Today, I’d like to talk about the importance of recalls from the minors. In each Oilers season, someone from the farm has had an impact. There are seasons when the total games and performance don’t move the needle a lot, and then there are seasons like 2015-16.
The first Bakersfield Condors team sent the following men to the show: Leon Draisaitl (72 games), Andrew Miller (6 games), Iiro Pakarinen (63 games), Darnell Nurse (69 games), Jujhar Khaira (15 games), Brad Hunt (7 games), Zack Kassian (36 games), Brad Hunt (7 games), Laurent Brossoit (5 games), Jordan Oesterle (17 games).
A CONVERSATION
Why don’t you talk about something else? Yesterday was about the rookie camp roster, and at The Athletic I wrote about being ready for opening night.
Talk about McDavid, dammit! Why? There is no immediate deadline and it sounds like the captain is willing to stretch this out over several months. He might be arriving at his final training camp in a few days. However, we don’t know what we don’t know, and speculation serves to increase anxiety while also chasing our verbal tails because there’s no actual news. So I opted out. Pleased to do so.
But, why Bakersfield? The minor league team is important. We need to pay attention to the names heading south.
Why? The Oilers need to produce quality talent, and the current NHL roster doesn’t have much under 25. That’s a problem.
What about Evan Bouchard and Stuart Skinner? 25 and 26, respectively, and Bouchard is six weeks from turning 26.
What about Matt Savoie and Ike Howard? Both 21, they are astute bets but unproven. Oilers need more.
Well, get more then! Stan Bowman did that this summer. Just as Craig MacTavish stocked the 2015-16 Condors with talent via Europe (Iiro Pakarinen) and college (Jordan Oesterle), so too has Stan Bowman.
Who did Bowman get and why should I care? Excluding David Tomasek, who has an NHL deal, I’ll point to Atro Leppänen and Viljami Marjala among the European kids. Both men performed at a high level offensively in Liiga last season.
And these people will make the NHL? My guess is no, not initially. Leppänen is in tough to make the team out of camp and the nature of his contract suggests AHL time was anticipated. Same with Marjala, who is a playmaking winger on a team with a few already. We’ll see, but I’ll guess both play 40+ games in the minors this season.
And the college men? Damien Carfagna is a defenseman with wheels, that’s a key component for the Knoblauch Oilers. I think he’ll spend all if not most of the season in Bakersfield, but what you want is some Oesterle progression.
Oesterle progression? Like Carfagna, Jordan Oesterle arrived in pro hockey with plus speed and a need for many sorties defensively before he was NHL ready. Oesterle played 65 AHL and six NHL games in his first pro season. That’s probably aggressive for Carfagna, mostly due to the fact the Oilers defense was a hot mess when Oesterle arrived on the scene. Still, we can watch Carfagna and track progress, even if he gets a cup of coffee in his second year instead of his first pro season.
Any other college men? Quinn Hutson is a player I’ll follow closely in 2025-26. He has a two-way reptuation and the Oilers don’t have many truly responsible wingers in the NHL or AHL. If he can establish himself as a middle-six winger and penalty killer in Bakersfield, Hutson could see NHL action based solely on responsible play. He’ll need to move the needle offensively, but his resume suggests that’s likely in the AHL.
What is your opening night lineup for the Condors? It is below.
- Lines
- Jarventie-Janmark-Hutson
- Marjala-Hamblin-Seth Griffith
- Max Jones-Samanski-Petrov
- Clattenburg-Rhett Pitlick-Rem Pitlick
- Extras: Grubbe, Copponi, Stefan, Stonehouse
- Pairings
- Atro Leppänen-Alec Regula
- Riley Stillman-Beau Akey
- Cam Dineen-Josh Brown
- Damien Carfagna-Luke Prokop
- Mats Lindgreon
- Goalies
- Matt Tomkins
- Samuel Jonsson
If the player isn’t on the list, he’s either on the big roster or waivers. There are names on this list (Janmark, Regula) who could be lost to waivers. I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a moving target.
On the Lowdown, our feature guest will be Bagged Milk from Oilers Nation. We’ll check in on the state of the nation, Bagged’s ‘players to watch’ at the weekend rookie tournament and of couse we’ll have Declanations with CFL talk. Noon to 2pm on Sports 1440 and on YouTube.
“However, we don’t know what we don’t know, and speculation serves to increase anxiety while also chasing our verbal tails because there’s no actual news. So I opted out. Pleased to do so.”
Thank you! The endless & circular speculation has been profoundly tiresome.
Thank you also for your Condors thoughts.
I think Bowman has done some fine work to keep stocking the farm with potential. Certainly if you don’t have a near term opportunity to add a few high-end prospects, having a larger number of really decent long shots could result in one or two of them making the grade.
I would suggest Leppanen is no kid though. He will turn 27 in December. Undrafted and a somewhat smaller defenseman (6′ 187 lbs), he didn’t arrive in Finland’s top league till a couple months before his 25th birthday. Perhaps a late bloomer, but absent some unfortunate injury luck for the Oilers, or unless a few defenseman ahead of him get traded for a goalie or forward, I think Leppanen will be hard pressed to make the Oilers.
However, perhaps his AHL time will be impressive enough that he could be a useful part of a bigger trade to get more NHL certain players. Also, having very good puck moving defenseman to play with the forwards in Bakersfield will help with their development and perhaps allow Bakersfield to play a more similar style to the Oilers which is a benefit in transition for anyone called up. If he knocks it out of the park to become an NHL D that can help a cup contending team that would be a bonus.
