Friedman: "Everybody in Edmonton is on notice"
/Elliotte Friedman was on Calgary’s Sportsnet 960 on Monday morning.
On the Oilers:
“I think changes are in the works. I do. I heard that yesterday was a pretty intense day for the Oilers management.”
On who might be available:
“Behind the scenes, I think the Oilers were working a lot of stuff. I think – when I was on Saturday night, I had heard their key guys were not available. I don’t know if that’s true anymore. I think the Oilers might have thrown everybody on the table. Now, I think if we’re talking somebody like a Taylor Hall, the price is massive. I really do think that.
“But what I do think is that Craig MacTavish has promised he will make a trade before he fires the coach. That’s what guys have told me. And I think that’s what his plan remains. And I wonder if Edmonton is kind of now listening on everybody . Doesn’t mean anything is going to happen. But I think they’re listening on players they weren’t listening on as recently as 36 hours ago.”
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On what might happen:
“I think everybody in Edmonton is on notice. Like, top to bottom. I don’t know if we’re talking - is Kevin Lowe in trouble? I doubt that. Is Bob Nicholson in trouble? I doubt that. He just got there. I mean, ultimately one of those two guys, or the owner, is going to make the call on the GM.
“... Everybody looks at MacTavish and says, ‘A lot of this is his fault.’ When he got there as the GM again, the team was a big mess. Like, it’s a big fix. Probably his biggest mistake was saying, ‘I’m going to make bold moves.’ Because now the entire fan base is sitting there saying, ‘Well, where are they?’
“And sometimes I think when you’re in a bad spot, making a reactionary trade is the worst mistake you can make. But everybody in that group has to wear this. They’re not getting better. As you said, the mistakes being made on the ice are glaring, especially when you watch them next to – and I think this whole thing with Calgary and the way the Flames are playing – I think it adds to this. Because if you’re in Edmonton and you hate Calgary as much as you guys in Calgary hate Edmonton, you see what you’re doing and you see what they’re doing and you’re sitting there going, ‘Damn it, why is this happening for them and not for us?’
“And so I think that goes throughout the organization and I think they know the mix everywhere is not working and they’re going to look at everything to try and fix it. I think that includes putting some of their core guys on the table and saying, ‘Maybe we don’t do it, but we see what’s out there for them.’
“I heard what Perron said after their loss on Friday night and that says to me that he wants to go, that if they trade him he’d be okay with that. So I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s one of the first guys to go and I think he’s got some value.
“I believe that Petry is going to be traded because they’re not going to sign him. I think he goes eventually.
“I wonder what they do in goal. And I think they’ll do just about anything they can do if they get the centre that they want.”
On the call to fire Eakins:
"I would tell you this - For example, there's a lot of reports that Todd MacLellan is in some trouble in San Jose. Okay? If Todd MacLellan was available, that's a move I could see them making. But he's not, so I think they're going to be careful."
Source: Sportsnet 960/ Transcript: Nichols on Hockey
