New Edmonton Oilers General Manager Stan Bowman is already “on the clock”: 9 Things
Easier said than done. But those who are successful in doing that tend to win.
For newly minted Oilers General Manager Stan Bowman, it is fair to argue that the first half of that has been largely done for him.
But the second half is very much his gig. And he arrives at the job with that clock already ticking.
That and more in this edition of…
9 Things
9. The tribute to Jasper by the Edmonton Oilers on social media Thursday struck just the right tone. Not only has the club often trained there but numerous season ticket holders drive to game from there. We are thinking of you, folks.
8. Congratulations to Connor and Lauren McDavid. The happy couple exchanged their vows on Saturday. While not strictly “hockey,” I for one am pleased someone like Connor who has given his fan base so much joy gets his share, too.
7. Reid Wilkins, formerly of 630 CHED and Oilers pre- and post-game broadcasts, will resurface this Fall. He will be 3-6pm Weekdays on the Edmonton Sports Talk on-line product, head-to-head with heavyweight Sports Talkers Bob Stauffer and Jason Gregor in that same general timeslot.
6. Watching the Olympics in France reminds me of how professional hockey fans have been for too long robbed of this opportunity. And while the path forward looks positive for NHL athletes returning, in that regard, neither the public nor a specific generation of players will ever get those lost opportunities back. What a shame.
5. Oilers Hockey School kicked off this past week. The first guest instructor was the newly acquired St. Albert product Matthew Savoie. Matt will have a bigger impact on those kids than he may realize. Many of my summers as a kid were spent at the Dunn-Munroe Hockey School in Swift Current. My instructors included Terry Ruskowski and the late Brad McCrimmon. All had a major influence on me.
4. The Oilers have hired Erik Elenz as a video and analytics coaching coordinator. He arrives here via four years with the University of Vermont and two seasons with the AHL’s Coachella Firebirds. I look at this and the hiring of Michael Parkatti as director of Data and Analytics as two in the same. It is Jeff Jackson adding brain power to this side of the game. When trying to win, leave no stone unturned.
3. Stuart Skinner quietly crept into the franchise’s all-time regular season games played Top-10 list this past season. He is at 123. A 50+ game season for him in 2024-25 is a reasonable bet. If that transpires, he would right on the tail of Dwayne Roloson who is sixth all-time at 193 games. The Oilers Top-5 games by a goalie: Cam Talbot (227), Andy Moog (235), Tommy Salo (334), Grant Fuhr (423) and Bill Ranford (449).
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