For different reasons Ryan Smyth and Taylor Hall need ice time. Smyth needs to stay sharp in case of a sudden end to the lockout. Hall is doing it for the purpose of getting his shoulder back to 100 per cent. With the Oilers having a handful of players (Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle, Justin Schultz) sent to their farm team in Oklahoma City and others (Sam Gagner, Devan Dubnyk) traveling to a camp in Vail, Colorado there was a shortage of bodies for informal skates in Edmonton. That’s why on Monday Hall and Smyth joined the Edmonton Oil Kings at practice.
“For me this works out great’ explained Hall “I needed to find a place to skate and being with the Oil Kings allows me to continue getting better. They are here all week so I’ll just keep skating with them.” For Hall being at a junior practice isn’t much of a stretch. It wasn’t long ago he led Windsor to back-to-back MasterCard Memorial Cups. He’ll be 21 on Nov.14 so he isn’t much older than some of the Oil Kings. It’s a different story for Smyth. He last played junior during a lockout in the 90s. The year was 1994-95 and he started the season with Moose Jaw before finishing it with the Oilers. “There’s nothing like NHL practices,” said Smyth. “But this is a great way to keep in pretty good shape and it makes you feel young skating around with these kids.”
Kids like Curtis Lazar of the Oil Kings who is projected to be a first-round pick in 2013. “You definitely watch them in practice and I’m going to be a sponge” is the way Lazar put it.”You are kind of in awe of them considering they are where I want to be.” With no disrespect meant to the Oil Kings this isn’t where either Hall or Smyth expected to be. For the former No. 1 pick it’s an important step in his recovery. “My shoulder isn’t 100 per cent right now so I need this. I’m hoping to get to OKC (Edmonton’s AHL affiliate) maybe in the next week or so. Get there a little early and see if I can play and if not there I might have some other options,” explained Hall.
Smyth is waiting for his No. 1 option which is the NHL and at least for now he’ll skate at Rexall. “I can’t go in the dressing room,” said Smyth. “But other than that I can be on the ice.”
At least he can with the Oil Kings because for now he can’t with the team who owns them the Edmonton Oilers.
