Showing posts with label prospects. Show all posts
Showing posts with label prospects. Show all posts

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Where do the Oilers go from here?

The Edmonton Oilers season has gone down the toilet in a big way and we are looking at one of, if not the worst season record in the history of the organization. There is no way to spin this thing and nothing I can say here will change. This city (Edmonton) and Oilers fans worldwide have found places to cast blame and some seem like good possibilities but many of those places they are looking to cast blame I do not believe are the reason for the poor results on the ice.

Let's walk through some of the possibilities that are ailing the Edmonton Oilers and possible solutions that could be made to see improvement this year and the year's to follow.

Possible Problems:

1) President Kevin Lowe;
While I agree that Lowe should be made accountable for the mess that is the Oilers, he is not. There has been no repercussion for his bad decisions or lack thereof. On the other hand other then just making people feel good, do we really believe this team improves if he is fired or let go? Nope! It's about time we stop looking at Lowe as the problem. The past may be his fault, heck even where we are now. If we have to let MacT go cause he fails as a GM then that would be Lowe's fault for 2 bad GM hires and that should fall on him. Until then? Exactly, let's look for a different on ice reason for a lack of results with this skilled of a team

2) GM Craig MacTavish;
How can we blame MacT for this? Because he hired Eakins is the reason we have tanked? Maybe, but since very little growth occurred with the other coaches I highly doubt it would have added more then another 5 wins in the old win column. In fact MacT has not even been in his job a year and took over a disaster of a rebuild. Sure he has made some errors as fans like to point out, but if we are all honest, the current state of affairs of this team is not MacT. He doesn't have much time to stand pat that is for sure. He has to make at least 2 big moves still to even see the Oilers become a playoff team IMO.

3) Head Coach Dallas Eakins; 
MacT, Quinn, Renney, Kruger and now Eakins and we think this all falls on Eakins. I did not like what i thought sounded like arrogance when he first came in but in recent interviews he sounds a little more humbled and I for one, don't see changing head coaches as a way of improving. It's a decision that needs to be followed through for 2 full seasons.

4) Assistant Coaches Buchberger and Smith:
I like both as people and as players in their day but don't see how they add more then another assistant coach would who is real good at their job and come with a top end resume. Could it be they have been trained by bad mentoring? It's time to move on here and hire someone with a proven track record who has had success at their level of coaching.

5) Goaltending;
Has been and continues to be a problem for a long time. It's time the Oilers get a goalie who can steal a game every 10-12 games. Someone who can have a Save % of at least .915 and not let in soft goals at times when they break the back of the team's momentum. A clutch save at the right time is more important then just a save. btw…contrary to most people's thoughts with goalies, there is no goalie who we can get (or afford) that is on top of the world when we get him. You need to take a chance on a Goalie who may need to re-establish himself sometimes.

6) Defence;
As upset as some may be here, you can't bring in elite talent without paying through the ceiling with your young forwards who are considered untouchable to Oiler fans. The future is shaping up well and defencemen always take time to develop. My preference is still to get Ekblad in the draft and let him get 1 extra year in jr before bringing him up. In the meantime Klefbom has more time to develop (he will come around IMO) Marincin and Gernat in the minors and let's not forget Nurse.

7) Team is too small and not gritty enough;
While I agree we need to get bigger and or tougher, what does that mean? Ever watch Crosby? What about Nathan MacKinnon this year? Some of you Oiler fans really like Perron's game. I could walk through at least 15 other NHL players easily who are tough to play against yet they are not extremely tall or over 200 lbs. So what does bigger or tougher mean? Is it height or weight? I think what people mean is they can protect the puck, not get tossed around when they get hit and can win the battles in the corners coming out with the puck on most occasions.

Having said all that, none of us really know the answer and if we really believe we are smarter then the professionals we need to give our head a shake. But since this is only a blog and we like to discuss these kind of things let me take a stab at where I think the Oilers should go from here…

Stay the course and do not trade the pick;
My preference would be to draft in order if they are available when the Oilers step up to the podium, Ekblad, Reinhart or Sam Bennett. Should the Oilers draft out of the top 3 then Drasaitl would be next. It's likely we will be drafting top 3 in June. Drafting one of the other of Reinhart 1st or Bennett allows us to draft for a 2nd line center for the future as well. Don't be deceived, Reinhart will not be pushed around at 6'1 even though he is 185 lbs about. He would be a perfect fit IMO on that second line but i would send him back to jr for 1 more year before bringing him in full-time even though I believe he will be ready this next year.

