, Charles Linglet, Ryan Potulny, Liam Reddox etc. are held down on the farm? Surely any one of those guys would have seen more ice in a single game than MacIntyre has in the season to date. Surely any of them would have put some crooked numbers somewhere on the stat sheet for goodness sake.
Ultimately it's not so much a question about the player and his known limitations as it is about the management's vision of the team. On this front it seems Pat Quinn and Steve Tambellini are nowhere near the same page. Which is a page that needs turning in any event. Let's get a real player in that spot.
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I see what you’re saying but given all of the other problems on this team, I can’t get worked up about it.
Editor of The Copper & Blue, and leader of The Cult Of Hartikainen.
Don’t you see lack of roster flexibility as one of those problems? I do.
Writer for The Copper & Blue and primary shareholder of Zorg Industries
by Bruce McCurdy on Nov 7, 2009 12:48 AM MST up reply actions
I do see what you’re saying. Obviously the Oilers are a better team with, say, Minard playing instead of MacIntyre. Who knows? Maybe he establishes himself and then we have a player that can do some nice things on the team. It would help. I think Derek’s reluctance to get worked up about it stems from the fact that this team is more than one player away (let alone one plug away) from making the leap to “competitive.”
by Scott Reynolds on Nov 7, 2009 7:19 AM MST up reply actions
Right, of course. Still, in a time of much disruption and multiple line-up changes on a nightly basis, it doesn’t help to be playing games with 11 forwards and a fourth line that is never the same from shift to shift, let alone night to night. A versatile 23rd man could have been valuable the last while. Marginally valuable when you’re talking that deep on the roster, obviously, but Oilers need all the help they can get just now.
You know I like tough guys. But they gotta be able to play the game.
Writer for The Copper & Blue and primary shareholder of Zorg Industries
by Bruce McCurdy on Nov 7, 2009 10:33 AM MST up reply actions
Oh, I understand what you’re saying, but I don’t know how much it matters in the long run. The team is pretty terribly flawed right now and Ryan Potulny at #23 isn’t going to make a difference over the course of 82 games.
Figure out what to do with Comrie, Cogliano, and Moreau, bring in another center that can help Horcoff anywhere, really, anywhere on the ice and then we can start cranking about the 23rd roster player.
It’s the sixth thing I’d fix on the roster if I were a competent GM and in charge of the operation.
Editor of The Copper & Blue, and leader of The Cult Of Hartikainen.
Well it’s the first thing I’d fix, cuz it’s fixable today.
Writer for The Copper & Blue and primary shareholder of Zorg Industries
by Bruce McCurdy on Nov 7, 2009 1:28 PM MST up reply actions
All of these things have been fixable “today” since July 1st. The only reason that the 23rd player is fixable today is because the team has passed on fixing the other five things since that day.
Editor of The Copper & Blue, and leader of The Cult Of Hartikainen.
"Don't lose Reasoner. He's useful all over the ice, is great in the dressing room"
Coach vs Management
It would be fun to listen to the discussions about who gets kept and why.
Quinn talks more about this sort of stuff than MacT did.
Management says, management likes…
Linglet isn’t an Oiler, he’s a Falcon
They’d have to make him the 48th contract & waive him
DeBakey: I thought the limit was 50 contracts. In Linglet’s circumstance Oilers would have to waive him to bring him up?
I guess that makes Minard the likelier choice. If he’s healthy (sigh).
Writer for The Copper & Blue and primary shareholder of Zorg Industries
by Bruce McCurdy on Nov 7, 2009 10:37 AM MST up reply actions
No shenanigans
I’m pretty sure he does.
He’s of waiver age/experience
He was on an Oiler contract in TC, he would’ve had to pass through waivers to go to Springfield.
I think too, anyone of waiver age/experience who’s played in another pro league – Jagr, Linglet – has to pass to join an NHL team that same season
Thanks, Mr. dB. News today that the Oilers have recalled Potulny and Reddox, two guys that we know a little more about than Minard and Linglet. Not that it makes us playoff contenders or anything, but at least they will be Balck Aces to whom the coach might give some meaningful minutes. Not sure how the Oil is making room for them yet, but it may be that the writing is on the wall for Mr. MacIntyre.
Hey, maybe Tambellini reads the Copper & Blue!
Writer for The Copper & Blue and primary shareholder of Zorg Industries
by Bruce McCurdy on Nov 7, 2009 11:42 AM MST up reply actions
I get the feeling that the Management, Coaching, and KLowe are far apart on this team and what is really required to have a winning team in this city.
I find that Tambi has tried to do things, but the greatest was that he brought all the old Canuck theories to the Oilers. Somehow it just hasn’t seemed to come together yet, and I think the Oilers must do some more trades in bringing guys in here that can play that style. You need the toughness, grit, and size on this team and this is where KLowe has failed in trying to bebuild this team. Today I counted the players who are 6’ and under and there was 11 guys. This is half of the team. They can have skill, but they need more toughness also. Moreau is doing nothing this year as is Nilsson, Horcoff, and Pisani. Eventhough Pisani has been ill, he is still not a good player anymore. I wished Horcoff didn’t have that NTC in his contract as he is one who should be traded. Watching them play the last couple of games without Hemmer and Horcoff they are playing a lot better. Do they need the high price contracts like Horcoff has, no, and he is doing very little for this team other than giving the puck away and getting assists against his own team. Hemmer is too much into his own play and does too much, and he too also gives it away after doing a rush. Changes are required on this tream and if not there will be no playoffs for them this year.
This is why they all have to get on the same page and focus on a team goal instead of having three different visions going on that are counterproductive.
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