COMBO BREAKER

OIL SPILLS

VIDEO INTERVIEWS

IN FOCUS: Monday Notes

AUDIO INTERVIEWS

Magnus Paajarvi

Jeff Petry

Jordan Eberle

Andrew Cogliano

Head Coach Tom Renney

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Oilers recall Omark & Reddox

HEADLINES

Oilers This Week

Today's media coverage

After participating in an off-ice workout Sunday morning, the Oilers returned to the frozen canvas at Rexall Place to engage in a one-hour practice to help shake the rust from a 2-1 loss to the Calgary Flames over the weekend.

With an all-business attitude early in the session, Head Coach Tom Renney pushed the pace of the individual drills and demanded further precision from his group as the early portions of the practice were, at times, sloppily completed.

Once the dust settled following Renney’s vocal and energetic interlude, practice continued with the players refining the message and completing the drills with precision and a heady effort.

Amidst the sound of skates carving the Rexall Place ice, new line combinations were debuted as the team prepared for the absence of rookie forward Jordan Eberle. The following concoctions were unveiled:

Paajarvi - Gagner - Hemsky
Penner - Cogliano - Hall
Jacques - Brule - Jones
MacIntyre - Fraser - Stortini

Peckham - Gilbert
Smid - Petry
Vandermeer - Foster

PRESS BOX TO PENTHOUSE

Magnus Paajarvi, who was a healthy scratch in Saturday’s dust-up with the Flames, was promoted from the press box to the first line – an opportunity that he believes needs to be captured with his new linemates.

"They're great hockey players," Paajarvi said of Hemsky and Gagner. "But I've been playing great hockey this year, too. I'm just going to try and go out there and do what I do best, and I know they have really good assets too, so I think we can be a really good line.

"Hopefully we can create something. I'm just going to go out there and focus – the first thing on myself."

While the highly talented Swede was looking forward to this new opportunity, the reflection of Saturday’s seat in the press box was still an all too real memory.

Magnus Paajarvi

Jordan Eberle

ONE-ON-ONE

In the latest edition of our fan question series, Gillan of Edson submitted a question for Theo Peckham.

GILLAN: "Do you listen to music before games to get pumped up?"

Theo Peckham

THEO: "Lately I've been listening more to band called Middle Class Rut. It's a little bit more alternative. I like them, I like Soulja Boy's 'Mean Mug' -- that gets me fired up, too. I have an iPod that I use, I like to listen to my music to get pumped up before games and before warm-up. I've always done that since I was a kid."

Fill out the form on the right to submit a question for one of the Oilers. We will ask one of the submitted questions after the next practice and will post the answer in the next Team Today.

UNION ADDRESS

OIL SPILLS

VIDEO INTERVIEWS

Sunday Update: Tom Renney

AUDIO INTERVIEWS

Head Coach Tom Renney

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Oilers assign Belle & O'Marra

Oilers Injury Report

HEADLINES

Oilers This Week

Today's media coverage

On the heels of a disappointing 2-1 loss to the division rival Calgary Flames one night ago, the Oilers returned to Rexall Place this morning for an off-ice workout to move on from Saturday’s result.

While the workout room saw the bulk of Sunday’s activity, two injured Oilers carved into the ice as part of their rehabilitation efforts. Jim Vandermeer and captain Shawn Horcoff both participated in a 30-minute session with Assistant Coach Kelly Buchberger; a series of intense skating and quickness exercises took presedence as the pair were pushed to their physical limit.

Once the morning’s activity concluded, Head Coach Tom Renney confirmed that Vandermeer has been cleared by team doctors and will be available to play at any time at the coaches’ discretion.

"We skated him this morning, as we did a couple days ago with the test. His times are good, he’s ready to go, so we’ll play him."

Horcoff, who has been sidelined with a knee injury, donned full equipment for the first time since suffering the ailment on December 7th and partook in the same drills as the ready-to-play Vandermeer. While Horcoff was showing improvement in his mobility, the team’s captain is still a distance from returning to the lineup.

LINEUP NOTES - BELLE & O'MARRA TO OKC

With the roster experiencing constant unrest due to the nature of the injury situation, the Oilers have been forced to make a number of decisions regarding minor league call-ups. As Renney explained, more changes are on the way with the assignments of Shawn Belle and Ryan O’Marra to the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons.

