Oilers Coach Is Treating Andrew Mangiapane Differently

Edmonton Oilers’ head coach Kris Knoblauch benched forward Andrew Mangiapane during the second period of the Oilers’ 5-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night (Feb. 3). Mangiapane made one mistake after a solid opening frame and was punished for it. He finished the game with three shots and one hit in a team-low 8:14 of ice time.

Former Oiler Derek Ryan, who played four seasons with the organization and two under Knoblauch, also questioned the coach’s lineup deployment in a recent interview with Bob Stauffer on Oilers Now. He discussed the depth players and their roles. “They obviously have the two best players in the world. I would be amiss if I left this show without saying that I think they need to find a way to give these depth players, the guys that aren’t Connor and Leon, that aren’t playing with them, a role and a chance to be successful.”

He’s right. If they aren’t playing with the big guns, the Oilers’ depth players have become an afterthought. That’s the interpretation based on the bottom-six usage. Yesterday’s game against Toronto was the perfect example. Mangiapane has clearly fallen out of favour with the coaching staff. If any other player had made that same mistake, it’s highly unlikely they would have been benched, because Knoblauch decides when to hold players accountable. He’s inconsistent and biased – the players know when he likes them, and when he doesn’t.

Mangiapane’s situation is eerily similar to Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson. They are smaller forwards who were forced to adapt to a bottom-six role unsuccessfully last season. They were constantly in and out of the lineup, trying to make an impact in limited ice time. Skinner scored 16 goals last season and was still made a healthy scratch for 10 games. This season, Mangiapane is the one being treated unfairly.

What Message Is Knoblauch Sending?

The message that Knoblauch sent by benching Mangiapane is that the bottom six can’t make mistakes, or else they’ll be punished. The 29-year-old forward had arguably his best period of the season in the opening frame against the Maple Leafs. He had a breakaway, he was getting into post-whistle scrums, and he was even being a pest by giving the goaltender a snow shower as he stopped in front of the blue paint.