Oilers Insider Hockey News and Rumors

2 Opportunities...One Missed?

2011-07-02T17:13:00.000-07:00

The Oilers have been seizing opportunities over the past two days. Questions might arise now that Tomas Vokoun has signed in Washington for $1.5 million for one year, is did the Oilers miss their first opportunity?Word is that Vokoun and the Oilers went as far as discussing not only the possibility of signing but the terms. It's here they couldn't agree. We've heard Vokoun was asking for 5 years

What's Next?

2011-07-02T11:59:00.000-07:00

Surprising many, especially after GM Steve Tambellini said it would be a slow day on July 1st, the Edmonton Oilers did a lot to change aspects of their team. Addressing holes in the toughness, face-off and penalty kill, they also added a sink or swim reclamation project on defense.For the most part, Oilers management are getting good grades from media and fans on the moves they made and it's

Monday Either Goes At a Snails Pace or Lighting Speed for Oiler Fans

2011-02-26T13:19:00.000-08:00

Two and a half days remaining. It's all the Edmonton Oilers have left in terms of time to make up their minds about the futures of some of the players on their roster. Kovalev, Sturm, Neal, Stewart, Versteeg, Fisher and others are all names that have already been moved. Ales Hemsky, Dustin Penner and to a less extent Sam Gagner remain some of the few viable forward options for some twenty teams

Is a Schenn for Hemsky Trade Really an Option?

2011-02-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

There is always lots of speculation in this final week leading up to the NHL trade deadline. Some of it's so far out there you wonder how it gained any steam. Some of it more on par to a trade two GM's might actually be working on. Here is what seems to be floating around currently in respect to the Edmonton Oilers.L.A. Kings --The newest rumor links the Kings to Oilers with Brayden Schenn coming

Why Edmonton will Trade One of Hemsky or Penner In Less Than One Week

2011-02-21T22:13:00.001-08:00

While few can confirm it, I'm here to tell you that it is a lock that one of Edmonton's Ales Hemsky or Dustin Penner will be traded by the Feb 28th NHL trade deadline.How could I possibly know this you ask? Especially considering there has been nothing but non-detailed rumors on the possible trades actually happening? The answer is simple. It is a sellers market in the NHL.In fact, like no other

Which Penner Are We Dealing With Here?

2010-11-11T14:46:00.000-08:00

There's a few things I'm eagerly anticipating for tonights (or at least this later afternoons) game against the Red Wings. In fact so much so, that in my absence from posting on this site due to the hustle and bustle of real life hitting me like a dump truck, I took a few mintues to share my thoughts.Tonights game will tell me a lot about the new make-up of this team...Which Penner Will We Get?

Game One: Horcoff Looked Like a Leader by the Prof

2010-10-08T11:32:00.000-07:00

No surprise: the Oilers named veteran centre Shawn Horcoff as their new team captain on Wednesday. Bit of a surprise: Horcoff looked like a great leader on Thursday, playing well and seeming to inspire the young Oilers on and off the ice.Here’s a bit of Oilers’ history. Horcoff is the15th player to wear the “C” since the team joined the WHA (in 1972) and the NHL (in 1979). Take a pencil: how many

The Oilers are Buying In

2010-09-28T08:51:00.000-07:00

There is a funny scene in the movie The Replacements, when coach Jimmy McGinty asks his players what scares them on the field. Clifford Franklin talks about bees, and the whole conversation goes off the rails. But then, Shane Falco (Keanu Reeves) adds: You're playing and you think everything is going fine. Then one thing goes wrong. And then another. And another. You try to fight back, but the

Like Looking for My 6th Ex-wife? : by the Prof

2010-09-20T20:44:00.000-07:00

Two years ago, at Comox’s Filberg Festival, I heard Fred Eaglesmith tell the crowd at his musical show that he was looking for his sixth ex-wife. People laughed. Of course, the joke was the mix of optimism and realism such a statement evokes – one would think that, after five failed marriages, a bit of reality would set in. Alas, one is always hoping for better – thinking that this time is THE

Bummer

2010-09-03T08:58:00.000-07:00

I was hoping the delay was one of simple timing. That Comrie would eventually be signed.He was-- just with the wrong team. This is great news for Mike Comrie, but I'm disappointed that Comrie will now be playing in Pittsburg instead of Edmonton as he signed a league minimum 1 yr deal worth $500,000.Steve Tambellini did say that the likelihood the Oilers would sign more forwards was slim, so I

Michaels the Man...

2010-08-24T08:47:00.000-07:00

The Oilers have officially announced Rod Phillips replacement for Edmonton Oilers play-by-play radio broadcasts -- Jack Michales of the Alaska Aces in the ECHL.A tidbit from the Alaska Sports Broadcast Network tells us the following about Michaels. "Last season, Michaels was selected to do the play-by-play for the NHL Network's broadcast of the 2008 ECHL All-Star Game, his third such honor. Jack

Does Pisani To the Hawks Mean Comrie to the Oilers?

