Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers, one of the most storied teams in hockey history, extended its affiliation agreement with the Stockton Thunder early in the summer of 2007 after the Thunder advanced to the Kelly Cup Playoffs for the first time in club history and graduated its first alum to the NHL last season.
For the second consecutive season, Stockton will serve as the AA minor-league affiliate for Oilers prospects. Edmonton was affiliated with Stockton last season and promoted rookie defenseman Bryan Young (pictured, right) to the NHL, who became the first player to earn a call-up to the NHL in Thunder history and carved his path from Stockton to Edmonton in the same season. After appearing in 17 games with Stockton, Young made his NHL debut at Anaheim on March 9 and played in 15 games with the Oilers in 2006-07.
In total, the Thunder was assigned eight Oilers prospects in 2006-07. Rookie goaltender Devan Dubnyk, a first-round selection of the Oilers (14th overall) in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, set Thunder single-season records for wins (24), minutes played (2,529), lowest goals-against-average (2.56) and save percentage (.921), made a game-high tying 17 saves in the second period of the 2007 Rbk Hockey ECHL All-Star Game for the National Conference and earned a mid-season call-up to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League.
Rookie right wing Troy Bodie, selected in the ninth round (278th overall) by the Oilers in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, ranked fifth on the Thunder with 38 points (21g-17a) last season and was second with 21 goals through just 46 games. The 22-year old tallied an assist for the National Conference at the All-Star Game and earned two AHL call-ups to the Hamilton Bulldogs in 2006-07.
Left wing Brock Radunske, selected by the Oilers in the third round (79th overall) in 2002, was assigned to the Thunder on March 3 and assumed a 29-point (13g-16a) scoring tear in 15 games during March, earning CCM Tacks ECHL Player of the Month honors. Radunske broke a Thunder single-game record with five points (2g-3a) on March 22 at Utah.
Left wing Liam Reddox (pictured, right), selected by the Oilers in the fourth round (112th overall) by Edmonton in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, became the second alum in Thunder history to play in the NHL when the 21-year old made his debut with Edmonton on December 7, 2007 at Rexall Place against the St. Louis Blues. The Oilers, a member of the NHL's Western Conference and Northwest Division, have been a member of the National Hockey League since the 1979-80 season. A winner of five Stanley Cup Championships (1983-84, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1987-88 and 1989-90), the Oilers became the NHL's first-ever eighth playoff seed in league history to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2005-06 as the league's Western Conference Champion, falling in seven games to the Carolina Hurricanes in the Finals.
Currently led by eighth-year General Manager Kevin Lowe, the Oilers have sent four players (five members in total) to the Hockey Hall of Fame, including center Wayne Gretzky, the National Hockey League's all-time leading scorer.
In the past 25 years, the Oilers have won the Stanley Cup five times, and came within a game of winning it a sixth time in 2005-06. They are known for producing such unforgettable players like Hall-of-Famers Wayne Gretzky, Grant Fuhr, Mark Messier and Paul Coffey.
A look at the Oilers five Stanley Cup championships:
- 1983-84: defeated New York Islanders, 4 games to 1
- 1984-85: defeated Philadelphia Flyers, 4 games to 1
- 1986-87: defeated Philadelphia Flyers, 4 games to 3
- 1987-88: defeated Boston Bruins, 4 games to 0
- 1989-90: defeated Boston Bruins, 4 games to 1
Springfield Falcons
The Springfield Falcons are the new American Hockey League affiliate of the Thunder and recently signed an affiliation agreement with the Oilers in March 2007. A former affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning and located in Springfield, Mass., the Falcons have spent 13 years in the AHL and have 12 former players* with NHL playing experience, including goaltender Manny Legace, who won a Stanley Cup title with the Detroit Red Wings in 2001-02.
Other notable former Falcons players include Nikolai Khabibulin, a star goaltender with the Chicago Blackhawks and a Stanley Cup winner with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2003-04 and all-star center Daniel Briere, captain and leading scorer for the Buffalo Sabres in 2006-07.
*based on 100 career games experience or more with Springfield
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING:
"We're very pleased to go back to Stockton - certainly they're a first-class organization. Our players were treated tremendously - very pro-like and they've had a good relationship with Chris Cichocki and the organization. We've found the development experience to be very positive."
- Edmonton Oilers VP of Hockey Operations Kevin Prendergast
""We're very pleased to be continuing our affiliation with the Oilers for the 2007-08 season. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement last season and we look forward to working with their organization and players again this year."
- Thunder president Dan Chapman
"I can’t think of a better fit for an NHL affiliate for our organization than the Edmonton Oilers, and we look forward to building a great relationship with them. They are a first-class organization on and off the ice, and I admire the style of play their team brings to every game. The way the Oilers play their game is the same philosophy I preach to my players – always play with tenacity and be aggressive in pursuing the puck."
- Thunder head coach Chris Cichocki
Contact info:
Edmonton Oilers Hockey Club
11230 - 110 Street
Edmonton, AB. T5G 3H7
Phone: 780-414-4000
Springfield Falcons Hockey Club
45 Falcons Way
Springfield, MA 01103
Phone: 413-739-3344
*Oilers photos courtesy Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oilers
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