This is an interesting signing for the organization for several reasons.

First, he’s a 25 year old prospect that has had a bit of a diamond in the rough type of career. The Yale grad, who was un-drafted, started his career in the ECHL where Mark turned his hard work into some huge minutes, and a coming of age story with the Barons. One that smacked the Oilers on the mouth in the half-lockout season when Arco looked magical with Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle. He produces with great line mates, poor line mates, and on the power play in bunches. He’s a prolific AHL scorer, and three years ago no one even knew who he was.

Second, it was rumored that Arcobello was considering overseas play when the Barons postseason ended. I hope he did this, and I like that he subtly showed his hand while not giving away his “tell”. However, both he and the Oilers find value in one more year, and ironically his worth might continue to be more farm-centric in the next 365 days – and that’s good. As MacTavish looks towards steering the Barons into more of a fertile ground for young prospects, Mark Arcobello can fill that role, as well as a younger player with three years of pro experience. After 2013, there may not be many of those types of guys left with the Barons. In that dual role, we’ll see where he hits the Edmonton depth chart. However, we’ll all be grateful to have him up his worth while strongly aiding the youngsters *(both current and incoming).

*It will be interesting to see if Josh Green gets nudged out of the equation as a result of Arcobello. Green, only on an AHL deal, might remain as captain, but wouldn’t it be better to have a strong leader AND a guy that was on the ice for 104 goals last season? Don’t strain yourself answering that one. This also brings up the hunch that maybe, just maybe, the whole notion of “vet leadership” is being redefined moving forward. I like that.

Third, this makes sense for Mark. He began as a wing player, moved to center out of necessity, and has really accelerated quickly with a full head of steam. He’s now one of the most naturally gifted AHL scorers, and with likely no NHL suitors around, he’s chosen to stay within the one NHL organization that “gets him” the most. The Oilers haven’t been tricked, he’s a legit player. THIS is the deal that the Oilers should have offered to Colin McDonald after he won the scoring title as a Baron in 2011 scoring 42 goals. Perhaps the org won’t let this one get away as easily.

In the end, this is a win-win for Oklahoma City and Edmonton. The question becomes, “Where does he fit on the depth roster?” To be quite honest, the signing of another Yale centerman in Andrew Miller nearly had me convinced that Arcobello wasn’t valuable enough to the Oilers moving into next season. Instead they’ll roll with both, and perhaps mold a bit of a brotherhood between the Bulldogs.

Congrats Marcobello! You’ve earned it.

The post Mark Arcobello Earns One Year Extension With Oilers appeared first on Tend The Farm.

We’re still hoping for the best and want to extend our thoughts and prayers to the family and friends of Kristians and hope for a safe return.

UPDATE: The body has been confirmed to be that of Kristians Pelss. Our condolences to his family, friends, and the entire Oilers, Barons, and Oil Kings organizations.

Timeline after the jump:

Monday, June 10
-Pelss returns home to Latvia.

Tuesday, June 11
(2AM Eastern European Time/6PM Central Time Monday) – Reports received by Latvian authorities of a male jumping from a bridge into the Daugava River. [LINK]

Thursday, June 13
-Pelss’ family files missing persons report after not hearing from Pelss since Monday. Attempts to reach his cell phone were unsuccessful.

-Report from journalist links Pelss to the incident from Tuesday. These reports are later found to be unconfirmed. [LINK]

-Edmonton Oilers release statement regarding the disappearance of Pelss, stating they are aware of the situation and are trying to gather information. [LINK]

Friday, June 14
-Article with comments from Martin Gernat and Martin Marincin regarding Pelss’ disappearance: [LINK]

-Reports released that a body has been recovered from the banks of the river. Pelss’ family called to help identify the body. [LINK]

Saturday, June 15
-The body has been confirmed to be that of Kristians Pelss. [LINK]

Stay tuned for additional updates as more information comes available.

