CopperAndBlueGM
Registered User
- Mar 9, 2017
- 119
- 41
It has been a busy off-season as GM Niece Sr. has begun the painful process of rebuilding a franchise. While the process will be slow, especially as the team rebuilds for the future, tanking is never an option.
The goal always is to try and make the play-offs and so the team looked heavily to free agency to manage the transition period but also had to manage a budget close to the cap floor for a team that could go bankrupt before the season ends if fans don’t show up.
Out: David Desharnais (UFA), Henrik Zetterburg (UFA), Anton Lander (UFA – Europe), Ryan Garbutt (UFA – Europe), Jarome Iginla (UFA), Justin Fontaine (UFA), Johnny Oduya (UFA), Niklas Grossmann (Europe), Ondrej Pavalec (UFA), Nicolas Deslauriers (FA – not tendered a QO)
In: Antoine Vermette (FA), Patrick Sharp (FA), Lauri Korpikoski (FA), Quinton Howden (FA), Dale Weise (Trade), Beau Bennett (FA), Dennis Wideman (FA), Michal Rozsival (FA), Joonas Korpisalo (Trade)
At the first press conference GM Niece would not respond to questions about the many rumored trade inquiries the team may or may not have received choosing instead to focus on the upcoming season. “We are proud of the team we have assembled and are confident that we have enough depth and skill to foster strong completion here at camp. This camp more than most has many positions and roles up for the taking and so we will maximize our opportunities to try different combinations during camp to ensure we are well positioned to fight for a spot in the play-offs.”
The opening exhibition games will be a home and home series against the Ducks whom the Oilers met in the first round of last year’s play-offs so this one could be a bit chippy if some returning players still harbor some grudges.
While the pre-season will definitely determine the regular season roster the initial assumed line-up is a s follows:
J. Neal – T. Johnson – P. Sharp
A. Cogliano – P. Stastny – L. Korpikoski
B. Bennett – F. Nielson – B. Connolly
G. McKegg – A. Vermette – J. T. Brown
Extras: D. Weiss, Q. Howden, T. Fritz
D. Seidenberg – D. Wideman
T. Daley – A. Marchenko
J. Benn – A. Sustr
Extras: M. Rozsival, R. Bortuzzo, T. Fedun
C. Johnson
J. Korpisalo
D. Tokarski
The goal always is to try and make the play-offs and so the team looked heavily to free agency to manage the transition period but also had to manage a budget close to the cap floor for a team that could go bankrupt before the season ends if fans don’t show up.
Out: David Desharnais (UFA), Henrik Zetterburg (UFA), Anton Lander (UFA – Europe), Ryan Garbutt (UFA – Europe), Jarome Iginla (UFA), Justin Fontaine (UFA), Johnny Oduya (UFA), Niklas Grossmann (Europe), Ondrej Pavalec (UFA), Nicolas Deslauriers (FA – not tendered a QO)
In: Antoine Vermette (FA), Patrick Sharp (FA), Lauri Korpikoski (FA), Quinton Howden (FA), Dale Weise (Trade), Beau Bennett (FA), Dennis Wideman (FA), Michal Rozsival (FA), Joonas Korpisalo (Trade)
At the first press conference GM Niece would not respond to questions about the many rumored trade inquiries the team may or may not have received choosing instead to focus on the upcoming season. “We are proud of the team we have assembled and are confident that we have enough depth and skill to foster strong completion here at camp. This camp more than most has many positions and roles up for the taking and so we will maximize our opportunities to try different combinations during camp to ensure we are well positioned to fight for a spot in the play-offs.”
The opening exhibition games will be a home and home series against the Ducks whom the Oilers met in the first round of last year’s play-offs so this one could be a bit chippy if some returning players still harbor some grudges.
While the pre-season will definitely determine the regular season roster the initial assumed line-up is a s follows:
J. Neal – T. Johnson – P. Sharp
A. Cogliano – P. Stastny – L. Korpikoski
B. Bennett – F. Nielson – B. Connolly
G. McKegg – A. Vermette – J. T. Brown
Extras: D. Weiss, Q. Howden, T. Fritz
D. Seidenberg – D. Wideman
T. Daley – A. Marchenko
J. Benn – A. Sustr
Extras: M. Rozsival, R. Bortuzzo, T. Fedun
C. Johnson
J. Korpisalo
D. Tokarski