When your team is out of the playoffs, again, you start to look forward to things like the draft, July 1st, baseball or pretty much anything else but hockey. For me, watching other teams in the playoffs is a little bit like adultery, but not quite as fun. The Edmonton Oilers had the good fortune to draft Swedish senastion Linus (Lee-nus) Omark and we have enjoyed watching his YouTube highlight reel goals. The prospect of having a talented player like Omark come over to Edmonton to play with Hemsky et al was somewhat intriguing, even if he might just be another Brunstrom etc. At this type of year, you cling to hope more than a Democrat on Election Day.
Now, a few hours after the Oilers were officially eliminated, comes word that Omark may have rejected the Oilers offer to sign in Russia. Details are sketchy, but Staples has a pretty comprehensive post up about it right here. Maybe the news stories is just a bargaining chip or maybe the Oilers did tell him he was too small. All the same, you would think that the organization would go out of its way to offer the fans something to cling to in their time of need. Even if he isn’t NHL ready, goodness knows Springfield could use the help. I will do my best to post updates, possibly in the post-mortem on the Oil Drop.
