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Quick Thoughts On Pre-Season |
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The pre-season continues to chug along at a snails pace. The Oilers have only iced a veteran roster in one game and it was fairly apparent the players were using that game to test their edges and get in some cardio.
Players hate pre-season and want it over as quick as possible with as little involvement as possible. Look at the unfortunate incident with Doughty last night. A meaningless game where Tanner Pearson, on a PTO with the Golden Knights is trying to get noticed, charges into the zone and gets caught up with Doughty. Purely an accident but one that highlights the issues with a lengthy pre-season.
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There isn't much big news going on with the Oilers through pre-season but there are a few players to discuss so let's get to it.
- Ty Emberson has impressed me early on. The young shutdown defender has gotten a few looks already in the top 4, taking skating reps with Nurse, and playing some solid minutes. So far he is coming as advertised; a steady stay at home player who doesn't typically look out of position. Need to continue to see that as the competition gets tougher.
- On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Josh Brown signing continues to be baffling. Brown was signed to a 3 year deal with an annual AAV of 1 million but thus far has looked worse than most of the AHL options. He is slow, out of place, and hasn't impacted the games in any meaningful way. This is a guy trying to lock down a third pairing spot and so far has done nothing to prove he deserves it.
- Raphael Lavoie looked great in his first couple games before tweaking something in the lower body which kept him out of the game against the Jets. Lavoie is showing the skills that the Oilers drafted him for, big frame and a great shot, but I just don't know where he fits on this roster. He is supposed to be ready to go in time for Saturday's game but we will see if he is in the lineup.
- Another couple young players that are impressing are the newly acquired Sam O'Reilly and Matt Savoie. Savoie has shown some flashes of the skill and vision that made him a high first round pick but he is likely still AHL bound to keep working on his game. O'Reilly meanwhile has really impressed with his defensive game and transition for defense to offense. O'Reilly is only 18 years old and fresh off being drafted but I could see a spot for him in the lineup as early as next season. Not in terms of play style, but he reminds me of how impressed we all were with Ryan McLeod the camp right after he was drafted.
- The biggest competition in camp is easily that of the 4th line centre role. Hamblin, Ryan, O'Reilly (to a lesser degree) and Philip, and Pederson are all options for the role. Of all of those, Noah Philip has impressed the most. The Oilers ran all these players against a veteran Jets lineup and while the Oilers spent most of the game in their zone, Philip was one of the few who was able to keep his head above water and make some steady plays.
- Not looking into the lack of scoring or the goals against at all for the Oilers yet. If the Oilers are getting outscored 6-1 in the final two games of the pre-season we can revisit this conversation.
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What do you have? What has stood out for you early in the pre-season? Leave your comments.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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