The sudden success of the Barons, in this their second year of existence in Oklahoma City, has forced the media to look long and hard and often at how a minor league team can soar while the NHL team is a bore. I’m here to tell you, that this Barons squad is not without its imperfections. The late period “fade” is something the coaching staff is trying to correct in the latter half of the season. The lack of power play scoring to begin and end games is improving, but still lumpy. At this point, I’m just nitpicking, but for the right reasons. As someone whom watches more minor league hockey on a weekly basis than that of the major league variety, I like to think that I know a thing or two about this Oklahoma City squad. So as the Edmonton writers enjoyed a really good steak, some warmer weather, and FINALLY a couple of wins in a row, I too ponder the success in the “A” and the failures in the “N”.

G To The M
The most interesting talk over the last three weeks has been about Steve Tambellini and the inevitable contract extension that many believe he is due. One wrinkle to the re-up has been the success of the farm team, and the attention laid to promoting wins through strong roster maneuvers. Those who argue the contrary are absolutely right in my opinion. An NHL GM being graded on his AHL team is ludicrous, especially when you have a GM in the AHL. Bill Scott, former AHL Director of Hockey Operations has made deep roster moves that have stitched this team together. Tambellini can take credit for Hartikainen, Plante, Cornet, maybe Keller, maybe Green, and a few marquee names, but give credit to the minor league GM for Montgomery, LeNeveu, Yeo, Helmer, Ringwald, and Martens who have been the back end of this team when the callups and injuries are in full effect. I choose to believe, and history does as well, that a deep team is a winning team. I’d go as far as to say that a team is only as strong as it’s bottom pairings and lines. Don’t believe me, look at the Oilers.

Imagine you work for the circus. You’re the guy responsible for booking the acts, as freakish as they might be. You know the elephants are the big showstopper, but lately that portion of the show has been really bad. The elephants are belligerent, your trainer isn’t pushing new portions of the act, and people are starting to complain. However, you keep your job. Why? Because the bearded lady has had a big crowd for a year now. People love her. Children are in amazement of her. But remember, the main show is brutally unbearable. Sound familiar? Even Barnum & Bailey know better.

The System
Coach Todd Nelson is a diamond in the rough. He’s honest with the media, respected by his players, and really good at motivating play. Not lost on we OKC fans is his ability to coach youngsters. He’s a system guy. A guy that preaches “work the system” in practice, the dressing room, the weight room, and in game time situations. That system is defensively sharp and offensively open. For two seasons it has worked. It’s taken on different shapes and forms, but it’s a system that works. He does add pieces into the fray according to opponents, and this is where Nelson’s sweet spot lies. He has a knack for keeping opponents off the game plan. Rarely do you see a hockey coach that can get opponents bumfuzzled even on back-to-back nights. He does this posturing in two ways. He’s a line mixer. But only to a point. He doesn’t fuss with those that are producing. He lets them evolve. But 2nd, 3rd, and 4th lines are the meat and potatoes, and this is where he’s a magician. He knows the Checkers are a quick team, and so he places Pitlick on the left wing where he can defensively stab opponents around the boards. He realizes that the team needs some bite against Texas, so he pops Tryvainen centered by O’Marra. The same goes for defensive pairings. On nights where the puck needs to move quickly, you’ll see Chorney and Helmer get the top spots. Nelson will counter large teams with Plante-Teubert, Tulupov-Yeo. There’s just enough “buying into” the system that the rotation of players and injuries don’t ruffle enough feaathers to get the Barons into bind in the standings.

Hearts
If you’ve watched the Oilers for a year or so it’s evident that at times they play lifeless hockey. Much of that comes from losing so much, but some of that happens to be a direct result of the culture that begins in the dressing room. Don’t get me wrong, the Oilers have players w/ heart, but at times the team isn’t uniformly moving in the same direction. This is tough for any sports team, organization, or business to overcome. One thing that has pushed the Barons through the last two seasons has been heart. The heart and soul of this team is about determination. Determination to get better on the ice, stay focused off the ice, and be positive in the locker room. From practice to Friday nights, this team doesn’t deviate from that heartbeat. Coaching, player leadership, and fan support all help, but ultimately it’s an individual concept that requires “buying into”. The Barons, even when in defeat, never lose heart. A concept that continues to run its course.

