ROOKPECTATIONS
By Lowetide
11 years ago
As we edge closer to the draft, it’s important to "take stock" of what is available to the organization next season. Some of the available talent is in OKC, some in junior, some in Europe and some NHL ready talent is available via the draft. Who are these "bubbling under" prospects and who among them will be part of this Oil boom?
The OKC Barons are on a very nice run currently, with a chance to go deep into the AHL playoffs. This is giving the Oilers a chance to have a long look at their young prospects. Men like Magnus Paajarvi and Anton Lander are no longer rookies, but are certainly a part of the future. Others like Teemu Hartikainen have been knocking on the door for some time and may be ready to roll.
ROOKPECTATIONS?
I stole the word from a football blog, but it works for this project. We’re looking at prospects in OKC over the last 10 weeks:
OKC BARONS FORWARDS SINCE MARCH 1 (PROSPECTS)
NAME | GP | G | A | PTS | PPG |
MAGNUS PAAJARVI | 28 | 7 | 14 | 21 | .750 |
TEEMU HARTIKAINEN | 18 | 4 | 8 | 12 | .667 |
TYLER PITLICK | 28 | 4 | 13 | 17 | .607 |
HUNTER TREMBLAY | 25 | 8 | 5 | 13 | .520 |
CHRIS VANDEVELDE | 22 | 5 | 5 | 10 | .455 |
ANTON LANDER | 22 | 3 | 6 | 9 | .409 |
PHIL CORNET | 29 | 3 | 6 | 9 | .310 |
TANNER HOUSE | 26 | 5 | 3 | 8 | .308 |
ANTTI TYRVAINEN | 29 | 3 | 6 | 9 | .310 |
- Paajarvi is having a nice run, but the question about him–can he score enough to hang with the skilled men–remains. Either way, I would suggest he’s a strong option for NHL employment in 12-13.
- Hartikainen is another winger with a real chance to make the grade in the fall. Outside the skill lines but he has a very good window here.
- Pitlick didn’t post good boxcars until the spring, but he’s doing fine now. It would seem unlikely that he’d push for an NHL job this fall, but it’s also true he’s done a lot to improve his status over the last 10 weeks.
- Hunter Tremblay is an interesting case. He’s a wicked PKer, scores PK goals with a great deal of regularity and can play a solid 2-way role.
- Chris VandeVelde keeps hanging around and despite advanced age for a prospect he can do some things. Has gained some fame with 2 OT goals in the current series against San Antonio.
- Anton Lander is highly touted as a checker but hes going to need to score in order to stay in an NHL lineup. It’s a guess, but there’s a chance he might spend all year with OKC next season.
There are three main characters that we should pay attention to for fall: Paajarvi, Lander and Hartikainen. The rest will be fighting an uphill battle, but you never know.
CURRENT OILERS DEPTH CHART–FORWARD
C | LW | RW |
RNH | HALL | EBERLE |
GAGNER (rfa) | JONES | HEMSKY |
HORCOFF | EAGER | |
BELANGER |
Edmonton has yet to decide on Ryan Smyth–that’s a huge item for the fall–and of course as outlined by Jason Gregor this afternoon there are other ufa’s up front (Petrell, Hordichuk) and rfa’s too (main one being Gagner). If the Oilers don’t sign Smyth, there’s a massive opportunity for both Hartikainen and Paajarvi. Lander would appear to be blocked, although the Oilers could move one of the centers to wing.
Should Edmonton choose to draft Nail Yakupov, a top 6 that features the young Russian with Nuge, Hall, Eberle, Gagner and Hemsky would be something to behold. I’m not sure how well they’d do without the puck though, especially playing in front of the current blue.
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
The longer I look at that depth chart, the more I believe the organization needs to make signing Ryan Smyth a priority. Adding Nail Yakupov would give the Oilers another piece in an outstanding collection of young men barely 20. The NHL however is not a young man’s league and adding Ryan Smyth up front will give them team another actual NHL player who can play a strong 2-way game.
Hartikainen and Paajarvi offer more hope for the future, but the Oilers depth chart (as shown above) needs veterans. If the plan involves enough improvement to push for the playoffs, Ryan Smyth’s name on an Oiler contract needs to get done in a quick hurry.
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