EDMONTON — Things We (Think We) Know. Series IV, Volume I.
Things We Know
The knock on one-time Winnipeg Jets first-rounder Jack Roslovic throughout his career has been that he’ll disappear for three or four weeks at a time. Scouts say he has the skills to be an impactful player far more often than he actually is an impactful player.
He has played 537 NHL games, and even if you’ve only really noticed him in about 250 of those, he’s been pretty good in Edmonton, with 2-3-5 in 11 games. Consistent, so far, as an Oiler.
Things We (Think We) Know
We often refer to the intersection of player and team. When a team gets a player at the precise moment when he figures things out — a guy who was sent packing from his last couple of dressing rooms and vows to change his stripes in his new one.
Roslovic’s issues are simple consistency. Becoming a true pro who finds a way to be at his best on more nights.
It wouldn’t be crazy to think that Roslovic, 500 games and a decade into his NHL career, could conquer an issue that has defined his career somewhat. Kasperi Kapanen figured it out in Edmonton after being waived by Pittsburgh and St. Louis. Why not Roslovic?
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“(He’s) been pretty impressive, really,” said Connor McDavid, after feeding Roslovic for a power-play goal in Saturday’s 3-2 OT win over Chicago. “He doesn’t have a (training) camp, jumps right in, and has looked real dangerous every game.”
Not a ton of players have Roslovic’s combination of speed, skills and size, but there’s a reason he’s on his fifth organization at the age of 28. And it’s not because he’s a bad teammate or lacks character.
Let’s revisit this after 40 games, but if the Oilers have Roslovic’s full attention this season, they could find themselves in the right place at the right time. All for the low price of a $1.5 million AAV.
Things We Know
On Thursday against the Rangers, Evan Bouchard went pointless and posted a minus-3 in a 4-3 OT loss. On Saturday against Chicago, he had an assist, the OT winner and went plus-1 in a 3-2 OT win.
In both games, he led all Edmonton defencemen in ice time. In both games, he faced the media post-game.
We wrote our “Elephant In The Room” column after the Rangers game, not the only criticism heaped upon Bouchard after that adventure. As he admitted afterward, “That’s definitely got to get cleaned up. Playing harder is going to have to be something that I do.”
Things We (Think We) Know
“Isn’t that the most Bouch thing ever? To stand in (and face the media) like he does?” McDavid asked after the Chicago win. “You guys can say what you want about him, we love him in here. And we know his best is among the very, very, very best. We’ve got his back, no matter what’s going on.
“His play can be better. Everyone’s play can be better,” McDavid added. “But I’m really happy for him to get that big goal. Quiet some people a little bit.”
In a pre-season piece, Bouchard told us that one of the improvements he had to tackle this season was to be better in his worst games. He’s going to turn the odd puck over — just try not to cost two or three goals on a bad night.
Bouchard likely cost his team more goals against New York than he contributed to against Chicago. That’s the “be better in his worst game” scenario.
Flip that ratio around, and you can live with it.
“I know his game has been frustrating (to) himself. It’s not like he’s sitting in there saying, ‘Whatever.’ Shrugging his shoulders,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “He feels, and so do we, that he can be one of the best defencemen in the NHL every night, and he wasn’t playing like that.
“He’s had a lot of attention for the mistakes that he’s made. Hopefully, he gets some recognition for the overtime winner (on Saturday).”
Things We Know
Goalie Connor Ingram is slugging it out down on the farm with Bakersfield, trying to find the game that posted a .907 save percentage for two straight seasons behind a porous Arizona Coyotes team.
On Sunday in Calgary, he made his fourth start for the Condors, he let in five goals on 20 shots. He didn’t get a training camp, and his numbers — a 4.05 GAA and .848 saves percentage — show that he’s still got a ways to go.
Things We (Think We) Know
The bad news: Ingram’s game is miles away from helping the parent club that took a chance on him, acquiring Ingram from Utah.
The good news? The goaltending situation in Edmonton is fine, for now — Stuart Skinner just got his save percentage up to .900 — and is likely to improve as the team finds its overall game.
Ingram’s timetable will centre around the trade deadline. Either Skinner steps up and proves he’s taken a step in his consistency this season, or GM Stan Bowman will be addressing things in the new year.
If Ingram can play his way into that conversation, great. If not, Bowman will look elsewhere.
