Edmonton Oilers fans should twitch brakes on David Tomasek – Hockey Writer – Edmonton Oilers

The moves that the Edmonton Oilers may be lost during the busy time of the year will soon be revealed. In mid-April, the Oilers signed a $1.2 million contract from David Tomasek. The team is finishing the regular season and preparing for the playoffs, so the move isn’t as many international signings as usual, especially with such high-profile players from overseas. Despite Tomasek’s reputation in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), fans should slow down before they can get to his big deal.

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Tomasek spent a big year in the SHL last season. He led his team Färjestad BKKarlstad, scoring very big, totaling 57. He also had 45 before this season. His career tells a fairly consistent story of contributors who have played offensively in several different leagues overseas. If he can continue and build on his own success, he will be the perfect addition to this oil squad. However, there are some major issues to consider before making any claims about his performance.

First NHL experience

One thing that is obvious is that Tomasek never competes at the NHL level. He played junior hockey in North America, but that was close to him. He spent his entire career in leagues such as the SHL, the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Despite their high competitiveness and possession of many previous NHLERSs, they still do not have a complete comparison with North American hockey. Each place has two different play styles, so he will make up for some of the foundations in this transition.

If the Oilers want to maximize Tomasek’s work, they should slowly lift him up and naturally fit into him. His contract does not allow two-way movement between the NHL and the American Hockey League (AHL), so the team can lower him in the roster and work hard as he feels comfortable. Practice him through different combinations to make it easier for everyone. This is their best route for those without NHL experience.

The Oilers also signed international forward Josh Samanski in mid-to-mid April. Although he competed in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga in a different league from Tomasek, he followed a similar path. Samanski played junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) before moving to Europe. Edmonton could have the two strikers working together in training camp and potentially help each other among minors to get used to different games.

Tomasek’s statistics are not a complete circle

As mentioned earlier, Tomasek has performed well in his career. He has scored 102 points in 99 games over the past two seasons. This includes an impressive 49 goals. Prior to this, he also released strong numbers, playing in leagues such as KHL, Czech Extraliga and Liiga. Apart from his rookie year, he never proposed a 30-point season. So, it’s safe to say that scoring has never been a problem for the 29-year-old.

This is a defensive end that Oilers fans should pay some attention to. Although Tomasek has provided high octane offense in the past, his add/subtraction, among other things, has a little different story. He has never recorded 10 pictures, and his speed doesn’t completely change the game. More specifically, in the transition. This can be a problem for a team that sometimes needs extra help on the defensive end.

So even if the score is good, the Oiler needs to clean up other aspects of the Tomasek game so that he can be as effective as possible.

The oil worker has tried it before

Although it won’t directly affect Tomasek, this should be noted for precedents. That is, the Oilers had been on the road to international signing before. Not only did they do it, but they also failed many times in this joint venture. We look at Gaëtan Haas and Joakim Nygard examples, the names should ring the bell for most of Edmonton’s fans.

Haas signed with the Oilers in the summer of 2019. He stood out in the back-to-back All-Star season in Switzerland’s National League (NL), where he was a very consistent scorer. However, he doesn’t seem to find the same success with the Oilers. He scored 10 points in 58 games in his first season. Not bad for his first NHL season, he was also a decent defensive game.

Gaetan Haas, certified #HandSteam member?

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— Edmonton Oilers (@edmontonoilers) March 13, 2021

He managed to get a one-year contract with the team, but he couldn’t replicate a small success as he could only score three points in 34 games in the 2020-21 season. He will re-sign with his old team in Bern, Switzerland in the summer of 2021, Haas’s NHL saw.

As for Nygard, it was a similar, and even more unfortunate term. He signed with the Oilers shortly before spring 2019. The 2019-20 campaign was a pretty good match as Nygard scored nine points in 33 games. He was seen as a valuable deep asset to the team, so he got a new deal midway through his first season. However, his second season lasted only nine games and he scored zero points. He would take a similar route to Haas, re-sign with his old team, rather than returning to the NHL again.

In addition to his time with Edmonton, Nygard has spent his entire career with a team from the SHL: färjestadbk karlstad. Does it sound familiar? He played the last few seasons with Tomasek, so let’s hope this time is different from the last season.

Pulling out of an international pool is risky and obviously, it doesn’t always work. This is hoped to do so, but past experience has taught us to be cautious about this. While Tomasek has the potential to be a real game changer, fans should not expect him to hang the moon and stars. There may be some real problems that everyone should prepare for.