Prospect Statistics: February

One young man made huge strides during February while most kept up their status quo. We’re getting into the stretch run for our prospects, many of whom are fighting it out with their respective teams for playoff positioning. It’s at this time when I’m looking for the cream to rise.

Cameron Abney RW Edmonton/WHL

FEB 14GP 2-5-7 -5 7PIM 10ZPG
YTD 52GP 6-11-17 -5 79PIM

Abney had an offensive burst this month, but it should be accurately pointed out that really he just had an offensive outburst for two games (3 assists in one, 1-1-2 the other). If he gets a contract from the Oilers I’m going to be more to be more than a little irate.

Phil Cornet RW Oklahoma/AHL

FEB 6GP 1-0-1 E 0PIM 13SH 5 ZPG
YTD 42GP 5-8-13 +4 4PIM 65SH

After an outstanding January, we see Cornet regress back to his previous levels. Had zero points in five games to start the month, and was subsequently benched for OKC’s next five games. He’s going to get lapped by the influx of talent next year.

Drew Czerwonka LW Kootenay/WHL

FEB 12GP 0-6-6 +2 22PIM 8ZPG
YTD 58GP 12-27-39 +11 94PIM

A dip offensively, but Czerwonka still appears to be providing a good all-around game. He’s seen his powerplay numbers take a large cut, but when your team trades for Cody Eakin that’s bound to happen. I hope he finishes the year strong, because I’m rooting for him.

Robby Dee C Maine/NCAA

FEB 8GP 0-6-6 +3 4PIM 19SH 3ZPG
YTD 34GP 9-21-30 +6 24PIM 82SH

Dee continues along in his senior year for Maine, hoping to impress the Oilers brass enough to earn a contract after finishing college hockey. He’s in much the same boat as fellow collegiate athlete Chris VandeVelde was last year. He’s putting up the numbers and has other skills (faceoffs), but will ST have a case of once bit, twice shy with this player type from the previous administration?

Jordan Eberle RW Edmonton/NHL

FEB 13GP 5-6-11 E 10PIM 34SH 187.03EV 32.53PP 0.13SH 5ZPG
YTD 50GP 14-20-34 -4 14PIM 110SH 726.16EV 122.56PP 45.26SH

Young Eberle returned from injury after the Oilers first game in February and immediately began to put up numbers again. His points are coming almost exclusively at even strength (1 PP assist in Feb), but remains a high-event player at even strength as only 3 games are even par this month. He’s learning at an accelerated pace in the best league on the planet, we’ve got something special here.

Taylor Hall LW Edmonton/NHL

FEB 14GP 5-4-9 0 4PIM 44SH 212.27EV 42.54PP 0.10SH 7ZPG
YTD 63GP 21-19-40 -10 18PIM 183SH 880.18EV 173.25PP 1.42SH

Hall is a remarkable talent, but he put up his points in slightly unconventional fashion this month and for that we should be cautious. 80% of his goals this month came courtesy the PP and a game such as that Feb19th contest is such an aberration that I don’t know what to do with it. He’s sorting out his defensive lapses but like Eberle remains rather high event. We should still be treating him with kid gloves but at the low end of the potential spectrum he’ll be a top-6 NHL forward for the next two decades.

Curtis Hamilton LW Saskatoon/WHL

FEB 13GP 5-15-20 +11 10PIM 1ZPG
YTD 53GP 21-52-73 +43 20PIM

I love this pick. He was a gamble in the last draft (huge injury concerns) but he’s paid off better than any of the other 2nd rounders we took. He’s got offensive upside, knows his way around his own zone and can be the guy the Oilers can count on next year to be a PK demon. It’s rare for any but the impact prospects to make the jump straight from major-junior to the NHL, but I think Hamilton is capable of doing just that next year because of his secondary skills. Oh, and he lit up the league this month. No big deal, just an ordinary month for him, right?

Teemu Hartikainen RW Oklahoma/AHL

FEB 10GP 2-2-4 -2 0PIM 21SH 7ZPG
YTD 59GP 16-20-36 -3 29PIM 111SH

Just when we thought Hartikainen had taken the next step towards his NHL career, well it seems we may have been a bit premature in that projection. He’s still got talent, but he wasn’t exactly pushing for a recall in February. Maybe January’s AHL rookie of the month’s been figured out by the AHL competition and they’re keying on him as a player of interest when pre-game scouting is discussed, or maybe he just didn’t have it in February. I’m hoping it’s the former.

Kellen Jones F Quinnipiac/NCAA

FEB 7GP 2-3-5 -2 2PIM 19SH 2ZPG
YTD 36GP 7-18-25 E 31PIM 80SH

Jones and the Bobcats are an interesting case. I’d be more willing to dock Jones points for February’s performance (mostly PP points) if his team could be bothered to win a single game in said month. As Jones goes, so do the Bobcats. It’ll be a very interesting March as the Bobcats limp towards the playoffs.

