Tyler Pitlick is a little behind the other two 2nd rounders from the 2010 entry draft. Curtis Hamilton had a huge season that saw him lead the WHL in plus minus and play for Canada at the World Juniors. Martin Marincin had a dynamite start to his season and despite a poor 2nd half he registered on the radar in a big way. Pitlick? Despite a solid year overall there's nothing in the numbers that screams impact prospect: no monster pim total, he didn't scored 35 goals and more than that he spent much of the spring injured. Beginning tonight, Pitlick has a chance to change our perception of his as the third prospect from that second round. I don't even know if he's completely healthy but Pitlick is in the lineup tonight.All of this information is lifted from OilonWhyte and Jeffrey Chapman:
- RNH-Hamilton-Pelss
- Pitlick-Ferguson-Reider
- Smith-Czerwonka-Rajala
- Schaber-Tyrvainen-Abney
- Martindale extra forward
- Davidson-Blain
- Vannieuwenhuizen-Lowery
- Gernat-Fedun
- Bunz in goal
Bunz is the G, and a player worth watching closely. By eye this lineup is a little shy of opening night and the Jets should offer a stiffer opponent than Van City did the other night. I'd like to see a little more PP time for RNH and suspect we will.
Pitlick is 100% healthy. Or so he says himself at least
ReplyDeletelol, would you say you post the lines in that order(C,L,R) to spite everyone, or as a nostalgic thing like not wearing a helmet in the 90's?
ReplyDeleteMartindale is subbing in for Abney as per Gregor. I believe the lineup is still good enough to get the job done tonight.
ReplyDeleteCLR order is ordered by relevance. LCR is by how they stand on the ice when you view them as "your" team, and RCL when you view them as "their" team. I imagine RLC is the French way to write lines...
ReplyDeleteThe thing I find interesting about Pitlick vs. Marincin/Hamilton is that Hamilton and Marincin both seem to get more hype and have more impressive resumes, but Pitlick always looks better when I see them all play. Or at least that was the case until recently, Hamilton has been really turning it on lately.
ReplyDeleteTwo things:
ReplyDeleteInteresting that RNH is being used as a winger in both of these games so far. Either that speaks to Hamilton's strengths as a centre, or it shows that the Oilers are unsure that RNH has what it takes to be a centre in the NHL. The former is great news, the latter is NOT.
Secondly, I really like the Gernat-Fedun pairing. Fedun looked lights out from all accounts (particularly given that he's a relative no-name newcomer in the Oilers system...though I personally thought he'd make some kind of positive impact based on his pedigree and age). Gernat looked shaky and raw, by most accounts. So I guess this means the Oilers saw both of those things and want to see if Fedun is good enough to buoy a green, raw rookie, and whether Gernat can perform to his potential with a stable, older partner. Should be interesting to see.
Unknown,
ReplyDeleteLT lists the center as the first entry, I.e. The far left entry, on the list, so it's:
Center- LeftW-RightW
So RNH is at C.
See how you're confusing us LT? You're worse than Stalin/Hitler/Burke/Feaster.
Regarding Martindale: is this the stage where we consider him a bust?
ReplyDeleteHow could Martindale possibly be considered a bust to this point? He is one season removed from his draft year, a season in which he performed very well by most measures.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually quite interested to see how he develops. Players who are marked down for poor attitude or work ethic, especially big players, are those that can truly surprise. If the organization shows some faith and patience with Martindale they might be well-rewarded.
Realistically speaking, we shouldn't get our hopes up and there is a very slim chance that Martindale ever establishes himself as an NHL regular. If he can put it together though, he has a very nice combination of size, skill, and two-way play.
Pitlick wow'd everyone last training camp if you recall, so hopefully he can do so again.
ReplyDeleteI'd still like to see him go back to Med Hat, though. If he can go back and put up 80 pts, play physical and perhaps play in the World Juniors, that would be likely good for his development. He is down the depth chart anyway, so no rush.
Regarding Martindale: is this the stage where we consider him a bust?
