BLOG: Opportunity taps a shoulder

EDMONTON, AB - Player or coach, you're always waiting for that tap on the shoulder.
Head Coach Jay Woodcroft saw his shoulder tapped back on Feb. 10 when he was named bench boss of the Oilers, and he hasn't looked back since. Under the 45-year-old's guidance, the Blue & Orange are a sparkling 21-8-3 and have propelled themselves into second place in the Pacific Division with 94 points on the season.
The seamless transition has been a boon to the Oilers, but it's one that Woodcroft has been preparing for, for a long time.
"I feel very natural in this position," Woodcroft said after Monday's morning skate. "As you said, it's not like I was just airlifted into it. I've put in 17 years of work to be ready should that opportunity ever arise. I can tell you being the head coach in Bakersfield, that is something we talked about a lot to our players so that they were ready when it was their turn to get tapped on the shoulder."

In his four seasons with the Oilers AHL affiliate, Woodcroft guided the Condors to a 105-71-21 record. Alongside Assistant Coach Dave Manson, the former Bakersfield boss has seen the successful mantra of leading by example follow him up to Edmonton.
"When we talked about modelling behaviour as coaches down in Bakersfield, we tried to do the same thing," Woodcroft said. "Making sure we're working at our game as coaches, refining our craft, and should the time ever come, we wanted to make sure we were ready for the opportunity."
Now at the big club, that shoulder tap has become as important as ever. Over the last two games -- a pair of vital 4-0 victories over the Nashville Predators and the Vegas Golden Knights -- the Oilers have dressed 11 forwards and seven defencemen, making the line rotations a lesson in concentration.
"When you're going 11-and-7 you have to make sure everyone is alert on the bench, because sometimes we might put a right-winger on left for a shift, or put in a centre for a wing," Woodcroft said. "I like that. I like it when people have to be on their toes. It also means the coaching staff has to be on their toes as well."
The switch to a seven-man defensive rotation has allowed for the emphatic return of Kris Russell, who had been out of the lineup since March 22. In the two games back, Russell set the tone against Nashville with a heavy hit on Markus Granlund and then followed it up with his first goal in 125 games against the Golden Knights.

The extra ice time has also allowed some of the Oilers forwards not named Connor or Leon to step up. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins recorded his highest time-on-ice since Feb. 20 against Nashville, notching a pair of assists. The Oilers longest-serving player also potted a short-handed goal two nights later against Vegas.
As well, Warren Foegele scored his 12th goal of the season against Vegas and had four shots on goal in the last two games -- a total he hadn't recorded in a single game since late February.
The one drawback to going with 11 forwards and seven defenceman is those who are sitting will have to bide their time to return to the lineup following the lessons learned from their head coach.
"When we dressed 11-and-7, three really good NHL calibre forwards didn't play," said Woodcroft. "That's the hardest thing about 11-and-7, you're sitting another NHL level forward out.
"Eventually, those guys will get back in; just like we talked about, making sure you're ready when the time comes. That's their job as players to make sure they're putting in the necessary work in so that they're ready to succeed when they get the call."