The dog days of summer are here in full force, and that means there simply isn’t much to talk about. The good news is, we are less than a month away from the rookie tournament in Penticton, and right about a month away from training camp. It’s kind of hard to believe, but hockey season really is just right around the corner.
A few stories out there with the Oilers, so we’ll go quick hits style with it today!
Oilers Sign Khaira: This happened back on Wednesday, but the Oilers inked 2012 3rd round draft pick Jujhar Khaira to a three-year entry level contract. Khaira was a little known player back on draft day, but a lot has been learned about him in the last year. Most of it has been good too for the Oilers.
Khaira plays a power-forward style (YAY!!!!!), being an aggressive forward with decent size for his age and having a pretty decent scoring touch. He’s a guy whose scouting report said he’s decent in the dirty areas and that he loves to hit, and it seems like that was the style he played this past season in the NCAA.
He’s currently 6’3” and 198 lbs at age 18, so there is clearly room to grow for him. If he can continue to grow and keep playing his physical and tough game, he could be a great asset to the Oilers top-nine in the future. As I mentioned, he has a decent scoring touch too, recording 25 points in 37 games at Western Michigan as a freshman.
Most wonder why the Oilers elected to sign him following just his freshman season. The answer here is simple, as the WCHA (WMU’s conference) lost all of it’s top teams, like Minnesota, Wisconsin, etc., so it’s safe to assume the Oilers wanted him to move on for development purposes.
The Everett Silvertips hold his WHL rights, but I get the feeling that Khaira will start his pro journey this season with the Bakersfield Condors and OKC Barons. He’s got the perfect skill set to help this Oiler lineup, let’s all hope he realizes his potential.
Rookie Game Returns: The Oilers announced today that their annual rookie game against the University of Alberta will once again be taking place after a multi-year absence. The game will take place on September 10th at the Clare Drake Arena on the campus of the U of A. The game takes place two nights after the conclusion of the young stars tournament in Penticton, where the Oiler rookies will play three games.
This is great news, as it gives the Oilers rookies another chance to show their stuff to the organization before main camp, and it also shows that the Oilers are trying to get back to their roots a little bit. This will be the first match-up between the teams since 2009, when the Golden Bears beat the young Oilers.
The Oilers rookies have a record of 10-12 against the U of A all-time.
Hemsky?: I have to say, I’m pretty surprised we haven’t seen or heard anything on the Ales Hemsky front yet this summer. The Oilers made a number of moves and strengthened the roster, but still never found a solution for Hemsky. There are a few reasons for that. Sadly, his recent injury history and cap hit play a part in this. Teams are overlooking the player because of those factors, and the Oilers simply can’t get good return.
The Oilers won’t give Hemsky away for draft picks or a prospect, the team wants some actual return here, like a bottom six winger. They have every right to want that return too, and I tend to think MacT has made the right call by keeping him to this point. As of right now, it looks like Hemsky will be coming back for the 2013-14 season, a contract year too.
If Hemsky can have a solid start to the year, the Oilers might be inclined to move him during the season, but as of right now, I’m preparing to cheer for my all-time favorite Oiler for at least one more season.
I’ll be back tomorrow with a brief look back on a day I’m glad I wasn’t born for….The trade
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