Oilers Prospect Report: Three Condors Sign New Deals

Today’s report is on the news that broke on Wednesday centred around the Bakersfield Condors.

Before you break into that, Tyler Tullio and Matvey Petrov continue to stay in form. Tullio had three goals and four points in as many games, while Petrov had two goals and five points in five games. Carter Savoie grabbed himself a goal at the University of Denver to take his goal tally to 18 on the year. And finally, Dylan Holloway grabbed two points (1 goal, 1 assist) for the Condors.

Other than that, not a ton more happened outside of Bakersfield this week.

The Edmonton Oilers made the goaltending move we’ve all been waiting for on Wednesday night! Well, maybe not exactly what we wanted, but either way, Ken Holland traded Alex Stalock to the San Jose Sharks for future considerations.

Stalock struggled since returning from injury, playing in five games, posting a 0.862 save percentage and a 3.81 GAA. When you’ve sat on the sidelines for so long as Stalock did, it isn’t easy to come back. The Oilers gave him a chance, and unfortunately, it didn’t work.

Whilst most see this as a nothing deal, it brings good value to the Oilers.

The door is now open for Ilya Konovalov to start playing again. It’s, of course, way more beneficial for the organization that the 23-year-old is between the pipes rather than a 34-year-old Stalock.

Konovalov hasn’t played since February 12th against the Henderson Silver Knights. That was a tough night for him, allowing seven goals on 32 shots; however, his season overall has been decent with a 0.891 SV% and a 2.95 GAA. Before that blowout game versus Henderson, he had a .900SV% or better in five straight games while averaging 1.6 goals against.

Let’s hope he can regain that form, then he and @Stuart Skinner can take this Condors team on a playoff run.

Three of the stars down in Bakersfield signed on the dotted line on Wednesday, too. Dmitri Samorukov signed a one-year contract extension while Vincent Desharnais and James Hamblin signed new two-year deals.

Samorukov is a defenceman that Oilers fans have lots of hope for. Many were disappointed by his NHL debut against the St. Louis Blues. If you put that aside, he’s only 22-years-old and has played well in Bakersfield this season with two goals and 12 points in 30 games. Recently, Samorukov has got into an offensive rhythm with points in four of his last five games.

Desharnais is another blueliner down in Bakersfield defenceman who stands at 6’7″ and 229 pounds. The Oilers signed him to a two-way two-year deal that kicks in the next season. Jay Woodcroft has spoken about him in the past and has always given great reviews. This year offensively, he’s putting together a career season. Last year, Desharnais didn’t find the back of the net, but he’s managed to do it five times this year. He also added 13 assists to take his points to 18 on the season, a career-high. He is 25 years old but what he is now is likely who he will remain as.

The final player to receive a new deal is the local product, James Hamblin. Hamblin signed as a WHL free agent with the Condors from the Medicine Hat Tigers at the start of the 2020-21 season. He was an offensive force in the Western Hockey League with 115 goals and 283 points in 323 games, all with the Tigers. Since signing with the Condors, Hamblin has provided good depth scoring with 21 goals and 37 points in 78 games. This season, he surpassed his points total from last year in 40 games.