Trade Yakupov;
I absolutely do not personally want to send him packing but something tells me his game will not fit what the Oilers are building. The trade with a top quality prospect and or pick for a top end defencemen or big center who can fill in the #2 line spot. I realize some may think his value is low but it's just a sophomore jinx some may say. Most the other players taken high in his draft year are not faring much better and it is rumoured that many GM's actually believe that Edmonton does not handle their development well with some of their players. His value is high out there on the market and this summer will be a good time to explore what the options are.

Try to resign Scrivens and get a solid UFA #1 Goalie or make a trade for one;
This will not be easy but let's hope the Oilers can somehow convince someone who hits the market July 1st that coming to Edmonton will be where they can excel. Until this can happen the Oilers will always muddle around in the middle of the pack at best.

Trade 2 defence prospects for a 3-4 d-man;
We are stock piling some d-men and eventually something will have to break. The Oilers can land a few different defencemen as a possibility but truth is a player in the ability of a Petry can be had it will mean the Oilers will have to give something good up (other then their 1st round draft pick or Nurse).

The players I do not even consider to move unless someone goes crazy and overpays are the following;
Taylor Hall / Ryan Nugent-Hopkins / David Perron / Darnell Nurse / Justin Schultz / Jeff Petry. Everyone else is available for the right deal if it means we improve the team. I love many of the other players as well but you will have to pay a high price if you want to bring in a franchise type player who can take this team over that bump in the road.

I know many of you will have varying opinions on this. Shoot away at your suggestions or thoughts. It's all subjective anyway but nothing wrong with voicing our thoughts or idea's or opinions. What's your thought's? You see things different or are you thinking along the same lines? What about Oilers management? What do you think they are actually going to do?



Monday, January 20, 2014

REVS Top 15 2014 NHL Prospects #6. Blake Clarke

 REVS 2014 NHL Draft Prospects (August 10/13)
1.Sam Reinhart
2.Aaron Ekblad
3.William Nylander
4.Roland McKeown
5.Jake Virtanen
6.Blake Clarke
7.Nick Ritchie
8.Leon Draisatl
9.Michael Dal Colle
10.Jakub Vrana
11.Ivan Barbashev
12.Jared McCann
13.Anton Karlsson
14.Joshua Ho-Sang
15.Sam Bennett 

Honourable mentions:
Oskar Lindblom
Haydn Fleury
Nick Schmaltz

RECAP to date of players we have looked at
Sam Reinhart
6'1, 183 lbs
Kootney Ice- Games 36 Goals 21 Assists 36 Points 57
Canada U20- Games 7 Goals 2 Assists 3 Points 5

Aaron Ekblad
6'4, 216 lbs
Barrie Colts- Games 33 Goals 14 Assists 18 Points 32
Canada U18- Games 5 Goals 2 Assists 2 Points 4
Canada U20- Games 7 Goals 1 Assists 1 Points 2

William Nylander
5'10, 170 lbs
MODO J20- Games 1 Goals 0 Assists 0 Points 0
MODO- Games 11 Goals 0 Assists 2 Points 2
 Rögle- Games 18 Goals 4 Assists 4 Points 8
Södertälje Games 6 Goals 5 Assists 3 Points 8
Sweden U18- Games 4 Goals 4 Assists 2 Points 6

Roland McKeown
6'1, 195 lbs
Kingston Frontenacs- Games 42 Goals 8 Assists 24 Points 32
Canada U18- Games 5 Goals 0 Assists 1 Points 1

Jake Virtanen
6'1, 210 lbs
Kingston Frontenacs- Games 45 Goals 28 Assists 17 Points 45
Canada U18- Games 5 Goals 0 Assists 1 Points 1

The player I listed in August at #6.
Blake Clarke
6'2, 196 lbs
 CHL - Games 30 Goals 1 Assists 7 Points 8

Traded to the Spirit from the Battalion a few games into this season Blake is now playing with the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL, Blake has really taken a back seat to his game. His offence was expected to go up but the exact opposite has happened. 

