Linus Omark- Are You Kidding Me?

Today the "Swedish Youtube Sensation" Linus Omark was assigned to the Oklahoma City Barons, but not without some serious parting shots. When asked if the thought the organization gave him a fair chance he responded with "I don't want to discuss that" and when asked if he thought the Oilers were the right organization for him he said "I have no comment." Another quote worth noting from him is "It's a little bit different, it's a lot of politics." Maybe it's just me but these comments come as no surprise to me from the player who was drafted in the 4th round and expected a guaranteed spot and the maximum rookie salary(translation needed). I see he didn't learn from what happened with Rob Schremp and Riley Nash.

Some would argue that he is right in his politics comment, but it was said best during the Oilers broadcast on TSN "If Linus Omark is not one of your top 6 forwards then he is a waste of a space else where on your roster." So a question to you Oiler fans, who would you put Omark above in this list: Penner, Hemsky, Eberle, Paajarvi, Hall, Brule? He could make the team ahead of Andrew Cogliano, but what would you then do with Cogs, send him to Oklahoma? He would have to clear waivers first, and I am sure at least 25 of the other 29 teams would put a claim in for him. Maybe it's just me being fed up with players who expect things to be given to them, which I suspect in this case.

It's fine to be disappointed you were cut, but to be this mad after being cut from your first camp isn't exactly the way to win over Oilers fans. I can understand if he was the first of the players sent to Oklahoma City, but the team gave him a fair shot to win a spot over some of the incumbent players, some of it might have to do with his size, I mean we cut Liam Reddox who had a tremendous camp, Omark should thank the Oilers for the opportunity, issue an apology, shut his mouth, and impress the team with his play in the minors, I suspect that none of that will be happening, so thanks for stopping by Linus, see ya in Russia next year.

Oilers Were Snuffed Out / An Game Recap

BEERS & JEERS GAME RECAP

Welcome to another fine Edmonton Oilers Beers & Jeers Game Recap.

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FINAL SCORE

EDMONTON OILERS - 0

CALGARY FLAMES - 1

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TONIGHT'S STARTING LINES

Dustin Penner (27) - Andrew Cogliano (13) - Jordan Eberle (14)
Alexandre Giroux (12) - Sam Gagner (89) - Gilbert Brule (67)
Linus Omark (23) - Colin Fraser (16) - Ryan Jones (28)
Steve MacIntyre (33) - Ryan O'Marra (42) - Ben Ondrus (25)

Ladislav Smid (5) - Theo Peckham (49)
Jason Strudwick (43) - Tom Gilbert (77)
Richard Petiot (37) - Shawn Belle (45)

Jeff Deslauriers (38)
Devan Dubnyk (40)

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VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

*COMING SOON*

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BEERS & JEERS PLAYER GRADES

The Cult of Hockey Grading System:
10 perfect game,  9 extraordinary,  8 great,  7 good,  6 above average,
5 average,  4 below average,  3 poor,  2 terrible,  1 deserves to be in minors.

#2 JAMES VANDERMEER - (0) DNP

#4 TAYLOR HALL - (0) DNP

#5 LADISLAV SMID - (6) Smid had a decent game. I expect him to be more in your face though. He did get hurt in the 3rd but I think he's going to be ok.

#6 RYAN WHITNEY - (0) DNP

#10 SHAWN HORCOFF - (0) DNP

#12 ALEXANDRE GIROUX - (6) This was Giroux's, like many others, last chance to impress. He did play a well rounded game and had some good chances with Gagner, I don't think he did enough to stay with the Oilers. The Barons fans will love him.

#13 ANDREW COGLIANO - (6) I didn't mind Cogs. He tried hard to be a good player and I thought he did well. I liked that he was 56% on faceoffs. But in order for him to be on this team as a permanent fixture, he'll need more than 2 shots a game.

#14 JORDAN EBERLE - (7) BEERS He was pretty good. Probably the best Oiler tonight, IMO. He made some really nifty plays and he had some really good chances to score. He looked like a complete player tonight. Shoot, Pass, Slow Down Everything. I half expected him to score in the last few minutes of the game to tie it.

