News on the New Oilers Arena

So the news is... there isn't much news.

But the potential for the project for revitalization of downtown is quite large. Can't say much right now but check back on the new blog @ An Oilers Refinery for details on when more info can be found at The Gateway. Working on an article and Patrick LaForge, Bryan Anderson, among others, talk about Katz's vision for a downtown arena, and all it entails for Edmontonians in the downtown area.

When I have more to say I will most likely post it up at Bleacher Report as well.

This likely the last post here, ever.

Farewell, Deadfellows readers!

~Antony Ta

We've come a long way

I'm surprised sometimes that I still get visitors to this blog even though I shut it down a long time ago. Sometimes I go back on this blog and read some of my old work and I marvel at what a long way I've come in such a short time - and what a long way I still have to go.

This blog (and its successor An Oilers Refinery) has no major aspirations of doing what Jonathan Willis does or of becoming OilersNation v2.

When I look at how my blog started as a angry little blog post whining about the running of MSM and the "right to game-day-live-blog" (however misshapen that idea might have been) and look at the way I write now... I realize that blogging is more about writing to converse.

You can be speaking to the online community, or sometimes airing thoughts. You could be simply talking to yourself.

In any situation, it no longer matters so much as if people read my blog as opposed to who reads my blog. It's just a place for friends to gather.

And that's what it should be.

(P.S. Be sure to check out Oilers.nhl.com at least once a day. I think I go there at least 5 times a day hoping for something new to pop up... sometimes I'm disappointed but there's always the refresh button and 2 seconds of hope... :-D)

Oilers Insider Hockey News and Rumors: “Star-chitecture:” Not as glittering as it seems? by: The Prof

Interesting perspective from Jim Parsson's of The Oilers Insider and my fellow Featured Columnist over at The Bleacher Report; he writes about the Katz arena initiative and the proposed downtown revitalization project:

Oilers Insider Hockey News and Rumors: “Star-chitecture:” Not as glittering as it seems? by: The Prof

A Sad Farewell

Saying bye to Strange Deadfellows Oilerblog is kind of like saying bye to this random but really cute husky cross that deep down inside you want to kidnap and bring home, but not really.

Did I say that out loud?

But in reality, saying bye to our Oilerblog is more like a hello than a goodbye? Well, for anyone familiar with the Transformers franchise, it's like a pretty normal looking car morphing into an ass-kicking robot from outer space, fighting good or manifesting evil in awesome fashion.

Either way, it's awesome.

So at long last, I want to introduce An Oilers Refinery, our new hockey and sports blog built on a WordPress (did I mention it's better than Blogger?) engine.

It's morphin' time!

Dictionary of Oilingo

My new blog, An Oilers Refinery, has a dictionary of Oilers-relevant terms, tentatively called Oilingo. I would appreciate if you would assist me in filling this dictionary.

With the 8th overall pick, the Edmonton Oilers select...

#8 - Zach Parise to the Edmonton Oilers (selected by Antony Ta)

Let's just forget the Oilers ever traded that 17th overall pick.

Cap Hit: $3,125,000

Parise does it all: he scores goals, gives assists, finishes hits and plays with intensity.

The First 10 Picks:

1. Calgary, Ovechkin
2. Vancouver, Crosby
3. Tampa Bay, Lundqvist
4. Dallas, Malkin
5. Chicago, Toews
6. New York (Islanders), Lidström
7. Philadelphia, Datsyuk
8. Edmonton, Parise
9. Nashville, T.B.A.
10. Atlanta, T.B.A.

More on this Fantasy Re-Draft:
Cycle like the Sedins: Re-drafting the League: Revealing picks 26-30!

Dwight Helminen and Energy Players

Dwight Helminen signed in San Jose.

For those of you who recall, he was an Oilers draft pick from way back when and was most recently a call up for the Carolina Hurricanes, as mentioned elsewhere previously.

Which leads me to thinking:

Are there any former Oiler draft picks / property that could potentially fill in for the holes vacated by Brodziak and/or Reddox? Though this summer is a chance for Jacques/Pouliot/Brule to prove they have the tools to be energy role players - should the Oilers seek insurance? This insurance sought should benefit not only the Oilers 4th line coming out of training camp (competition) but also as incoming veterans on a young Falcons team.

Players like Alexei Mikhnov and Alexander Bumagin are certainly out of the picture, but are there any others to consider?

The first name that comes to mind is Tyler Spurgeon (aka the faceoff machine), but the Oilers just let him go this summer.

The second name that comes to mind is Jonas Almtorp, who receives a favourable description from Hockey's Future but a not so desirable rating of 4.5 B. He sounds like a great energy player since they mention his skating abilities, but a 4.5 B rating leaves one scratching their head. Since Kyle Brodziak graduated Hockey's Future with a 6.0 B, Almtorp would be considered a slight downgrade (though cheaper). But that's only if you hold Hockey's Future ratings in high regard. I personally think they are usually pretty accurate.

Thirdly, what about Mike Bishai - a free agent college signing who has apparently become a reliable offensive guy in the SM-liiga? He most recently spent 49 games in 2007-08 with a recent Oiler signing, Matt Nickerson, playing for Ilves Tampere. I think that Bishai could be the Jason Krog of the Springfield Falcons.

Lastly, what about Bishai's current teammate in Jokerit Helsinki, Jani Rita? Rita's last stint in Edmonton left something to be desired both by the club and by the player, but in hindsight, he was a player whose promise was never delivered due to many complicating factors. Like Liam Reddox, Rita was a high-scoring winger as youngster and has settled into more of a leadership role with Helsinki, and he currently sits second for Jokerit in points. Could he be a potential sparkplug? Would he be willing to come back to the Oilers for one season (assuming next season is the RFA season from hell...)?

I think the addition of Bishai and Rita, along with forwards like Chris Minard, Jordan Eberle, Toni Rajala, and Milan Kytnar, the Falcons will be soon become a very competitive AHL team, at least up front. The bonus is that Bishai is probably an upgrade on Tim Sestito, and he would be a potential call-up pending injuries or whatever.