Flames Beat Oilers 6-2, In Steve Tambellini's Words...

by Derek Zona on Jan 22, 2012 8:10 AM MST in Game Reports

Edmonton, AB (Sports Network) - Lee Stempniak completed his second career hat trick and added an assist as the Calgary Flames thumped the Edmonton Oilers, 6-2, at Rexall Place.

According to CBC play-by-play man Mark Lee, he had a conversation with Steve Tambellini Friday night. During the broadcast of the Oilers - Sharks Hockey Night in Canada game, Lee told the audience that Tambellini said he "…thinks they’ve got all of the pieces here to make a run at the playoffs."

Blake Comeau finished with a goal and two assists, while Jay Bouwmeester and Mikael Backlund also scored for the Flames, who have won two straight and five of their last seven. Miikka Kiprusoff made 21 saves in the victory.

"I’m not going to put a number on it. I want to finish as high as possible," he said. "Again, I don’t want a lottery pick."

"It feels great," Stempniak said of his four-point performance. "I was just the recipient of a couple good plays. It's nice to be on the receiving end of those." Calgary has also won nine consecutive games and 18 of the last 21 matchups with the Oilers.

We have a wonderful opportunity here to do things right.

Ryan Smyth contributed a goal and an assist and Andy Sutton scored.

And we have a wonderful opportunity here to do that. A wonderful opportunity. I'm truly excited about that.

Nikolai Khabibulin was tagged for four goals on just 16 shots and backup Devan Dubnyk gave up one goal on six shots in relief. Edmonton has lost three straight and eight of its last nine contests.

...but when we saw our probably our MVP or that was going to be our MVP, Nik Khabibulin...

Calgary came out of the gate on fire, netting three goals in the opening 20 minutes. The first goal of the period came at the 6:48 mark as a result of some good work down low in the offensive zone. Two Flames went in on the forecheck down low and worked the puck out to Mark Giordano at the left point. The big defenseman fired a hard shot that was stopped by Khabibulin, but the rebound made it all the way out to Backlund, who ripped the twine from the right circle.

We saw this year, with the fact that I don't have to talk about injuries

Goal number two of the period occurred off a neutral zone turnover that sent the Flames into the offensive zone on a 3-on-2 rush, led by Comeau. He stopped at the left circle and fired a hard slap shot into the net.

and we can talk about that maybe a little bit later.

Stempniak picked up his first goal of the game with 1:08 left in the first when he accepted a nice drop pass from Bouwmeester and fired it into the net from the left circle.

"I don’t want to use this is a cop-out, but we’ve missed (Ryan) Whitney, (Andy) Sutton, (Cam) Barker and (Corey) Potter for a great time of the season,"

The Flames kept the momentum going in the second period, striking again at 19:24 to make it 4-0. Stempniak jumped on a loose puck just inside the blue and had plenty of space to work his way to the right circle before pulling off a perfect curl-and-drag wrister that beat Khabibulin through the five hole.

Some of the goal scoring may have to do with missing some of the defencemen.

Edmonton finally got on the board at 4:24 of the third period when Sutton blasted one past a screened Kiprusoff from the left circle to make it 4-1, but Bouwmeester answered with a power-play goal less than three minutes later to make it 5-1 on a well-placed point shot that just slipped over the line behind Dubnyk.

You sit back and you think about "Okay, let's see if we have some depth, let's see if we have the people that have been vying for jobs have been trying to demonstrate to coaches that they can take up the slack and there's opportunity."

Smyth pulled the Oilers within 5-2 at 16:15 of the third period on a prefect deflection off a point shot from Jeff Petry, but Stempniak erased all hope of a comeback with an empty-netter at 17:55 to put the Oilers away.

"Do I want to be a lottery pick again? No. I’ve said that from the beginning"

"We tried, but we didn't try very smart," Oilers head coach Tom Renney said of his team's effort. "Calgary stayed disiplined and stayed within their structure and we needed to match that and play the way we need to play to have success. We didn't do that."

You sit back and watch that and it becomes pretty clear. You know, it's fact that we finished 30th in the league.

