The Edmonton Oilers have invited defender Kirill Tulopov to training camp. This has been out there for a couple of weeks but you never know and I waited to post it until seeing it in two places online. The club also has the option of inviting the rookie tournament invites along but not all will make the grade. Among the players who could be on the TC roster are L Brett Ferguson (WHL--RNH's teammate), D Tyler Schmidt (WHL--turned some heads) C Chase Schaber (WHL), C Colin Smith (WHL), D Ryan Lowery (WHL) and D Wes Vannieuwenhuizen (WHL). G Adam Brown was sent back to Kelowna. Tulupov is a big defender (6.04, 230 according to the EJ) and he was a 3rd rd pick for NJD in 2006. The Oilers selected D Theo Peckham in the same round, 8 spots later. He played junior in the QMJHL and played some in the KHL once turning pro.
The NJD blog Fire and Ice posted the following:
- Defenseman Kirill Tulupov will attend training camp this year as a tryout with Edmonton. The Devils drafted Tulupov in the third round (67th overall) in 2006—after Vasyunov and before Zharkov—but he was the only player from their 2006 draft class that they opted not to sign. They were unable to agree on a contract before the June 1, 2008 deadline and he went back into the draft. He was not drafted by anyone in 2008. He played briefly last season for Moscow Spartak in the KHL.
He looks like a Russian Phanugly - leaves his position to look for the big hit. Here's to hoping he doesn't do it in drills against his own teammates in an effort to "make an impression".
ReplyDeleteWell that was 4 years ago, but point made.
ReplyDeleteHis running around and hitting reminds me of the hanson bros. At the beginning, the extra long pause on him in his underwear, is a little awkward.
ReplyDeletehe's a like a dog after a bone ... lots of collisions. Some legal, some late, some dirty, some headhunting, some down right nasty.
ReplyDeleteAgree with Clay here, no body contact until an exhibition game - against the opposition. preferably the Flames or 'Nucks would suit me fine.
He does look fairly mobile for a big man.
Who cares if he goes out of position; those were some THUNDEROUS BODY CHECKS. The Oilers should demote that pansy Gilbert to the AHL and give his minutes to this guy.
ReplyDeleteI need to go lay down now. Typing that many words in a row made my brain hurt.
Did I misread Willis on bras and panties or is Bulin in OKC?
ReplyDeleteand McCabe has a shot? Doesn't he lead the league in own goals?
I'd rather give Kirill a sword. and a shot.
Bulin Wall comes in as the starter. Sphincter tight?
ReplyDeleteShades of Igor...
ReplyDeleteI hope he had a Rocky montage of a summer, complete with Cape Fear tattoos.
ReplyDeleteIf he does get signed to a 2-way and hangs around when sent to OKC, then Tambellini would have accomplished his goal of making the Barons the most penalized team in the AHL.
ReplyDeleteI can only surmise this is in an effort to give the prospects ample opportunity to practice on the PK. Genius!
Seriously though, Tyrvainen and Tulupov would make OKC a nasty team to play against.
Hubub from a guy claiming to be a friend of his on HF boards states that Tulupov has issues with a coach in Russia and that lead to his having difficulty finding a hockey home. He's apparently always wanted to play in the NHL since it's the best league and quite excited.
ReplyDeleteHe played on 4 different teams at least from Eliteprospects so that's not a good sign.
Pieced together from HF boards posts: he apparently started in the Slovakian league (silver medalist team) and was fourth in plus/minus with a +19. Somewhere along the line he got an invite to a KHL team, won a spot, then the guy who invited him got sacked and he along with half the players got shipped out to the (dark side of the moon?). He then got transferred again to another team where he started playing well and was voted the best defensemen for them or something.
His weaknesses while in the QMJHL were apparently skating, leaving position to look for hits, and not thinking the game very well. Hopefully those have been mostly resolved by now.
Holy charging penalties Batman!
ReplyDeleteHe can hit apparently - Can he play defence to?
Reminds me of Major League: "You may run like Hayes, but you hit like shit"
Do player agents put these videos together? If so it is bad taste to show a player he just knocked silly laying on the ice. Awckward video indeed.
Angry Russians are fun. Try him at fwd if he cant get his D straight.
ReplyDeleteHis hockey stylings kind of remind me of Steve Macintyre, except that this guy catches the odd guy.
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't really look like a hockey player from the looks of that video.
I like how in the KHL every single body check doesn't start a brawl afterwards.
ReplyDeleteKind of refreshing. It would be nice to have a Russian hammer patrolling the Oilers blue line.
Good invite.
It would be even nicer to have a competent defenseman doing so.