The post Oilers Prospect and OKC Barons Winger Kristians Pelss Missing in Latvia (Timeline) appeared first on Tend The Farm.

The Edmonton Oilers organization, including the Edmonton Oil Kings, Oklahoma City Barons and affiliate Stockton Thunder, is aware of the reports regarding Kristians Pelss going missing while visiting Riga, Latvia, this week. There has been contradictory information reported, at times, and we are trying to confirm the facts. Once we are able to do that, we will be able to offer further comment. At this time, our thoughts and prayers are with the Pelss family. Kristians spent two years with the Oil Kings before beginning his pro career in the Oilers system, splitting last season between the Barons and the Thunder.

As the hours have now turned into days, it is now widely known that Kristians Pelss, age 20, has passed away.

I didn’t know Kristians personally, but I did shake his hand, look him in the eye, and thank him for entertaining on the ice so well. That’s enough for me to be devastated, confused, and heartbroken about this news. Truthfully, in many ways there are fans that watched him play that are experiencing the same depth of hurt that I am, some maybe more than others. When a piece of the hockey family and community is suddenly missing, it leaves an emotional and physical hole. This is one of those instances.

In the world of sports writing, eulogies for teams ending their season are written as tongue in cheek dark comedy pieces, and are typically worth your time as they allow some closure. In real life, however, eulogies for people never fully allow for closure. They don’t highlight the ups and downs of a season, but rather a life. They don’t poke fun at struggle, but rather embrace it in tragedy. They don’t get an ending period followed by a three month off season and a capital letter when training camp opens. Instead they are statements grander than this, they are celebrations of life much greater than a profession. For as tragic as the passing of Kristians might be, the goal moving forward has to be about celebration of life, of passion, of a job well done, of a life stopped way too short.

I’ve officiated my share of funerals (as a full time minister), and someone once asked me if they ever all just feel like the same thing, as if there were a script for how to comfort loved ones in their darkest hours. My answer is this – no two lives are exactly the same, thus how we remember, cope, grieve, and recover is never a carbon copy of one another. We are far too diverse a world to celebrate each passing the same way. I suppose this is how we find just a small bit of hope when we come to the moment of realizing we may never have another minute with the ones we love.

I can only imagine the sorrow that Kristians family is experiencing at this moment. Most who’ve lost a loved one can empathize to some degree. He was just so young, so full of life, so focused, so determined that it makes the circumstances hurt in ways that we as human beings can’t fully process. Hang in their Pelss family and friends, remember the core of Kristians life, remember it fondly.

The post that I had originally scheduled about Kristians will not appear on this site because remembering his life is much more robust than just remembering his hockey career, but I’ll pull one of the paragraphs from that prospect report because it reads as bittersweet:

Pelss is a player that I find impossible to not cheer for. The Latvian Lamenter has the potential to be a headstrong winger. Gifted with a great smile, contagious spirit, and the type of hockey game that people crave – he’s my underdog in 2013.

Kristians, your time was brief, but your impression will be felt much longer. We’ll never forget the one season you gave us in OKC. You’re already missed.

The post Kristians Pelss, The Story You Never Want To Write Or Read appeared first on Tend The Farm.

What a shot (did it go in?). Photo by Steven Christy.

Our current Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden, once said something about toughness. Always good for a memorable quote round-up, Biden said, “Life is a matter of really tough choices”. This isn’t a comment that breaks new ground on what life is all about, but it does point to the ability the Veep has to be openly honest about the state of the country, even if he’s occasionally way off base. (he was actually speaking in reference to going after tax cuts for the wealthy *shoulder shrugs*) . So I’ll steal that mantra for just a bit, and place it upon the shoulders of one Oilers prospect with some tough choices on the horizon.

