Oilers vs Flames LIVE TweetCast

Welcome to the last pre-season game between the Oilers and the Flames LIVE TweetCast.

CHURCH OF EBERLE PREVIEW

TONIGHT'S OILERS STARTING LINES

Penner - Cogliano - Eberle
Giroux - Gagner - Brule
Omark - Fraser - Jones
MacIntyre - O'Marra - Ondrus

Smid - Peckham
Strudwick - Gilbert
Petiot - Belle

Deslauriers
Dubnyk

TONIGHTS FLAMES STARTING LINES

Tanguay - Jokinen - Iginla
Hagman - Backlund - Bourque
Glencross - Meyer - Jackman
Ivanans - Sutter - Conroy

Regehr - White
Bouwmeester - Giordano
Brodie - Pardy

Kiprusoff
Karlsson

SportsnetOne Channel Listings

Television Provider       SD    HD
Shaw Cable                    320    301   (Regular Shaw Cable)
Shaw Direct Classic      413    452   (Star Choice Customers)
Shaw Direct Advanced 108    396
TELUS Optik TV          108    679
Cable TV of Camrose   117    247

EDMONTON OILERS (4-1-0) at CALGARY FLAMES (6-0-0)

The Plight of Pitton

Bryan Pitton (left) and Glenn Fisher
after the 16-round shoot-out on 1/30/10.
Photo taken by Becky Welsh and used with permission.

At this point of the preseason, goalie Bryan Pitton is still with one of Stockton Thunder's AHL affiliates, the Oklahoma City Barons. I don't like to make predictions about where certain players will end up in the hockey food chain, but I wouldn't be surprised either way if he were to remain up with the Barons or sent back down to play again with the Thunder.

I cringe when I see via my Twitter feed the negative reactions of Barons fans when learning Pitton will be starting in net, even in these preseason games and scrimmages. It's the same unfortunate reaction Thunder fans had in his rookie year (2008-09) when he had a 9-19-3 record backing up goalie Andrew Perugini who was 21-13-2 that year.

One thing I don't like to see when Pitton has been in net for the Thunder is him leaning against the top of the net with both elbows. I don't care if play happens to be at the other end of the ice, this pose makes him appear uninterested and apathetic (whether that's the case or not). A goalie needs to always be alert no matter how far away he thinks the play or puck is. Freaky things can happen to a goalie in a game. Pucks being cleared during the other team's penalty kill might end up in net, your own player may accidentally hit it in their own goal (cough-cough Dan Boyle), etc. How can Pitton be in his "ready" mode when he's leaning on the net like that?

Another thing about Pitton, which is regrettably not unique to him as a goalie, is that he leaves the net to play the puck at unfavorable times. Not every goalie can play a 3rd defenseman like the Blackhawks' goalie Marty Turco. Fortunately not all of Pitton's misplaying the puck results in the other team's scoring. But when I'm watching the Thunder and the all the people around me groan, hold their breath, or yell at Pitton to "get back in the net", I wonder if someone can work with him more closely about when the right and wrong time is to leave the crease.

I want to take a closer look at Bryan Pitton's goalie career with the Stockton Thunder, because not all of it is negative. In fact, he's had some incredible games and made Thunder history a few times.

• Statistics for his rookie year with the Thunder in '08-'09 in 34 games played: 3.39 GAA, 9-19-3 win/loss record, .886 save percentage


• Statistics for the Thunder in his '09-'10 year: 22 games played, 2.85 GAA, 9-9-3 win/loss record, .921 save percentage


• He had a 2-6-0 record in 8 games played for the AHL's Springfield Falcons when he was recalled last season


• Pitton was recalled to the Thunder's NHL affiliate, Edmonton Oilers, three times last season


• The first shut-out of his career was on 1/30/10 versus the Victoria Salmon Kings in a goalie battle with Glenn Fisher. The game was tied at 0 through regulation and sudden death overtime. The Salmon Kings ended up winning in the shoot-out, but it ended up being a 16-round shoot-out (the longest in Stockton Thunder history)


• Pitton was a two time recipient of the Reebok Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week recognition. He was awarded on 12/29/09 and 2/2/10


• The most memorable game thus far in Stockton Thunder history took place 5/5/10. It was Game 3 of the National Conference Finals in the Kelly Cup Playoffs versus the Idaho Steelheads. Pitton was paired against Steelheads goalie Richard Bachman. The game ended up going 0-0 into triple overtime. 36 seconds into the third overtime, defenseman Ryan Constant finally ended the longest playoff game in Thunder history by getting the puck past Bachman. It was a tearjerker win for sure.

When Pitton's confidence level is up is when he plays the best. Each time he returned to Stockton after being recalled by the Oilers, there was a noticeable positive difference with the way he played. A good goalie needs to learn how to play through adversity too, though. Bryan Pitton is still a young guy who has some time to develop into a stronger, more consistent goalie. I'm sure Thunder fans will welcome him with open arms should he be sent back to Stockton. And if the Barons decide to keep him, I hope the fans there will be just as supportive. After all, player development is one of the main roles of being an NHL "farm" team.