Clarke plays a pretty solid hard north-south game in the power forward mold. Has high skill and compete level mixed with a strong shot shot and a willingness to battle anywhere on the ice. Blake has still greater potential scouts are saying to play with even more grit and needs to work on consistency more then anything. He definitely knows how to use his strong built frame to knock others off the puck when battling in the corners. In my year end rankings unless Blake has a incredibly big turn around his ranking will drop drastically but will likely still make that Top 15.

While Blake does play a role similar to the power forward role the Oilers could use, there are far too many players in his mild with higher end skill and even grit and speed at the higher order of the top 5 where they are likely to pick. Chances are slim we see the Oilers call out Blake's name at the draft in June 2014.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

REVS 2014 Draft Prospects (#2 "Aaron Ekblad")


 REVS 2014 NHL Draft Prospects (August 10/13)
1.Sam Reinhart
2.Aaron Ekblad
3.William Nylander
4.Roland McKeown
5.Jake Virtanen
6.Blake Clarke
7.Nick Ritchie
8.Leon Draisatl
9.Michael Dal Colle
10.Jakub Vrana
11.Ivan Barbashev
12.Jared McCann
13.Anton Karlsson
14.Joshua Ho-Sang
15.Sam Bennett 

Aaron Ekblad
6'4 216 lbs

Aaron Ekblad is a CHL player in the OHL playing for the Barrie Colts.He was selected 1st overall in the 2011 OHL Entry Draft.His application for "exceptional player" status was approved unanimously. The only other players given such eligibility were John Tavares in 2005, Connor McDavid in 2012 and recently Sean Day.

Todd Cordell says - "I've seen Aaron Ekblad over 100 times and he is the real deal. Simply put, he can do it all. He's 6'4, 200+ pounds and he can skate very well. He's big, not afraid to be physical and is a rock defensively. He can move the puck, QB a power play and has a booming shot. He's also extremely smart and can play and exceed in all situations."


I would tend to say his greatest assets are his strength, accurate passing skills, powerful shot or his high hockey IQ not to mention his intelligence off the ice where he generally gets all A’s in school. As for coaching , his mentoring has come from Dale Hawerchuk, a former 1st OV in the NHL. 

Aaron has been compared to Seth Jones. Maybe some look at size, some look at him as a strong skater who can shoot but let's look at offence. 

This is where some believe Seth is more gifted in the offensive rush unlike Aaron who will be more cautious. Aaron produced an .46 PPG as a under ager and .63 PPG as 1 year younger then Seth Jones who posted an .92 PPG total on a loaded Portland Winterhawk team. The question is , 'will Aaron come in with comparables in his PPG as Seth did in his draft year?' IMO I see Aaron coming in around the .80 PPG but really like his defensive game most and his physical play.

Ekblad is a very humble but large defender and if he continues the growth curve over the next few years he could very well project as a top 2 defender in the future. It's pretty certain among most scouts that Aaron will at least fit well into a 3-4 role but his upside is a 1-2 role down the road.


In the meantime, 'Keep your stick on the Ice'!


Monday, August 19, 2013

REVS 2014 Draft Prospects (#1 Sam Reinhart)



#1 Ranking: Sam Reinhart
Chances are pretty good, according to early reports. Sam Reinhart, a center with the Kootenay Ice of the Western Hockey League, will make an impact prior to the 2014 NHL Draft, which will be held June 27-28 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
At 6-foot-1, 186-pound and a right-shot forward he is heads and tails IMO right where he belongs in the #1 slot.
"He has a complete game at both ends of the ice," Central Scouting says. "He does everything well. He won't get you overly excited, but from a coaching perspective, he's the guy you always want on the ice in critical situations. He's your go-to guy and team leader and is just going to be consistent at the junior level, and eventually the pro level."Reinhart, who considers his hockey sense his best attribute, led the Ice last season with 85 points as a 16 year old. 17 years old now and ready to be drafted at year end, Sam will need to continue the growing curve but nothing appears able to stop this young man, except himself.
Sam Reinhart won the WHL rookie of the year, was captain of Canada's team that won the gold medal at the 2012 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament last summer, he wore the "C" for Canada's entry at the 2013 IIHF World Under-18 championship that won gold. At the U-18s in Sochi, Russia, in April, Reinhart had 3 goals, 7 points and a plus-7 rating playing mostly with Morgan Klimchuk  and 2015 draft-eligible Connor McDavid. His achievements seem to follow him regardless of where he goes. This guy is the real thing.

