-So the Oilers agreed with forward prospect Toni Rajala to mutually terminate his contract, allowing the Finnish sniper to sign with the team of his choice, be it in Europe or otherwise. Sigh. Yet another prospect ruined in Edmonton. Obviously Rajala was looking up a mountain in regards to scaling the Oilers depth chart, with Eberle, Yakupov and Hemsky on the right side clamouring for ice time, but to let him go for nothing seems like such a... waste. It's frustrating really, when players decide they don't want to be a part of the organization. Sadly, fans of the Oilers are used to it.
-This brings the Teemu Hartikainen situation to mind. 'Harsky' as they call him, had an excellent shot to nail down the third line left wing spot this coming season, but instead opted to sign in Russia. It sounded like he left due to former coach Ralph Krueger and his poor handling of Hartikainen. Yeah, like Oil fans have never heard this one before. Harti filled a big need in the Oilers organization, that of a power forward. with him gone, how many power forwards are in Edmonton? None. Am I pissed that Teemu left? Yes. Would I take him back? In a heartbeat. Thus is the life of an Oilers fan.
-Linus Omark is back for one year on a two way deal. What sparked his change of heart? Did he decide that the Swiss Elite league just isn't enough of a challenge? Or maybe he hopes to prove himself as a more reliable scorer in North America, and then ink a contract with another NHL club? I have a hard time seeing where Omark fits on the roster in Edmonton. Maybe Eakins finds a nice spot for him in the top nine, and manages to create three balanced scoring lines? We can only hope. Omarks' talent is a welcome addition to the Oilers but it seems like the best fit for him is in Oklahoma City.
-Lennart Petrell spent the last two years in Edmonton as a quality fourth liner. As his contract expired this summer, Edmonton chose not to re-sign him and to allow him to sign in Switzerland. In his time with the club, I thought Petrell was the perfect fourth liner. Hits, skates, kills penalties, works hard and even has a good shot. Personally, I'd rather have three players of Petrells' ilk on the fourth line rather than Ryan Smyth and any combination of spare parts we see this October. I mean this as no slight to Smyth and his contributions to the Edmonton community, but simply put he's running on fumes now.
-Guess who on the Oilers has a career face-off percentage of 54(!!) percent? Now guess who also has 52(!!!) games of playoff experience? Thats right folks, it's your trusty Horcoff replacement, Boyd Gordon. Sam Gagner? 44.4 percent in the dot.
That's all for today Oilers fans, lets hope something interesting happens between now and the rookie tournament on September 5th to keep things spicy. Cheers! -Johannes
You can find me on Twitter at @JohannesHockey.