Draft day part 1.

The Oilers used all 3 of their 1st round picks. Lowe was unable to swing a trade of dramatic proportions today, but he hopes to have something in the works for Saturday (draft rounds 2 thru 7.) I'm excited and nervous at the same time. He di, however, trade up to the 21st pick from the 30th pick, trading with his old buddy Gretzky and the Phoenix Coyotes. Neither player the Oilers picked at 15 and 21 where thought to be 1st round picks, and I hadn't heard anything about them, except from TSN's mock draft saying that Alex Plante was a sure thing to the drafted by the Oilers, but they had him listed at the 30th postion.

Since I don't know too much about the crop of kids that where available for this year's draft, and I had't heard much about Plante or Nash until the Oilers drafted them, I'm going to be lazy and just use TSN's story. It's better than anything I could of wrote anyways. :P



Oilers get Gagner, Plante and Nash

COLUMBUS, Ohio (CP) - The Edmonton Oilers came to the NHL entry draft armed with three first-round draft picks, and GM Kevin Lowe had hoped at least one of them would be trade bait.

In the end, failing to make a deal for the defenceman he craves, Lowe went ahead and drafted three times Friday night. But he did report some progress in trade talks.

"I want to say there's a couple deals pending," said Lowe. "A little bit frustrating because in both cases they're tied to teams doing other things and maybe that has to do with the cap world.

"But I remain optimistic that that'll happen. You spend a long time in the days leading up, 72 hours of non-stop effort and if it doesn't happen it can be a little disappointing, no question.

"But I'm still very optimistic."

In the meantime, the Oilers drafted a nifty playmaking centre, a big defenceman and a solid two-way forward. They were the first Canadian team to the mic and they used the sixth drafting position to select centre Sam Gagner of the OHL's London Knights.

Gagner, the son of former NHL forward Dave Gagner, scored 35 goals and assisted on 83 in 53 regular-season games. The 5-11, 190-pounder from Oakville, Ont., reads plays well, which makes him an exceptional set-up man. He also was a member of Canada's world junior championship team.

"To hear my name called was a great feeling, especially the Edmonton Oilers, a Canadian city," said Gagner. "I couldn't be more thrilled."

Scouts have compared him to NHL forward Marc Savard.

"I'm happy to be picked but I realize this is just the beginning, there's a long way to go," said Gagner. "There's a lot of work to be done."

Another year with the Knights will more than likely be in the cards for Gagner.

"I'm going to continue to work hard and try and get as NHL-ready as possible but if I were to spend another year in junior I think it would be great for my development," he said. "I thought I developed a lot this year in London. The Hunters (Dale and Mark) really know their hockey and they're able to teach me a lot about the game. I don't think that would be bad for me at all."

Edmonton was up again in the 15th slot and took six-foot-four, 225-pound defenceman Alex Plante of the Calgary Hitmen. Plante scored eight goals, assisted on 30 and was assessed 81 penalty minutes last season. His improvement in agility and overall play led to a jump up in the rankings in the second half of his season. Scouts have compared him to NHL defenceman Kyle McLaren.

"We just like his potential," said Oilers scouting director Kevin Pendergrest. "He's 6-4, for a big guy he uses his reach really well. Lots of upside there."

Phoenix traded the 21st pick to Edmonton for the No. 30 and 36 spots, and the Oilers selected six-foot-one, 175-pound centre Riley Nash, who scored 38 goals for the B.C. Jr. A league's Salmon Arm team.

"I was mostly Canucks growing up but the Oilers are a good fit," said Nash.

Nash will play college hockey at Cornell in the autumn and has some areas he wants to improve in his game.

"I've got to get a better stride," he said. "I'm not quick enough. And I need a better shot, all NHL players have great shots."

Say what now?

With MacTavish also going with backup Jussi Markkanen in goal you could be forgiven for figuring - in the wake of the Marc-Andre Bergeron trade - maybe the Oilers were showcasing Markkanen for a trade deadline deal. You could also come to the conclusion they'd decided they might as well play their prospects. - Terry Jones, Edm Sun.

Now, don't get me wrong, I like the Juice and all, but what team needs another back-up goalie?
Didn't the Oilers run with 3 goaltenders last season, and look how well that worked out.
GIVE ME A BREAK.

Also rumored to be on the move from the Oilers: Joffrey Lupul, Raffi Torres, Petr Sykora.
Well, unless Lowe is getting two offensive defencemen for all of them with a few draft picks thrown in, I don't see all three of them going. What teams really has two great defensemen anyways, let alone two great offensive defensemen?
The Ducks with Pronger and Niedermayer, The Stars with Zubov and Boucher, The Senators with Phillips and Redden, the Red Wings with the greatest defenseman in the NHL, Nick Lidstrom and to a lesser extent Markov.
Now, the Oilers had Pronger last season and barely made the playoffs.
This season without Pronger the Oilers are most likely going to barely miss the playoffs.
Our worst fears are coming true; without Pronger we are fucked. The offense that looked good on paper has not been able to over-come the shortcomings on the blue line.
Even with the rumor of Brewer coming back, he's no Pronger.
This team is in a transition period, and sad to say Lowe knew this ever since he traded Pronger in July.
Why has it taken so long for him to get anything done?! I guess only he can answer that.
Sometimes things aren't as easy as they appear to be. The fans can suggest trades left and right, but we aren't general managers, so we don't know who's available and at what price.


From the Edm Journal today:

Boston, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Columbus and Colorado all had scouts at this game.

Possible trade partners for the Oilers or the Senators???

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Another tidbit from the Edm Sun today:

With the number of Edmonton Oilers fans in the crowd, Mike Comrie figured he might be in for a rough ride.

However, the former Oiler got the last laugh last night scoring the shootout winner in a 4-3 victory.

"I saw enough Oiler jerseys to understand what was going on," Comrie said. "But it was nice to get the cheers from the Ottawa fans."

Comrie, playing his first game against the Oilers as a member of the Senators, heard a chorus of boos from the large contingent of Oiler fans in the building every time he touched the puck.

The boos were later drowned out by cheers from the Senators fans, who eventually picked up on why Comrie was being booed.

"I was shocked," said Senators head coach Bryan Murray.

"But I think he really looked good, he's skating real well. I thought he had real sharp legs. He was really heads up on the puck." - Derek Van Diest.

PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE. Like as if you were really 'shocked' that Comrie was booed by the Oilers fans in attendance. He bitched out on us, we have every right to boo him.
Good for him that he is a solid player, but us Oilers fans don't take to be fucked over by a home-town boy very well.