Sam has been tracking well for a few years now and while some have heard of him, not all people know lots or believe he would actually be a #1 OV selection if this draft class was stronger. He is worth the price of admission and come June 2014 there will be teams drooling to draft this player. If Sam can possibly grow 1 more inch and put on even another 4-5 pounds, he will be one heck of a prospect all around. (potentially being 6'2 and 190 lbs would go a long way to be drafted #1 and as a future center for whoever is afforded that opportunity)

Highlights from youtube




Thursday, January 5, 2012

Our Prospect Pool at the Juniors

The Oilers have quite a few prospects in the 2012 World Junior Hockey Championship. None of them played for our beloved Team Canada but they played some pretty important roles on their respective teams. These players include Oscar Klefbom, David Musil, Kristian Pelss, Martin Gernat and Martin Marincin. Over the course of the tournament I decided to take short notes on what I noticed from each player.

Klefbom - He is one great positional player, he may not be the most physically strong man out there but he knows how to separate the man from the puck, simply with his positioning. Klefbom also has a great read on the play, he is constantly alert and knows where to be. A slight problem of his however is to make good, but fairly chancy plays, that can be costly to his team.

Musil - He is also a brilliant player at reading plays, very alert. Musil is also great with the stick, he is very capable with his poke checks. One thing I had noticed is his unmistakable ability when in front of the net, his physical dominance and shot blocking.

Kristian Pelss - To be honest I have not seen much of his play, but from what I have heard he was one of the best players on Latvia's team.

Martin Gernat - Great skater with great stick work. Aggressive offensively in the attacking zone but can sometimes be a little too offensive. With his size comes a hard shot, but for his size he is also very mobile on his feet.

Martin Marincin - He can very much be like his fellow team mate, Martin Gernat. Another large sized defenceman with a booming shot and great mobility. He can however make some risky plays with his stretch passes.

On another note: I'm proud of Canada, of course we all wanted gold, but the boys played with heart and soul, obviously they didn't want to end up in the bronze game either.

GO Canada GO!

I don't know about you guys, but tonight I'm rooting for the Swedes, I just can't bear to see the Russians win again.

Let's Go Oilers!!!

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Players on the BUBBLE? Pt2

As we look at the remaining BUBBLE players I have on my list, be rest assured this is my list and not the Edmonton Oilers list (or so we think). Again I will remind people that players listed as my BUBBLE players may catch on and play eventually full-time in the NHL, I just don't see them playing with the Edmonton Oilers. Aside from a major break out year I believe these players just won't be able to make that cut. Disagree? State your opinion and share your arguments. So without wasting anymore time let's cut to the chase and finish looking at my list of remaining BUBBLE players.......


Kristians Pelss 
5' 11"
175
9 Sep 1992

Stats:
2010-11 Edmonton Oil Kings WHL Games 63 G 14 A 19 PTS 33

this past year, he represented his country in the U20 world jr's and recorded:
Latvia U20  2011 Division 1 tournament: Games 5 G 2 A 2 PTS 4

HISTORY:
Derek Zona at the Copper and Blue wrote this following being drafted: Who?  From where?  Latvia?  Are you kidding me?  Who drafts from Latvia?  In a move that confounded both NHL  staff on site and Edmonton fans everywhere, the Edmonton Oilers reached into Latvia's Junior system to select  the speedy young forward.  Ben attended the draft and his rundown on Pelss included this gem:

When he was drafted he was so obscure that not only did the NHL not have a little insert for him on the draft board, but when they handed out the lists of draft picks about forty-five minutes later his birth city was shown as "Latvia" and his team was left entirely blank. The reasonable guess is the Oilers took Pelss based on what they saw of him at the Under-18 World Junior  Championship in Minsk, in April where Pelss had two goals and an assist in six games.  Pelss made the jump to North America this summer and will be playing for the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL.

