Oilers Steal Barons Thunder? (News From Today)

Today the Oklahoma City Barons held a press conference to announce the new Head Coach, Todd Nelson and his assistant coach, Gerry Fleming.

Once again the Barons put on a great event. They were quick and to the point and followed that up with a Q & A session with the media.

By all accounts, the Barons should be very happy with having a guy like Nelson on board. From the reports and information I have gathered, he seems like a smart and passionate man for hockey. Todd Nelson will be an awesome coach in OKC. The Barons are lucky to have him.

Gerry Fleming was also hired/retained as Nelson's assistant coach. Fleming has been with the Oilers (Falcons) for the past couple years and is no stranger to the Oilers system. The Oilers must like him as he was the only minor league guy to not be fired. Good for Gerry. Just like with Todd, the Barons and their fans are lucky to have a guy like Gerry.

Now what's this Oilers steal Barons thunder thing?

The Barons had planned this PC for a couple of days and had the fans interest peaked, mine included. Just as the conference was starting to get rolling, the Oilers decide that they needed to rise above what the Barons are doing and they announced their assistant coaches at the exact time Bob Funk Jr was getting up to speak.

Go to 2:32pm in the TweetCast box. Proof is there.

How sad is that? Your own baby club is about to announce their "big surprise" when, what the hell? Let's announce our own news. way to market your brand. I really hope the Oilers don't screw this up with the Barons, I like them and I want them to succeed.

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The TweetCast went well today thanks to Eric and Scott as they provided some great pictures and tweets. It was also nice for me as I was able to sit down and chat with a few of the loyal readers about the Barons and Oilers at the Cover It Live box. It's always nice to talk to the readers. Thanks to those who stopped by, we value your opinions.

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Back to the Edmonton Oilers. Like I said above, they announced their assistant coaches today. No surprises, Kelly Buchberger is welcomed back to the fold. Bucky was on the ice last week for the Oilers Rookie Development camp and we all knew he would be doing something with the Oil this year.

The other man they bring back is Steve Smith. Yes, that Steve Smith. While he has no real experience as a coach, he gets a job with the Oilers and not the Barons. Puzzling. Don't newbies start at the bottom? Not in the old boys club. Both of these hirings have Kevin Lowe stink all over them.This couldn't have been Renney's or Tamby's choice. Could they?

I can not believe that Steve Smith is an Oiler once again.

-Written By Smokin' Ray-

Oklahoma City Barons Press Conference LIVE *TweetCast*

Welcome to another fine TweetCast by OilFieldHockey.com and OilersJambalaya.com.

Today we tune into the Oklahoma City Barons press conference where they are expected to announce who their 1st ever Head Coach will be.

It's also expected that they will announce who the assistant coaches will be too.

I have heard reports that the OKC Barons may also announce the Name The Mascot winner as well. Should be an exciting day.

The Press Conference begins at 2:00pm CDT

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE LIVE TWEETCAST

The Wait Is Over... Well Sort Of

With the announcement finally coming up from the Oklahoma City Barons on Thursday, we are all waiting patiently to find out who will be the Head and Assistant coaches for the OKC Barons. The excitment is killing us!

OK, not really killing us, but we are curious nonetheless.

Will Kelly Buchburger really get a position with the Barons? Will it be a some what unkown group? Will they be local to OKC? Will it be a "fired" Oiler? hint: MacT

On Thurday at 3:00pm MDT, we will find out what they decide. Join us for a LIVE TweetCast of the announcement.

One just has to wonder, when will the GM be named? Isn't that more important to the team?

**Tweetcast brought to you by

OilersJambalaya.com and OilFieldHockey.com**

-Written by Smokin' Ray-

Live Tweetcast

 Oilfieldhockey.com and OilersJambalaya.com will be holding a *LIVE* Tweetcast on July 15th starting at 2pm. Of the Official the Announcement of the coaches for the Oklahoma City Barons.

