Oilers' GM Craig MacTavish: 'I See A Better Team On The Ice'

Edmonton Oilers’ general manager Craig MacTavish addressed the media on Friday to discuss the current state of the team.

Any Oilers’ fans or interested viewers who watched general manager Craig MacTavish’s press conference expecting a huge announcement were deeply disappointed. Many expected that MacTavish called the press conference to announce the firing of head coach Dallas Eakins or possibly a trade that would blow up the roster.

Instead, the message given was that the Oilers’ were staying the course.

It’s hard to comprehend that would be the case, after the Oilers were just handed their 11th straight loss at the hands of the Winnipeg Jets and currently sit dead last in the league. Everyone expected a very angry Craig MacTavish to approach the podium and announce big changes coming to the team. Instead, there were words of optimism and progress from the general manager.

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“What I think I have now is a group that’s capable of growth,” MacTavish said. “What I inherited was a group that was on the demise.”

In all due respect, when you finish in the bottom three in the league standings in four out of the last five years, there really is no where to go but up from that point. Especially when in three of those years your team had the first-overall pick in the draft.

MacTavish stresses that there is more accountability on the players now than there was in the past, and that is encouraging. “The players are holding themselves accountable. I think you have to credit the current coaching staff for that,” the GM said.

MacTavish also stressed that he doesn’t believe that the core of the team needs to be blown up, rather that they need more time to develop along with their current prospects and future draft picks. At the same time, bringing in veteran players that have had success, such as when they brought in Andrew Ference as a free agent from Boston.

The Oilers’ GM also addressed why he has not taken to the trade market as of yet. “I have not been able to find a deal that satisfies me,” he said. “The long-term objective here is to draft and develop players.” Jordan Eberle has been mentioned quite a bit in recent trade rumors, most recently linked with Boston.

“The players are holding themselves accountable. I think you have to credit the current coaching staff for that,” the GM said.

While this is all well and good, this would have sounded much better if it was two or three years ago. With the amount of number one overall picks and other high draft picks on this roster, the fans are getting restless and want to see some progress. Even though MacTavish insists he sees progress, it is absolutely not showing on the ice whatsoever. In fact, you can argue the opposite.

The Oilers’ drafting remains the biggest problem. MacTavish notes that certain prospects are taking longer to develop than anticipated. That doesn’t appear to be the major issue here. The major issue concerns the players that Edmonton chooses to draft. They consistently draft the most prolific player available, completely disregarding what the team actually needs. Sure, they are loaded up on potential star talent up front with Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Nail Yakupov, but they are severely lacking on the back end. Which shows, as the team continues to have one of the worst goal differentials in the league year after year.

If MacTavish is going to clean house anywhere, it would have be the scouting department.

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Oilers’ GM Craig MacTavish: ‘I See A Better Team On The Ice’

By Vinnie Criscenzo | Dec 5, 2014

Edmonton Oilers’ general manager Craig MacTavish addressed the media on Friday to discuss the current state of the team.

More from FanSided