Tyler Pitlick just completed his second year as a pro hockey player. He’s been relatively interesting to watch for many reasons. When he hit the Barons roster out of training camp in 2011, he would later be known as one of the few Oilers prospects not to be placed in the ECHL for a spell. Martindale, Abney, Hamilton, etc. all earned their stripes in Stockton before getting clobbered in the AHL. For Pitlick, he was a fit in a Barons lineup as a tough board play guy, who had some incredible potential as a scorer.

The 31st overall pick has shown brief flashes of grand play. Nowhere near his 62 poitns in 56 games with Medicine Hat, Pitlick has struggled to find his niche within an organization that desperately needs high picks to back fill the depth chart on their roster. Between knee injuries and concussions in the same season, Pitlick struggled mightely in 2012-13. The lockout didn’t help, but he just couldn’t stay healthy enough to find consistency. In the 2012 Calder Cup run by the Barons, Pitlick wielded his might scoring touch, and scored 7 points in 13 games. It felt like a coming out party, so to speak, and the excitement of the sophomore season began. He’d return to the doldrums in the first 20 games of the half-season lockout.

Injuries aside, Pitlick has been asked by coaches on the farm to do a couple of things – be tough on the boards, cradle the puck with care, crash/bang/hit opposing players off the puck, and start to stretch your offense towards the net. He’s done these things with such a slow pace that you wondered if he was fully grasping the need they were trying to convey.

Several long droughts, another knee injury, and a return to the lineup only allowed Tyler to net 3 goals and 7 assists in 44 games played. That’s production quality, that despite playing fewer games, has gone downhill pretty quickly. But as we saw a season ago, he’d have a pretty good postseason scoring 2 goals and 4 assists in 16 games, and was used heavily on a third line featuring captain Josh Green and centerman C.J. Stretch. They faced stiff competition on the ice, and the bets favored Pitlick scoring nil, but he managed his moments very well. He had some moments of defensive forward play, and I think he may have won me back momentarily.

Pitlick, like Hamilton, is a guy that just can’t stay healthy enough to get a full head of steam. When he does, he starts to move towards being the player you think he could be. Is that really enough? As of right now, no, mainly because you have Toni Rajala having a ridiculous rookie season, and a change in GM’s that necessitates a “hurry up” mentality towards prospects. Pitlick might be in trouble.

Even if he puts up Philippe Cornet numbers in season three (I don’t think he will), the struggle becomes whether or not you’ve seen enough to keep him around. I believe. Most don’t. I’ve talked myself into not believing.

The key for Pitlick moving forward will be health and momentum. He plays a solid game to start the season, runs that play downhill with both legs pumping, he might be a kid to watch. If Craig MacTavish’s comments become fully realized, Pitlick will have opportunities to be the best prospect he can be. Is he ready to assume that role? Maybe and I hope so.

The post Prospect Appraisal: Tyler Pitlick appeared first on Tend The Farm.

Farewell, Teemu Hartikainen

Teemu Hartikainen has officially signed a two-year deal to leave the Edmonton Oilers organization to play for Ufa in the KHL. Details on how much have not been released, but know that he’s being paid well. Likely moreso than a re-up with the Oilers. However, there’s such a deep well of story telling that is tied to the three year AHL/NHL run of Hartikainen, and for some reason many are willing to discount the journey.

At just barely twenty years old, speaking virtually no English, Hartikainen or Harski for short, was thrown into a torrid relationship with the Oilers. Drafted in round six of the 2008 NHL entry draft, all eyes were laser focused on the Jordan Eberle pick in round one. He was a Finnish player with good hands, good presence on the ice, and a tenacity around the edges of the ice. His feisty nature is likely what sparked the drafting of him to begin with. He was disappointed from the get-go about not making an NHL roster, but those in Edmonton wanted to watch him closely to see how he translated to North American hockey. He eventually took it in stride, and he’ll go down in history as the first Oklahoma City Barons player to score a goal. He did so in the first game ever in OKC, and in the middle of a 6-1 undressing care of the Houston Aeros. 65 AHL games later, he’d have 47 points alongside 12 NHL games with 5 points. However, Hartikainen was a grinder, something the Oilers needed, yet the powers-that-be in Edmonton were unsure how to use.