Edmonton Oilers Rookie Development Camp 3 on 3 Tournament LIVE *TweetCast*

Welcome to the final day of the Oilers Rookie Development Camp 3 on 3 Tournament. This Tweetcast is set up to get the reactions of a wide range of people.

It will pick up the following hashtags; #Oilers, #OilersCamp, #OilersJambalaya, #OilFieldHockey.

Include those hashtags in your tweets and it will be included in the Tweetcast.

The tournament will start at 9:00am.

GOILERS!!!

Oilers Rookie Development Camp Day 3 LIVE TweetCast

Welcome to the Oilers Rookie Development Camp Day 3 LIVE TweetCast. The action starts at 10:00am and runs till 12:00pm.

Thanks to @Steve_Schulte and @Gelsomino for the updates from the arena.

Oilers get Giroux

The Edmonton Oilers have signed AHL Veteran Alexandre Giroux to a one way contract. Giroux was part of the Hershey Bears last season lead by former Thunder coach Mark French. The Bears won the AHL's Calder Cup by beating the Texas Stars. Giroux had 103 pts(50G, 53A)with the Bears , and played 9 games with the Washington Capitals last season. Where he had 3 pts(1G,2A)during his stint up in the nation's capital. Giroux turned down several offers, including a 1.3 mil dollar contract in the KHL.Giroux is known for being a career AHL player, with a call-up here and there. So there is a really good chance that Giroux could end up playing for OKC next season. If he doesn't make the Oilers squad, and it gives the Oilers a player. That can replace a player who gets banged up at anytime. Also former Falcon Chris Minard has signed with the Red Wings to play for their affiliate in Grand Rapids.

NHL Free Agent Frenzy Day 2 LIVE TweetCast

Welcome to another fine LIVE TweetCast by Oilers Jambalaya and OilFieldHockey.com. We thank you for stopping by.

Today is one of the 2nd best days in Hockey. This is the 2nd day of the NHL Free Agent Signing period. WOoOOOoOOO! Many of teams have won or lost at this time and almost always the players win big (big $$$ contracts).

Today we focus on the Edmonton Oilers. Not only is Steve Tambellini trying to unload guys like Sheldon Souray, he's also trying to acquire more depth for the Oilers. Bigger players seems to be the mandate this year and so far that's happened. What large players will the Oilers pick up today?

Our TweetCast box is going to pick up the tweets of a few people to keep track of the entire day.

Included today will be the "HOME TEAM" @OilersJambalaya, @OilFieldHockey, @AHLBarons, @MarshaBoyd, @PaqTwinn, @Nick_OilersFan

We will also see tweets from the "TRUSTED TEAM" @TSNBobMcKenzie, @DarrenDreger, @NHL_Oilers, @NHL, @DanTencer, @CapGeek, @Real_ESPNLeBrun, @TSNRyanRishaug, @RealKyper, @walsha, @kausatoday

And just for fun today we will have the "OILERS RUMOR TEAM" @InsideTheRink & @OilersReport,

Sit back and enjoy all the crazy action. The 2nd day of the free agent frenzy starts now!

LIVE *TweetCast* of Free Agent Frenzy

Happy Canada Day Everyone! And what a day it should be.

Welcome to another fine LIVE TweetCast by Oilers Jambalaya and OilFieldHockey.com. We thank you for stopping by.

Today is one of the best days in Hockey. July 1st is the NHL Free Agent Signing Day. WOoOOOoOOO! Many of teams have won or lost at this day and almost always the players win big (big $$$ contracts).

Today we focus on the Edmonton Oilers. Not only is Steve Tambellini trying to unload guys like Sheldon Souray, he's also trying to acquire more depth for the Oilers. Bigger players seems to be the mandate this year. Who will the Oilers pick up today?