Calgary improved to a perfect 4-0 this season against the Oilers..The Flames improved to 15-0-3 when leading after two periods of play and 12-3-0 against Northwest Division opponents...Comeau snapped a 13-game goalless drought...Kiprusoff improved to 32-12-3 in his career against Edmonton...Edmonton failed to convert on two power play chances, while the Flames went 1-for-5 with the man advantage.

To me, it presents clarity. It presents clarity to the entire organization that we have to make some change, there's no question about that. We have good people, good players, but we have to make some change.

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I love this recap. Reminds me of good movie editing. I was thinking…just got done watching Moneyball last night. Do you think Tambo watched that and thought :
1. Brad Pitt’s kinds cute
2. Wow, I should be doing that with hockey stats.
3. That’ll never work in hockey..,we don’t have On Base %

I also finally finished watching the 2nd season of ‘24/7’ on HBO. Why doesn’t Renney posses the intensity of a Laviolette, Torts or Boudreau? I’ve seen Oil Change… Renney must go at seasons end.

by SoCalOil on Jan 22, 2012 9:02 AM MST via mobile reply actions 1 recs

http://www.coppernblue.com/2011/12/19/2645711/oilersland-vol-2-steve-tambellini-goes-to-the-movies

Editor of The Copper & Blue, and leader of The Cult Of Hartikainen.

by Derek Zona on Jan 22, 2012 9:09 AM MST up reply actions

Do you think Katz watched Moneyball and thought:

1. Beane’s done baseball and soccer…is he avail for hockey?
2. My son kinda looks like Jonah Hill
3. Tambo’s toast

by SoCalOil on Jan 22, 2012 9:18 AM MST via mobile up reply actions

Everynight we have 60% of an AHL team that is out of their depth …. What good would Renney putting on an act like Torts do? Coddle the kids now help them learn then when/IF we actually have a chance to win consistently bring in the a-hole who can squeeze every last drop out of them to push them over the top

by cshoe030 on Jan 22, 2012 12:33 PM MST up reply actions

Hahaha

Yep. I don’t think I’ve heard one Tambo utter one intelligible thing since 2008.

by Mike Wntrz on Jan 22, 2012 9:03 AM MST reply actions

How in the HELL does Tambi still have a job????

Insert Witty Comment Here

by VanillaAcid on Jan 22, 2012 9:04 AM MST via mobile reply actions

Katz doesn’t care about winning as long as he’s making money hand over fist.

Editor of The Copper & Blue, and leader of The Cult Of Hartikainen.

by Derek Zona on Jan 22, 2012 2:57 PM MST up reply actions

I was of the opinion to let Renney to play out the season, but I’ve shifted more to getting rid of him right now, at the All-Star break.

It is clear that the Oilers cannot possibly bring back Renney next year, so it is time for an interim coach to close out the season. Give it to Buchberger or Krueger.

by godot10 on Jan 22, 2012 9:19 AM MST reply actions

I certainly won’t miss Renney when he’s gone, but the roster makeup is a far bigger problem. I defy anyone to argue this defense was built to go the distance this year. Nevermind the bottom six.

by RiversQ on Jan 22, 2012 10:33 AM MST via iPhone app up reply actions

Scotty Bowman wouldn’t win this roster, I’m not sure Renney matters. I do however, take issue with a number of things he’s done this year. The fourth line deployment, the scratches and such.

Editor of The Copper & Blue, and leader of The Cult Of Hartikainen.

by Derek Zona on Jan 22, 2012 2:28 PM MST up reply actions

Good post Derek

It was a fatal error for the Oilers to raise the bar for expectations this year given their offseason. Tambo should’ve been fired for the Khabibulin contract and hiring Quinn and for countless decisions afterwards. But this will be hard to explain.

by RiversQ on Jan 22, 2012 10:36 AM MST via iPhone app reply actions

Could not agree more! Why they changed the rhetoric from re-build to playoffs is beyond me … EVERYONE (outside of the Oilers themselves) looked at our backend and thought …. WOW they have 2 guys that should be logging top 4 NHL minutes that’s going to end poorly … but not Tambi & co. Even after we hit the iceberg and the save% dropped from its unsustainably high start we kept hearing “playoffs” then “competitive” then “not lottery”. I grow more and more concerned that we are now following the NYIslanders re-build model.

by cshoe030 on Jan 22, 2012 12:47 PM MST up reply actions

I come from the school that coaches make a very minor impact on wins in the NHL. There are no new strategies or techniques any more, and systems are pretty well solved. Coaches should be viewed more as managers who distribute ice time. That is where I view having any of the small impact they have on wins. I’m not saying some minor league coach would compare to an NHL coach, I am comparing NHL coaches, against other NHL coaches, or those breaking through to become NHL coaches.