Milan Kytnar C Oklahoma/AHL

FEB 9GP 1-0-1 -2 6PIM 10SH 8ZPG
YTD 57GP 7-10-17 E 20PIM 54SH

Kytnar’s fate was much the same as Hartikainen’s this month. He reached high places in January but came crashing back to Earth in February. He’s not required for offense in OKC but it’d still be appreciated once in a while.

Anton Lander C Timra/SEL

FEB 7GP 1-1-2 -7 2PIM 24SH 126.36TOI 5ZPG
YTD 45GP 9-14-23 -12 30PIM 98SH 818.46TOI

Ouch. That’s a horrible minus column for a kid who was billed as a defensive specialist. We should be concerned about Lander’s continued development in Sweden. He has to be signed sometime this offseason, but there’s an opportunity to get him over to the AHL this year if he signs quickly enough.

Ryan Martindale C Ottawa/OHL

FEB 12GP 5-9-14 +6 4PIM 3ZPG
YTD 58GP 32-46-78 +37 22PIM

Just a decent month for the big center from Ontario. He’s losing pace with his linemates in the OHL’s scoring race as both Tyler Toffoli (a 50-goal man) and Shane Prince (draft eligible this year) are pulling away. Is he riding coat-tails?

Linus Omark F Edmonton/NHL

FEB 12GP 0-7-7 -4 2PIM 16SH 141.10EV 34.12PP 0.00SH 6ZPG
YTD 32GP 3-13-16 -11 14PIM 52SH 385.27EV 83.24PP 0.00SH

Omark did well from a point production standpoint in February playing with fellow Swede Magnus Paajarvi. Like Eberle he’s doing his damage at even strength which is a welcome sign. As the Oilers are no longer in a position to succeed I’d like to see Omark given more responsibility to see if he’s a piece to build with or another passenger.

Magnus Paajarvi LW Edmonton/NHL

FEB 14GP 4-1-5 -3 0PIM 26SH 169.45EV 20.56PP 0.07SH 10ZPG
YTD 61GP 10-14-24 -3 12PIM 121SH 797.56EV 86.21PP 1.48SH

Another kid at the NHL level putting up even strength points. It’s a broken record at this point but it really bodes well for the future of this team. In Paajarvi’s case we won’t know his true potential until he gets an extended shift in a top-6 role (one upside of the Penner trade). Is he more than a 30 point-per-year all-around man?

Tyler Pitlick RW Medicine Hat/WHL

FEB 11GP 7-5-12 +1 2PIM 5ZPG
YTD 55GP 27-35-62 +4 29PIM

The lustre of Pitlick is starting to wear off on me. Case in point, he hat-tricked in the Tigers’ Feb26 game (one PP goal), a game in which the final score was 7-3 Tigers, Pitlick ends the game -1. He screams defensive liability to me and couldn’t even make this team as a center, the position he was theoretically drafted as. His point totals are heavily influenced by PP time (2-3-5 in Feb) and is still struggling with his +/- despite playing on one of the Dub’s best teams. I expected more.

Kristians Pelss RW Edmonton/WHL

FEB 14GP 7-4-11 +7 8PIM 8ZPG
YTD 57GP 14-16-30 +15 27PIM

Uh, what? When did this 7th rounder come to realize he’s got some hockey skills? An absolutely perfect month for the Latvian saw him move up to play with real linemates and flourish. I’d be interested in seeing whether this kind of pace will be sustainable next year or not. He’s going to be a player of interest next year.

Toni Rajala RW Ilves/SM-Liiga

FEB 8GP 2-4-6 +5 0PIM 40SH 129.54TOI 4ZPG
YTD 38GP 9-13-22 +2 4PIM 183SH 575.26TOI

Decent. Nothing more nothing less on offense, but his +5 is a good sign. He’ll be in OKC next year regardless of what he does this year, so let’s see if he can do more with his opportunity as another previously mentioned 5th rounder (ahem, Cornet).

Chris VandeVelde C Oklahoma/AHL

FEB 10GP 2-0-2 -3 6PIM 17SH 8ZPG
YTD 58GP 9-4-13 -17 38PIM 79SH

VandeVelde’s trying hard to stop his bleeding, but he’s clearly been outclassed this year. Perhaps he’s a late-bloomer at every level of hockey.

Jordan Bendfeld D Stockton/ECHL

FEB 13GP 1-1-2 -7 20PIM 21SH 11ZPG
YTD 21GP 1-1-2 -3 50PIM 29SH

Bendfeld’s a depth AHL defenseman getting outclassed in the ECHL. Too bad we have another year on his ELC to talk about.