To find out more about the mystery man from Latvia, I went to the aptly named Latvian Hockey News Report and the writer behind the site, Didzis Rudmanis.  Didzis was kind enough to speak with us and build a picture of Pelss and his game.  We also talked about the state of Latvian Hockey. Didzis Rudmanis (Latvian Hockey News Report):    Not a single player from Latvia - the 12th highest  ranked country by the IIHF - had been drafted into the NHL between 2007 and 2009.  In 2006 the Thrashers
 took Arturs Kulda and the Sens selected Kaspars Daugavins, but that's a long time between picks. Although Kristians Pelss is considered to be the best prospect of all 1992-born Latvian players, not many people expected him to be drafted.



Alessandro Seren Rosso at HF Boards writes:
The native of Preili, a small city in eastern Latvia with a large Russian presence, had to face most of
the troubles European players face in their first season in North America. Things like the new language:  "When I left Latvia I thought I knew English, but then I quickly realized I didn't. Now I'm trying to learn new words every day and now it's definitely better than before."
The winger also wanted to share his impressions about his new life in Canada, a country that he said he likes:  "I like my new life in Edmonton a lot, but sometimes it's boring. No one to talk with in my mother language." With that said, Pelss enjoys usual teenager activities in his free time: "Usually I go to the cinema with  my teammates, or we go shopping, but more often we play to the Xbox."  The Latvian forward is now settling into a solid role with the Oil Kings. His task for his first North American  season is to help the team to go as far as possible in the post season. The Edmonton-based franchise is now the sixth seed of the Eastern Conference, with 57 points earned so far. They shouldn't face many problems in getting a playoff spot.

As Pelss said earlier, since the start of season, a lot of progress can be seen in his game. However,
 he admitted that he still has "a lot to work on." Pells considers his skating and shooting abilities
 his best assets, and also considers himself more a goal-scorer, preferring to score goals over registering assists.



Upon the end of last season Dan Sallows writes:
All signs point to the Edmonton Oil Kings improving on the 69 points they put up in the 2010-11, and a big reason for that should be because of the crafty Latvian left winger Kristians Pelss. The 18-year-old enjoyed  a decent rookie season with the Kings, scoring 33 points on 14 goals and 19 assists in 63 games, and finished an impressive plus-11. Those totals sat the youngster 6th overall in scoring for Edmonton, and 12th overall among first year players in the WHL. Pelss also represented his native Latvia at this years IIHF Div 1  World Under-20 Championships, where he scored 2 goals and 4 points in 5 games en route to helping them capture gold, and led the tourney in penalty minutes with 31. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound forward has  tremendous hands, excellent vision and hockey sense, plays a solid transition game, is very opportunistic and has an abundance of raw skill and ability. Pelss was a seventh round pick (181st overall) of the  Edmonton Oilers in last years NHL Entry Draft, after he potted 6 goals and 9 points in 46 games for his Dinamo Juniors Riga squad, which is a team that was based out of the Belarusian Extraliga and serves as the farm team to the KHL’s Dinamo Riga club.


Hockey fight:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLQ-2RqQCSgHighlight

Goal:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tE__8Q-bqk


revingevs TAKE:
Has signed (some say it is only a try-out contract) to play with Dinomo Riga in the KHL for 2011-2012, the team he was Drafted  by in 2010, round 7 #175 overall in the KHL Draft.  I for one really liked his play at years end ,last season. In fact I even heard interviews by his coach, how he thought he made big strides and this year would be a interesting year with his development. He had legs that's for sure!  Now, about that signing! Why? Who is giving this advice?  Not a smooth move if you ask me. Not at this stage of his life right now. Maybe his agent looked at the current roster, looked at the players in the system and decided it was time to follow a different path. I can't see the Oilers being happy with this move. Of course I am just reading between the lines here and do not know for certain how they feel about this signing. To me, it takes a young prospect and makes him become suspect, when he decides to sign back in Europe (unless it was an arrangement already made by the club and the player).