Before his second pro camp, after being voted the third best faceoff guy in a poll of OHL coaches, after scoring 80+ pts and raising his +/- to +38?
It might be a little early to declare him a bust.
Matheson tweets...
ReplyDeleteryan whitney and ales hemsky may not play early exhib Oil games as they get over ankle and shoulder surgeries.
..And so it begins...
Ducey: why so certain that Pitlick should head back to Medicine Hat as opposed to the AHL? I think if he's looking strong in camp, he's worth sending to OKC. Before mid-season, I think he'll have exhausted the usefulness of the WHL competition and will be in need of a bigger challenge.*
ReplyDelete*Based on last year's results and assuming some form of progression for the player.
I don't know, seems to me caution is a good thing. Wasn't the entire Sheldon Souray fiasco about pushing him to play?
ReplyDeleteMartindale has a great set of hands.
ReplyDeleteStickhandled himself through and out of trouble a couple of times last night. Set up a couple of opportunities.
Didn't how up much on the scoresheet [-1] but he looked pretty good out there regardless.
Yeah. Worrying about 30th place team players who are already injured before training camp is a definite symptom of Oilers Deficit Attention Syndrome.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the "Baby, I've been here before" moment is from the Oilers resting injured players, it's from arguably the team's two best players having lingering issues to begin with. I'm all for resting them; I'm just against them being injured in the first place.
ReplyDeleteI'll be watching Rajala tonight. He probably doesn't amount to anything, but who can resist a late round undersized Finn? Well, lots of people. But they're dumb.
I used to have a lot of interest in Rajala. Not so much anymore.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with this particular undersized offensive dynamo is that, well, the offense isn't really there.
A PPG in the WHL for an 18 year old Rajala is only OK, just as it is only OK for an 18 year old Pitlick. Same goes for 0.5 PPG in the SM-liiga as a 19 year old.
With that said, I'm a fickle fan. If I see him good tonight I may change my mind.
...Is fickle the right word?
Nothing like your two best players less than 100 percent coming out of training camp.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what kind of seasons Lubo and Penner will have. :)
I can confirm that it means what you think that it means.
ReplyDeleteDSF: No one liked Lubo - sucker didn't even fight.
ReplyDeleteI loved Lubo. Wonderful, wonderful player. An absolute gem.
ReplyDeleteI kid, I kid.
ReplyDeleteLubo/Souray/Gilbert/Grebeshkov = the most incredible set of puck movers from the back I ever saw at one time.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the slugs up front were the slugs up front.
Question: How on earth can a GM and coach not be close, if not on the exact same page re players?
Or don't things like this matter at NHL level?
Michael Jackson's "Toni Rajala"
ReplyDeleteYou'll Never Make Me Stay
So Take Your Game Off Of Me
I Know Your Every Move
So Won't You Just Let Me Be
I've Been Here Times Before
But I Was Too Blind To See
That You Seduce Every Fan
This Time You Won't Seduce Me
He's Saying That's Ok
Hey Baby Do What You Please
I Have The Stuff That You Want
I Am The Thing That You Need
He Looked Me Deep In The Eyes
He Said hockey's his Art
He Says There's No Turnin' Back
He Trapped Me In His Heart
Toni Rajala, Nah
Toni Rajala, Nah
Toni Rajala, No
Toni Rajala
Let Me Be!
Oh No . . .
Oh No . . .
Oh No . .
He Likes The Boys On the bus
He's Saying That's Ok
Hey Baby Do What You Want
I'll Be Your Goal Scorin Thing
I'll Be The Freak You Can Taunt
And I Don't Care What YouSay
I Want To Go Too Far
I'll Be Your Everything
If You Make Me A Star
Toni Rajala, Nah
Toni Rajala, Nah
Toni Rajala, No
Dirty Diana . . .
I mean "Rajala", Nah
Toni Rajala, Nah
Toni Rajala, No
Rajala!
Rajala,
It's Rr... rrrr...rrr...