In his second pro year he continued his solid pace through the American League. This time he’d play more at the NHL level than he had in the previous season, and with some offseason tutelage from Oilers scouts, Hartikainen learned to exist in a world where he didn’t have to score goals, and where puck responsibility and tenacious board play was enough. 51 games played in the AHL yielded 32 points, and a boost in NHL games allowed him to play 17 games and score 5 points. It was a transition year, in terms of what he was doing on the NHL level, and everyone gave him a pass. After all, he was just a second year N. American pro player. He had time.

In the final season of his entry level deal he seemed poised to get the roster spot it felt like he’d earned, and with a new coach that clearly wanted to move things in a positive direction, Hartikainen felt like a solid answer to the baby soft tendencies of the Oilers strength game. The lockout happened, and the great I in team gave us a half-season of amazing All-Star Game like play from Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Justin Schultz but seemingly buried some into the lineup. Time on ice changed, went towards the NHL guys, and even caused some chemistry issues team-wide that only a handful could have predicted would occur. Yet Harski played well. Shoulder issues aside, he was a guy built for tough hockey play. Shoulder healed, he’d slightly tweak it while playing 23 games with the Oilers, but he’d post some really brutal numbers. Ralph Krueger was a man that knew a thing or two about coaching, but he had blemishes that went unchallenged. Even Yakupov felt the force of this as he’d get weird placements in the roster while still producing. Hartikainen did the things he did well – movement in front of the net, puck possession, great hands – but it was another really awful year for the Oilers, and the addition of Mike Brown felt like a stamp of disapproval on any prospect grinding out minutes looking for NHL time.

As Hartikainen now finishes his three year run with the Oilers, his RFA status dictates that the Oilers have his rights despite his ability to play for a reasonably good team in Ufa where he’ll be watched for production.

The story of Hartikainen is an interesting one. Circumstance dicatated a lot of his direction in his first years as a pro, and that’s a real shame. Imagine if the young Finn played in an organization that wasn’t as desperate. Would he felt less pressure to perform? Would he have had a bit more time to come up for air? Would it be a no-brainer to sign him at least another season? You bet. The Oilers need a lot of things – leadership, increasingly better goaltending, defenders than can defend, back-end strength on the third and fourth lines – and I believe that Hartikainen could have owned that final section of need. We all watched, expected him to churn out goals with rapid pace, but he’s just not that type of player. When he spent time on the back-end of the lineup, he was rarely assisted by anyone who didn’t themselves need assistance.

Steve Tambelinni was a difficult man to understand, and with a few interesting pieces to his credit, the bulk of his successes were found in crafting beautiful minor league hockey teams. Managing those highly skilled, highly motivated, well sought after players wasn’t a success, and that leaves an impression.

The final demotion of Hartikainen in 2013 felt like the end of an era for the Finn. With Craig MacTavish into the arena, many will be left without a ticket to watch the lions devour the innocent. Sure Hartikainen could have rolled with the punches, signed an extended year (as CVV and Plante did a year ago), but he wouldn’t earn guaranteed money because it was still unclear where he fit in to the Oilers grand jigsaw puzzle. Instead he did the right thing, and that’s honing his game where he gets the highest paycheck, wins the best minutes, and finds ways to maybe increase his value in N. America while not playing inside its borders.

Hartikainen existed in Oklahoma City as a fine example of what hockey is meant to be. He was a foreign entity with great promise, tough gamesmanship, highly energized skill, and value beyond what you immediately see on paper. He was an original Baron. Easy to cheer for. Cordial in conversation. Delightfully awkward with English. Always fun. Light-hearted. Warm. And most importantly, an honest to goodness human being. As my fellow Oklahomans and I adjusted to the new AHL game, it was as if Teemu was living out our understandings on the ice. He was learning the game of AHL hockey right along with us.

