It’s been a surprisingly slow news cycle in the Edmonton Oilers coaching search. 

The only name concretely tied to them, other than Bruce Cassidy, is Craig Berube. 

The Oilers have time. It’s a good time to use the time. I just thought we’d have a few more names directly linked to them by now, either for permission or outright interview. 

An image of Stan Bowman refreshing his email over…and over…

Hence, my “Babcock Zone” column, which wasn’t met so fondly. Babcock’s name took on a life of its own after being suggested by Bob Stauffer on Oilers Now. But in terms of the pressurized situation heading into next season and the reports of what type of coach the Oilers are after, it’s given us both time and creativity to speculate. 

But there’s also the possibility we hear very little about this search. Despite the backlash, the wind is blowing that Butch Cassidy and the Permission Leak might be Albertan in origin. It’s rare that lips are sealed around the Oilers, but maybe that’s the recent protocol. 

Wouldn’t be a bad idea. There are more patient teams in the league at the moment, like Nashville.

Obviously, the benefit of having /experience/gravitas/expensive-diamond-studded-ring on your finger builds immediate trust with the incoming head coach and McDrai. 

But you can’t rule out interviewing people who you don’t immediately assume will fill out those immediate criteria. That’s what the interviews are for. 

And the Oilers are probably planning, intending to do that. 

They have time, but it’s not useful if you don’t use it. I know every week I have a column to publish Sunday, yet Saturday night seems to be the night of heavy lifting. That’s human nature to some degree. 

I’m growing warmer on Todd Nelson as a Plan B. Three-time Calder Cup champion, most recently back-to-back with Hershey in 2022-23 and 2023-24. Last season, he was an assistant with the Penguins. 

Other than his half-season stint with the Oilers, he’s had three separate stints as an NHL assistant.  

To me, he seems far more likely than David Carle or Misha Donskov to impact change immediately, not to mention accessible. 

Another random thought: Darryl Sutter is four years younger than Rick Bowness, so it isn’t the craziest thing to imagine… I’m just sayin’. 

Preds after MacFarland?

Speaking of waiting, what are the Nashville Predators waiting for? 

Nashville gets the luxury of doing things all-patient-like, being in a sunshine hotbed more than a hockey hotbed. 

In February, Barry Trotz said he was........

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