Obviously the players are the ones that make the biggest impact on wins. Since we are losing at a rate that has to be below expectations (at least according to betting futures markets starting the year), then management is not providing an appropriate amount of talent.

I could care less who coaches the team, it is all a bandwagon. In 2006, before cup run, everyone wanted MacT out of town (including me), then after the run, all of a sudden he was considered a good coach. I don’t want to argue good or bad coach, since I think it is negligable now. Quite simply, talent has a bigger impact on wins in the NHL than coaching.

Since Tambellini says he expects team to make playoffs, he cannot be given credit for tanking. It would be nice to bring in a GM with more hockey experience, instead of rising through the ranks in the public relations route. I mean, what do we have to lose, it would be tough to get much worse than it is.

by George Roop on Jan 22, 2012 10:38 AM MST reply actions

George, I agree with this for the most part. Actually I see NHL goaltending pretty much the same way – there are only a few at the top and bottom that distinguish themselves (for better or worse respectively) and the majority are somewhere in the soft mushy middle.

Renney’s nothing special, but he’s also no Pat Quinn that’s clearly beyond help. The Oilers have an average NHL coach, but a well below average roster. So the focus of the fix should be obvious.

But you were dead wrong on MacT.

by RiversQ on Jan 22, 2012 10:48 AM MST via iPhone app up reply actions

Not sure if I agree with your argument completely George. I think coaches have more impact than you give them credit for. This year alone, the Blues have looked like a completely different team under Hitchcock. The Ducks are starting to perform with Boudreau. The Caps are starting to perform under Hunter. None of these teams have made roster changes.

In 2009, the Penguins were heading in the wrong direction. They replace Therian with Bylsma and win the Stanley Cup. The Blackhawks replaced Savard with Quennville after a handful of games in 08-09. Management there must of felt that Savard could not take them to the next level even with the same roster of players.

It is not just a coincidence that Scotty Bowman won so many Stanley Cups as coach. Yes he did have good teams but there were other good teams during his era…his teams won more often.

Renney coached the Rangers in 08-09 and they were awful. They have not completely overhauled their roster, but now are in first place three years later. Renney does not have a very good track record.

Coaches use different systems, have different practices, line match differently, use different line combinations, different motivational techniques, and most importantly, communicate differently with their players. This is not just a minor impact on how the team performs.

You are absolutely right that the roster players are the most important component to a team’s success. In that regard, the management has failed. Tambi should be replaced (along with Lowe imo) and the new GM allowed to choose his own coach. Renney seems like a nice guy, a great ‘players coach’ but not a great motivator and certainly not a winner.

As Leo Durocher said, “Nice guys finish last”. Exactly.

by gvblackhawk on Jan 22, 2012 12:59 PM MST up reply actions

Sorry, don’t buy your argumement at all. It may have been posted on here, or maybe some other source, but the Blues’ winning percentage change under the new coach can largely be attributed to a significantly better save percentage. These small sample bursts also lack complete information as when coaches are fired, this is usually at a time when the team is performing at it’s worst. In that case, just regular variance occurs in which a team’s winning percentage will revert to the mean.

For what strategies coaches bring to the table, opposing coaches also bring about counter strategies during the game, or simple adjustments. This largely negates the effect of coaching on producing wins. If coaching was so significant, why would you only bring cases of a coach as he joins a new team, and exclude information when he left his old team. Maybe there is a small effect of a coach losing the confidence of his team, yet this occurance only seems to happen with losing teams. So it’s pretty unlikely that this is casusation as opposed to correlation.

