The Next Jason Smith
Now, not that Ethan Moreau is a bad captain: but the last time it seemed that the Oilers had captains that had a commanding presence was when we had Doug Weight and Jason Smith. Though one led by contributing offensively the other led by snuffing out the opposition's offense. One would dance past the opposition on his way into the scoring areas and one would demolish his opponents when they entered the scoring areas.
The number one thing in common?
When they stopped to talk - everyone listened.
Whether it was a media misquote or Moreau mismanaging his own words, Moreau has been involved with a few mental gaffaws when it comes to interviews. Sure, nobody is perfect and people in the spotlight aren't either. But sometimes it is better to say nothing than the wrong thing. What I want to know is which is the actual problem: is it because Moreau is not shown enough respect as a captain when he talks... or whether he doesn't command enough respect to be called a team captain in the first place? What do you think?
And speaking of Jason Smith... who is in line to be his replacement on this team? Ladislav Smid ... or Theo Peckham? Could both develop accordingly? What if the Smid trade rumours are true?
Labels: doug weight, ethan moreau, jason smith
posted by raventalon40 at
3:42 PM
5 Comments:
Moreau is selfish and arrogant - he needs to be traded...
June 15, 2009 at 1:27 AM
Stortini.
He was captain of his junior team. Good guy in the lockerroom and a warrior on the ice. Doesn't take many stupid penalties and plays hard every shift. The only con is, look at every other captain in the league. Other than Washingtons Clark, every team has somewhat of a star as their captain. Rivet in Buffalo as well, but he's more in the Jason Smith mold. But in reality, you need the guy that gets your attention. Personally I don't think we have anyone right now, Peckham may be good in 5+ years. Alot of people mention Souray, but I felt he was trying to undermine Moreaus leadership which may be part of the reason there was that separation in the lockerroom. Horcoff right now would probably be our best candidate. His work ethic is easily tops in the league.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_current_NHL_captains_and_alternate_captains
June 15, 2009 at 11:40 AM
I heard Dustin Penner was the most popular guy in the locker room after Matt Greene left. Wouldn't that be hilarious if Penner was captain.
June 15, 2009 at 2:51 PM
I'm on the fence about Moreau needing to leave town, but not about him retaining the captaincy.
I don't think he has been a successul captain as detailed in these posts on Oil Droppings, where the titles say it all:
A room divided? and
Team togetherness esp. the comments section.
The new paradigm that has been established at the coaching level needs to extend down into the room. Tambellini, Quinn and Renney were not involved in the decision to anoint him as captain; they should choose their man, and he absolutely must be a team builder. Maybe Horcoff, maybe Souray, maybe a younger guy like ???
I like the suggestion of Stortini though I think it's a stretch he'll get an "A" let alone the "C". He needs to be an every-game regular for one thing; while I'm hopeful that will be the next step he needs to actually do that before being considered. But I have always loved his team-first attitude, and do visualize him in an official leadership role eventually. He was a two-year captain in junior, which I believe is fairly uncommon.
If Thecaptainethanmoreau can be disentangled without too much bruising of ego, I don't mind the idea of plain old Ethan Moreau. But if the best way is through trade, I'm certain there's a market for him. I don't think you'd see him getting the C on his new team the way Gator did, though.
June 15, 2009 at 5:10 PM
I have always liked Stortini too and think that of all the pluggers on this team (Brodziak, Reddox, MacIntyre, Stortini) he has the most useful range of skills that allows him to play almost anywhere in the lineup, save for taking faceoffs or ripping point shots. I too think he has great leadership qualities but his time has not yet come at the NHL level and it's not even close. Especially with guys like Horcoff who are probably even better candidates for the job.
If Moreau stays captain of the Oilers it will be because of the passion he exemplifies. Moreau used to be my favourite Oiler for a long time and he is still one of my favourites. All other aspects of the game Tambellini will have to shore up, though, as he often takes bad penalties and makes bad line changes and these are all things that are bad for a checking line player and a team captain to keep consistently doing.
Gator was a warrior and his presence was unquestionable regardless of what locker room he stepped into. Jonathan Zion who? The Oilers probably would have been better off with Gator than Pitkanen/Cole/O'Sullivan, though Cole had his good games too.
June 16, 2009 at 11:49 AM
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