On a semi-warm December afternoon several years ago, the Barons held an outdoor fan skate. This wasn’t anything different for this group of guys, because they loved the community they were in despite it not being their desired destination. Me, my wife, and my daughter headed to the rink, laced ‘em up, and hit the ice. As we skated circles around Paajarvi and many others, there sat Hartikainen with a bundle of children on his lap. Like Santa, he had a grim permanently plastered on his face, smiled for each photo, and won the hearts of mom’s for a lifetime. There stood my daughter, who’d channeled her father’s inner-love of a Finnish forward, waiting to have her photo taken with Teemu. She crawled into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her. She smiled. He smiled. It was perfect. As she scooted off his lap he turned, and in the most Finnish of accents simply said, “Thank You”. She, without missing a beat, said “You’re Welcome”.

In that brief but heart tugging moment, I found a bit of real life in a prospect that had been talked, blogged, podcasted, interviewed, and critiqued since he was a youngster. As he melded his profession within the Oilers organization, the great and powerful Oz watched with even more anticipation. Yet he was as human as they come.

With a life ahead of him that is bound to be successful, I’m slow to give a verdict on his worth ethic, chances of making it, or promise to one day return to N. America to play hockey. How great were you at your job after three years? He’s always functioned as someone that did more than just play hockey, he lived it. Passion, and passion alone, can’t be measured on a scale that a newspaper writers have thrown together.

You take the pieces of Hartikainen’s game, throw in the human element, realize he has the rest of his life before him, and suddenly you understand why he’d choose to play KHL hockey. Not because he gave up on the Oilers, didn’t work hard, or even prove he had things that people want – it’s because he lives life by his standards. Rather than allow his NHL club to throw him to the waiver wire in the upcoming season, he’ll choose his own path. At least for now. That’s admirable, and chances are, you’d do the same thing.

I love Teemu Hartikainen, rough hockey playing edges and all. I hate that he’s leaving Oklahoma City, Edmonton, and the NHL. I bid a found farewell to one of the original Barons. Go get ‘em Harski.

The post Love, Hate, And An Original Baron: Farewell Teemu Hartikainen appeared first on Tend The Farm.

Rajala arms. Photo by Steven Christy.

Craig MacTavish is making tidal wave statements these days. Between Hemsky and Horcoff, alignment of farm with NHL club, and swift coaching changes, he’s a man on a mission. These statements, made in a week’s time, are perhaps more potent than anything Steve Tambellini uttered in his years as GM of the Oilers.

I’ll land softly on one of his directives, and that’s the placement of players on the farm. Todd Nelson, maybe to a fault, found value in a well balanced roster that earned wins and aided prospects. In that balance, he found great success in terms of winning percentages. That’s been great for OKC, its fans, and likely the players contained on its roster. But could it be that winning actually worked in reverse for Todd Nelson? Did it hurt the prospect growth of players on the farm? The new Oilers GM might think so. Let’s discuss.

Here is the direct quote from Craig MacTavish on this topic. Store it away for times when you leave the Cox Center angry about a 6-0 Barons loss.

via Oilers Now radio show:

Our coaches down there and our general manager down there have just done an unbelievably outstanding job rebuilding that team after the lockout and got it to a position that now we’re in the semi-finals again down there.

I know that our coaches and our manager down there are looking for direction on who to play, and we’ll be working with them and giving them probably more direction than we have in the past, and even to reduce the numbers down there. It’s easier to say now because we’ve got a lot more prospects than we have had in the past. We’ve got guys coming in on defence – Klefbom and Marincin and Musil and Davidson and Fedun have all played really well down there – Davidson and Fedun have, and the other three guys I mentioned are all going to be prospects for us. Those are guys that have to play. It’s an easier mindset and an easier decision and an easier strategy to execute now that we have these players coming in that are closer to playing and are legitimate prospects.