2010-08-18T21:49:00.000-07:00

As was already reported today by a number of sites, Fernando Pisani is no longer a man waiting by the phone and waiting for a job. After reports that not a single team had called Pisani and not a single GM expressed interest in the somewhat healthy veteran --including Oilers GM Steve Tambellini -- that all changed on Wednesday.In what took very little time to finalize, Pisani signed a one year,

Something to Talk About

2010-08-10T13:38:00.000-07:00

Were a ways away from talking on-ice product, but the NHL isn't exactly quiet these days. Even the Oilers have given us some news worth taking a look at:PPVNo more PPV's? I'm all for it.According to a press release by the Edmonton Oilers, a new agreement between the Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames and Rogers Sportsnet means fans can watch the remaining games on the Oilers schedule not normally

Oilers Sign Martin Gerber

2010-08-06T15:40:00.000-07:00

At first this looks like an odd signing. The Oilers have 3 goalies. Two of these in Deslauriers and Dubnyk are young and fit the mold on a kids getting the majority of the time style team. To boot, both also have newly and barely dry inked deals.The Oilers also have a veteran in Nikolai Khabibulin, who to say the least, has a future that is somewhat up in the air. It's not so much that the Oilers

Great Deal for Brule

2010-07-27T16:06:00.000-07:00

Big day for the Edmonton Oilers. The franchise has inked a key part of this coming season and a real problem come arbitration if things went off the board a bit, by signing forward Gilbert Brule to a 2 yr deal worth $1.85 million per.Edmonton wanted to get to a situation where trading Brule wasn't going to be a "have-to" scenario. With the recent rulings in arbitration, it became critical to get

2nd Chances

2010-07-23T18:29:00.000-07:00

This has been a slow week in hockey if you're a hockey fan. Outside of the fiasco that is Ilya Kovalchuk, not a lot of newsworthy items have been available for us "need to know" hockey fans to chew on.A few items came to us over the past couple of days. They've been all about former Oilers, getting second chances.Robert Nilsson Signs in Russia and Kent Nilsson Is No Longer With the OilersNo one

9 Lives, 1 Goal and a Partridge in a Pear Tree

2010-07-15T23:41:00.000-07:00

With the summer here and plenty of action involving new faces, rookies, trades, signings and future plans, whenever one needs to get a reaction from a veteran of any team involved in said maneuver/transaction, where does one head? To the golf course.It never ceases to amaze me that in almost every interview with an already proven hockey player, that interview takes place on a golf course. I tell

Rob Daum Should Be Pi$$ed

2010-07-14T19:44:00.000-07:00

The Oilers are set to name a new head coach for the Oklahoma City Barons. From the sounds of it Todd Nelson is the man who'll take the reigns.Nelson has some experience in both the AHL and the NHL (as an assitant coach with the Thrashers) and from all accounts while he seems qualified for the role, isn't likely the first choice of Oilers GM Steve Tambellini. I have no good authority on this mind

Available PK Machines

2010-07-12T09:34:00.000-07:00

The Oilers have made a lot of changes. They were soft, they added toughness. They had players who lacked effort and character and they added character guys. They had issues with morale in the dressing room and they cleared out almost everyone who trained, managed or could influence the team in that respect.The Oilers still have a few puzzle pieces left to fit into place.On that list is a need for

Cooling the Jets But Looking at the Blue

2010-07-11T13:04:00.000-07:00

The title of this post makes it sound like I'm going to give my two cents on the Winnipeg talk. I'm not. Instead I'm giving my three cents on the newfound and possibly unwarranted enthusiasm in Edmonton.It's easy to get excited. The Oilers just came off a prospect camp where rookies looked great against other rookies. Edmonton also has the first overall draft selection and two top end prospects

Some Oiler Rumblings

2010-07-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

We haven't heard much in respect to the Oilers since prospect camp started. It's almost like management took some time and ignored the dealings in the NHL to watch the kids play like so many Edmontonians did.But, not all is totally quiet...Mike ComrieTo further an article Brownlee did on Oilers Nation today regarding Mike Comrie and his status with the Oilers, we did a little digging to see if

Oilers and Flyers Need to Talk

2010-07-09T15:45:00.000-07:00

News came today that Nikolai Zherdev was signed by the Flyers to a one year $2 million dollar deal. When word first broke that Zherdev wanted to return and it was the Flyers who were interested, everyone seemed to ask the same questions -- how could the Flyers possibly afford Zherdev?The $2 million dollar number Zherdev signed for one year is far less than the rumored reports Zherdev was seeking

Is Simon Gagne Too Good To Pass Up?

2010-07-08T22:51:00.001-07:00

Darren Dreger reported something interesting on Thursday. A tweet in the afternoon read "Some NHL execs think Philly will place Gagne on waivers, if a trade isn't found very soon."It sounds like something that wouldn't catch the eyes and ears of many and it didn't even find its way to the TSN site, but this is pretty big news. Simon Gagne is a legit first line winger in the NHL. Despite some

Ryan Smyth Not An Option For Oilers

2010-07-07T23:25:00.000-07:00

With all due respect to Ryan Rishaug of TSN, tweeting that Ryan Smyth would be a good fit for the Oilers was Rishaug simply tweeting his opinion. He's entitled to it, but in his position he might want to be more careful with his words.Rishaug has been nothing shy of extremely informative since joining the twitter world. He got some great scoops at the draft, he's been adding updated news on

Nabokov 4yrs in KHL?

2010-07-07T11:24:00.000-07:00

It's not Oiler related, but it looks like big ticket goaltender UFA Evgeni Nabokov has signed a 4yr deal with the KHL. Not much of a home these days for expensive goalies in the NHL.More as we get it...