Gilbert Brule picks up hitch hiker by the name of Bono

Gilbert Brule'/Courtesy: oilers.nhl.com

Sometimes, you never know who you'll see wandering the streets. We wonder if he was humming "And the Streets have no name"?

True story, Edmonton Oiler forward Gilbert Brule' was out in his West Vancouver neighborhood with his girlfriend headed to a park with his girlfriend to take their dog for a walk. They saw someone who they thought was hitchhiking near the park when it started to rain. He looks over and thought it looked like Bono but then thought "I had no idea what he'd be doing in Vancouver or why he'd be hitchhiking for that matter".


Finally, his girlfriend yelled "Bono" out the window...and got a reaction.

Bono told the couple he got lost and needed a ride to Horseshoe Bay, so they drove him over there and who comes out and greets the car? The Edge.

During the ride, Brule' told Bono he was a hockey player and Bono gave him a ticket to the U2 Concert a couple of nights later in Edmonton.

Brule' and his family got to go backstage, meet the band and got called out during the concert.

Not bad for someone who's never picked up a hitchhiker before.

Check out who he picked up, in case you've never heard of him:

Rod Phillips Hangs Up His Mic

After 37 years of calling the good and bad of the Edmonton Oilers ((More of the good early, and more of the bad late)), Rod Phillips hangs up his headset as the voice of the Oil this weekend.

We all have the soundtracks of our youth, and Phillips will be missed by a lot of hockey fans- not just the locals...

Here's his last TV interview from the Edmonton-LA Kings game a few days ago...
((HT: FSWest/NHL/youtube))


And the preview piece from the Oilers their ownselves...

Oilers' Hall Out For Season

((HT: NHL/FSOhio/hockeyfightsdotcom))

Edmonton Oilers rookie Taylor Hall will need 8 weeks to recover from what is being called a left high ankle sprain. The recovery time will head into May, and since the Oil are not going to the playoffs, Hall's year is done.

He was hurt Thursday against Columbus after falling awkwardly in a fight with Derek Dorsett...

Evidence below...
Legs aren't supposed to go that direction...


It was the first-career fight for Hall, who leads Edmonton in goals with 22, along with 20 assists. He is in the discussion for the NHL's rookie of the year award.

Hall's injury comes after Edmonton just traded Dustin Penner to Los Angeles on Trade Deadline Day and they lost Ales Hemsky to a shoulder injury.

Not the best timing...

Sean Avery starts a Pier 6'er....again....

Agitator/pest/annoying hockey guy Sean Avery was again at the crux of a Hockey fight on Sunday that ended up being a full-fledged slobberknocker. He checked -----Colin Fraser into the wall, Fraser skates away and  a teammate skates in to his defense. Avery decks him in one shot.

After the fight, Avery is being escorted off the ice when a couple of Edmonton players skate over, something gets said and before you know it, everyone on the ice picks a dance partner and they're Kung Fu Fighting.

Check out the video from hockeyfights.com:



Because we just lucked out and found it get your Carl Douglas fix right here:

Heatley Says No To Edmonton Deal

((HT: TSN/Bob McKenzie))

Now, it gets interesting.

Dany Heatley did not waive his no-movement clause to facilitate an agreed-upon trade between the Ottawa Senators and Edmonton Oilers that would have sent Andrew Cogliano, Dustin Penner and Ladislav Smid to Ottawa.

For now, and quite possibly forever, the deal is dead.

A lot of confusion has existed because there is a $4 million bonus payment due to Heatley on July 1. It was the understanding of many involved, including the Senators and Oilers, that once the clock struck midnight and turned over to July 1, the Sens would be on the hook for the $4 million bonus payment, which may have been a serious impediment to getting a deal done after midnight.

But as it turns out, the NHL says as long as a Heatley trade is concluded before midnight eastern tomorrow night, the bonus payment allocation can be transferred to the new team.

So, in effect, the Senators have another 24 hours to find a suitable deal that Heatley will approve and NOT be on the hook for his $4 million signing bonus.

Heatley became unhappy with his role in Ottawa last season, especially after the Senators made a coaching change. Heatley discussed his concerns about what he felt was the limiting of his ice time, and his shift from the first power-play unit to the second unit with head coach Cory Clouston in the Senators end of season meetings.

Heatley notched 39 goals and 33 assists in 82 games last season. The 72 points were his lowest point totals in his four seasons with the Senators.

The 28 year-old, had back-to-back 50 goal seasons in 2005-06 and 2006-07.

Here's a backgrounder as to how we got to this point with Rod Smith and Darren Dreger
Thanks to our friends at TSN...

The Mighty Quinn Is An Oiler

((HT: TSN))

The Edmonton Oilers have found their men.

Pat Quinn ((pictured, thanks Edmonton Journal))was announced as the new head coach at a news conference today with former Rangers coach Tom Renney being named an associate head coach.

Kelly Buchberger, who was an assistant coach with the Oilers last season is remaining on the bench.

"I'm certainly aware of the history of the Oilers," Quinn said. "I'm fully aware of the passion of the fans and the work ethics and the appreciation of talent here. I think we have the opportunity to help this team win and I'm excited to have Tom and Kelly (Buchberger) here. It's a thrill and a joy to return to the rink and I'm happy to be here again."

The move reunites Quinn and Renney with general manager Steve Tambellini from their days together with the Vancouver Canucks. Quinn worked as head coach and general manager for 11 seasons in Vancouver and was behind the bench from 1990 to 1996. Tambellini spent two decades working in Vancouver's front office before joining the Oilers last summer. Renney got his first NHL head coaching job with the Canucks in 1996.

