Mark Spector targets Jay Woodcroft as the reason Phil Broberg and Dylan Holloway struggled in Edmonton
The Edmonton Oilers are gearing up for a dramatic showdown against the St. Louis Blues tonight, but Mark Spector is doing everything he can to ruffle feathers in Oil Country.
It's no secret at this point that the Edmonton Oilers lost Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg as result of being offer-sheeted by the St. Louis Blues over the off season.
Although their departure from the team broke the hearts of countless Oilers fans, Sportsnet reporter Mark Spector believes that Jay Woodcroft had a hand in their failure in Edmonton.
Woodcroft gave Broberg 46 games, but often had the lefty playing his off side, and on 10 of those nights he played less than 10 minutes. He had a couple of four-minute games at the end of that season, a sure sign the coaches did not trust the player.
-Mark Spector
Woodcroft liked to go with 11 forwards and seven defencemen, and most often it was Broberg whose shifts dwindled as the game wore on. The system contributed to the loss of both Woodcroft's job and Broberg, a wonky bit of coaching methodology that crushed Broberg's soul in Edmonton.
Mark Spector goes on to explain that Woodcroft's coaching style has the exact same detrimental impact on Dylan Holloway.
By the time both players had found playoff success, it was already too late.
In a recent interview, Oilers CEO Jeff Jackson took some accountability, specifically for Broberg's demise in Edmonton.
I think ultimately it comes down to the player just probably not having trust in the organization.
- Jeff Jackson
The practical reality is when you send a player to the minors for the third or fourth time in three years, they're not in the frame of mind to sign an extension at that point We didn't have a player development department, per se back then. There wasn't a plan»
- Jeff Jackson
Jeff Jackson explains that the team was in a constant cycle of sending Broberg down to the minors, resulting in a lack of trust between the two parties.
Regardless, Mark Spector has pointed the finger at former head coach Jay Woodcroft, emphasizing that his wonky coaching style "crushed" both their souls.
| POLL |
DECEMBRE 7 | 213 ANSWERS Mark Spector targets Jay Woodcroft as the reason Phil Broberg and Dylan Holloway struggled in Edmonton Do you think jay Woodcroft did a good job coaching the Edmonton Oilers? |
| Yes | 139 | 65.3 % |
| No | 74 | 34.7 % |
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