Dallas Eakins and Andrew Ference New Best Friends?

The fitness craze hit Edmonton the day the Oilers decided to can Ralph Krueger and hire Dallas Eakins. Eakins made no secret in the fact he loves to be fit and he fully expects his players to be as good or in better shape then himself.

For the most part, I laughed when he said that. No way the young kids on the team are going to get nuts about fitness like the new coach. But, the day they signed Andrew Ference, I'd imagine coach was all smiles. Little did he know just how much of a fitness fanatic Ference really is.

Ference had started a fitness group in Boston and a couple of days a week, he and his group would go out and run stairs or run up long steep hills. Now that he's returned "home", Ference brought that same mentality here. He's started up a group in Edmonton and it looks like its been three days a week of busting their collective asses running and exercising all around E-Town. Last I heard there was about 70 people that have joined him and it seems like more and more show up every time they go out.

The newest member of the November Project is Ference's new coach, Dallas Eakins. He will be joining them the next time they hit the pavement.

I can almost be certain, the Eakins/Ference love affair, is just beginning. With that said, no doubt in my mind that Andrew Ference will wear an A on his new #21 Edmonton Oilers jersey. The coach wants fitness instilled on the Oilers, so that will make Andrew Ference as his new BFF.

-WRITTEN BY SMOKIN' RAY BURNT-

A Blunder of a Game - Oilers lose to Flames

We all know the current YoungStars team doesn't have the big names that make you pay attention like years past, but this years squad boasts a rock solid defense corp. On defense the Oilers have Darnell Nurse, Oscar Klefbom, Martin Gernat, David Musil, Brandon Davidson, Joey Leach, Martin Marincin and Ben Betker.

That's a pretty decent group of young men. Big and strong with good puck movement. You would think they can shut down any one of these opposing teams in this tournament.

Well... that's not the case. Today's game versus the Calgary Flames, the Oilers were out worked and out scored and lost a 5-2 game. The defense looked terrible. Even brutal at times. I had high hopes for the Nurse/Klefbom pairing, and for the most part, they disappointed.

Klefbom had big words to say today about making the Oilers and how he was going to show everyone in this game that he belongs in the NHL. Maybe next game Oscar?

Maybe Darnell Nurse was also too nervous, but his boarding penalty really got the Flames offense rolling. He needs to play big, yet he needs to know how to not cross the line. Much like Klefbom, I'll expect Nurse to play much better next game.

Like I mentioned at the beginning of this blog, the Oilers forwards aren't the high skill players we are used to. They are however big and tough and can play.

Today's forward lines looked like this.

Marco Roy - Andrew Miller - Kale Kessy

Cam Abney - Travis Ewanyk - Jackson Houck

Brandon Baddock - Chase Schaber - Ty Bilcke

Jujhar Khaira - Greg Chase - Austin Fyten

Ty Bilcke dropped the gloves and that seemed to inspire the Oilers squad. I don't know much about him, but I liked his fighting skills.

The Oilers two goals came from Travis Ewanyk and Jujhar Khaira. Ewanyk's goal was a fluke/own goal and Khaira's goal was a tip on a Gernat shot from the point.

Not much stood out for me in today's game except for Marco Roy. Roy was billed as a two player, and he seems to fit that bill. Pretty good in his own zone and he had flashes of brilliance in the offensive zone. I want to see more.

I've have mixed reviews on starting goalie Tyler Bunz. He looked pretty good, but giving up that many goals, he had me worried. In my opinion, his development has been slow, and this year will be pivotal for him. This tournament should be his chance to shine from the start. We will see if he can.

Overall, the first period sucked for the Oilers. The second and third were better. First game jitters should be over. A better team will show up Saturday.

Well... I hope so.

-WRITTEN BY SMOKIN' RAY BURNT-

5 'SOLID' Reasons, the Oilers Should Win the Young Stars Tournament

The Young Stars tourney in Penticton is about to start tonight and the Oilers and Flames are first up. This blog was inspired by some talk from the other teams like Vancouver especially that believe their team is poised to win this tournament. And why? Because they have a incredible talent and top end skill from players some of us have never really heard of. No offence if your a Vancouver Canucks fan but other then 3, maybe 4 players this team is not a strong team. I guess when I see teams being touted as good with very few top end prospects it does get me going. 

On the other hand, this year the Oilers are going into the tournament very low skilled up front but definitely tougher and bigger. Where the Oilers should dominate is now on defence! This blueline entering this tourney is exceptional, at least on paper. This will make for a very interesting game tonight to see what I call '5 SOLID reasons the Oilers should win the young stars tournament'.