OKC Barons vs Texas Stars LIVE TweetCast

We are lucky that Eric (aka @AHLBarons) is at the game tonight. It's held in Cedar Park and Eric made the trip to see the game. He will be tweeting LIVE and we will follow along as the action unfolds. There is no TV coverage, but there is radio broadcast. We will find a link for that.

GO BARONS!!!

Introducing Russ Jericho

Fellow Oilers/Barons/Thunder fans,

My name is Russ Jericho. If my name seems familiar as of recently, that might be because I've been mentioned a few times here already, via Twitter and my graphic contributions here thus far (September & October schedule wallpapers).

Let me tell you a little bit about me, I'm one of the more "unusual" fans, so to speak... I'm a hockey fan, yes, but I'm born and raised in the United Kingdom. I'd go so far as to say I'm the biggest Oilers fan and probably the only Barons fan in the UK. Hockey's not the most talked about sport over here, as the UK is dominated by football, the sport most of you know as "soccer". I can't stand the sport, I can't stand this country much either, and if I had the money I'd get a one-way ticket out of this dump!

I've a bit of an outspoken nature... Sometimes it's a good thing, sometimes it's bad... But if you want a straight answer, I'm the sort of person that gives it to you straight, no BS.

I'm also a married man with two wonderful children, my step-son, Kai (5 years) and my daughter, Alexa (7 1/2 months). They're my world, and if you don't hear from me for a while, it's because my job as a Dad is more important than anything else.

What my blogs will consist of are my general thoughts and feelings on the Oilers and the Barons organisations and the plugging of my artwork, all of which will be Oilers and Barons related media.

I'll also be the first person to jump to the defence of my hockey teams too, I'm allowed to criticise my team, but if some non-fan does, they better be prepared for war!

What I'm doing at this minute is complaining my ass off to EA Sports because they've totally F'ed up the Barons Home and Away jerseys in NHL 11. If you're a fan, and you have this game, you already know what I'm talking about! I also try to correct player equipment settings and have realistic audio in-game too. There's nothing worse than scoring an awesome goal with Ales Hemsky to hear "¡Olé!" by the Bouncing Souls!

Expect to see some tidbits from me on Twitter and Oilers/Barons NHL 11 edits on http://petrpuck.blogspot.com/.

Well, that's me.

GO OILERS GO!
GO BARONS GO!

-Written by Russ Jericho-

Hunt Brings Thunder to Worcester

Stockton Thunder players Chris D'Alvise and Matt Jones were released from the AHL's Worcester Sharks training camp, per a press release on Worcester's site. The only remaining Thunder player still on the roster is left-winger, Garet Hunt.

Anyone who has seen the Thunder play knows who Garet Hunt is. His role on the team is to be a fighter, an enforcer. He's been voted Stockton Thunder's "Fan Favorite" the last two seasons. People love to watch him fight. Most of his opponents have a height advantage on Hunt, but he is no joke. His fists pummel his rival so fast they become a blur. He does have a lot of female fans swooning over his good looks-but my god, he's also got a mean game face. I sit near the penalty box and have had the pleasure of seeing Hunt give the "death stare" several times.

I don't want to say his role as the team's enforcer is diminishing, but this past '09-'10 season, I noticed that Hunt wasn't just doing a lot of fighting, he was all over the ice-blocking pucks, taking more shots on goal, and trying to create more scoring chances for his team.

Garet Hunt's stats from the '08-'09 season and the '09-'10 don't vary much. According to the statistics on the ECHL's website, in '08-'09 he played a total of 76 regular and playoff games, had 8 goals, 11 assists, and had 270 penalty minutes. In '09-'10 he played a total of 65 regular and playoff games, scored 8 goals, 9 assists, and had 223 penalty minutes.

These stats don't tell me much, it's watching Hunt active on the ice that I sense and see a lot of improvement with his speed and shooting. He works hard off the ice too. I've bumped into him at the gym several times and have seen his intense workouts. Watching his interviews and fights via Worcester's site, I see he's bulked up a lot more since last season.

I was happy to hear that he had been invited to the Worcester Sharks' training camp. He's been making an impression there. Although the Sharks lost the exhibition opener on 9/29/10 4-0 to the Providence Bruins, Garet Hunt had a short but spirited fight with Jack Christian.

Exhibition game number two on 10/01/10, versus the Stockton Thunder's previous AHL affiliate Springfield Falcons, went much more favorably. The final score was 2-1. And again, Hunt fought. But he also scored the game winning goal.

It's a fact of life that in the ECHL we see a lot of players come and go on a regular basis. Garet Hunt will be greatly missed if Worcester decides to keep him. But it's pretty awesome that he is getting a chance to show the AHL what an impact player he can be, and we wish him luck. He's a guy that's been working hard to move up and he deserves this chance.

-Written by Lyndall Mae-