He also went on to discuss stylistic changes that will need to be tweaked to match the philosophy and play of that in Edmonton. Jonathan Willis commented on this perfectly:

MacTavish conveys two items in this interview that wouldn’t normally go together: the desire to author significant change in Oklahoma, and happiness with the work of the people in charge down there. The obvious conclusion is that MacTavish believes there simply wasn’t enough input coming from the parent club over the previous season.

Out of one mouth comes two words, as careful as can be. As a fan of the Oklahoma City Barons I believe that with the necessary changes that MacT presents, our mindset will need to change as well. You may hate every minute of it, but it’s coming.

To allow more input from the Edmonton Oilers within the AHL farm team means greater expansion of roles for all prospects, or at least I assume so. This means teams get younger, less vet heavy, and probably a bit more prone to wander away from winning big games. This isn’t always the case, but it sure happens quite a bit.

OKC has been privy to three incredibly winsome seasons. Some say this is good for the team and the city and they’d be right, but at what cost?

Apparently MacTavish, who’s willing to give his stamp of approval on “them”, feels as if the prospects have been buried in favor of winning games. You might consider that reading between the lines just a bit, and perhaps I am, but when you make a statement like “Those are the guys that have to play” it means so much more than winning. It’s a turn towards farming players who’ll be the future of the Edmonton Oilers, and despite how much we as Barons fans might hate it, that’s the future of our team.

Ironically enough during the NHL lockout in 2012 we saw a team that had little prospect presence beyond players that were young, but already a shoe in for the Oilers roster (Hall, Ebs, Nuge, Schultz). This greatly devalued one of the goals of minor league hockey, and that’s tending to prospects. One half season lost for most equals one half season less worth of honing your skills. That was a problem.

My plea is simple, and it’s two-fold. First, be prepared to see a Barons team that is far and away from the win-oriented product we’ve seen in recent years. Instead, find the process to be of worth more than any thing else. Second, don’t give your heart away to players. When you shift from winning good to farming good the prospect spotlight shines bright, fast, and hard. With increased minutes per player you also get less time to look really good. No four year turnaround for new Oilers prospects, and for some it’s less than two years (Andrew Miller, for example, is on a one year ELC starting next season). I like this aspect of hockey, that being prospect drive, because I also have a deep connection to NHL hockey. Watching both sync in one harmonious flow is really quite riveting. Yet for the vast majority of Oklahoma City, this has been a partial problem with the attendance figures – players are unfamiliar.

To answer the original question, which do you prefer, winning or developing, I cop out and say both. And depending on who’s asking, you’ll likely get a different set of answers. Most Barons fans want winning. Most Oilers fans want development. Let’s agree to meet in the middle while fully realizing churning out players will always be more valuable than anything else.

The post Wins vs. Development, Which Do You Prefer (It Depends)? appeared first on Tend The Farm.

In Todd We Trust. Photo by Steven Christy.

At the time of Ralph Krueger’s hiring as the new head coach of the Edmonton Oilers, I quickly saw the subsequent re-up of Oklahoma City Barons coach, Todd Nelson, to be nothing more than a promise. A promise that he’d continue to be a big part of shaping the young players on the farm in Oklahoma City, and perhaps a chance to take the helm of the Oilers if Krueger didn’t pan out. Krueger was a good man. His decisions weren’t perfect (I’m with the majority of fans on the placement of Yak being the strangest thing). He got one half-season. He didn’t pan out. Now he’s done. A year ago, had you told me this would unfold, I would have told you that A) no way Steve Tambellini is still calling the shots when this went down, and B) Todd Nelson would get first crack at the head coaching job in the NHL. I would have been fifty percent correct.

It appears that in the coming hours Dallas Eakins will be named the new head man in the Edmonton Oilers locker room, thus posing quite the predicament for Todd Nelson, and perhaps the Oklahoma City Barons.

