Oilers Coach Knoblauch Disappointed To Make Recent Roster Cuts
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The last week of training camp will see the Oilers decide their opening night lineup, but it will also involve making some difficult roster cuts.
The Oilers cut six players from the training camp roster yesterday, and Coach Knoblauch said he was especially disappointed to deliver the news to a few young players. Knoblauch pointed to James Hamblin and Ben Gleason as players who had great training camps and are close to being NHL players, but the Oilers do not have a spot for them.
»It's very disappointing. It's difficult giving the news, but you tell them things that they did really well in Camp to get this far. During the season, there are going to be times when there are injuries, or we just don't like how our team's playing, and we need a little something different.»
- Coach Knoblauch
- Coach Knoblauch
James Hamblin has already played NHL games and clearly has the ability to contribute at that level, but on a contending team like the Oilers, it's harder to break into the lineup. The Oilers coach even said that Hamblin didn't have a great start to camp, but eventually looked like his old self.
»Last year, I saw Hamblin and I really liked his game . . . He just got off to a slow start at Camp. His last game was his best, and I don't think it's the last we're going to see of him. It was just a difficult decision for us.»
- Coach Knoblauch
- Coach Knoblauch
Knoblauch acknowledged that Hamblin will be a part of the team in the future from call ups, and similarly encouraged Gleason to keep working to have a future in the NHL. When a coach is expressing how disappointed he is to cut them from the team, it's a sign they've had a great camp.
Hamblin and Gleason are older undrafted players, 25 and 26 years old respectively, that have come up in the AHL the last few seasons and look to be NHL caliber players. As Knoblauch said, injuries will occur and the Oilers will want to try new line combinations, so even though they're going down now they could still be part of the team later. It's tough for these career minor league players being just on the cusp of the NHL, but they will get their day.
Knoblauch even sounded like he had lost his voice a bit in the interview, a good sign that training camp is getting more intense closer to the regular season opener. Connor McDavid recently asked to get into more preseason games to get to his next level, and it wore off on the team in practice. There's now just 7 days to go until the Oilers open their regular season at home against the Winnipeg Jets.
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