Starting your career in Europe and then coming to North America is one thing. But coming to North America, then heading back to Europe is not usually a good sign of a developing player. Of course, if anyone has any good examples to say otherwise I would love to hear the players that fit that mold. This action alone for me has taken this prospect and made him suspect. I'd now consider him a BUBBLE player.





Ryan O'Marra 
6' 2"
220
9 Jun 1987

HF Boards says:
He is a skilled center with a good set of wheels. He handles the puck well and has a very good shot.
He can score from many areas of the ice and doesn't shy away from playing in traffic. Exceptional in the faceoff circle, he could be a player that is counted on to take defensive zone draws on a regular basis. O'Marra is at his best when he is playing with a physical edge to his game.  Banging bodies, creating turnovers and playing tough in the corners or in front of the net. He’s a natural center but has shown the ability and the comfort to play on the right wing as well as he did with Team Canada.He projects to be a  third-line center in the NHL who is able to shutdown the opposition, throw the body, take the key faceoffs and chip in offensively from time to time.


Stats:
2007-08 Springfield Falcons AHL         Games 31 G 2  A 7  PTS 9
2007-08 Stockton Thunder ECHL         Games 62 G 1  A 9  PTS 10
2009-10 Springfield Falcons AHL        Games 74 G 12 A 6  PTS 18
2010-11 Oklahoma City Barons AHL   Games 53 G 2  A 20 PTS 22
              NHL                                         Games 24 G 1  A 5  PTS 6

Hockey fight:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2NtMh3i4Zw

First NHL Goal:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbubPtJm2iw


revingevs TAKE:
I like Ryan. Have liked him since we traded for him in that Ryan Smyth deal way back in the day. I got to meet him that same summer he arrived at the Oilers Development Camp. He was still recovering from his injury and had to stay off the ice. He spent time talking with fans and was a popular one playing with kids. A very personable guy and one who does great interviews. Very intelligent guy and smart player on the ice. My question is, 'How many years can you be in development as a forward?' I only ask, because we all know it's been awhile. The Oilers must like what they see, they keep signing one year deals. He is close, but the closer he gets the more new players are starting to come into the system who can do what he can do. Unfortunately for Ryan, he is a BUBBLE Player who knows it ,as well. I can't see Ryan signing another year on a two-way contract after this , unless it is a breakthrough year for him. With the talent coming in at center now, chances are pretty low he gets more then a handful of games even again this year. "I'm rooting for ya Ryan!" (Sigh...) BUBBLE Player.



Milan Kytnar 
6' 0"
190
19 May 1989


HF Boards says...

Kytnar is a two-way, creative center who can score goals but is seen more as a safe, defensive player.
He is not very big (6'0), but he uses his body well. Good in front of the net, but he could stand to be
more aggressive. He had very impressive stats during his draft year especially in the plus/minus column  where he boasts an incredible +78. His whopping 91 points in 53 games suggests offensive ability to be further developed but must be taken with a grain of salt when quality of competition is taken into consideration.  In the WHL he was hardly a factor in an offensive sense.



Stats:
2010-11 Oklahoma City Barons AHL Games 78 G 13 A 16 PTS 29


Goal Video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMuHLNQFbAMhockey


Fight Video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8P6pKZmqwQ


revingevs TAKE:

I am having a difficult time with Kytnar. He is someone who could definitely go either way. He has been a developing player to date but again, with the center talent increasing in the organization he will be in tough to get a shot with the Oilers. If and that is a big IF, Kytnar comes out flying from training camp and shows he is improving in his development , there is a chance he gets a call up if he sustains that. I think it is a BUBBLE year, show improvement and he may get one more year with the AHL team. Any lack of  improvement and the writing is probably on the wall.  





Philippe Cornet 
6' 0"
196
28 Mar 1990

HISTORY:Cornet was drafted by Edmonton in 2008 in the fifth round, 133rd overall. After attending Oilers training camp each of the last two seasons, he opened a new chapter of his career this year in Oklahoma City. For a player that saw quality ice time in junior, Cornet’s start for the Barons saw him watch from upstairs more than the bench.