Jeremie Blain D Acadie-Bathurst/QMJHL

FEB 12GP 2-10-12 -1 16PIM 17SH 3ZPG
YTD 34GP 3-29-32 +12 44PIM 27SH

All the talk among the Oilogosphere regarding our offensive D-prospects surrounds Martin Marincin, and I think that’s unfair to this outstanding prospect. Due to his injury trouble earlier in the season he’s been left out of most of our conversations, but he’s making the procurement department look great yet again.

Kyle Bigos D Merrimack/NCAA

FEB 8GP 0-1-1 E 47PIM 15SH 7ZPG
YTD 27GP 0-5-5 +1 112PIM 51SH

I don’t know about Bigos as an NHL prospect anymore, but then again every team needs a guy like him to police the other team. He’s either not afraid of the rough stuff or can’t keep up with the NCAA forwards.

Taylor Chorney D Edmonton/NHL

FEB AHL 3GP 0-0-0 -1 2PIM 5SH 3ZPG
YTD AHL 45GP 3-13-16 E 20PIM 69SH
FEB NHL 4GP 1-1-2 -1 2PIM 6SH 56.00EV 13.22PP 0.59SH 3ZPG
YTD NHL 10GP 1-3-4 -4 4PIM 11SH 136.45EV 22.14PP 5.22SH

Chorney was having a nice run at the NHL level until his injury. It looks like he’s really started to figure out that a defenseman should know how to play defence. He’s in the mix for a roster spot next year based on his NHL performance this year.

Brandon Davidson D Regina/WHL

FEB 13GP 1-12-13 -7 15PIM 3ZPG
YTD 63GP 8-41-49 -7 71PIM

I like Davidson. He doesn’t have draft pedigree, but knows how to play hockey. An awkwardly bad minus column keeps him from an A+ vote of confidence this month. If only he played on a real hockey team...

Martin Marincin D Prince George/WHL

FEB 14GP 1-7-8 -1 16PIM 7ZPG
YTD 59GP 13-39-52 -4 57PIM

I’d call this an improved month for the big Slovak rearguard, if only for the fact that he didn’t embarrass himself defensively again. The points are nice, but if he can’t play defence there’s no reason to get interested.

Johan Motin D Oklahoma/AHL

He’s injured. Apparently it’s upper-body.

Jeff Petry D Oklahoma/AHL

FEB AHL 6GP 0-3-3 +3 0PIM 11SH 4ZPG
YTD AHL 37GP 7-18-25 -5 16PIM 83SH
FEB NHL 7GP 0-0-0 -4 4PIM 3SH 111.16EV 11.43PP 12.15SH 7ZPG
YTD NHL 21GP 1-2-3 -4 6PIM 25SH 351.10EV 53.02PP 29.29SH

To say Petry had a bad February is the understatement of the year. Perhaps it was over-hype that led to our worrying about his play, but any way you shape it he had to be better than he was this month. I hope they keep him down in the AHL for the rest of the year so he can get his confidence back. He should be ready to go next year.

Alex Plante D Oklahoma/AHL

FEB 10GP 0-1-1 E 14PIM 12SH 9ZPG
YTD 56GP 1-10-11 +7 108PIM 54SH

Plante’s offence appears to have dried up at the AHL level, but it’s his +/- that leads me to believe he’ll have an NHL career. He’s been an effective blueliner this year.

Tyler Bunz G Medicine Hat/WHL

FEB 13GP .929SV% 2.40GAA 1SO
YTD 49GP .918SV% 2.53GAA 3SO

Bunz continues to stake his claim as the pipeline’s top goalie prospect with a workhorse month. He played in all but one game this month for the Tigers, including one relief appearance and was in most cases the team’s best player. I don’t think goalie development makes a lick of sense, but he seems the best of the bunch.

Bryan Pitton G Oklahoma/AHL

FEB 1GP 0.935SV% 1.85GAA
YTD 4GP 0.920SV% 2.46GAA

He played when Gerber was on recall to the Oilers. Numbers look good but aren’t apparently good enough to oust Jeff Deslauriers from his backup spot.

Olivier Roy G Acadie-Bathurst/QMJHL

FEB 10GP .922SV% 2.39GAA 1SO
YTD 40GP .907SV% 2.87GAA 2SO

Roy had a bounce-back month after regressing for what seemed like the entire season. A couple of ugly games, but like Bunz there were many where he had to bail his team out in order to win. He’s still alive, but I’m not 100% convinced he has NHL potential.

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To note: I’ll be adding Colten Teubert to next month’s prospect statistics.