Our TweetCast box is going to pick up the tweets of a few people to keep track of the entire day. Included today will be the "HOME TEAM" @OilersJambalaya, @OilFieldHockey, @AHLBarons, @MarshaBoyd, @PaqTwinn, @Nick_OilersFan

We will also see tweets from the "TRUSTED TEAM" @TSNBobMcKenzie, @DarrenDreger, @NHL_Oilers, @NHL, @DanTencer, @CapGeek, @Real_ESPNLeBrun, @TSNRyanRishaug, @RealKyper, @walsha, @kausatoday

And just for fun today we will have the "OILERS RUMOR TEAM" @InsideTheRink, @OilersReport,

Sit back and enjoy all the crazy action. The free agent frenzy starts now!

2010 NHL Entry Draft LIVE *TweetCast*

Welcome to the LIVE *TweetCast* brought to you by Oilers Jambalaya and OilFieldHockey.com.

Kick back your feet and watch the tweets of OilFieldHockey, OilersJambalaya, AHLBarons, NHL, NHL_Oilers, DanTencer, Oilers_Travels, DarrenDreger, JasonGregor & OKCBaronsHockey.

This should be a good time so don't miss out. We will find out if it's Taylor or Tyler. Finally.

If you are on Twitter, give us a shout. If not, join and then you can give us a shout.

Thanks for joining us here today! HISTORY IN THE MAKING

WOW! What A Day For The Fans Of The Oilers

Today -- which started out as boring and lame -- turned out to be really exciting for all the fans of Edmonton Oilers.

First it started out with a Bruins/Panthers trade which to me, means that the Oilers will be taking Taylor Hall. With acquiring Nathan Horton and parting ways with the #15 pick, any hope of getting that pick is out the window (that's what I was hoping for). Back to Hall. It's also quite clear now that the Bruins have picked up a good solid winger in Horton, they seem to be preparing for drafting a center. And that's not Taylor Hall. Maybe I am wrong here, but I get the feeling the Oilers will take Hall.

Then I'm told that Steve Tambellini is going to have a press conference at noon. I figured I'd look around to see what it's about and I came across an article by the Edmonton Journal that was saying basically that Tambo was just going to talk about heading to the draft today and what the Oilers have planned for the future. So like a moron I'm telling people it's no big deal. No huge news today.

BAM! Pat Quinn has stepped down as head coach of the Oilers and Tom Renney is now the coach of the Oilers. So much for no news.



My mind has been blown.

I really didn't mind Pat Quinn as coach and I figured he'd be back next season. Quinn just had some really bad things happen to this team this year and I didn't really blame him for the failure. I did however blame him for a few other things he did but I won't get into it again. Thanks for your great quotes Pat. I'm going to miss you.



Listening to Pat Quinn ( http://oilers.nhl.com/club/podcastplayer.htm?pid=98&iid=23047 ) talk about the situation he made it clear that he was not happy about not returning as coach next season. He went on to say that he was looking forward to coaching two 19 year olds that he has coached before. Who's that you ask? Well one guy is Jordan Eberle. The other? My money is on Taylor Hall. There is no other kid in the Oilers system that Quinn has coached before other than those two. So if it's NOT Hall, who is it?

The next big shocker for me was opening the mail today. Our friend Scott from OilFieldHockey.com sent me a puck from the OKC Barons name reveal. How cool is that?

Thanks Scott for this, it's going to be great to add to the collection. Is this the first Barons merchandise in Alberta? Maybe... but I doubt it.

Here is a audio link for the new Oil Change documentary preview if you still need something more to do.

http://oilers.nhl.com/club/podcastplayer.htm?pid=98&iid=23038

What a day...

-Written by Smokin' Ray-

NHL Entry Draft 1st Round LIVE *TweetCast* Right Here On June 25

On Friday June 25, 2010 come join the LIVE TweetCast of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft brought to you by Oilers Jambalaya and OilFieldHockey.com.

Catch all the action right here as we follow along the Edmonton Oilers and who they pick with their #1 overall selection.

Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin? We will find out on June 25th.

Make sure you come back and join the fun.

