Saturday, May 30, 2009

Oilers Sign Kytnar

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It may have come down to the wire but The Pipeline Show has learned that the Edmonton Oilers have finally signed Milan Kytnar to an entry level contract.

Details to follow.

Kytnar was Edmonton's 5th round pick in 2007 after a strong junior year in his homeland of Slovakia. The forward moved to the WHL after being chosen by the Kelowna Rockets in the CHL Import Draft. He recorded 22 points playing a defensive role for the Rockets the following year but was traded in the off-season to Saskatoon.

The personable pivot enjoyed somewhat of a breakout year with the Blades as the team used him in a top-6 position. Saskatoon surprised everyone with a stellar season and Kytnar's 27 goals and 64 points was a pleasant development for the Oilers as well.

Kytnar also put on a decent showing at the World Junior Championship in Ottawa this past Christmas season. Slovakia was another surprising story in that tournament and again, Kytnar was a main player on the squad.

Expect an announcement of the Kytnar signing... well, you know how the Oilers can be in regards to announcements regarding prospects.

Had Edmonton not reached an agreement with Kytnar he would have been available to be re-drafted by a new team at June's NHL Entry Draft in Montreal.

5 comments:

Gord said...

Does the fact that Kytnar is not considered a top 20 Oilers prospect mean that he needs a few years to develop?

So fans should just sit back and relax about the signing...

Guy Flaming said...

I guess that depends on "Top 20 according to who?"

He'd be top 20 on my list right now, if I had one.

Jonathon Willis over at HF, who does quality work regarding Oiler prospects, has him in his top 20 and I think even Lowetide does too.

He's not a standout prospect but that doesn't mean that he's not worth keeping an eye on.

He's not going to be someone looked at for offence as a pro but can he deliver on being a quality 2-way forward?

I think the chances of that are better than of Slava Trukhno suddenly living up to the expectations everyone had for him coming out of junior 2 years ago
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Guy Flaming said...

Willis isn't at HF... he does stuff for Oilers Nation and that's where I saw his recent mention of his top 20 list.

Gord said...

My point was that we should not expect Kyntar to be in the NHL for a couple of years - that is what I meant by "sit back and relax".

And that fans shouldn't have high expectations (i.e. Eberle / Omark)... :-)

Guy Flaming said...

sure, I'll go along with that then. Thanks for the clarification.