When you're in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging.
The Edmonton Oilers are still digging. Fresh off a demoralizing loss to Anaheim on Tuesday that dropped them to 1-6 in their last seven games, the Oilers are sending rookie Matt Savoie back to the AHL.
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A cursory look at Savoie's brief time in Edmonton makes it seem like a disappointment: Savoie picked up one point in four losses, and was a -4 in the loss to Anaheim on Tuesday.
But Savoie was not the reason the Oilers lost those games. In fact, he was one of their better players in his first few games with the team, looking comfortable in a top-six role at the NHL level. Head coach Kris Knoblauch agrees:
"I thought he did do a lot of good things," Knoblauch told the media after Tuesday's loss. "It's unfortunate that we've played some of our worst games when he's played, but it's no indication of his play."
The Oilers have had trouble scoring for a while now. They're up against the salary cap with no relief coming. Something's clearly not right in the room -- Knoblauch called the team "fragile" in that same press conference on Tuesday -- and the league's oldest roster is beginning to show its age.
So why did they just send down their top offensive prospect after he looked good in his debut? For that matter, why was he a healthy scratch twice during his brief cup of coffee?
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While it's true that the Oilers' roster is now full with the addition of Trent Frederic, that doesn't mean Savoie had to be the guy to go. The bottom of Edmonton's lineup has been a black hole for weeks now -- surely a player like Kasperi Kapanen or Troy Stecher could be snuck through waivers rather than sending down someone with real offensive potential. Heck, put the injured Frederic on LTIR if need be.
We wrote less than a week ago that the Oilers needed to trust Savoie, because at this point they can't afford for him not to work out. But while the team unravels and the head coach calls out "passengers", the skilled, hardworking 21-year-old barely gets a chance to show what he can do before he's sent back down to Bakersfield.
It's a startling lack of urgency from the Oilers' front office and coaching staff, matching the lack of urgency on the ice. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are straining under the weight of carrying the team offensively, and right now the only reinforcements on the way are the injured duo of Trent Frederic and Evander Kane. Savoie can't help from the press box, and he certainly can't from Bakersfield.
On top of that, the team is still smarting from the loss of Dylan Holloway, who is on pace for 26 goals and 61 points this season for St. Louis. They just saw what can happen when a young forward doesn't get the opportunity he feels he deserves. Are they going to let it happen again with Matt Savoie?
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