Barons STH Board Meeting

The 1st Season Ticket Holder Advisory Board meeting took place yesterday. And some interesting tidbits came out of the meeting, and were relayed to Oilfieldhockey.com. The one tidbit that was interesting was about who's going to the coach. It was told to one of the board members that a coach won't be announced until after the AHL finals are over. This news comes after a radio interview with Coach Rob Daum on Oilers Lunch on Team 1260. Daum has stated that he wants to coach the Barons, but has yet to speak to Steve Tambellini about the situation.The improvements to the Cox Center, were also talked about in the last nights meeting. That an Open House is planned for sometime in September, after the improvements are completed. Another major delay was a Point of Sale system, especially for the merchandise store. Also it was mentioned that the new ice machine will have it's first test on Aug 15th. Parking was another issue that was discussed at the meeting. Prodigal is working on getting parking available at the Courtyard, and at the Santa Fe Parking Garage. But there was a catch to parking at the Santa Fe Parking Garage. That fee for parking at the Santa Fe garage, would be more then at the Courtyard. Ice Girls dance team was also discussed, but no decision was made to them or not. But from what was told to OFH, that one board member was in favor for a dance team. Prodigal asked the AHL about scheduling the first game here in OKC, to be against the Texas Stars.

Last Chance for Mascot Submission

Today is the last day for submissions to Prodigal Hockey for the "Name the Mascot" contest. You have until 11:59pm to make your submission. If you are the winner of the "Name the Mascot" contest. You will receive a trip for 2, down to watch the Edmonton Oilers take on the Dallas Stars in 2010-11 season.

Who Will it Be?

Just about a week after the "Official" announcement of the Oklahoma City Barons. The Oilers are still looking for a General Manager to over see the Barons. There have been a couple of names mentioned in the Edmonton media. On who just might replace Kevin Prendergast as the Oilers assistant GM. Scott Bonner of the Vancouver Giants was the lead candidate to take the position. But a report from CKNW in Vancouver, is stating the Bonner will remain with the Vancouver Giants. After meeting with Oilers GM Steve Tambellini, just a couple weeks ago. Bob Tory and Gavin Hamilton are also candidates for the position. No word if Tory or Hamilton have been contacted by the Oilers in regards to the vacancy . With the rapidly approaching date of July 1st, when AHL free agency starts. And no head coach named for the Barons, even though Rob Daum is likely to remain as head coach. It remains to be seen on how long this process will take to get a GM, and a head coach in place for Oklahoma City. Let's just hope it gets done before the middle of June, because after that Oklahoma City just might start out being behind.

Update: Oilfieldhockey tweeted to Prodigal, and asked the question about a time frame of filling the GM and Head Coach positions. And we were told that there is no timetable to fill those positions.

Oklahoma CIty Barons Press Conference Photos

Click on the Photo to view the rest of the Photos taken at the Press Conference.

Rough Draft Roster

Yesterday I mentioned that one of the big questions during the chat with Bob Funk and Kevin Lowe, was about who would be playing in Oklahoma City next season.

Teemu Hartikainen is one player that could be starting in here. But if you look up Oklahoma City Barons on Wikipedia gives you an idea of who could be playing here.

The bloggers from Lowtide break down a roster on who could play, and who could get offered a contract from AHL free agency. If you were to compare the Wikipedia list and Lowtide's list. There are some notables names that aren't in Wikipedia's list. Like Chris Vande Velde, the Minnesota native just finished his college career at UND. Vande Velde and Eberle both spent time with the Falcons during the final games of the AHL regular season. There is alot of debate whether if Eberle will be in Edmonton or Oklahoma City at the start of next season. Eberle hasn't had much time off that past year, after playing in the World Jrs in Canada. Then playing with the Falcons, and now is playing in the World Championships.

Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson (a.k.a MPS) could be here, but he still doesn't have a contract with the Oilers. Steve Tambellini has been at the World Championships, watching all the Oilers prospects. And it's been rumored that he has a contract ready to offer to MPS.