• READ MORE
• BELLE'S CAREER STATS & BIO
• O'MARRA'S CAREER STATS & BIO

"Right now, nobody," Renney said of the potential recall options. "We’ve got some nicks and whatnot that we’re going to have a look at tonight and tomorrow morning and then make a decision if whether or not we need anybody beyond that."

"Shawn (Belle) had a tough night, and I’ve got Jimmy (Vandermeer) coming off IR and looking like he’s ready to play.

Ryan (O’Marra) is going to be back with a little more information. I think he acquitted himself well, as is often times the case and these first couple of steps take a little while to get the kind of traction you’re looking for. 

He did a good job in the middle for us. He could use his body a little more; use his size and strength a little bit more on both sides of the puck. He’s gone back with that information, and we’ll talk to [Barons Head Coach Todd Nelson] about that and make sure that he nails it there."

The lineup fluctuation didn’t end there.

Rookie forward Jordan Eberle left last night’s Battle of Alberta after colliding with former-Oiler Ales Kotalik. Eberle exited Rexall Place wearing a walking cast on his left foot following the game, but there has been no update on his condition since then.

An MRI conducted later today will help to reveal more about his condition, explained Renney.

"I think we’re looking at a little bit of time here, but I don’t know. I’d hate to speculate. He’ll get the MRI today and we’ll have a little better idea."

INCONSISTENT RESPONSE

Head Coach Tom Renney

Injuries and lineup notes aside, the team is currently mired in a six-game losing streak – a sequence that began following Renney’s public declaration of playoff expectations.

Although the team has fallen in a 0-4-2 record since his comments, the coach wasn’t about to abandon his belief.

"I thought we played really well after those comments, and that wasn’t the intention. Instead of identifying with the intangibles all the time: Let’s work hard work, let’s show character, let’s battle, let’s have good intensity, let’s keep a good attitude – those are all very important traits as the process of becoming a good team would suggest.

At the same time, as a coach, it’s my responsibility to make sure there are tangible things to grab onto, too; and the playoffs are those things."

RELIABLE RYAN

One player who has certainly bought in to Renney’s comments has been gritty winger Ryan Jones. The 26-year old forward has scored nine goals on the season and has proven himself as one of the team’s most versatile bodies.

Perhaps even more impressively, Jones’ nine goals have come with almost no additional powerplay time to help contribute to his offensive totals. Despite that, Jones scored the Oilers’ lone goal of Saturday’s Battle of Alberta, in addition to his 17:40 of ice-time and three blocked shots.

Renney was sure to compliment Jones’ recent efforts, and said that additional offensive responsibilities may arise with futher lineup adjustments.

"I certainly thought about him a lot," Renney said of Jones’ potential addition to the powerplay. "It’s something that we’ll look at again for him. He seems to have a touch, he goes to the net, he’s a greasy sort of player – and every powerplay needs that sort of presence, too."

Renney commented further on the powerplay, citing its recent ineffectiveness to over-complication.

"Sometimes we want to paint a masterpiece and that’s not required."

The Oilers will now reconvene at Rexall Place tomorrow morning for a full practice as the team prepares for the Detroit Red Wings. To be sure, it will be a busy day focused on a number of the topics covered this morning by the head coach.

ONE-ON-ONE

In the latest edition of our fan question series, Vanessa of Sherwood Park submitted a question for Ladislav Smid.

VANESSA: "Do you feel more pressure to be a role model and step up as one of the Oilers leading defencemen?"

Ladislav Smid

OILERS vs. FLAMES:
AT THE MORNING SKATE

OIL SPILLS

PRE-GAME VIDEO

Jack & Bob's Preview

IN FOCUS: Oilers vs. Flames preview

POST-GAME VIDEO

Watch the highlights

IN FOCUS: Post-game comments from Ryan Jones, Taylor Hall, Kurtis Foster & Head Coach Tom Renney

The Other Side: Post-game comments from Calgary's Jarome Iginla, Mark Giordano & Head Coach Brent Sutter

GAME PHOTO GALLERY

Oilers vs. Flames

Tonight the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames engage in the latest installment of the Battle of Alberta as 2011 ignites in style. The Oilers took to the ice this morning at Rexall Place for one final tune-up before the late evening battle commences.

Although the team’s current injury situation has been a disappointing addition to five-game losing streak, a battered blueliner was present for this morning’s session despite missing yesterday’s practice. Tom Gilbert emerged from the locker room and participated, as did Jim Vandermeer and recent call-up Shawn Belle.