Developing
It’s important to remember the main reason for a farm team’s existence. Unfortunately for those in OKC, it’s not always about seeing that team succeed. It’s more about feeding quality talent to the parent club, seeing them succeed, and rightly contribute. Omark, Hartikainen, Plante, Teubert, Petry, McDonald, and Reddox are just a few players who have made great strides as a result of farm play. Except for Jeff Petry, some continue to develop in the minors, and have probably reached a level of potential that necessitates a move to another organization. However, there’s no denying their improvement while in OKC. The only problem is that very few have been able to translate success to the NHL club that equals their dominance in the AHL. It’s also a strange time. The Oilers are seemingly in desperate need of good players NOW. But the process seems to be working. Winning while working is just a nice bonus.

When the dust settles on the Oiler GM’s contract re-up (or not), I’d be hesitant to assume that it was a direct result of the minor league Barons success. I’d even take it one step further. Perhaps the AHL team is succeeding in spite of Steve Tambelinni’s so-called meddling in the farm team in OKC. In reality, it’s a pretty sad state when that’s how you might intend on pitching your reasons for an extension. I’m not saying that Tambelinni is doing so, but he just might. After all, what does he have left?

It should be a time to party. A time to reflect on where you were when you first heard this tune or that melody. A great example of this done right was Paul McCartney. When he stepped on that stage I was prepared to throw tomatoes at my HD LCD if he sang anything but Beatles penned songs. By george, he did it! And I saved my tomatoes for a pasta recipe. Double win. But the point is, that he stuck to what he was known for. Sure the rest of the Fab Four couldn’t be with him, but he did what he does best and that’s entertain with the classica. Madonna should certainly stick to the script, but I have a feeling we might just get a rendition of “4 Minutes”. Tomato time.

In an ideal world here’s what Madonna should do. She should sing nothing that was released after 1990. You can keep your “I’ll Remember”, “Take A Bow”, and your “Music” I want the classics. Tunes that stand the test of time. “Holiday”, “Lucky Star”, “Borderline”, “Papa Don’t Preach”, and “Open Up Your Heart” are sugar coated pop gems. Singles that I still rock on the iPod to this day as untouchables that will never be deleted. This, and only this, is how you make Super Bowl half-time performances enjoyable.

The twitters revealed a potential set list for Madge. “Vogue”, “Ray of Light”, and “Holiday” were the only three mentioned. And I get it, really I do. Kids hearing “Into The Groove” (my personal fave) for the first time are instantly switching channels or returning to the fridge for another Red Bull. So she’ll probably appease both sides. But that only dilutes what makes this moment so fun; a moment where a star can relive her glory days, sell a few more nostalgic records, and get people to have a good ole’ fashioned good time.  Please, please please, make the Super Bowl half-time show what it SHOULD be and COULD be, not what it HAS to be. Love, Neal

BONUS! The Super Bowl Half-Time performance MUST BE 12 minutes in length. So I’ll get specific. Here’s the Madonna set list I’d most like to see.

Philippe Cornet. A bastion of hope that the Oilers farm club is indeed churning out future NHLers. Or not. Today, the Oil announced the recall of recent AHL All-Star, Philippe Cornet. The 2008 fifth rounder is the Barons only current 20 goal scorer. He’s riding a shooting percentage of nearly 33%. He plays on what is considered the top scoring line for the Barons. Thus, on paper, he has deserved a callup. And for as bad as the Oilers have played lately, finding a young spark might do the big club some good. But there is more to the Cornet story than just a nice, slightly erroneous score sheet. A healthy dose of perspective is needed.

Coming out of camp, Cornet was the most impressive returnee. He bulked up and sped up in the off season. In October, I picked him to be my darkhorse showman this season. Indeed, through nearly 40 games he’s done me a solid.