Goaltending is another issue with the organization right now. Wikipedia has Devin Dubnyk listed on the roster, but if he gets assigned to Oklahoma City. He would have to clear waivers, before he could be assigned to OKC. Kevin Lowe did say in the chat the other night, that they are looking for an AHL veteran goalie. Someone who can handle taking most the games, between the pipes. Bryan Pitton spent most of the year back and forth between Stockton and Springfield. He has one year left on his entry level contract. And he needs to have a good season, to be offered a contract after the 2010-11 season.

Oklahoma City fans shouldn't get their hopes up too much about the #1 draft pick. Whether it's Hall or Seguin that gets drafted by the Oilers, either player will NOT be in Oklahoma City. The only that would be possible would be on a reconditioning stint. Some links which you could find out more about the Oilers prospects can be found here from Coppernblue.com. And some good info on Hockey's Future here about all the NHL's prospects.

OKC Barons Press Conference Videos

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

The Oklahoma City Barons (AHL) / The Whirl Wind 2 Weeks

What a messed up and wacky two weeks that was.

It all started with a message from OilFieldHockey.com to me saying that he heard the new AHL team was going to be called the Oklahoma City Barons. (I had guessed the Oil Barons) He said it was from a good source and he really thought it was legit. We decided to wait on it (and not look stupid) and sure enough two days later, out of the blue, this tweet came out.

Seeing that made us believe that this had some real legs. We decided to go ahead and float the idea out there and see what happens.

Next thing you know, the Copper&Blue.com and OFH had found some logos for the Barons.

Well that really sold us. That's it! In our minds, the Barons were going to happen no doubt about it and most people believed as well.

Then once Prodigal Hockey had announced that there was going to be a press conference on the 19th, the buzz made a bigger noise.

So with time until the PC, I had a lot of time to analyze those logos. I figured out how the layout would go and I assumed (and was right) that the Barons would use the Oilers jersey design. So I made a terrible photoshop version of my concept. I really can't believe how close I was. They should give me a free jersey just for guessing it correctly! *nudge, nudge*

On May 16th, things went from confidant that they would be the Barons, to what is going on? Bisons shirts? Logos being Trademarked? Bisons. Twisters. Roughnecks. It was nuts!

Even through all that, I still had that feeling it was the Barons and this was just Prodigal Hockey trying to mess us up. I mean really... I had to be. I changed my banner and committed to the Barons and I wasn't turning back now.

Then finally the big day arrived. OFH was prepared and set to be at the Cox Convention Center for the big reveal. I was manning the TweetCast back here in Alberta.

The day went by so quick and the excitement level was really high. I'm sure all the people enjoyed their time down at the presser. I did enjoyed myself and I wasn't even there.

After all the commotion was over, Bob Funk Jr. and Kevin Lowe took the time to answer our questions and we all had a great time reading all the different responses. (very cool that they had those two answering our questions)

One thing I did learn from Prodigal Hockey and the OKC Barons tonight, they loved the fact that we (OFH and OJ) helped create the buzz that they so desperately needed. The respected the fact that we worked hard trying to find the real scoop on this team. I think they now have the same admiration for us as we have for them. I like them. This should be a nice friendship. 

Thanks for bringing the OKC Barons into our lives Prodigal Hockey. You already have changed a lot of lives. Mine included.

Let me tell you, after all the constant digging and searching for the past two weeks, it felt good to post this. It felt like forever.

Welcome to the Oilers family Oklahoma City Barons & Prodigal Hockey.

-Written by Smokin' Ray from Oilers Jambalaya-

IT'S OFFICIAL! The Oklahoma City Barons are the new AHL affiliate for the Edmonton Oilers

We here at Oilers Jambalaya and OilFieldHockey.com are finally happy to welcome FOR REAL, the Oklahoma City Barons to the Oilers family.

Thanks to those that followed the madness.