The beginning of the new season is almost upon us. Read More
The beginning of the new season is almost upon us. It is a tall order in front of the Edmonton Oilers. Since 1994, not one Western Conference team has ever three-peated in consecutive years. But here is why the Oilers have a chance to make history. That and more in this edition of… 9 Things
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The beginning of the new season is almost upon us.
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It is a tall order in front of the Edmonton Oilers. Since 1994, not one Western Conference team has ever three-peated in consecutive years.
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But here is why the Oilers have a chance to make history.
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That and more in this edition of…
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9 Things
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9. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins starts chasing another legendary Oiler on Wednesday. That will be career game 960 for The Nuge. Ryan Smyth played 971, the second most in franchise history. Kevin Lowe is #1 at 1,037.
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8. Matt Savoie and Ike Howard will try to break the Oilers Calder Trophy drought. It may take a franchise record-setting performance to do so. Blair MacDonald holds the Oilers rookie mark for points in a season with 94 (1979-80). Next is Jari Kurri (75 points in 1980-81). Jason Arnott had 68 in 1993-94.
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7. Connor Ingram will wear #29 in Bakersfield. If and/or when he gets recalled by the Oilers, he will have to switch! That was a smart piece of business by G.M. Stan Bowman. I know some wanted Ingram claimed on waivers. But that would have been a much bigger gamble than this, and a higher cap hit.
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6. Andy Slaggert will leave his position as Hockey Coach at the University of Notre Dame to accept an opportunity in the Oilers organization. Slaggert had coached at Notre Dame in one role or another since 1993 and also played there for two years in the 80’s. A renowned recruiter, I expect he will join Edmonton’s scouring operations.
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5. I took a glance at a Bakersfield Condors lineup this past weekend. In one game the centers were Viljami Marjala, Josh Samanski and James Hamblin. The Condors have not been blessed with a bunch of skill the past couple years. But to have those three down the middle is far more exciting. And an AHL club with Hamblin as its 3C will be very competitive.
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4. Zach Hyman continues to work his way back from the separated wrist in last year’s playoffs. Late last week, he hopped on the ice just after the main practice and was taking shooting drills. Things are going well. November 1 was the most common date thrown out there for his return. But I have heard Hyman has a chance to be back a bit earlier than that.
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3. Oilers Head Coach Kris Knoblauch signed a three-year extension this past week. It was announced Friday, but I believe the business had been done a bit prior to that. It is reported to be worth $2.75m annually. That puts him in the middle tier of NHL coach salaries. Newcomers are often around $1m, but a veteran guy like Mike Sullivan in New York makes $6.5m. If you ask me, $2.75m for the first guy since Scotty Bowman to get to the Stanley Cup Finals in his first two cracks at it is a real bargain.
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