Rajala
I'm fine with exercising caution with the injuries to Hemsky and Whitney-it's when we get most of the way through training camp and Matheson tweets that Whitney may miss the first few games and is listed as "indefinitely" that worries me.
ReplyDeleteI think we should petition Bettman to reverse the trade with ANA and get Lubo back - claiming damaged goods.
ReplyDeleteWhitney didn't have a sore foot, but chronic foot problems requiring surgery ...
Hey, quick, call the all the papers, let 'em know.
Hmmm ... maybe Lombardi has a good idea here.
~~~~ sarcasm ~~~~
Ducey: Pitlick isn't eligible for the World Juniors as he's too old. He was born in 1991 so he'd be an overager in junior and prospects drafted as high and as productive as Pitlick or Martindale are never sent back for their overage seasons. (The inability to manage the number of contracts will make it very likely to happen this year for the Oiles though.)
ReplyDeleteI posted a link in the past week or so about an article stating that it was almost a given that Martindale would be going back to junior primarily because of the contract limit.
ReplyDeleteThey would change if Tambo could swing a 2 or 3 for 1 to get an upgrade on defence ... and of course, we all know how likely that is.
Wow. Bunz has nowhere near the same level of defense that Roy had in front of him. Does the Dutch alphabet guy have some experience?
ReplyDeleteI agree with the thinking of Blain and Davidson as a pair though. We always seem to be talking about them like that.
Pitlick seemed upset at the suggestion he might go back to Jr the other day according to reports. I'm thinking he's going to look to put on a show. That kind of drive I like.
This game is streamed only?
spOILer: Yeah, just streamed on oilers site.
ReplyDeleteOiler feed not working so far, but this one is:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/canucks_youngstars/index.php
Thanks, Bro. I can understand why. When you only know the names and numbers of the Canuck prospects how is calling an Oiler-Jet match doable, exactly?
ReplyDeleteGino! With the pun by pun.
ReplyDeleteReal nice play there by Martindale. That's the ticket!
ReplyDeleteTyrvainen exactly where he should be.
ReplyDeleteLT: it's just too bad Abney wasn't in there. Surely he could've pulled off the same play, only with more toughneess.
ReplyDeletelol. Pitlick had a beauty shift there.
ReplyDeleteNot that is a requirement for him to be an effective Oiler by any means, but it is nice to see RNH throw his body around there on his last shift.
ReplyDeleteI am sure he is tired of people talking about his weight and not being able to handle the rough stuff.
Sure. You eat ice cream and bananas all summer long, gain a couple of pounds nd you think you're a bruising bodychecker.
ReplyDeleteMartindale stickhandling straight through a Winnipeg defender.
ReplyDeleteDid that a couple times last game too.
Not sure about his footspeed, but certainly good with the puck.
Martindale. Nice hit.
ReplyDeleteAre we the only team in this tournament with reasonable rookie goaltending? Some of these goals have been ugly.
ReplyDeleteLowery's been a bit touched this tourney.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely brutal goaltending there.
ReplyDeleteD seem to be easily reaching the puck and have room to make a play. Jets forwards don't seem speedy.
ReplyDelete.. also noticing that the second PP was much less effective than when RNH was quarterbacking the first PP.
ReplyDeleteJets might have just been more on the ball though.
I know the competition is far from what these kids will see in the NHL, but watching Lander and RNH own these young stars games, I wonder about all the action on July 1. I think we are getting mixed messages. Katz calls for scorched earth, and the brass proceeds with the scorched earth plan until July 1, 2011 when suddenly we seem to switch tracks and bring in Belanger, Barker, and Eager effectively blocking roster spots for promising young Oilers. Is that really going to speed up the scorched earth rebuild, or is that going to actually set us back? We're not a Stanley team this year or next, so why tinker with a faceoff specialist 3rd line center when we could watch RNH and Lander break in as rookies and cut their teeth. Now only one of them can make the roster. Same for Barker vs Petry/Chorney and Eager vs Harski. Where was the Belanger or Eager signing two years years ago when we actually needed it?
