Edmonton Oilers: The Future is Now

Another year, another disappointment for the Edmonton Oilers. For the third consecutive year, the Copper and Blue will not be in the post season. In fact, not since coming within one win of their 6th Stanley Cup, have the Oilers tasted post season action. It's heartbreaking to see but at the same time, I look forward to the future.

The winds of change are brewing in the City of Champions and there's no doubt in my mind that it'll begin as early as Monday. I suspect that Craig MacTavish will resign effective immediately on Monday Afternoon which paves the way for a new beginning for the Edmonton Oilers.

Daryl Katz, owner of the Edmonton Oilers, will want to see a highly competitive team on the ice next year and will want success. He didn't purchase this franchise to see it miss the playoffs year after year after year. So I expect lots of change this off season and it begins behind the bench.

With so many young players, the Oilers need a coach that can work well with them while motivating the vets. I also believe that this would be a good opportunity for the Oilers to get beyond the "Old Boys Club" image that they have and hire outside the organization. So here are my two suggestions...

1. Pat Quinn

Pat Quinn has done virtually everything there is to do in hockey with the exception of winning the Stanley Cup. He's like King Midas - everything he touches turns into gold and I would expect nothing less with the Copper and Blue. He can get the most out of his young players and will not tolerate any bullshit in the dressing room.

Now given his age, 66, I would suggest that if the Oilers hire Pat Quinn, they do so with a 3-5 year plan in mind. Under the conditions of his employment, I'd suggest that they work with Pat to bring in a young coach or former player as his assistant coach. He'd then be able to mentor this youngster and eventually step back and let him take over the bench. A guy like Rob Daum instantly comes to mind or, as far fetched as this may sound, why not Don Hay?

Don Hay has had tremendous success at the junior level and mixed results in a short stint in the National Hockey League. I'd suspect that under Pat Quinn's leadership, he'd be able to bridge that gap from Junior to NHL and carry that success over. Whether or not he'd want to give the NHL another try, I don't know... but I'd love to see it happen.

2. Brent Sutter

There are rumors flying around that Sutter wants out of New Jersey to be closer to home in Alberta. He comes from the famous Sutter family, was a highly successful coach for Canada's World Jr Teams (back to back Gold), and has done very well in the NHL. Players like Sam Gagner and Andrew Cogliano would benefit greatly with Sutter behind the bench. It would also add more fuel to the fire in the Battle of Alberta rivalry - with his brother Darryl in charge of the Flames.

Notables...

Paul Maurice - I think he's a brilliant coach who will one day win a Stanley Cup. The biggest mistake the Toronto Maple Leafs did was getting rid of him. He's doing well in Carolina and while I'd love to see him in Edmonton, I don't forsee the Hurricanes getting rid of him anytime soon.

Bob Hartley - He's won a Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche (lots of talent on that team) and did well with Atlanta. He didn't finish up strong with the Trashers which would make me uneasy with him as coach but he's demonstrated that he can get the job done.

Outside of coaching, the Oilers will need to make a splash in free agency. There's word that they'll once again be aggressive in trying to land Marian Hossa or maybe even Jaromir Jagr. Either way, they need to get someone to help solidify that top line. We need a consistant goal scoring threat and until one arrives, the Oilers will never be contenders.

They also need to address goaltending. Dwayne Roloson played well down the stretch but we need to start looking farther down the road. Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers has been carefully moulded to carry the torch but thus far doesn't look like he's quite ready. A solid year as a backup would be helpful which means we'll need a good starter - my suggestion is that we go after either Cristobal Huet or Nikolai Khabibulin as there's no way Chicago will be able to keep both of them under contract.

It'll be an interesting off-season and one that I hope is full of positive change.