Sunday, July 24, 2011

The Case: Jones vs Omark 3rd Line RW

I'm going to run a series of training camp battles that may evolve. Today, I will start with Omark against Jones.

Linus Omark:
Strengths - Offensive wizard that has a high ceiling. He's flashy, he'll bring offense and will help out the powerplay if need be or if there is room. Has good vision and is a pure passer. He's a very effective puck battler despite his frame.
Weaknesses - If he ain't scoring, he's likely not doing much of anything. His defensively play is well below standard and his hockey sense in general is low. I wouldn't trust him on the PK.

Ryan Jones:
Strengths - A jack of all trades player, can PK, be a "in front of the net" option on the powerplay, plays the evens to a stalemate. Tenacious player that plays better off the puck than on.
Weaknesses - Not a lot of flash, meat and potatoes type player. Sometimes gets caught in "no man's land" when defending. Don't want him holding the puck too much.

The verdict:
- I would rather have Jones' 15 goals than Omark's 15 goals. While Omark has more of an entertainment factor in his game, Jones has more security and versatility in his game. The Oilers, as a whole, should have enough offense pizzazz without Omark's contributions. What the Oilers need to do is find more players that can keep the puck out of their own nets. I believe Jones will be one of these players despite what RelCorsi, GA/60, (blah blah blah) has to say about it. Remember, Jones started the year on a line with Fraser and Jacques/Stortini/MacIntyre, all of whom are gone now. One he started to play with more NHL players, his numbers increasingly got better. I would rather have Jones as my 3rd line RW and Omark as the 13th forward.

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