Oilers: Training camp preview Part IV, holding the line

There is no doubt on the top five: Captain Jason Smith, Eric Brewer, Steve Staios, Alexei Semenov and Cory Cross.  Scott Ferguson is the sixth man Prendergast refers to but concedes that the Camrose, AB native shouldn’t consider his position to be guaranteed.  Certainly Ferguson should be considered the favorite for the sixth slot, as his defensive play has been very solid during his Oiler tenure.

Considering how dreadful the power play was last season with Janne Niinimaa in the line up, obviously a prospect with the potential of being a special teams quarterback would have an advantage.

“Marc-Andre Bergeron showed flashes of helping our power play at the end of the season and he was good on the power play in the AHL so we see him as a possibility,” proclaimed Assistant GM Scott Howson.

Prendergast agrees that Bergeron is in the running for an Oiler job.

“Bergeron showed at the end of the year that he could play here.”

Bergeron played in five regular season games and notched two points including a goal.  In his brief NHL stint in 2002-03, Bergeron provided a handful of highlights including a dominating fight against a Calgary Flame, a bone crushing hit on Steve Webb of the Islanders and an often replayed textbook hip check on Dallas’ Brendan Morrow in the playoffs.

Considered too small by many, the 5’10” 190 lb Bergeron has excelled at every level of hockey he has played.  Being named to the first All-Star team for both the QMJHL and also Canadian Major Junior in 2000-01 wasn’t enough; Bergeron was also named Canadian Major Junior Defenseman of the Year that same season.  Last season, Bergeron was selected to the AHL’s second team All-Star squad.  That’s pretty good for a kid who is supposedly too small to play professional hockey.

Edmonton also signed an overaged European drafted last year.  Mikko Luoma, a 27-year-old from Finland, is a solid bet to challenge for a roster spot.  Luoma scored 17 points last season with Tappara and spent a lot of time as the power play quarterback, obviously the ability that interests the Oilers the most.

“I certainly expect Mikko to challenge,” confirmed Prendergast, “His skating is not pretty to look at but he gets the job done.  He moves the puck very well and he keeps things simple and rarely gets in trouble in his own end.  He quarterbacked the power play for Tampere in the playoffs.  We think that at his age and what he’s been though in an elite league over there and pressure situations, that he’s going to be a strong candidate to make our team this year.”

Bobby Allen will get another chance to show what he can do after a pretty good season in Hamilton.  Allen played a single game for the Oilers last year as an injury replacement but barely saw any ice time in that contest.  Allen registered 13 points in his 56 AHL games for the Bulldogs.  Not known for his offense, Allen is regarded as solid defensively.  Allen would likely benefit greatly from a top three role with the Toronto Roadrunners moreso than as a press box warmer in Edmonton.

The forgotten player from the Doug Weight trade a couple summers ago is returning to North America.  Jan Horacek will be at camp in just over a week and will play in on this side of the pond after a tumultuous year in Europe.

“Jan is a very physical defensemen and I think playing in Europe he ran into a lot of problems last year in that he spent a lot of time in the penalty box.  A couple of teams that had him didn’t want him because of that but when he played in North America he’s more adept at playing our style,” explained Prendergast, “I think the year of playing away from North America probably did him a lot of good.  We think he’s one of the players who’ll challenge for that seventh defensemen spot in Edmonton.”

The 6’4” 220 lb Czech will play an important role in Toronto if he fails to crack the Oiler line up.

Doug Lynch is one of the most eagerly anticipated prospects the Oilers will have at their training camp.  It will be Lynch’s third Oiler camp and he has been very impressive in both previous ones.  Lynch plays a very solid hard-hitting style similar to Jason Smith and like the Oiler captain, he relies on great positioning skills to overcome a slight lack of mobility.

“We see him as having an outside chance to make the hockey club and more than likely will need some time in the AHL, but, you never know.  It’s tough for a defenseman to step in right away but we certainly see him as a solid pro.”

Considered a darkhorse to make the Oiler squad straight out of the WHL, Lynch is likely destined for the AHL this season but will be high on the list for a call up to the big league.

Mathieu Roy was invited to last fall’s Oiler training camp and was drafted by the team this past June.  Roy had 32 points in 52 games for Val-D’or of the QMJHL last season.  At 6’2” 214 lbs, Roy is poised to begin his pro career in the AHL.

Edmonton recently signed 26-year-old Dan Smith who was originally drafted by the Colorado Avalanche back in 1995 and comes with a great reputation.

“Dan’s a steady defensemen and a very good skater,” described Prendergast, “He’s a good player in the dressing room.  We think he’s a good mix for everything we’re going to have in Toronto.”

Another player with NHL experience was very recently added to the camp roster listing.  Rumun Ndur has seen time with the Atlanta Thrashers, Buffalo Sabres and the New York Rangers but played last season in Austria.  In 52 games with Graz, Ndur totaled just 4 goals and 9 assists.  The 28-year-old will be playing for an AHL contract at best.

A bit of a wild card to consider is Rocky Thompson.  Once a hated member of the archrival Calgary Flames, Thompson later moved on the Florida Panthers but played for their AHL team in San Antonio last season.  Thompson, renowned for his pugilistic tendencies, managed 12 points last season but recorded 275 penalty minutes in 79 games.  Previously made a winger by Calgary, Thompson has reverted back to his natural blueline position.  It is uncertain where he’ll play but it is a sure thing that with Thompson in camp, there will be fireworks.

There are three virtually unknown players invited to camp who will be hoping to earn AHL jobs or at least a position with the Columbus Cottonmouths of the ECHL.

Brent Henley is one such player.  At 6’7” 245 lbs, the “Henley Giant” will certainly be noticeable on the ice as the towering blueliner uses his size to his advantage.

“Brent Henley is a kid who played in the ECHL in Carolina.  Whether he’s able to play at the AHL level this year we’re not so sure, but he’s worked very hard this summer so we’ll give him a fair opportunity here in camp and hope that transpires to a shot for him in Toronto,” described Prendergast, “He’s a tough kid, very aggressive and a bit of a late bloomer.  His dad was an RCMP officer so as a kid they moved around quite a bit so he never really got established in one area.  Finally he went down to the ECHL last year and he established himself as a tough guy and we scouted him and we liked what we saw and think there’s some potential there.  With his size and his weight, the next level up to the AHL, and certainly the NHL, is a big jump for this kid but we’re going to give him an opportunity to develop in the system.”

Born in the Edmonton suburb of Leduc, Curtis Sheptak is returning to the team that originally drafted him back in 1994.  The 160^th pick that year, Sheptak played for Schwenningen of the German Elite League (DEL) and recorded a dozen points in 52 games.

“Curtis played in Europe for a couple years,” Prendergast said. “He’s proven that he can play in the American League and he can play forward as well as defense.  We’re looking for some leadership down in Toronto, older guys that we think can come in and help and Curtis has a chance to be a role player down there.  He’s a good penalty killer and a good leader so we’ll see how it goes for him at training camp.”

The final blueliner coming to camp is Peter Hogan who the Oilers now have under contract.

“(Peter) finished the season in Hamilton last year and we think he’s going to be one of our defensemen in Toronto this year,” recalled Prendergast, “He moves the puck very well.  He’s a very smart hockey player.  We’ll bring him into camp and give him a taste of what it’s like here and see how it goes for him back in Toronto.”

Edmonton’s training camp opens on September 12^th at Millennium Place in Sherwood Park, AB with a weekend of day sessions open to the public.