The Bakersfield Condors played host to the Abbotsford Canucks on Saturday night and will play at home against the San Jose Barracuda on Sunday as the AHL season gets underway.
There’s a great deal of excitement surrounding the Condors; the Oilers organization has no less than 10 legit prospects who will be pushing for the NHL from the minors this fall and winter.
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Not all was rosy as the season got underway Saturday, though.
It was supposed to be an opening night featuring two impressive prospects making a stop for some California sun on their way to the Oilers. Dylan Holloway and Dmitri Samorukov were slated to arrive in main camp, impress, and then head to the AHL for finishing touches before a recall.
Something happened on the way to a happy ending. Bakersfield’s season has already been altered by injuries to big-time prospects.
Holloway and Samorukov
Holloway’s situation is the most severe and is frustrating all involved. The story was covered by Daniel Nugent-Bowman at The Athletic in September, with a second surgery required and a possible return date of mid-December a bitter pill for player, organization and fans.
It’s a significant injury and at the very least stalls the progress of Edmonton’s lone can’t-miss forward prospect coming through the system. It’s the type of hand injury that could have some impact on his career, so the Oilers will be doubly cautious even if the timeline goes long.
The Condors might have been looking at Holloway as the top centre for opening night Saturday; instead, there’s hope he’ll be back around Christmas.
Samorukov, who also has a chance to play in Edmonton this season, saw his training camp cut short with a broken jaw. He entered camp as a player who had a chance to establish himself as an option for the third pairing or early recall. He should be back in early October and might be an early option for Edmonton if he plays close to his brilliant performance in the KHL during 2020-21.
Opening night win, five on defence
Edmonton’s farm teams have been producing substantial defencemen since Charlie Huddy arrived from the Wichita Wind in 1981-82.
This year’s Condors have five defencemen with the potential to play in the NHL. All had at least some impact on opening night.
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Philip Broberg is a top-10 pick from the 2019 draft, the organization will focus on his development in 2021-22. That means lots of playing time in all disciplines, and probably a partner he knows from the SHL (Filip Berglund), at least at the start of the campaign. He picked up a power-play assist on the night, a quick pass to Seth Griffith setting the stage for a cross-ice pass to Adam Cracknell for the 2-2 goal in the second period. He made fine passes and decisions when time and space was available, but lost some battles on the wall and will need to move the puck move quickly as he moves along.
Markus Niemelainen played in the AHL (21 games) last season and it was in evidence Saturday night against Abbotsford. He played a calm game and moved the puck well. He also picked up an assist on the first goal of the game, shooting the puck from the blue line and handcuffing Canucks goaltender Michael DiPietro. James Hamblin located the puck and found the open net. He has shutdown ability, and had an encouraging on-ice even strength goal differential (1-0) on opening night and he was also on the ice for the empty net goal. The AHL has his plus-minus at +2.
Berglund picked up an assist. He is most prominent patrolling the offensive blue line, but lost a key battle behind the goal line that led directly to the third Canucks goal. He has a complete range but needs to be strong and quick enough to win battles in high danger areas. He is an interesting prospect to follow this year.
Phil Kemp played 12 games last season in Bakersfield, showing well defensively. This year, both in Oilers camp and in the Saturday night game, his confidence with the puck seems to have taken a leap forward. He picked up an assist on the Yanni Kaldis goal, sending the puck to Seth Griffith (the veteran had a fine game) who sent the puck on net. Kaldis shelved a substantial rebound.
Mike Kesselring was the quiet one among the five prospects buthe did get a shot on goal and won some battles. Abbotsford’s second goal came on a sequence that began with Kesselring getting his pocket picked to the left of Stuart Skinner in the Bakersfield net. Like Broberg, Kesselring will need to learn to be quicker in decision making in Bakersfield.
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Thin crop of forwards on opening night
Bakersfield’s prospects at forward look less impressive with Holloway injured, and this is an area the club badly needs to be developing future NHL players.
