Game 63: Edmonton 5 St.Louis 2

In what was a very frustrating night for the fans at Rexall Place, the Edmonton Oilers did their best to simply give one of the top teams in the league two points. Led by a three point night from defenceman Kevin Shattenkirk and a two goal performance from Andy McDonald, the Blues picked up another two points beating the Oilers 5-2 and moved to within one point of the Western Conference leading Vancouver Canucks. Rookie centre Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored for the second consecutive game and Nick Schultz picked up an assist in his Oilers debut. Netminder Devan Dubnyk allowed three goals on seventeen shots before being replaced by backup Yann Denis, midway through the second period.

Oil Notes: Barker and Peckham Could Be Moved Out of Edmonton

As much as Cam Barker has struggled since returning from an ankle injury, I would be extremely surprised if the Edmonton Oilers don't have teams inquiring about the former third overall selection. When one looks at Barker's stat line this season, nothing stands out and of late, the only one that jumps out is the ugly -8 over his last five games.

Cam Barker Out Three Months

Apparently Cam Barker's ankle was much worse off then was first feared. Tom Renney announced, after the clubs morning skate, that the 25 year old defenceman requires surgery on his injured ankle. Barker will be out of the Oilers lineup for at least the next three months and could very well bring his time as an Edmonton Oiler to an end after only twelve games.

Oil Notes: New Line Combos, Injury Updates and Linus Omark

The Edmonton Oilers returned to practice Tuesday morning out at Millennium Place Arena in Sherwood Park. The players hit the ice for their first post road trip practice and Tom Renney and his coaching staff unveiled some new line combinations. These were the forward units upfront:

Game 10: Edmonton 3 Colorado 1

With Nikolai Khabibulin carrying the load the past ten days, goaltender Devan Dubnyk had been forced to sit and patiently await his next opportunity. That chance came Friday night against the Colorado Avalanche and the big netminder did not disappoint. Dubnyk stopped 40 of 41 shots, in leading the Edmonton Oilers to their fourth consecutive victory, this time by a score of 4 - 1. Ryan Smyth led the way up front with a goal and two assists and defenceman Cam Barker chipped in with his first goal in an Oilers uniform.

Is Cam Barker a Top Four Defenceman?

The Edmonton Oilers decided to take a flyer on a former third overall draft pick this summer and signed Cam Barker to a one year contract. The Oilers are hoping they have found that young defenceman who can play top four minutes and quarterback their power play. Barker is hoping he has found a new home where he will be given the opportunity to get his NHL career back on track. I can not see this signing taking place, from either side, unless the mindset is for the 25 year old rearguard to slot in the clubs top two pairings. Barker is coming off an awful season in which he registered only 5 points while playing in 52 games for the Minnesota Wild. To make matters even worse, he missed 25 games due to injury and was a healthy scratch on five occasions. Not exactly a stellar season from the Manitoba native but lets not forget that the Wild bought him out this off season. In their minds, it made more since to cut ties then to try and work with him to find his game.

Player Profile - Tom Gilbert

When the Edmonton Oilers acquired Tom Gilbert from the Colorado Avalanche in 2004 for a sixth round pick and Tommy Salo, it was thought to perhaps be a steal of a deal. Gilbert was an unknown commodity and still playing university hockey in the USA. He arrived in Edmonton fulltime for the 2007-2008 season and when his successful rookie campaign was followed up with an even better season, that steal of a deal back on March 8^th, 2004 was looking like it could turn out to be highway robbery!!!

Player Profile - Ryan Whitney

If you were to ask both organizations about the trade made between the Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers back on the 3rd of March in 2010, that saw Lubomir Visnovsky and Ryan Whitney switch clubs, you would be hard pressed to find anyone second guessing their decision to go ahead with the blockbuster move. 

In Visnovsky, the Ducks received the power play quarterback they were searching for to replace recently departed Chris Pronger and the soon to be retired Scott Niedermayer. The fact that Visnovsky has scored 81 pts in 97 games since going to Anaheim clearly demonstrates that the Ducks aquired exactly the type of player they were looking for.

The Power Play

The Edmonton Oilers have not had a decent power play for so long that I can’t even remember when this wasn't the case. After some quick stat diving, I found that back in 1997-98 the Oilers ended the season ranked 12^th in the league at 15.9%. Doesn’t seem like a lethal PP but when you consider that the Dallas Stars led the league at 20.0%, it shows it wasn't too bad at all and how much the game has changed. Outside of the 1997-98 campaign the only other time they finished in the top 15 was the 2005-06 season at 18.1%. That was good enough for 14^th spot and not surprisingly that was the last time the club made the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Below are Edmonton’s power play ranking and success ratio since the 2005-06 season:
2010-2011 – 27^th (14.5%)
2009-2010 – 18^th (17.3%)
2008-2009 – 22^nd (17.0%)
2007-2008 – 20^th (16.6%)
2006-2007 – 27^th (14.2%)

Oilers NHL Depth Chart: Defence

Heading into the 2011-2012 season the Edmonton Oilers need to start making some strides on the back end. Some of the changes the club have made could see the club heading in that direction. One move in particular could be a steal for the Oilers long term.

Ryan Whitney - Last season it became very evident on how important Ryan Whitney has become to the Oilers. Whitney is the horse that this team can simply not compete without.

Whitney not only eats minutes in all situations for the Oilers but he has shown the ability to raise the overall play of whomever his partner on the backend will be.
For that reason, I see Whitney pairing up with newly acquired Cam Barker. Whitney should be able to let Barker simplify his game and thrive in an Oilers uniform.

Look for Whitney to pick up where he left off last season...as arguably the most important skater on the team.

2011-2012 Prediction:   8 G - 37 A - 45 Pts




Cam Barker - The Oilers made a low risk - high reward move this off season by signing Cam Barker as a UFA. The Minnesota Wild decided to buy Barker out and because of that move, the Oilers may have found their power play quarterback moving forward.

Barker should fit in very nicely with the young core group in Edmonton and playing with Ryan Whitney should allow him to have a bounce back season. Barker will be given every opportunity to be successful in the coming season..unlike Minnesota.

He'll be given the reigns of what has been a very lack luster power play in Edmonton. Barker's big shot and experience of playing with an elite puck moving power play in Chicago should be a big addition to the club.

2011-2012 Prediction:   8 G - 26 A - 34 Pts




Tom Gilbert - While Gilbert struggled at times last season, after Ryan Whitney went down with injury Gilbert did raise his level of play. He is not a top pairing defencmen but he is clearly a second pairing guy. He's a very good puck mover and makes a great outlet pass out of his zone.

Gilbert should be paired up with Ladislav Smid heading into the 2011-12 campaign. The two showed signs at the end of last season of forming chemistry and with Whitney back in the lineup they won't be asked to log way to many minutes.

One area Gilbert needs to improve on is using his shot more often...especially on the power play. Gilbert has a good shot but at times he almost seems unwilling to use it.

2011-2012 Prediction:    5 G - 27 A - 32 Pts