The Path To Better Defending 2.0
Ken Holland opted for the trade market to upgrade the defensive core and he hit a homerun.
On December 7th last year I wrote my first post of this newsletter that dove into why the Oilers were a poor defending team, how they could fix it be it from in house options or via trade market, and which external options via said trade market made the most sense.
The list of players in the post came down to three men, which didn’t accurately reflect the amount of players linked to them via trade rumour. But the three that made the most sense, were realistic and most importantly had the most credible viability according to reports.
Those three men were Erik Karlsson whose since been traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Jakob Chychrun whose since been traded to the Ottawa Senators, and Joel Edmundson whose also since been traded to the Washington Capitals. There were pros and cons for all three, some made much more sense than others and ultimately I felt none of them would come to fruition.
Much to everyone’s surprise, the defenseman Ken Holland ended up acquiring was Mattias Ekholm, one that I had not identified who had also just (somewhat) recently signed an extension with the Nashville Predators. Needless to say, he fit like a glove.
There was some speculation out there that Ekholm might become available as David Poile was handing the reigns over to Barry Trotz and that the Predators were considering a course correction. Beyond that however the discussion was mostly about players in the final year of their contract as trade speculation generally is, and Erik Karlsson whose special circumstances defied conventional wisdom.
The above video by Hockey Truffles, a channel I highly recommend to hockey fans, is simple on it’s face in that it’s just a compilation of his best plays as an Oiler. But it really illustrates just how perfect of an acquisition this was for Edmonton.
They were starved for a rear guard who brings the intangibles that Ekholm brings. A player who is big, mobile, defensive minded and difficult to play against. In his 21 regular season games played he was +28 while averaging 20:43 TOI.
Ken Holland took a big swing on a veteran, with a clean bill of health and term on his contract which he’s historically preferred over pure rentals. The cost was great. It required giving up the 1st round pick in 2023, a 4th round pick in 2024, 2022 1st round pick Reid Schaefer, and finally Tyson Barrie who up until that point was by my evaluation the best Oiler defender.
I like many was shocked to see what he gave up, and considered it addition by subtraction. But as time wore on, the loss became much more palatable. Ekholm brought something the Oilers desperately needed and we’re going to look a little deeper into just exactly what he’s provided and why Oilers fans should be thrilled about a full season with him in the lineup upcoming.
First, we should revisit what the Oilers were lacking at the time and still do to a lesser degree. The defensive struggles of this team have been documented extensively, and fans and analysts alike have painstakingly gone over with a fined tooth comb as to what the solution is. The answer for me was always a simple one. A fatal combo of a poorly structured unit oft out of position and a litany of bad habits needed to be addressed.
Edmonton this past season deployed a man coverage system in their own zone which should in theory be to their benefit as they’re a very fast and athletic team which plays physical. The thought process is that with those attributes on your roster, giving the opponent man on man looks will provide you with opportunities to win puck battles more often therefore spending less time in your own zone and eliminating high danger chances. The achilles heel that teams like the Vegas Golden Knights exposed was the aforementioned bad habits, specifically puck watching. This tends to be fatal no matter your system, but it’s particularly problematic when playing man coverage because it defeats the fundamental purpose of the system. The puck is secondary to the man and once you’ve lost visual of your check, NHL caliber players will almost certainly capitalize on the mistake.
This should have been addressed by coaching.
When going through the tape, there are far too many examples of Edmonton failing this system due to puck watching. Players would elect to try and break up the pass lane with a stick or body part rather than forgetting the puck entirely and covering the open man eliminating the threat. In the first installment of this article, I said the Oilers needed a twenty minute a night defender who can execute this task and it will improve the overall numbers including the goaltending.
Enter Mattias Ekholm.
Ekholm has made a career out of mastering this technique and while simple, it is difficult especially in todays game when players are faster and more creative then ever. His bread and butter is playing the man first as the weak side defender. He gets body position, has his back to the puck instead of the man and takes the players ability to make a play on the pass away. This detail alone helped the Oilers immensely. Even if the opponent is able to make a play on the puck, it is unlikely to be a high danger opportunity which in turn makes the save easier to make for the goaltender.
The numbers for this group were much improved, in terms of fit it could not have been a better one. Moreover, it also greatly improved the play of Evan Bouchard. Providing him with a stable veteran presence seemed to make him more comfortable as well as covered up for his defensive blemishes.
Edmonton on paper is still average at best defensively. We’re focusing on Ekholm but there are many factors at play and many things need to be improved on to take the next step and it can’t all be placed on Ekholm’s shoulders. Holland made remarks this off-season about his selection in 2019 Philip Broberg, and how it’s time for him to play 15 minutes a night or more. He sounded almost frustrated as if it wasn’t his decision, but Holland has always slow played prospects. Broberg is a fellow Swedish native and has shown flashes of brilliance. I am high on this player and I believe it’s time for him to be awarded an increased role.
The most important kink in need of ironing out is the pairing of Nurse and Ceci. Their play this year was abysmal and cannot continue considering the expectations. Darnell Nurse receives a heavy dose of criticism, some of it fair some of it not, but with the term and money on his deal coupled with the minutes against elites it’s difficult to leave him off the list as a part of the issues this team faces. His athletic ability, toughness and puck skills are top tier at the NHL level. But his poor habits lead to goals against at a supremely problematic rate. Cody Ceci was reportedly battling some nagging injuries and so here’s to hoping he’s healthy and can rediscover the level he played at in his first playoff run with the Oilers.
Some reports had Edmonton linked to Brett Pesce during the speculation that Carolina was interested in acquiring Erik Karlsson, and even still with the signing of Tony Deangelo. Carolina is stacked defensively with little cap flexibility and the thinking is that Pesce may be a luxury they cannot afford. This player would be an excellent addition to this lineup. He is defense first, physical, consistent and experienced. If the Oilers could replace Ceci with him, that would make this unit orders of magnitude better. It’s highly unlikely they will be able to prior to the season starting but come trade deadline day circumstances pending, the move could be more realistic.
The consensus among beat writers and analysts is that the current roster is the one we’re likely to see opening night with more emphasis placed on extending the leash of the young guns, which is the right thing to do. But this team still has flaws that need to be addressed and in another “all in” season I expect Holland to make at least one transaction via trade.