Tulsa Oilers become Colorado Avalanche affiliate
Tulsa Oilers become Colorado Avalanche affiliate
by: BARRY LEWIS World Sports Writer
Friday, September 03, 2010
9/3/2010 7:17:22 AM
JENKS – Tulsa Oilers owner Jeff Lund doesn’t often wear a cap, but he made an exception on Thursday when he donned one with a Colorado Avalanche logo.
“This is big for us,” Lund said after the announcement of the Oilers’ new affiliations with the NHL’s Avalanche and American Hockey League’s Lake Erie Monsters.
For the first time since the Central Hockey League revived in 1992, the Oilers have an affiliation that will bring them players assigned from an NHL team. The number of players the Oilers will receive from the Avalanche or the Monsters will depend on several factors.
“We are not exactly sure yet about how many players; it’s still too early in the game to tell,” Oilers general manager Taylor Hall said during a press conference at the Twisted Tilt Sports Bar and Grill. “It depends on injuries all the way down the line and how many guys they sign. In the NHL, you usually have a few extra guys around, same thing in the American League, but at some point in time they always want those players playing. You are better having a player contributing at a lower level, so when you call him up, he’s ready to go.
“We are hopeful for as many as we can get. It took a long time, but it’s wonderful this has happened.”
Last season, the Oilers received goalie Trevor Cann from the Avalanche and Lake Erie. Cann, a 2007 second-round draft pick by Colorado, was 11-6-1 with the Oilers before returning to Lake Erie, which is Colorado’s top affiliate.
“We are excited to begin this new affiliation with the Tulsa Oilers,” said David Oliver, the Avalanche’s director of player development and Lake Erie general manager, in a press release. “We are confident this organization in Tulsa will provide the right environment for our players in the Central Hockey League. Their leadership group and staff have the necessary resources to support the development of our prospects.”
Cann’s assignment to the Oilers last December led to Tulsa’s affiliation with Colorado, which won the Stanley Cup in 1996 and 2001.
“We were having goaltending problems and it just got to a point that I was getting tired of it,” Oilers coach Bruce Ramsay said. “I got on the bus after a tough loss and I got an e-mail on my phone from Lake Erie asking if anybody in the Central Hockey League was interested in a goaltender. I looked at (Oilers equipment manager) Steve Enlow and said, ‘What do you think of this?’ Steve said to me, ‘You know what, Bruce? I think it’s a no-brainer. You never know what can happen out of this, but I just have a feeling something good for the future might arise if you bring that goalie in.’?”
In February, Avalanche vice president of hockey operations and assistant GM Craig Billington, a former longtime NHL goalie, visited Tulsa to look at Cann.
“After meeting with our medical trainer, our equipment manager, our coach and seeing where we play (BOK Center), he said he was so impressed with our organization,” Lund said. “We talked that night that (an affiliation) would be something we would be interested in.”
Only one other CHL team currently has an NHL affiliation – the Odessa Jackalopes with the New York Islanders.
In 2001-02, the Oilers had an affiliation with the NHL’s New York Rangers. That relationship, however, did not result in the Rangers sending any players directly to the Oilers during the regular season.
“That arrangement with the Rangers was more of a verbal commitment,” Lund said. “We were anticipating for it to be more formalized, but as time went on that really never took place. This is entirely different. Back then, when we had the working relationship with the Rangers, they had two or three other Double-A teams. We are the only Double-A team in the Avalanche organization.”
The Oilers replace the Charlotte Checkers as the Avalanche’s Double-A affiliate. Charlotte dropped out of the East Coast Hockey League after last season.
Oilers defenseman Derek Eastman likes the affiliation with the Avalanche.
“It’s always a good recruiting tool for a coach,” Eastman said. “He can say, ‘If you come here, we can get you a tryout or something with the Avalanche.”
Tulsa’s pro hockey history is filled with NHL affiliations. The first was with the Chicago Blackhawks, who sent the Oilers three players in 1932-33.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have spent the most time as the Oilers’ parent team, with two stints in Tulsa – 1945-47 and 1964-73.
Tulsa opens the 2010-11 season against the Wichita Thunder at the BOK Center on Oct. 15.
TULSA OILERS’ MAJOR AFFILIATIONS SINCE 1964
Present: Colorado Avalanche (NHL)
2001-02: New York Rangers (NHL)
1982-84: New York Rangers (NHL)
1979-82: Winnipeg Jets (NHL)
1975-79: Vancouver Canucks and Atlanta Flames (NHL)
1974-75: Phoenix Roadrunners and Vancouver Blazers (WHA)
1964-73: Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL)
- BARRY LEWIS, World Sports Writer