Ostap Safin was noticeable on the forecheck, he’s the most physically punishing hitter among the prospect forwards in Bakersfield this year. He had a shot on goal but will need to be more dynamic with the puck if he’s going to make it to the next level.
James Hamblin is on an AHL deal, but there was talk in preseason about his being a possible NHL contract addition. Saturday night is another strong bullet point on his resume. He scored, had four shots on goal and played an effective game.
Raphael Lavoie’s impressive scoring ability makes him the most promising forward in the AHL group this season, but it was his passing that I noticed during the game. He’ll need to move the needle more during the season, but he appeared more mobile and had some good moments moving the puck in a good direction.
Somewhat disappointing was the absence of Kirill Maksimov, who is listed on the roster. This is an important season for him, and Maksimov certainly has a higher ceiling than some of the forwards on the ice on Saturday night.
Player | Age | League 20-21 | Numbers |
|---|---|---|---|
22 | AHL | 31G, .914SP | |
23 | KHL | 19G, .923SP | |
21 | AHL | 11G, .894SP |
This position has been a weak spot in recent seasons. You’d have to go back to the Devan Dubnyk/Jeff Deslauriers years (2006-2010) to see this much talent pushing for NHL work.
Stuart Skinner played for the Condors on Saturday, stopping 19 of 22 shots for the win. He was screened by Kaldis on the first goal against, but it was from range. The second Abbotsford goal saw the pairing of Kaldis and Kesselring lose a series of 50-50 pucks and Skinner was placed in an impossible position to make a second save. The third goal against was a battle lost by Berglund, followed by an uncontested pass to a high danger area (the slot) where Justin Bailey beat Skinner clean.
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A tough scorer would mention the first goal, but Skinner was solid in net. More work might have benefitted him. He is highly regarded by the organization and posted a strong season in Bakersfield in 2020-21. Edmonton might slot Skinner in as the backup next season if he can deliver another strong year with the Condors.
Ilya Konovalov is older and has had several strong KHL seasons. That should place him ahead of Skinner on the depth chart, and possibly as a stronger NHL option. He’ll have to earn it. It’s one of the key stories that will play out over the winter.
Olivier Rodrigue gets forgotten easily, but he’s younger and has more track to develop. Rodrigue is famous for a fantastic run at the end of his junior career, so the consistency goalies strive for is there, and he could find it in pro hockey during a more normal season.
Most likely to be recalled?
If everyone is healthy, this is a far easier question to answer. Holloway and Samorukov would be at the top of the list if they were in the lineup, and both were closer to the NHL than others at their positions before they were hurt.
Here are the 10 most likely recalls in 2021-22, ordered from earliest to latest:
- Stuart Skinner
- Dmitri Samorukov (injured)
- Dylan Holloway (injured)
- Philip Broberg
- Filip Berglund
- Markus Niemelainen
- Cooper Marody
- Ilya Konovalov
- Raphael Lavoie
- Phil Kemp
Skinner might get a look when the schedule gets a little heavier, and there’s a chance of injury with two older NHL goaltenders.
Broberg is a complete wild card; his skill set is so valuable if Jay Woodcroft and Dave Manson unlock him he’ll be in the NHL right away. Berglund is right-handed and the Oilers have little depth behind Tyson Barrie, Cody Ceci and Evan Bouchard.
Niemelainen is a big, physical shutdown defender who could fill some needs, and Konovalov was a quality goaltending in the world’s second best league. That should mean AHL dominance.
Marody played Saturday night, got involved physically but did not play a major role. A good guess is he is playing his final year in the organization.
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I excluded veterans like Griffith, Adam Cracknell and Brad Malone. The veterans had a major impact on the game, but are not considerations for an NHL recall.
The journey continues tonight. The 2021-22 Bakersfield Condors are underway and will see a full AHL season. The Oilers’ best pro prospects are about to benefit from top flight coaching and competition.
(Photo of Stuart Skinner: Curtis Comeau / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
