Coach Knoblauch sends a hard message to Oilers first line
Photo credit: Edmonton Oilers Raw
The Edmonton Oilers are in a bit of a rut at the moment, and one of the reasons is the subpar results of the team's first line.
Coach Knoblauch has called out the team a number of times this season, which has been unusual for the calm and cool bench boss. Now, he's aiming at the first line.
Oilers coach Knoblauch takes aim at first line, demanding better play
Coach Knoblauch was extremely candid about the disappointing results of the first line, calling them out specifically for not being near as good as last season.
And you know, we tried some things moving, you know, one guy or two new linemates around McDavid, and you know, nothing is really stuck. Nothing's been better, so we're hopeful that they can capture the magic that they had last year It just hasn't been what's expected.»
Coach Knoblauch calls out first line for below average season
This is a significant call out because it does take aim at Connor McDavid, and the team's top players. Each player on the Oilers regular top line, McDavid, Hyman, and Nugent-Hopkins, have had a very down season.
Connor McDavid isn't scoring at his usual rate this year, and the decline has hit Zach Hyman down from his career year last season.
Perhaps the most worrisome is the poor play from Nugent-Hopkins - longtime veteran is on pace to score just 50 points this year while playing on the best powerplay in the league. Nuge surely needs to be better.
Hopefully Knoblauch's call out will is Moore a better effort from his players in their next time out against the New Jersey Devils.
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