Nelson and Eakins have been in some incredible head-to-head coaching battles in the last three seasons. Whether it was Linus Omark scoring six goals in one game, or a quest for a spot in the Calder Cup Finals, the familiarity between the two runs deep. Although the Marlies own the head-to-head wins, each one of those games was highly entertaining, and featured some really headstrong coaching decisions.

Nelson is slightly younger (44 vs. 46). Eakins played more NHL games (120 vs. 3). Both have had two years of NHL assistant experience. Nelson has coached in various leagues and organizations (AHL, UHL, NHL). Eakins has been all Toronto, all the time (AHL, NHL, all with Maple Leafs ties). Eakins has coached a Marlies team for four seasons, posted 30+ wins in his first two, 40+ his last two. Nelson has coached a Barons team for three straight seasons, posted 40+ all three seasons. Eakins made the playoffs in those seasons twice. Nelson made the playoffs in all three.

On paper, it’s odd to choose Eakins over Nelson.

The message hear is not necessarily wins vs. losses, postseason vs. non-postseason, experience vs. inexperience, no there’s much more at stake with this hiring. It’s about Craig MacTavish owning his decisions, and surprisingly enough, that’s fine with me.

I’m a huge fan of Todd Nelson’s bulk of work. He’s kind, cordial, easy-going, and intelligent when you speak to him directly. You can understand why the prospects in Oklahoma City (and non-prospects as well) value his opinion and understand his coaching habits. He’s a winner, and he shares that virtue with his team.

Yet it’s very clear that Craig MacTavish is going to make calculated decisions, live with the ramifications of them, but always have direction. He sees something, perhaps systematically, in the way that Eakins moves his squads that might be absent from Nelson’s resume. Maybe it’s how he’s handled the media in Toronto. It could be that Eakins just interviews better, and MacTavish liked that. Regardless, it’s hard to argue that choosing Eakins over Nelson is a bad decision because either would be a gamble at this point.

That leaves Todd Nelson blowing like chaff in the wind. Where does he go from here when a great rival takes the throne that was sculpted for his taking? Greener pastures, that’s where.

Here is what he won’t do in the coming weeks and months.

He won’t move laterally. Here’s what I mean. He won’t go and coach a team similar to the market he’s currently within. No Texas teams. No Iowa Aeros. None of that. He’ll move into a spot where he gets the most forward moving awareness, and that could be a place like Toronto or Hamilton or something equivalent.

He won’t accept an assistant NHL job. He’s been there, done that, already bought the t-shirt. Moving forward he’ll want full coaching control over his team, preferably in the NHL. He’s earned that right, and I think he fully realizes this.

He won’t stay long in Oklahoma City. This is the most difficult pill to swallow for Barons fans, and probably for Oilers fans as well, who’ve been fortunate to see winning teams go deep into the postseason for three straight years despite those teams being minor league farm teams. With Eakins in the driver’s seat, this would be a fine opportunity for Nelson to explore his options outside OKC. If he hasn’t already done so, I’d be surprised. Remember, he’s in what we assume is the upcoming second year of his two-year coaching extension in OKC, with the likelihood that there’s some contractual wiggle room for “better” coaching spots.

He won’t wait it out. MacT is here to stay. Unless Eakins rolls out the worst season in NHL history, Todd Nelson could be waiting to take that Oilers spot for another three or four years. No one would wait that one out. No one.

Here is what he will do.

He will exercise whatever option he has in his contract to find an upgrade. He’s earned the option to do this, and the Barons will wish him well.

He will make a move that has more long-term, lasting power.

He will find success wherever he goes. He is a very good coach who understands the nuts and bolts of the game better than most. He knows what a winning formula looks like.

In conclusion, it’s tough to differentiate the coaching careers of both Dallas Eakins and Todd Nelson and point to one shining example of what makes them a better candidate for the Edmonton Oilers job. Both are equally as qualified. The “X” factor for Eakins is probably something we can’t fully understand at this moment, and likewise something we all just need to be comfortable with not understanding, ever. It’s okay. Craig has a plan. As he swings for the fences, hope that he doesn’t tear any down along the way. Here’s to great successes for both Dallas and Todd, good luck.

