Oilers assign Pakarinen to Condors

(Photo Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports)

After missing every game so far this season with a lower-body injury, the Oilers have assigned Iiro Pakarinen to the Bakersfield Condors for conditioning purposes.

Pakarinen was injured during the Oilers Oct. 2 preseason game against the L.A. Kings in Vernon, B.C. which an undisclosed injury. 

The Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson said following the game that Pakarinen injured his left knee after a hit from Kings defenceman Matt Greene. 

Pakarinen appeared to catch his toe on the boards, which twisted his knee. Whatever the injury was that ailed him was obviously serious as he missed 54 games this year. 

Now, it appears that he is ready to get back to game action. While we wait and see how he looks during his conditioning stint, Pakarinen will be in tough to fight his way back to a regular NHL shift given the revolving door the Oilers have at the bottom of their forward lineup.

The 25-year old is in his third year of hockey in North America. In his 43 AHL games, Pakarinen has scored 31 points while during his 80 NHL games, he has scored 16 points. 

Originally selected in the 7th round of the 2011 NHL Draft by the Florida Panthers, the Finnish forward never signed with the team and instead played in the SM-Liiga in Finland for HIFK. 

Pakarinen was signed to a two-year entry level deal on June 16, 2014. On June 27, 2016, he signed a one-year, $725 000 contract. 

Last season, Pakarinen played in 63 NHL games where he scored 13 points and averaged 10;45 TOI per game. The high energy winger averaged 2.4 hits per game.