ReplyDeleteUmm, is it just me or if you youtube Andy Sutton you will find almost similar if not exact same hit highlights.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of Garnet Exelby minus the sound positional play.
ReplyDeleteAll in all, not bad guy.
ReplyDeleteIf looks, brains and personality don't count.
Weird invite. Of all the available D you could ask to come in on a PTO...
ReplyDeleteTook a quick peak at NJ draft record - since Zajac it's extremely underwhelming. Lou may be the most over-rated GM in the league. Without Brodeur and his hometown discounts how much would they have really won. Plus despite all of their cups, they consistently put out such a boring product they've never really developed a hugely successful fan base in what should be a decent market.
He's a Russian Scott Stevens!
ReplyDeleteTambi is on Canoe with the cliche 12-pack. The only one I believe is the one about improving the prospect pipeline. "Every night is about making the playoffs, nothing but that." Sure, making the playoffs _next_ season, or at least making a small noise.
ReplyDeleteMy gag reflex kicks in when a coach starts talking about "winning one goal games" when the team save percentage is under 900. World's largest wad of of bubble gum in the meatus acusticus when 910 sits on the bench while 880 fries your bacon. Sorry coach, we can't hear you! because we're out there trying to survive The System.
The secret to the diamond PK is putting 880 in charge of swinging the gate. Stuff that into your system and smoke it.
Some big players signed this week. Oilogosphere favorite Bogosian off the market. And one notable non-signing.
ReplyDeleteDreger reports Doughty wants at least $7M per yr. Kings won't give him more than Kopitar's. 6.8M per.
What would you all be willing to give to the Kings for the pleasure of signing Mr. Doughty to a 7 x 7M contract? Or would you stay far far away?
I think the problem with Doughty in LA is term. He wants a shorter deal, I hypothesize, 5 years, like Stamkos got.
ReplyDeleteIt would be silly of Doughty to surrender extra UFA years and only get what Kopitar gets now, because Kopitar will be earning far more on his next contract which will overlap the last years if Doughty signs a 7-year deal.
It really makes no sense for elite players like Doughty or Stamkos to sign extended contracts unless they are getting a number much closer to the max salary allowed under the cap.
ReplyDeleteIt really makes no sense for elite players like Doughty or Stamkos to sign extended contracts unless they are getting a number much closer to the max salary allowed under the cap.
Agreed.
I don't think the cap can continue to go up like it has since the lock out, but 5 years from now 7MM won't represent the cap % it does today.
This goes to the point that to maximize your quality prospects, putting them in the league at 18 and having them go UFA at 25 is poor asset management.
20-27 would seem to be the wheel house.
Burke did a very good deal with Schenn I think. 3.6MM is a slight overpay today, but in years 3-5 of that contract it should be a value contract. Due to both cap inflation and Schenn's progress as a player.
The poor part was that he was in the NHL at 18 and the extra UFA year Burke got is only is 26 year old year.
Dmen especially should hit the NHL at the last possible year (where their UFA clock starts ticking even if they are not in the NHL)
Burke did a very good deal with Schenn I think. 3.6MM is .........
ReplyDeletePeackham: 1.08M
Qual Comp .023 51/200
Qual Team -.087 160/200
GA/60 2.60 136/200
Pts/60 .70 90/200
Faced bottom 1st line competition with Bottom third line teammates and lower middle third GA.
Schenn: 3.6M
Qual Comp -.11 100/200
Qual Team +.69 35/200
GA/60 2.60 144/200
Pts/60 .85 60/200
Faced bottom 2nd line competition with middle 1st line teammates and upper bottom third GA.
Smid: 2.25M
Qual Comp .005 80/200
Qual Team -.056 160/200
GA/60 2.71 137/200
Pts/60 .43 167/200
Faced upper 2nd line competition with upper third line teammates and upper bottom third GA.
3.6M for a dman who faced 3rd line competiion with his best teamates. (sheltered) and has bottom 1/3 GA 4th best on the team.
1.1M for a young Dman who faced the best in the league with 3rd/ and 4th line teamates and gets better than bottom 1/3rd GA and teams 2nd best GA.
3.6M for a third pairing D who isn't above water.
Re NJ's decline as a hockey powerhouse:
ReplyDeleteIt's usually the case. Give practically any NHL GM a world class goalie+similar defenceman and with relatively average everything else, conference finals/cups abound.
Sather's reputation has taken a real beating since post 1991, after Mess etc left town. And I would argue he was close to a genius, developing that young Oilers team the way he did.
Next perennial winner to drop fast: Post-Lidstrom Detroit.
Next powerhouse to rise is Buffalo. Assuming they can manage their cap situation effectively they should have a strong team for many years.