Leppanen would seem to have some similarities of Joel Persson, who had a great season in Sweden at 25, and Holland brought him over to test him out. Due to some injuries, he got a shot in the NHL, but only played 13 games, with Ethan Bear being the guy who got to stick with the big club. And that was not a cup contending team. On the right side of the D, only Adam Larsson was a bona fide top 4 NHL defenseman. Persson did well with Bakersfield, got traded late to the Anaheim organization and played 7 games for the Gulls. Persson’s 1 year foray into North America lasted that one season. The shutdown of the league in Spring 2020 and the delay to 20/21 possibly played a part in him deciding to end his attempt. After going back to Sweden, Persson has continued to score and play well. He was defenseman of the year in the SHL in 23/24.
I think Persson’s story shows how much size matters in the NHL for defensemen, unless they are truly elite in skating and talent like Hughes or Makar, who coincidentally is listed at the same height and weight. I’ll be surprised if Leppanen sticks in the NHL. Maybe on a weak team that could use his skill, not a contender
A correction to my post regarding Persson’s signing. Persson was signed by Chiarelli in May 2018 and was loaned back to Sweden for the 18/19 season. He was extended 1 year by Keith Gretzky in January 2019 for the 19/20 season.
For me: Call-Ups:
First forward is Janmark or Philp or Lazar (depending on who they actually waive and try and get through)
Second forward is Jarventie unless its in the first month and it may be Hamblin or Jones. I need to see move of Hutson to put him in the convo.
First D call up is Regular or Stecher, depending on who they try and sneak though.
Second forward is probably Brown but hopefully Dineen but, if its later in the year, maybe Leppanen.
Janmark is probably worth something in the trade market. He would never clear waivers to go down to the farm.
I’m still holding out hope for a Janmark trade – let’s get a 4th rounder!! (he says hopefully)
So, there was one NHL team that didn’t send anyone to the NHL media even in Vegas….. the Edmonton Oilers.
McDavid and Drai historically go and both were scheduled. It came out last week that Bouchard was replacing McDavid.
As it turned out, noone went.
It was mentioned during Friedman’s hit with Stauff yesterday and Stauff chuckled when Friedman noted it and they moved on.
Interesting stuff.
I think this is likely more about the org being mad at the league from something (or many things).
Maybe McDavid, Drai and the team decided that if they went to Vegas almost all the questions to any Oiler representative would be about McDavid’s contract status so it was better to not send anyone.
I’m sure they each would have no issue going and that would be part of it (although it was all about contract questions about Quinn Hughes and Jack Eichel, etc.).
The team not sending anyone is the interesting point, for me.
Unless Hyman is on LTIR to start the season, I also think Janmark is in the AHL and I note LT has Philp on the NHL roster (and Lazar) over Janmark.
$1.4MM plus on the cap is a thing and it matters. There is also a playoff salary cap including iced players (not scratches) and almost $700K over league min (with guys like Philp and Lazar at league min) matter and matters even more if Bowman wants to use accrued cap space to acquire a player in-season that will cost more to ice in the playoffs than the regular season…..
and, before Devil pops in, yes, Henrique and his $3MM could also be at risk for being scratched if they have playoff salary cap issues (due to how its calculated differently from the regular season) and he’s not playing well.
— Love these “chats”
— while i get the choice to opt out of cMd thoughts, for me it’s the top of mind as I prepare mentally for another exciting episode of the Oilers season (sports by the way it’s hard for non fans to appreciate how much of a fans relationship with team is akin to a soap opera or favourite tv show that has a long arch)
— It’s true that we dont know what we dont know and there hasn’t been any leaks
— As sure as I was that management wouldn’t go into the season with the same goalie tandem it was a certainty that they would resign him.
— There is just too much risk in both cases to just let it play out and give him time alone to decide and also just wait and see how goalering will do.
— last year after their start which recall was awful it seemed that he had no reason to re-up.
— Just an odd situation all around.
— He’s not going to play out the season and walk is he?
Put it this way: If he was going to do it, this would be a reasonable approach.
— As a fan I would be very uncomfortable with this
a) Wins Cup, says “I did my duty, time to move on”
b) they don’t win Cup so he decides to move on
— Of course he’s entitled his decision. I would hope he gives the Oilers the chance to maximize their future by agreeing to a trade if he really won’t resign as it’s wreckless to let the season play out hope they win a cup and hope that will convince him to sign long term: IMO
Trade him to San Jose at the deadline!!
First San Jose would give nothing for him if McDavid didn’t agree to a sign and trade. And what are the odds that McDavid waives his NMC to join the Sharks unless they had a miraculous turn around and were in the playoffs at the trade deadline.
Marner held out till after the season ending, because he still wanted to win a cup in Toronto and he wasn’t certain he wouldn’t resign with the Leafs anyway. He did however agree to work with the Leafs prior to free agency to do a sign and trade at least get them something in return from Vegas instead of just cap space.
If this were to occur with McDavid (very unlikely), the opportunity to sign McDavid for 8 years under the current CBA rules instead of, I believe, 6 years and more restrictions on other components of the contract may matter enough to McDavid and the other team to not wait till he is a UFA and net the Oilers a better return than what Toronto got (plus its McDavid not Marner). Still well short of McDavid’s value in a trade, but at least not nothing.
Once he’s decided 100% whether he’s staying or walking, I hope the media verbal changes. The “everything is on the table” wall of smoke is the perfect line to worm it’s way into my head obsessively. Especially when “…we’re trying to find the razors edge… something that works for everybody” and “…no term” are part of the same interview.
If he’s staying then give us a “I’m confident something will get done” so I can stop worrying. If he’s walking, give us a “we’re not negotiating during the season” so I can stuff it in the “worry later” drawer of my brain.
But overall my gut says he signs a short deal after the first 10-20 games if the youth movement is looking promising.