Quinn went ballistic after the game but it really wasn't that bad of an effort. For Quinn it comes down to changing the culture. He is trying to turn this team into a winner and playing Ok isn't good enough. I have no problem with that.
That being said, the Oilers dominated most of the game, Penner must have had 5 grade A chances. If he lights the lamp we are most likely having a different conversation. On the other side of the equation, they passed up prime scoring chances by not shooting the puck, the powerplay was simply awful and they were not sharp for a lot of the night. So I could see why he was upset.
It looks like O'Sullivan has run out of chances, before the game he was demoted on the fourth line and in the third period I don't think he saw a shift. He is a player that has completely lost his confidence but I don't see the work ethic or determination to try to change things. His body language gives me the impression that he has given up! Does he feel he needs a change of scenery? Or is he just completely frustrated with himself?
In an earlier blog, we talked about determining which players we need to keep to build around and players that we need to dump. Nilsson and O'Sullivan were my prime candidates to be traded. Nilsson has slowly climbed out of the doghouse (though I am still not convinced that he will stay out) and O'Sullivan looks like he will be a casuality.
It should be interesting to see how the team responds to Quinn's bashing on Thursday. Will they feel that Quinn was too hard on them? Are will they respond with a great effort? Will they see that Quinn is trying to change the culture and giving them some tough love? Or will they feel sorry for themselves?
As I said yesterday, this team is very much a work in progress and how they respond will tell us a lot about which direction this team is heading.
Go Oilers go!
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