Stats:2010-11 Oklahoma City Barons AHL Games 60 G 7 A 16 PTS 23


HF Boards says....A bit of a sucker for punishment, Cornet often finds himself digging for the puck in the corners and along the boards and battling against players much larger and stronger then he is. To his credit, he takes his knocks and always gets up and tries again when he gets out-muscled and knocked down. When he does get the puck, he has the ability to thread a pass that has no business getting through, thanks to his on-ice awareness and soft hands, but his lack of strength reduces his effectiveness. Needs to improve in all facets of the game but the Oilers feel he is a skill player that could be a diamond in the rough  just needing development and better luck with his health.


revingevs TAKE:

Cornet is a player who has needed time to adjust to the speed of the pro game. He's not a player who is found out of position, lost on the ice or even making bad mistakes. He is just struggling to be the player he was in jr. His development curve is starting to look familiar to the same as Ryan O'Marra. Good player but development has slowed and too many new young prospects coming into the system. Maybe he has to discover himself at the pro level.  Most likely he will be a player sometime down the road, but not sure it will be with the Edmonton Oilers. BUBBLE player who will need to play above his head this year in order to make any progress out of that BUBBLE!




Alexander Bumagin 
6' 0"
180
1 Mar 1987

HISTORY:
Alexander Bumagin (born March 1, 1987 in Togliatti, Russia) was drafted as the fifth choice (170th overall) of the Edmonton Oilers in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.


HF Boards states:An effortless skater who can reach top speed by using just a few of his long, effective strides...
plays with above-average agility and possesses a solid balance...boasts an impressive pair of hands
which control the puck smoothly...utilizes on his strong instincts and the ability to find the open man...
very good in one-on-one situations...willing to play in traffic, but doesn't play a physical style...
releases a precise wrist shot...decent slap shot, which could be more accurate...his intensity off the
 puck drops off...doesn't show much commitment on defense.


Stats:
2007-08
Mytishchi Khimik Russia              Games 31 G 8 A 7  PTS 15
2008-09 Mytishchi Atlant KHL                   Games 40 G 4 A 7  PTS 11
2009-10
Nizhnekamsk Neftekhimik KHL   Games 51 G 8 A 13 PTS 21
2010-11 Nizhnekamsk Neftekhimik KHL  Games 4  G 1 A 2  PTS 3 
2010-11
Novokuznetsk Metallurg KHL      Games 39 G 6 A 5  PTS 11


revingevs TAKE:

You want more information on him? Good luck finding it! Unless you can translate Russian, you may be out of luck :)   Now how could he be on the BUBBLE? Quite easy! Don’t expect to see him in North America any time soon;  he’s signed with HK Atlant through 2010.Not to mention, finding any information on him is difficult or next to impossible. Maybe that is the sign he is a BUBBLE player. I have no idea how long he stays our prospect,  but maybe there is someone out there who has more information on him and his status with the Edmonton Oilers then I can find.  Having talked to a few people 'in the know', they don't seem 'to know' anything for sure. All educated guesses. I think with everything we are getting to this point, we could say this is one player who is more then a BUBBLE player, he is a NEVER player. Sounds mostly like we still have his negotiating rights? Too many players are far above him to even think he has a shot.

-WRITTEN BY REVINEV-

Friday, August 5, 2011

Summer Prospect OR Summer Suspect

A big hello to all you fanatical oiler followers at Oilersjambalaya.com Looking forward to being a part of a bigger community of Oiler faithful! Not sure about you, but summer can be a real downer for even the strongest of the oiler family. I mean, no playoffs , means a long summer. Thankfully we were fortunate this summer. Following the Stanley Cup we had the NHL 2011 Draft (where drafting #1 overall does not hurt), we had Free Agent frenzy (where we went crazy, unlike many other years). Next up, came
the Edmonton Oiler Summer Development Camp (this camp was loaded with the best talent yet in the system), followed now by the Canadian World Jr's U20 evaluation camp (where 3 Oiler prospects are attempting to put themselves into contention on the team). In fact I plan on attending the Canadian U20 world jr red/white game on Saturday night with several thousands of others. My bet? 70% are there to see the Oiler prospects (Center) Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, (Goaltender) Tyler Bunz and (defenceman) Dillion Simpson. (to which probably 80% of the crowd is there to see RNH.)