LINEUP DECISIONS

Even with the attendance of these three defencemen, Head Coach Tom Renney was non-committal about his decisions regarding his team’s lineup on the backend.

"I’ve still got some roster decisions to make there," said Renney. "Quite honestly, it depends. It depends on who’s in. I’m still making a couple of decisions there."

Defenceman Shawn Belle, who was recalled from the AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons Friday afternoon, will be a game-time decision with the nightly assignments still in the minds of the coaching staff.

"When you’re up here, you want to make an impression and get the coaches’ confidence so you can play more," Belle said of the opportunity.

Belle will likely take part in the warm-up before the final lineup decision is made.

While there was some uncertainty with the rearguards, there was confirmation of change in another area. Rookie forward Magnus Paajarvi will be watching tonight’s game from the press box, as he will become a healthy scratch for the first time in his young NHL career.

Paajarvi, while disappointed, was professional in his comments as he sees the situation as a challenge moving forward.

"I’m just going to work harder and do the things I need to do to get back into the lineup," said a soft-spoken Paajarvi. "I definitely think you can learn from looking upstairs; just to see the game from a whole different perspective for sure. If you get that opportunity, you can learn a lot."

"You deserve your ice-time and I guess I don’t deserve it today. I’m going to work harder we’ll go from there."

Paajarvi also commented on the support  and open lines of communication provided by his coach.

"Tom is reasonable. I think he makes good coaching decisions. I trust him and hopefully he trusts me."

Renney believes that the decision to scratch Paajarvi will have a positive effect, both on the team and for the skilled Swede moving forward.

"For a rookie it is [a benefit], to see this game from up above," Renney said of Paajarvi’s lineup exclusion. "Especially with some of the things – and I’m not going to get into the details – some of the little things that we think he needs to do to apply himself with more success at this level. So I think it gives him a chance to look at that and see how it functions with other people and invite that from him moving forward."

"He’s had to try and overcome a couple of things from the get-go, really, and now we’re going to deal with it."

EXTINGUISHING THE FLAMES

Following a tussle with the flu bug, forward Gilbert Brule returned to the lineup Thursday against the Colorado Avalanche after missing four games. Brule performed well in his return and is looking forward to carrying his solid performance into tonight’s matchup with the Flames.

"I thought I was moving my legs well. I think that’s what I need to do. It’s key for me to keep my feet moving all the time, protecting the puck and playing the body, playing mean."

Brule, who scored the Oilers’ first goal of the season back when the Flames made their previous visit to Rexall place on October 7th, is looking forward to another battle.

"They’ve (Calgary) been playing better as of late, so we’re expecting a very hard game from them," Brule explained. "They have four solid lines who play a heavy checking game, so we’re going to have to get on the body tonight and be prepared for a physical game"

"They played a tough game last night and they got in late here, so we’re definitely going to have to get on right away. The first 10 minutes is going to be key for us. If we’re getting pucks deep and making them work and getting their d-men turning, it’s going to be a hard night for them."

Jordan Eberle agreed, but cautioned that the group needs to remain focused and not get caught up in the atmosphere.

"We’ve got to stick to our game and get pucks in and try to wear down their team," Eberle said. "But for us, this is more of a game where we have to worry about ourselves. Obviously it’s a pretty big rivalry between the two teams, and there’s going to be a lot of energy, but we have to try and stick to our own game try and full a full 60 minutes."

KEYS TO THE GAME

With the Oilers currently mired in a five-game losing skid, Head Coach Tom Renney says that his group needs to to be aggressor on this night, as the Flames’ upbeat confidence will have to be shelved by the home side.

"I think we’ve got to come out strong here," said Renney. "They played last night. Obviously they played well and they feel good about themselves. If we allow them to come out and sort of control the game and feel good again, then we might have a tiger by the tail, so we’ve got to have a really good start."

"I think we’re going to have to go through four lines of forwards in order to have success, so we have to make sure that we’re efficient, that we push the issue and press the envelope from that point of view, naturally, and that we really out-change this team and continue to push the pace off the bench."

FLAMES 2 - OILERS 1

A slow start, lack of shots, and injury to star rookie Jordan Eberle did little to help the Oilers open the New Year on a positive note, resulting in a 2-1 loss to the Flames in Saturday night's game, presented by TELUS. Ryan Jones scored Edmonton's lone goal midway through the game, while Nikolai Khabibulin earned second-star honours for his 28-save performance.

• READ MORE
• UNDER THE SCOPE