ReplyDeleteI'll defer to the guys that get paid to manage NHL teams for a living, but I can't help but wonder: Do we know really what we are doing with this rebuild? Is there really a plan?
I thought that was a tremendous period for Martindale. Really strong, just excellent.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. 3 or 4 really strong shifts from him that period. He always seems involved. But he's gonna have to do something about that skating. Otherwise, according to my captcha, he's frucked.
ReplyDeleteTencer tweets that Martindale needed help off the ice... anyone see what happened?
ReplyDeleteThe interviewer is a Grade 12 intern or Tencer's older brother?
ReplyDeleteAshley: I think, even if the plan is not to be competing hard fora playoff spot this year, there's still a number of benefits of bringing in some established NHLers to compete with the kids:
ReplyDelete-The rookies come with no guarantees. Harski showed great at the end of last year, but what if he's regressed in TC? You don't want to be forced to play him in the NHL if he isn't ready.
-You need some veterans to protect the kids occasionally and to help them develop their skills (this is where the Smyth acquisition is gold).
-Competition breeds excellence. No point just handing some 19, 20, 21 year old an NHL job. Make them work for it.
That's my Reader's Digest explanation at least.
Ashley, there is really only one July 4th contract holding rookies back - Belanger's. That should prove to be a good signing though, and I'm not concerned about 'too much depth' in the forward core because at some point it'll have to be traded for Defense.
ReplyDeleteThe foot speed thing is going to be an issue, no doubt. Anyone remember Jack Valiquette? No? No?
ReplyDeleteer .. July 1st contract. ha.
ReplyDeleteValiquette, Valiquette... Did he play goal?
ReplyDeleteNo, he was a talented center who couldn't skate. At all.
ReplyDeleteLet's see if Jet speed deals as well with the long change as Canuckle speed did.
ReplyDeleteWas Jack Valiquette faster than Jiri Dopita? ;)
ReplyDeleteLet's say the Oilers agree that skating is the thing most likely to hold Martindale back.
ReplyDeleteWould it make more sense to have him in the AHL, playing maybe 40 games next season and working with a skating instructor in OKC, or more sense to have him back in the OHL?
BTW, I'm of the opinion that it would be a mistake to leave camp with Martindale unsigned and demoted to the OHL - the team would be taking too big a risk IMO, that he wouldn't sign before the June 1, 2012 deadline.
ReplyDeletespeeds: If he plays like this you sign him. If he can play wing then they can get him into 50 games or so.
ReplyDeleteDamn. I missed the 1st period but by the comments my new client :) Martindale continues to impress. To an earlier post. He got robbed in the last game stats as he definitely assisted on the Slovakian's goal.
ReplyDeleteBunz has been solid this game (12 shots). RNH is a forechecking demon.
ReplyDeleteWho on earth is Chase Schaber? I didn't see the RE post about him :p
ReplyDeleteRyan from the Oilers: I wrote it, but am waiting to post. :-)
ReplyDeleteMaybe the play of the game from Bunz.
ReplyDeleteGino had a double rum and coke during the intermission. He's been in full pun mode this period.
ReplyDeleteRNH closed the lane there. Eek!
ReplyDeleteBeen sorely missing Lander's defensive presence this game.
ReplyDeleteIts absence has been noticeable compared to the last game.
Real hard-working shift from Pelss there.
ReplyDeleteBunz was the star of that period imo. Davidson made one really good outlet pass but that blue spend most of the second half of the period chasing.
ReplyDeleteSo how's Medicine Hat's team looking this year?
ReplyDeleteJust blue-skying, but what are the chances Bunz ends up finishing the season in OKC then makes up a DD-Bunz tandem in 12/13? Man he looks good.
Goalers are a mystery to me, but Bunz looks calm, good positionally, and has lightening reflexes. He looks big in the net - like he borrowed upper body gear from Giguere.
LT
ReplyDeletePulls hilarious names out of the past Jack Valiquette. Chessy mustache and godawful skating. Not bad skating, middle of the pack beer league skater. Decent player though
That Sol guy looks like he came straight out of Clash of the Titans.