So needless to say, it's been a active summer and we still struggle to find things to discuss.
We are discussing topics like "Who plays with who , on what line?" OR
"Why do we keep trading injured players?". All great questions but let's face it, they have been covered how many times? By how many writers? and discussed by how many fans? That's what brings me to my topic today. (Summer Prospect OR Summer Suspect?)

With Summer brings a new feeling (for Oiler fans, a sense of hope we can WIN next year), and with that feeling comes a new sense of hope as well for our Oiler Prospects. I have been asked 'why do you even care about following these young prospects?' My answer is simple...they are still playing for two reasons 1)A Career 2)For the love of the game. Money and contracts are really not a part of their current language at this time. Now don't get me wrong, I know they are looking forward to some big pay cheques one day. But not today, it's one day at a time, working and developing so ONE day, they might fulfill that dream. All you have to do is be around them in their schools, in their communities, follow them on twitter, and you will see, they LOVE the game. It's refreshing.

It makes me want to hurry up and get my community recreation hockey fix in now! Not wait til the end of September! I guess, the other reason I love to follow prospects is because it's always fun to guess who will be the next NHL bound player. Who makes it and who doesn't? Unfortunately for some...they won't. Sad as it is, they got a chance to at least follow a dream many of us only wish we had enough talent to even pursue. Others will continue playing. Maybe not in the NHL, maybe they are career minor pro players. They play as AHL veterans, or continue to play in Europe. Some will continue with great teams such as our Stockton Thunder (who don't forget, is a team that develops our players as well). Is it the NHL? Nope, but it's hockey and it's what they love to do.

Enough said, I could go on forever. Tomorrow I will release my first of a three part posting on the theme "Summer Prospect OR Summer Suspect?". We will discuss and breakdown the Oiler Prospects who fall into 1 of 3 categories. BUBBLE Player (those who this year is probably their last chance to make a impression). DEVELOPMENT Player (those who are still developing and need not worry about job security at the end of the year), and TRANSITIONAL Player (those whose job is to tend the farm. Be leaders within our farm teams, and fill in when needed on the big club, and help the others break through to the NHL). While all the players I mention may fall into what I believe is one of those categories, that does not mean, they could not catch on with yet another NHL club somewhere else. Possibly our cupboards and fridge are starting to overflow and some sifting may be in order?

And I say "It's about time".....STAY TUNED!

-WRITTEN BY REVINEV-

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Oilers Jambalaya Adds @revingev As Prospect Writer

I'd like to welcome Even Renaerts to OilersJambalaya.com. Evan will chime in from time to time about the Oilers prospects and he's going to share his thoughts with us. He follows the prospects very closely. I'm very excited to have him on board.

Stay tuned for his work.

EDIT: His intro post is published

-WRITTEN BY SMOKIN' RAY-

Friday, June 18, 2010

Prospects to Play in Tournament


The Oilers announced that their prospects will partake in a Prospect Camp, that the Vancouver Canucks will be hosting in Penticton, British Columbia. The tournament will start on September 12, and go through September 16th.The Tournament Camp will feature the top prospects from the Oilers organization, and 4 other NHL teams. The Tournament will feature a round-robin style format during a five day period. The Oilers' prospects will play on Sept 12th at 6pm(CDT), Sept 14th and 15th at 9:30pm(CDT). The Tournament will be broadcast live on the internet from oilers.nhl.com.Oilfieldhockey.com and Oilers Jambalaya will be hosting a live tweetcast for the entire week of the tournament. The tweetcast will feature tweets from the Edmonton Oilers, Oilers Jambalaya, Oilfieldhockey.com, and many more.

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Oilers Jambalaya is in no way, shape or form associated with the Edmonton Oilers or the Bakersfield Condors. This is a fans blog for fans. We happen to love those teams, so we write about them.