Here are the 5 SOLID reasons...

78    MARTIN GERNAT      6'5 , 191 lbs

This guy is graduating into the pro's this year and has a wealth of experience and skill to compliment any team. With a good stick and a flair for offence, Gernat may very well surprise a lot of people this year.

84    OSCAR KLEFBOM     6'3 , 201lbs

Oscar will be a man among boys but he is recovering from a major surgery. The Oilers are hoping he is all ready to go for game action and doesn't try to over complicate his game in Camp. Klefbom is highly ranked among rookie d-men this year and not only in the Oilers organization but among the NHL. He will have a big step to take though if he hopes to crack the Oilers roster this year. It will take a big camp to show coaches he is ready.

80    MARTIN MARINCIN     6'4 , 187 lbs 

 Marincin is another big defencemen who can be deceptive with smooth skating and great outlet passes to the forwards. Still developing his defensive side of the game, he has looked good this past two years developing into the mold the Oilers are wanting to see him move into. His experience pro last year should show early and quick this tourney.

87    DAVID MUSIL   6'4 , 203 lbs   

This guy turning pro this year will mean he will need to do what he does best. Just play his simple game. His size is a bonus in the system but his skating will need to step up some. His punishing checks and physical play will be tough to play against for any team in this tourney. Only question is, has he made improvements in his speed? 

  74    DARNELL NURSE  6'4 , 185 lbs    

Darnell is coming into his 1st rookie camp and may feel somewhat overwhelmed but if he can handle the pressure and excitement he will definitely show well. With his size, defensive positioning and offensive touch, Nurse may very well be a top 2 player of the future.

Having said all that, these prospects are highly rated and are enormous. This defence (these 5 players) average height of 6'4 and 193 lbs. Considering they still have lots of room to put on some lean muscle these boys stand to be a potentially dangerous group. The Oilers system has never looked some primed for growth and hopefully we will see some dividends start paying off year after year in their development. Obviously, they can not all turn out as A-Grade players but even hitting 2 out of 5 would be a blessing to any team. 

Enough talk, it's time we turn the corner on the blueline and no time better to check out some action  tonight at 5pm.

In the meantime, keep your stick on the ice!

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'!

The Beginning That Lies Ahead

It's the beginning of the 2013/14 NHL season coming up, and the beloved Edmonton Oilers fans are starting to get giddy. Lots of speculation and opinions having been flying around for some time.

The latest story is the possibility of Sam Gagner as the next Oilers captain. If you've followed me, you'll know I was and am a huge Gagner supporter. I think he'd make a fantastic captain and he would be a good mediator between the different age groups. So if Sam Gagner is the next Oilers captain, I support that decision.

One scenario I'd like to see played out this year? I'd love to see Ryan Smyth wear the C for this last kick at the can. Captain Canada should have a C on his jersey before he retired. This is that chance.

Another story has been who replaces Ryan Nugent-Hopkins if he's not ready to return at the start of the season. Some speculation has Taylor Hall moving to center. That's easily doable for the fact that now with the addition of Linus Omark into the fold, the Oilers can still have the top 6 filled with goal scorers. Doesn't matter if it's Hemsky or Omark, the Oilers can fill the void.

I've also heard the possibility of Marc Arcobello will fill the void left by the RNH injury. He has experience playing with Eberle and Hall and that could be the way the Oilers start their season.

Although, what kind of message does that send to a player? Right now, good enough to play on the first line, but the minute RNH comes back, back to the OKC Barons for Arcobello. I wouldn't want to have to make that decision.

Will the Oilers have three scoring lines? I'd hope not, but it's looking more and more like that's going to happen. It's very possible that we will see a Omark/Gordon/Hemsky line. I just can't imagine a 3rd line as a checking line with Ales Hemsky and Linus Omark on it. Can you?

Of course a top discussion was, will Oscar Klefbom make the team straight out of training camp? The Oilers are very high on him and it's very possible he's a final candidate for the 6th and 7th spot. I'd personally, if he's not quite there, send him down to OKC and let him play big minutes and develop his skill. That decision never hurts the player.

The YoungStars tournament starts in a couple days. I'm excited to see these kids and see what they can do. Lots of new faces and I'm hoping the Oilers show them via webcast like the previous years. Should be fun to watch.

-WRITTEN BY SMOKIN' RAY BURNT-