The post Dallas Eakins Over Todd Nelson, What To Make Of It All appeared first on Tend The Farm.

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Success Hugs. Photo by Rob Ferguson.

George Harrison, now known as the quiet Beatle, spoke one of the greatest quotes I’ve ever heard, and one that goes often unrecognized. A man who had every reason to be jilted by the super group that formed around his childhood friends, instead would become a pillar of stability when the ego’s of the one to his left and the one to his right bubbled to a boiling point. I’ve often wondered if the Beatles remained in tact simply because Harrison was there. His presence, his commitment, his unbridled desire to be the best he could be – he was more than just the quiet Beatle, he was a leader.

He said this, at the height of his bands popularity.

I wanted to be successful, no famous.

Believe it or not, there is a difference between those two things, and George knew this.

Success is simply defined as the accomplishment of an aim or a purpose. By stark contrast, fame is about being well known. Breaking those two words down causes you to understand what Harrison was committed to in his professional life. His goal was to be the best guitarist, songwriter, bandmate he could be. His success was measured by how well he accomplished those goals rather than how many records he wrote or how many fans he attained. Along the way, yes, he became famous, but that was secondary to honing his craft according to the parameters he had set forth. Success was the goal.

The Oklahoma City Barons had a singular voice when the season began. Even with the uncertainty of a lockout, Barons players, coaches, and staff members trumpeted loudly the desire to complete some unfinished business. The business they were referring to was a chance at the Calder Cup. The sour taste of just missing out of the Calder Cup Finals in 2012 lingered well through the summer months and into training camp. Despite a lumpy season, they’d make the playoffs, take a run at getting to the Cup Finals, and again fall just short. For some, it’s easy to announce the failure of their goal, and say that with the goal of AHL Finals play being missed that they weren’t successful. I can see that, I really can. However, let’s return to George Harrison.

Harrison wasn’t the greatest songwriter ever, but he wrote beautiful songs. He wasn’t the most naturally gifted guitar player, but he had a unique way with which he traversed the six strings. He didn’t posess the most beautiful voice, but he had a sensitive tone that perfectly complimented his internal battle with God, life, and the world. Despite not being “the best” in every facet of his life, he was the best version of him.

The Oklahoma City Barons circa 2012-2013 didn’t win the Calder Cup, but they had one of the best April/May turnarounds in recent AHL history. They weren’t the most skilled offensively in the postseason, but Arcobello, Rajala, and Hartikainen scored nearly a point a game (or better) through sixteen amazing matches. Todd Nelson isn’t the most crafty of coaches, but he’s always the most prepared. Like the quiet Beatle, the Barons were the best version of themselves, and that equates to success in every language.

“Neal, it’s minor league hockey. Why speak in such epic tones?” you might ask. Good question. Hockey is first and foremost about entertaining people. We sometimes forget that as fans. We get wrapped up in salaries, wins vs losses, suspensions, and chatter that we devalue the reason sports exist in the first place – simply for pleasure. But there’s an undercurrent in sports, especially minor league sports, that is even greater than entertainment. That’s identity. Who you are, what you are, how you are – things that are fully realized by living life.

The Barons exemplify the stingy spirit of the city in which they play. I’ve always found that amusing and entertaining, that there indeed is a hockey culture in this state despite the lack of fans in the seats. Oklahomans have never been famous for much, but they’ve been successful in a lot. One of those successes is tenacity of spirit. The OKC Barons bled this mantra as well in 2013.

Fame, success, and the difference between those two is pretty far. Despite not being famous, they were successful, and in a weird way, that’s more important than winning Calder Cups. Thank you, Barons, for demonstrating success. We applaud you.

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