ReplyDeleteRussian guys posing in their underwear to the accompaniment of techno? We need a Scarlett Johanssen or Diane Lane pic posted stat to balance the universe.
ReplyDeleteNJ was 26-7-3 to end the season.
ReplyDeleteAnd they will now have Zach Parise back.
It might be a little early to write them off.
Ashley: Buffalo's got to figure out how to manage the cap situation THIS year, before worrying about any future issues. They're $3.5 million over the cap with only 23 players signed (in other words, they're not exceeding the cap based on having too many players signed).
ReplyDeleteSomething's still got to give there.
Doesn't Kotalik(3 mil) and another player like Matt Ellis(525 k) being waived clear up Buffalo's cap overage.
ReplyDeleteNot a lot of wiggle room for injuries though.
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ReplyDeleteHockeyguy: I would find it a little surprising for them to waive a player like Kotalik so soon after acquiring him during the summer, but it is possible.
ReplyDeleteThe bigger problem is that according to Capgeek, they'd still be about $70,000 over the cap after cutting those players.* They'd only have 12 forwards under contract then and no room to sign any more.
Perhaps the internet has got the numbers wrong, but by my reckoning, Buffalo must reduce their cap hit by a net of $3.6M. I say a "net reduction" because it seems that they'll have to move more salary than that. If they simply cut a player, they would be at the minimum number of F/D to play a game (12/6) so I would think some kind of trade could become necessary.
It'll be interesting to follow this in TC.
*Note: it seems that NHL Numbers already has Ellis removed, but the calculation remains the same.
Cactus:
ReplyDeleteI think the whole idea of why Kotalik was included in the trade with Calgary was for Buffalo to waive him thus helping Calgary dump salary.(all they got for Regehr was a couple of AHL players)
Pegula is spending like a drunken sailor as it is,what's another 3 mil.
My understanding w.r.t. Kotalik is the same as HG10s. Kotalik will be buried back in the minors unless an LTIR situation clears space for him.
ReplyDeleteHockeyguy: you may be right on Kotalik - I hadn't read that they were certainly going to waive him, but it could make sense. However, that doesn't change the fact that waiving him isn't enough to get below the cap. Buffalo's still got to figure out a solution there.
ReplyDeleteGregor has Hemsky out for the first 4 preseason games. Hopefully, that's the extent of it.
The latest from Terry Jones
ReplyDeleteDarcy Regier was quoted a couple weeks ago-I'm paraphrasing- "we'll get under the cap via trades". Granted,that was 2 weeks ago,and I'm guessing that's the trade front is starting to tighten up as we get closer to season start up.
If push comes to shove,I have no doubt they will waive Kotalik-that contract has been a hot potato since before the ink dried on that deal that Sather gave him.
Thanks for the info Gerta.
ReplyDeleteYou (and spOiler and hockeyguy) are likely right in that they'll waive Kotalik. They probably then would want to move someone in the $2-3M range so that they can bring back two minimum wage/young players to fill out the roster. Purely in terms of salary numbers, that makes Boyes, Hecht, Gaustad, Leopold and Morrisonn possibilities for trades.
Morrison and his $2M cap was the other name I heard mentioned as expendable(according the Sabres fans anyway).
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Buffalo and their cap issues.
Cactus:
ReplyDeleteBuffalo definately needs to clear 4-5 mil off this year.Then next year Myers contract goes up 4mil and back up against the cap they go.
would anybody here agree to trade Gilbert, Gagner and the OIlers 2012 first round pick for Doughty?
ReplyDeleteI would...
Oilersfan: we might be able to wait and do even better. Lombardi's now saying he'll cut the offer to Doughty with every day missed of TC. Something tells me that won't get Drew racing to sign if he hasn't already.
ReplyDeleteI might offer sheet Doughty if I had a winning club. Yeah, you lose 4, late first rounders. But if you add Doughty, then you can trade one of your roster players for a couple of second round picks to bump your prospect pool back up.
ReplyDeleteLoser clubs like the Oilers should avoid it.
If I were Doughty, I'd publicly demand to be traded to a team that would pay. Even if they don't trade you, it increases your leverage in the bargaining, and no fan in LA will care 6 months from now.
It's just my opinion but I get the sense that Kings fans are starting to lose patience with Doughty-and now that Lombardi has publicy drawn a line in the sand($6.8M) this could get ugly for LA in a hurry.
ReplyDeleteI would be in there pitching if I was Tambo...I'd even be willing to take Fraser back..:)
Gerta, we could even send them back Tuebert in a package including Ewanyk.
ReplyDelete