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Aaaaaaaaand We Are Back (Almost)

September 3, 2019, 3:29 PM ET [44 Comments]
Sean Maloughney
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Exhale hockey fans we are now in September. Players are back in their respective cities, skating once more.

ROOKIE CAMP

The Oilers rookies and prospects hit the ice Friday with a bout versus the Flames rookies. The Oilers rookies are as followed:

Goalies: Stuart Skinner, Dylan Wells, Oliver Rodrigue

Defense: Jaxon Bellamy, Evan Bouchard, Ethan Cap, Logan Day, Brendan De Jong, Vincent Desharnais, Dmitri Samorukov

Forward: Tyler Benson, Ryan McLeod, Cameron Hebig, Steven Iacobellis, Liam Keeler, Raphael Lavoie, Kirill Maksimov, Cooper Marody, Ostap Safin, Beau Starrett, Jakub Stukel, Nolan Vesey, Kailer Yamamoto

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Rookie camp should be treated the same as pre-season. Seeing players excel is great...but no claims should be made from these kinds of games to make guesses on whether or not players are NHL ready.

Philip Broberg will not be attending camp as he is already overseas prepping for games there. Personally I would have liked to have seen the Oilers management push to have Broberg in North America this season among his peers but I understand the player's desire to stay at least for one more season.

PULJUJARVI WATCH CONTINUES

Jesse Puljujarvi scored a goal in his first game with Karpat and registered an assist in his second game. If fans are shouting to the sky every time Puljujarvi registers a point overseas, it's going to be a long season. Regardless of what happened before, the best thing for the Oilers now is for Puljujarvi to continue having success overseas.

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Connor McDavid will be a player to watch over the next few weeks. The team has still been unnervingly quiet about his status. Connor himself has been skating and stated his leg feels good but it remains to be seen whether or not he will be participating in contact drills in the first few days of training camp. McDavid is not a player to rush back. Let it heal as long as necessary.

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No word yet on any PTO's but I expect Edmonton to extend a hand out to at least some players. Though unlikely, a trade or UFA signing could be in the works, especially if Holland/Tippett feel they are not getting enough out of certain players in training camp.

Yesterday Eklund mentioned Jake Gardiner as an option for Edmonton, and while he would certainly be a better option than some names, I don't see it happening. The Oilers already have Klefbom and Nurse on the left side in their top 4 with names like Jones and Lagesson ready to step up. Unless Edmonton moves out Kris Russell's contract, I don't see them adding a defenseman.

Up front could be another story. Riley Sheahan still does not have a deal with any team and could be a solid PTO. Alternatively, what would fans think if the team tried to bring in Patrick Marleau or Thomas Vanek on a one year deal? Neither is close to being in their prime, yet if the likes of Yamamoto, Benson, and others are not ready to play top 6 minutes, the two mentioned above could represent band-aid solutions.
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