EDMONTON -- Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish feels optimistic about his teams future despite a last-place finish in the Western Conference standings.
Devin Booker Suns Jersey . MacTavish gave his head coach a vote of confidence Tuesday and said while its hard to determine
where the team is in its development stage, he feels most of the "heavy lifting"
has been done. "Were closer to the end in my mind than we are to the beginning
in terms of the development of this team," MacTavish said Tuesday at a
season-ending media availability. Expectations were higher in Edmonton this
season but the team struggled from the start and finished with a 29-44-9 record
for 67 points, good for a 28th-place finish in the 30-team league. There were a
few bright lights for the Oilers. Taylor Hall had a strong year with 80 points
in 75 games and fellow forwards Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had
productive campaigns. Defensive woes were a constant problem. The Oilers
struggled on the blue-line and between the pipes, allowing a league-worst 270
goals. MacTavish has no plans to add anything "middle of the road" to the
current defence core and feels the teams younger players can fill those
positions. He does plan to target a high-end defenceman in the off-season. "We
need a few pieces that can really move this thing along," said MacTavish. The GM
added that Eakins -- who completed his first season as an NHL head coach -- has
a bright future with the team. "Im convinced this guy is the right coach to lead
us into much more successful times ... hes relentless," MacTavish said. Despite
the foundation of young, talented offensive players, the Oilers managed only 203
goals. The goaltending situation was unsettled throughout the season as
netminder Devan Dubnyk struggled in the starters role. Dubnyk was dealt to
Nashville at the trade deadline and the Oilers acquired Ben Scrivens from Los
Angeles. Scrivens and fellow mid-season acquisition Viktor Fasth posted decent
numbers as Edmonton finished with a 14-13-3 mark over its last 30 games.
MacTavish said there is plenty of work ahead and admitted the team did not live
up to expectations. But he likes the young core and is confident improvement can
be made. "Were building our team around this group," he said. "And you have to
have pieces in that locker-room that you view as guys that are going to develop
into winners and guys that are going to develop into superstars. "I feel
strongly that we have a number of those pieces in there and those are the guys
were going to build that team around. I want them to feel the ownership, I want
them to feel the loyalty from myself and the coaching staff that we have the
confidence in them to drive this team forward."
Eric Bledsoe Jersey . The 25-year-old native of Milford, Conn., has 18 points in 41 games this season. The five-foot-eight
166-pound centre also has 28 points (10-18) in 15 games with AHL Oklahoma City.
Swingman Leandro Barbosa Jersey . Carreno Busta broke his opponent five times in the match, but also lost his serve three
times in the second set before prevailing in the tiebreaker. Both players
struggled with their first serve, as Carreno Busta landed just 51 per cent of
his to 47 per cent for Kukushkin.SARASOTA, Fla. - Baltimore Orioles catcher
Matt Wieters will miss several games after spraining his right ankle running the
bases Tuesday. Wieters ankle was heavily taped when he walked into the clubhouse
Wednesday. He called it a "slight sprain" and says hed probably try to play if
it was the regullar season.
Devin Booker Jersey. The Orioles are on the road Thursday and Friday. Wieters says its likely he wont make either trip to
allow the swelling to subside. He says hell "get treatment on it and ice it up."
If all goes well, Wieters could take some swings in the batting cage on
Thursday.
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