ReplyDeletePitlick is good down low. Great puck protection a few times now.
ReplyDeleteI haven't minded the play of either Reider or Gernat over the two games. Tyrvainan hasn't been as noticable tonight.
ReplyDeletePitlick is a bit of a prick, and I mean that in a good way. I don't see any Jet (aside from the high picks) I like more than that big PF who scored for Van city the other night.
ReplyDeleteIt was like there was two Fedun's on that PP. He was everywhere.
ReplyDeleteFedun nice PP shift. He gonna make some waves in OKC this year.
ReplyDeleteyeah I've been really impressed with Fedun. Faked the slapper, walked the line to look for a better opportunity. Great stuff!
ReplyDeleteFedun's skating truly is impressive.
ReplyDeleteBunz. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteCrazy, just crazy save by Bunz!
ReplyDeleteBunz has played a remarkable game so far. Wow.
ReplyDeleteBunz just put on a clinic. Amazing.
ReplyDeleteHere's to hoping Bunz can give Superbowl Sunday some tips at main camp...
ReplyDeleteBunz has to be the first star. Can we move him ahead of Roy now?
ReplyDeleteI know it's a rookie tournament but that was a pretty amazing display of goaltending.
ReplyDeleteBunz is living up to the hype, very calm, nothing rattled him.
ReplyDeleteThis might be a saw him good moment as its the first time I've seen Bunz, but he is ahead of Roy in my books.
ReplyDeleteRoy's world Jr performance is still fresh in my memory banks.
He certainly isn't hurting his chances of making the U20 team.
ReplyDeleteHe's also ahead of NK
ReplyDeleteRoy vs. Bunz is going to be an interesting prospect battle for the next few years. That's the kind of internal competition you want!
ReplyDeleteWe definitely missed having Musil on the back end tonight. Lander's presence was missing as well. The game also seemed to turn a little once Martindale left.
Nugent-Hopkins' skill level is so clearly there... I can see what all scouts are talking about in terms of "vision". It's a hard skill to translate to the NHL though... would love to see how he looks with a real NHL winger. A playmaker needs a finisher.
Tyrvainen faded off a bit in the second and third, I didn't really notice him as much, but he's such an intriguing prospect...
Ah September... such a great time to be an Oilers fan!
Down here in Cochrane, I got a lot of Tiger playoff games last season. Bunz is the real deal.
ReplyDeleteOn the southern Shaw TV, I mean.
ReplyDeleteSo is MH a contender this year? Any chance they miss the playoffs and Bunz goes straight to OKC afterwards?
ReplyDeleteDidn't Bunz have lilke a .930 in the playoffs last year, but his team couldn't score?
ReplyDeleteDepends on where some of last year's players end up.
ReplyDeleteActually .912. I seem to remember he stole the 1st series though.
ReplyDeleteListed at 6ft 2in, 203 lb - bigger than I thought
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm still reserving judgement till he plays against men, my initial feeling is that RNH is too good for Junior but not good enough for the NHL. If he stays up, he might be given a Seguin style season, perhaps platooning with Lander.
ReplyDeleteSo if Hall puts up 60-70 points this year, Tavares and the Isles just set the market for 6-year extensions at $5.5 million.
ReplyDeleteThe Isles bought a couple of UFA years there if I'm not mistaken, so it seems like a pretty decent deal from their perspective. And not a bad precedent in terms of what it means for the Oilers.
I doubt Hall signs next summer unless he has a Stamkos-like second season, or the Oilers offer to pay him like he had a Stamkos-like second season, even if he didn't.
ReplyDeleteWhy would Hall settle for $5.5 million if he gets 60-70 points, rather than roll the dice on a 90-point 3rd season and a Stamkos contract.
Tavares "low-balled" himself and signed a year early so he didn't price himself out of a trade out of the Island.
Portzline tweets...
ReplyDeleteDispatch: #CBJ had talks with F Fernando Pisani about accepting a tryout agreement for camp, but that will not happen.
Hope he snags on somewhere.