Coke Machines

The Oilers are back on the Coke Machine trail but with some changes in requirements. The club is in search of that elusive "big man who can play" but I think the wording has been reworked. The idea (I think) is to find big, tough grumpy guys who can actually play hockey. John Ferguson. We've discussed this forever, mostly around the failed Prendergast selections. The problem for KP was that his aim wasn't true and it cost the team an enormous amount. Not just the draft picks but also the trades for draft picks (Jason Chimera was sent away in search of Geoff Paukovich, as an example). I think the Oilers have tried (in the last several years) to change the mission statement. Whereas the KP era saw them select big men who were physical and played hockey, the more recent drafts have been focused on hockey players with good (not great) size and some edge to their play. I know it's simplistic and maybe it's a poor way to explain it but that's the idea. These ...