Again I would go back to sports betting markets because they have been proven to be accurate predictors of outcome in sports. In these models, coaching talent does not enter the equation, or at least not to any significant end. Coaches on winning teams tend not to get fired, while those on losing teams tend to lose their jobs more frequently.

by George Roop on Jan 22, 2012 2:10 PM MST up reply actions

Well, it’s tough to prove. I bet Vegas likes coaching changes though. Similar to changing goalies, you usually see a bump. That’s a transient effect though. I agree that Vegas probably doesn’t value coaching talent in the long run.

by RiversQ on Jan 22, 2012 2:26 PM MST via iPhone app up reply actions

the Blues’ winning percentage change under the new coach can largely be attributed to a significantly better save percentage

George, do you discount the notion that the improved save percentage might be due to improved defensive systems? Fewer breakdowns and five-alarm fire drills?

Oilers fan through thick, thin and anorexic. Writer for The Cult of Hockey.

by Bruce McCurdy on Jan 22, 2012 7:17 PM MST up reply actions

Only if you believe Halak’s .856 sv% through his first 6 starts were because of breakdowns and five alarm fire drills.

The Blues fired Payne after a 6-8 start, during which Halak went 1-5 with a 3.58 GAA and an .856 sv%.

In theory, there is little difference between practice and theory, but in practice there is!

Tactical contributor to the Copper & Blue and just as boring on the twitters... @dawgbone98

by dawgbone98 on Jan 22, 2012 10:01 PM MST up reply actions

Well that certainly stinks. Still, without seeing the actual goals the question stands (albeit perilously). Maybe he got fired for going back to the ice-cold goalie and leaving the hot one on the bench. :)

Oilers fan through thick, thin and anorexic. Writer for The Cult of Hockey.

by Bruce McCurdy on Jan 22, 2012 10:25 PM MST up reply actions

I do not understand the point you are trying to make. Teams tend to fire its coach when the team is losing. They tend to keep the coach if the team is winning. Seems to make sense to me.

Sports book in Vegas is very good at predicting individual games but not as accurate at picking the champion prior to the season starting. They run complex statistical analysis for these individual games to make their predictions. This has very little to do with a team’s coach. But for a team’s entire season the coach does a significant role to play.

You clearly don’t feel the quality of a coach is very important in the NHL. Might as well run out the BP wing guy to coach the Oilers, eh?

by gvblackhawk on Jan 23, 2012 1:04 AM MST up reply actions

It doesn't matter what Tambo says to us

Because the internal decision to go for lottery picks was (ultimately) made by Katz and Lowe.

The owner and senior management set the strategy for the team and Tambellini executes. If the goal was to rebuild the farm system and restock the team by collecting high draft picks, then by those metrics he’s actually quite a good GM.

It makes things easier if you think of the NHL as a way better organized WWE. The distance between what we’re told and what’s real is huge. For example, there were plenty of uncommitted mini-packs and corporate suites when Tambellini was talking about shooting for the playoffs. You’d be surprised how much joe fan believes that sort of thing.

by David S on Jan 22, 2012 2:36 PM MST reply actions

Your comment is pretty well entirely true. Ownership does set the goals and direction for the team.

However in the current case of the Oilers trying to build a new rink, it’s hard to believe that Katz wants a 30th place team in the league for a 3rd straight year. If the goal was to tank again this year, it is doubtful guys like Eager and Belanger would have been signed. So based on those indicators, it’s hard to believe that losing was the goal of the Oilers this year. However I dont have substantial evidence, just a bit of common sense from points illustrated above.

by George Roop on Jan 22, 2012 4:00 PM MST up reply actions

Eager and Belanger are filler players. They are exactly the type of signings you make if the goal is minimal improvement. No teams whose agenda is focused on winning would sign players like that, which is why we were able to acquire them. I bet there’s alot more skill in artfully tanking than meets the eye.

by David S on Jan 22, 2012 4:10 PM MST up reply actions

You guys should check out Renney’s post-practice interview today. He was NOT in a good mood.

by David S on Jan 22, 2012 3:02 PM MST reply actions

Well, I have my new home theatre set up. Projector on to a 106 inch screen. Sit down saturday night to expereince high def hockey in lifesize proportions. And you know what? A sinker on a na extra large screen is just as bad as a stinker on a regular screen, if not worse.

Turned it off after two periods and my only regret was waiting that long.

by gcw_rocks on Jan 23, 2012 12:06 PM MST reply actions 1 recs

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