Oilers Training Camp: Mike Hoffman PTO, Evander Kane’s Surgery, scouting reports, and more

And here are news and notes from Day One:

1. Evander Kane will have surgery in the next couple of days. “I’m having a lot done,” said Kane. “Both abductors on each hip, two torn lower abdominal muscles and two hernias.” Kane wouldn’t give a timeline on when he will return, but is hopeful he isn’t out all season. He explained why he is having surgery now, rather than earlier this summer.“We all agreed to see how things looked after we took some time off (after the season) and if things could improve via rehab. We tried that and unfortunately it wasn’t the case. The next step was to find the best possible surgeon. There was some confusion on how we would fix this. Some doctors had different opinions. We have sorted it out and will now have surgery,” explained Kane. He added that it was really helpful speaking with three different doctors. They all agreed what surgery needed to be done, they just had different ways they would go about it. He also spoke to a few NHL players about their experiences and mentioned Sean Monahan was a big help.

The plan is for Kane to start the season on IR, so the Oilers have some cap flexibility, but if needed, they could move him to LTIR, said Bowman.

2. Darnell Nurse will be limited early in training camp. He won’t participate in contact drills, and while there is no set date for when he will, Stan Bowman said they expect him late in preseason. Ideally he will play in one of their final games in Seattle and Vancouver.

3. The Oilers signed Mike Hoffman to a PTO. Hoffman has played 745 regular season games scoring 228 goals and 487 points. He had 10-13-23 in 66 games with San Jose last season. I don’t see a spot for Hoffman on the roster. He isn’t better than any of the Oilers’ top-six forwards, he doesn’t check like Mattias Janmark and Connor Brown and he doesn’t have the physical game or speed of Vasili Podkolzin and Rapheal Lavoie.

4. Carl Berglund scored the only goal for Edmonton at the rookie tournament, but he suffered a concussion and is unable to start training camp. His injury opened the door to bring in Hoffman. Hoffman gives the Oilers another NHL veteran who can play in the preseason. Teams have to dress a minimum of eight NHL veterans in every preseason game so Hoffman can help fill that spot early in preseason.

5. You can expect Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman to start as a line. They were outstanding last season, and it makes sense to start them together, while Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson will start alongside Leon Draisaitl. However, Kris Knoblauch, when asked about lines, did say that things can change quickly. He wasn’t afraid to switch lines last season, and try different combinations, and I’m sure he will again this season, but it sounds like he will start with those trios.

6. Ty Emberson spoke for the first time today. He’s a very well-spoken young man. I asked him for a self-scouting report. “I’m a solid two-way defender. I can skate well and I use my physicality as an asset of mine, but I can help out on the PK, I can move pucks to the forwards and just be a consistent defender that people can count on,” said Emberson. Emberson played 30 games with San Jose last season. Even though he was injured in February, he believes those 30 games were a huge benefit and has him feeling much more confident heading into training camp. “Those games helped me a lot,” said Emberson. “Just being able to step into this season and know that I have played in this league before and I’m not the new guy in those first few games. I felt I made a lot of strides during those 30 games, and I believe I will be able to start this season on a good note.”

7. Emberson, Troy Stecher and Josh Brown will battle for the second and third pairing right defence spots in training camp and preseason. The challenge is that none of them will get much playing time with Darnell Nurse. He won’t play in any of the first five preseason games starting Sunday. Despite his absence, those three RD will see a lot of ice time in the preseason. They all play different styles, as Stecher is the best skater, and Brown the most physical, while Emberson is probably the best two-way defender.

8. I also asked Bowman for a scouting report on Vasily Podkolzin and where he thinks he can play. “Sometimes a change of scenery can help players,” said Bowman. “He clearly has a lot of talent. There are many things I like about his game. He brings the element of physicality, which is something I think it is important. He can score, he has a great shot and that is an element that will help him, but the thing I like the most when we watched him and studied him was his willingness to be an aggressive player. He is a big body, he can skate, certainly has skill, but I think he brings a power side of his game which is something we are looking for. We have a lot of skill on our team, and that is great, you have to be able to score and make plays. He has the skill side, but with his physicality he will find a role with us.”

9. Our 6th annual Pizza Pigout is just over one month away.

If you like pizza it is a must-attend event. It goes Thursday, October 24th and you can get tickets here.