Cornet has found top line combos for the first half of the season. He’s usually centered by Mark Arcobello or Josh Green, two guys that are beyond solid at that position in the minor leagues. They are natural players makers as well. You place Hartikainen in that same spot and he’s probably a 20 goal guy at the midway point as well (He still might have been if not for the shoulder injury). Now there’s nothing scientifically accurate to prove this point, but my eyes tell me that Cornet is getting top line treatment with really solid playmakers around him. Is Cornet successful by association? I believe that he is.

Here’s his stats:

Indeed, he’s ultimately the one that has to finish the play. He’s the one responsible for sticking that puck in the back of the net. However, if we expect him to produce similar results at the major league level, he’d need the same supporting cast (UPDATE: He’s playing w/ Gagner & Eberle. That’s a solid line for Cornet to find success). However, we’ll probably find young Cornet deeper in the roster where he’ll likely get abused. Lost in the mix is his timidity with the puck outside of the scoring chance box. He’s just not really a strong or confident puck handler. He’s also defensively saggy. His determination to be in the crease, in front of the goaltender, causes him to be behind when the puck is turned over, and rushed up ice. That brings us to that thing about the crease. He is indeed a goaltenders nightmare. He loves to park his frame directly in front of the net or to one side. He has quick hands and quick smarts, but sometimes these things aren’t motoring at the same time. He is what he is. A sophomore playing on solid lines with a little bit of luck thrown in.

I hope he settles in nicely. The Oilers need to add something positive to their bag of tools. Cornet might not be the correct tool, but with a chance and some sharpening, he might turn out to be a great option.

It’s hard to imagine a world where air travel was a mesmerizing, enjoyable experience. As a 31 year old guy, my fondest memories of airlines were probably my earliest thoughts as well. Free peanuts, Sports Illustrated magazines wrapped in a plastic sheet cover, soft pillows, dark blue blankets, and the fizzle of high altitude soda. 30 some years doesn’t give you the full timeline of air travel around the world, but it’s easy to point out the less-than-glamorous life that is flying coach in our world during that span.

Indeed there was a time when such endeavors were tolerable, even enjoyable respits as you glided from point A to point B and back again. The 50′s and 60′s were full of a wonderous new age age of aero travel that was a glorious pursuit of the senses. Fancy drinks, on-board-smoking, dressed to the nines crew of stewardess, a friendly captain, and spacious lounging. But somwhere along the way, we’d forgotten about this glorious age. Then comes the ABC period drama, Pan Am, which was intended to remind us of days gone by.
But in the end, the show would be its own worst enemy. Sandwiched on a Sunday evening following the near end and terribly slumping Desperate Housewives. It was intended to be a showcase of the great Pan Am airlines that brought the cadillac comforts to the wild blue yonder. I watched the show for this reason alone. I wanted to see how my grandparents travelled in style. I loved the wimsy of those soft blue Pan Am stewardess caps. But the show turned out to be nothing of the sorts. It was all air travel with none of the pizazz. And although the show hasn’t been completely cancelled, it’s inevitable departure is quickly approaching. So what really grounded Pan Am?

Not Enough Ricci

Christina Ricci, who’s had a pretty decent career, was cast as the key player in the Pan Am wheel of excitement. However, we watched her character slowly be demoted to maybe the fourth storyline in a semi-large cast of characters. Buried so deep in the lineup, Ricci was never given the scenes nor storyline she needed to carry the show. And I’m convinced she should have. Even in the most recent episodes, she gets more screen time, but ends up being everything that Maggie Ryan was not built to be – a pandering, lowly follower, stooping at the feet of an ill-advised politician. That has yucky written all over it. There were times that she disappeared completely. The writers didn’t seem daring enough to give her the reigns as the energetic protestor she could have been. I cry fowl when good actresses are given the backseat before they’ve even been allowed to drive. Bad form.

The Spy Game

I found myself absolutely bored to death watching the spy angle form on this show. Kate, the quiet girl who apparently needed to fill an excitement void in her life, becomes a clumsy “spy under cover”. Pathetic were the storylines, and even more pathetic were her supporting members in that endeavor. She kills someone, gets away with it, and we are expected to believe she goes back to the hum drum’s of life, including more spy games and cocktail serving. Even an attempt to puff the Kate character even a little via a relationship, was so hollow that the writers weren’t sure how to stick with it. In all, it’s the biggest arc that ruined the show. (More to come on that topic).