"If I think of leadership, I think of Pat," Tambellini said. "If I think of the way you want to be treated as a player, I think of someone like Pat Quinn. If I think of someone who sets and example morally for an organization of how to go forward, I think of a man like Pat Quinn."

Quinn becomes the ninth head coach in the Oilers' 30-year history, replacing Craig MacTavish, who was fired last month.

Quinn's first stint as an NHL coach came in 1978-79 with the Philadelphia Flyers and also worked behind the bench and in the front office with the Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs.

He coached five seasons in Vancouver, winning the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year in 1992 and leading the team to the 1994 Stanley Cup final where they lost to the New York Rangers. He joined the Maple Leafs for the 1998-99 season and led the club to two straight appearances in the Eastern Conference Final.

Quinn was also coach of Canada's Olympic entry for Salt Lake City in 2002 and led the Canadian National Men's Hockey Team to gold, ending the team's 50-year drought. Two years later, he returned to coach Team Canada in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey leading them to a championship finish.

After his stint with the Maple Leafs, Quinn worked as Canada's national men's team coach for the 2006 Spengler Cup and led Canada to its fifth straight gold medal at the 2009 World Junior Hockey Championship.

Quinn also has hockey ties to Edmonton, where he was an added player on the Oil Kings 1963 Memorial Cup championship team. One of his teammates was Former Oilers coach and general manager Glen Sather.

Renney, who was fired near the end of the 2008-09 season by the New York Rangers after five-seasons behind the bench expressed his happiness being behind the bench in a support role with Quinn.

"This is a no-brainer," said Renney. "This is a slam dunk. I want to do everything I can within Pat's framework to being a winning product on the ice for our fans."

Here's the coverage from Global Edmonton's noon news... Shaye Ganam is your anchor...

It starts about the 10-minute mark...

And here's Quinn's time with CBC's George Stroumboulopolous on "The Hour..."

MacT Shown The Door

((HT: Edmonton Journal))

Joanne Ireland got a front row seat to the ejection of Oilers now-former head coach Craig MacTavish Wednesday. ((Steve Staios, pictured answering questions Wednesday- thanks Shaughn Butts, Edmton Journal))

And it was no surprise...

Change was inevitable, given that the Edmonton Oilers are playing spectator for the third straight post-season, so when Steve Staios heard head coach Craig MacTavish was leaving, he was not startled by the news.

“When you think of the lack of success we’ve had over the last few years, you know there’s going to be changes — and it’s usually the coach who goes first,” said Staios.

“There will be more changes to follow. It’s just the nature of the business.”

Staios has played only for MacTavish during his tenure as an Oiler.

“It was a good relationship,” Staios said, “and I feel we were so close to accomplishing some great things. That’s the disappointing thing.”

Captain Ethan Moreau also spent his whole Oilers career with MacTavish as coach.

“I don’t think anybody’s terribly surprised. We knew changes had to be made and this is the first one,” Moreau said. “We have to get better in a lot of areas and it starts with the players. We fully accept that challenge and that responsibility.”
MacTavish coached his first game in the 2000-01 season and won 301 games before he and the organization parted ways.

“We’ve been through a lot, almost won a Stanley Cup. We just wish him the best. We should recognize the contributions he’s made to this organization. It was a great run,” Moreau continued.

“But things need to happen. We need to change the culture and change the environment. We have to get back that pride we had in the organization. And win. Win games. Make the playoffs. Win playoff series.”

Coverage from Lynda Steele and Global TV Edmonton is in black...
EJ Hradek and Matthew Barnaby from the four-letter continue...

The Skinny On Vinny... On The Move...?

Depends on who you talk to...

It could be that Tampa Bay Lightning captain Vinny Lecavalier could be on his way to Edmonton for a truckload of stuff... just when everyone thought he was on his way to Montreal to put them over the top in the centennial season.

But, if you read Bruce Garrioch's column in the Toronto Sun, the front office for the Bolts is in full spin-and-denial stage.

GM Brian Lawton sayeth quote:

"It's just a pipe dream that people think we're going to trade him."

Not if you have problems making ends meet with your current economic policies...

The idea was for Lecavalier to go north on Monday for three players, two prospects, two Number One draft picks, and a third-rounder.

Rogers Sportsnet's Louis Jean is tracking as well. According to Jean, the Oil have made a strong play for Lecavalier, but the Lightning won't do anything unless they alert the captain as to their intentions of a trade- and to whom. They apparently haven't had those kinds of talks.

The numbers ((according to nhlnumbers.com))

Tampa Bay is at just over US$51-million with about US$5-and-a-half million left in space.

Lecavalier is signed to a monstrous US$85-million extension through, what seems, the year 2250. It's only for the next ten years on paper...

Edmonton is at US$54.5-million and has, about US$2.2-million left to play with.

This would, probably, mean that Dwayne Roloson is done after this season at US$3-million, and the goaltending with be Dany Sabourin and Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers.

Gilbert Brule and Robbie Schremp may be on the table as cheap, young talent.

Erik Cole, as a UFA after this season, may be a sign-and-trade at US$4-million-ish...

Dustin Penner as the, currently, highest-paid Oiler at US$4.25 through 2011-2012 is in play.

Shawn Horcoff as the ((after this season)) soon-to-be highest-paid Oiler ((4 years US$26-million starting next season)) is in play.

Lubomir Vishnovsky, defensively, with his long-term deal at 4-years left at $21-million may be in play.

Our ear is on the Transactions train tracks...

Keep you posted...