#16 COLIN FRASER - (6) He had 3 blocked shots and was a team best, 73% on faceoffs. He's a good addition to the team and I'm curious to watch him get better as the season goes on.

#22 JF JACQUES - (0) Injured

#23 LINUS OMARK - (5) He stuck out in the first few shifts and then faded till the end of the game. So disappointing. I was rooting for him but I just don't see him making the Oilers. He will go to OKC and dominate. He just isn't ready for the NHL.

#25 BEN ONDRUS - (5) I didn't notice Ondrus much this game. Well, that one time when him and Giordano crashed into the boards in the 3rd and Ondrus was cut. Ondrus will go to OKC.

#26 KURTIS FOSTER - (0) DNP

#27 DUSTIN PENNER - (5) He did have some great shifts that made me take notice, then next thing you know, he's invisible. I wonder what's up with Pens?

#28 RYAN JONES - (6) I thought he hit more guys that the stats say. Jones played an in your face game and I thought he was effective.
#33 STEVE MACINTYRE - (3) JEERS Didn't do anything but skate around and whack, slug and talk cheap. No fight for Big mac so that makes him useless. Mind you, the Flames pulled no crap, so maybe he was more effective that I think.

#35 NIKOLAI KHABIBULIN - (0) DNP

#37 RICHARD PETIOT - (6) One of my favorite defencemen tonight. Very stable but he did get caught a few times. I'd like to see him stick with the Oilers. If not, the Barons will gain a good player.

#38 JEFF DESLAURIERS - (8) BEERS He was great. He made some huge saves to keep the Flames at 1. He actually looked like he's improved and ready to take on an NHL job. But was tonight enough to persuade Renney into keeping him?

#40 DEVAN DUBNYK - (7) BEERS He looked pretty good. He did let in the only goal, but other wise looked ready to play. I still say Dubnyk stays.

#41 TAYLOR CHORNEY - (0) DNP

#42 RYAN O'MARRA - (6) Dan Tencer claimed that O'Marra was the best Oiler tonight. I don't agree with that statement, but I did think O'Marra was good. He had 3 shots and 2 blocked shots in only 9:06 of play. I can't imagine he's here on opening day.

#43 JASON STRUDWICK - (5) Meh! Same old utility Strudwick.

#45 SHAWN BELLE - (5) Did not stick out at all. He blew it tonight as he had a good chance to make the team. He was physical like he needed to be and he didn't do much.

#46 ZACK STORTINI - (0) DNP

#49 THEO PECKHAM - (7) Out of all the bubble guys, he did the best. He really does needs to either work on his foot speed or make better decisions. He turns around to late and gets burned by fast forwards. But he did hammer out 4 hits.

#54 CHRIS VANDE VELDE - (0) DNP

#57 COLIN MACDONALD - (0) DNP

#67 GILBERT BRULE - (7) I liked Brule. He played with an edge, but at times he was on that fine line of doing something stupid. As long as he can keep that in check, he's going to be great on the 3rd line this year. He had 3 blocked shots and created some chances to go along with the havoc.

#77 TOM GILBERT - (6) Normal Tom Gilbert game. He logged 24:43 of ice time and really did nothing. But let's be real, doing nothing is looking like his style. If it works, why not?

#83 ALES HEMSKY - (0) DNP

#85 LIAM REDDOX - (0) DNP

#89 SAM GAGNER - (7) BEERS He tried hard tonight and proudly wore the A on his jersey. He made some crazy plays with Eberle. He went 44% on faceoffs and while that's not good, it's an improvement over last year. Gagner is ready to get over the hump. He's ready to break 50 points.

#91 MAGNUS PAAJARVI - (0) DNP

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EVENT SUMMARY

GAME SUMMARY

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BAD TIMING PENALTY (what is a Bad Timing Penalty?)

None -

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POST GAME VIDEO

*coming soon*

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CLICK HERE TO VIEW TWEETCAST

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Cult Of Hockey - Edmonton Journal

-Written by Smokin' Ray-

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!!!