What Year Again

Mad Men is a great show. However, its subtle nuances are rarely repackaged in any other 60′s era television series with much success at all. That’s what makes the show great. Pan Am tried to grasp hold of the generational television trend, but failed in every instance. Sure it looked nostalgic from time to time with costuming, music, and news-of-the-day, but the overall lack of attention to these details crippled its on-screen tone. By contrast, Mad Men is a slice of work-piece drama with time period information swirling in the background. It’s not distracting, but rather a piece to the story. Pan Am did it backwards. Spurts of 60-ish vibes, but at times overly silly. The first trip into Russia, landing on unsteady Haitian soil on a dilapidated runway, rushing down the stree to see Kennedy – it was all so ridiculous. I like time period pieces, regardless of the era, that learn to subtly react to the timeline of history, not those that goofily embrace it.

The Blonde

There is enough bad acting on this show to go around, but the blonde bombshell, played by Australian soap star Margot Robbie, was about as weak an actress as you’ll find outside of a televised Lifetime movie. She may very well be a great actress, but even her seemingly strong moments were handicapped by terrible story writing. From the runaway wedding scene to the photo debacle, she looked a little gobsmacked at every turn.

What It Should Have Been

The great mystery to Pan Am is simple. The show should have been a silly romp through life as a stewardess on a Pan Am plane circa the golden years of air travel. It was somewhat packaged as this. But it became something that was an overcomplicated mess of a show. I’m disappointed because with the Pan Am name comes a pretty glitzy frame of mind. You see, flying on planes when Pan Am was at its high point, was about the fun of it all. These flying hotels were inter-continental dream boats that were styled by the culture around them. But in most dramatic pieces hitting the tube these days, there is pressure to have more “meat” in the story than actually is needed. Viewers are smart. They understand the story you’re trying to put on them. We don’t need hunks of prime rib when sometimes a petite filet will do.

Occasionally you want a break from the heaviest of shows. Perhaps you turn to daytime drama or reality television. Whatever the case may be, Pan Am should have been a great example of escapism television full of whimsy and fun. Unfortunately, we got the opposite.

Today I drank the last of the egg nog, removed Home Alone from the DVR, and newspaper wrapped the last of the ornaments. And with one fell swoop the holiday season grinds to a screeching yuletide halt. It’s not anyone’s fault but my own. I embrace Christmas like snowman Sam likes to tell a wintry story – with all that’s within me. And while the college bowl season might inspire an awakening from lack-of-holiday depression, the truth is that the holidays provide a gentle escape from whatever grind with which you daily participate. This respite is both rare and needed more often for virtually every working adult in North America.

You eat what you want, play when you want, watch ridiculously cheesy movies, spend absorbent amounts of time with family, sing old time classics, and give/receive as you’ve not done in eleven months.

As we usher in a new year, and hopefully learn from the past, it’s time for me to shake loose the shackles of leftover ham. For I refuse to bah humbug my way through life for the next 300+ days. And while I’m doing so, I’ll learn to live life as I do in the 25 days of Christmas window. With joy, kind-heartedness, and fun, making every day a special time of the year. You should too.

In my mind, the scene stealer of the entire program has always been Bumble the abominable snow monster. As a child he frightened the Charles Dickens out of me. Then again, his story of being a mis-understood, tooth-aching good guy has always been his redeeming quality. Thus the fear of his form is also coupled with a great Christmas character who in the end is a pretty decent snow monster who finds new life as a tree decorator.

Apparently I’m not alone. As nicknamed by Yukon Cornelius, Bumble the snow monster is quite the legendary Christmas figure. Since it’s debut, and subsequent cult following, the snowy guy has created quite the buzz. So I’m here to highlight a few of the really great “stuffs” that some wonderful people have built, crafted, and curated for the rest of us to enjoy. Let the snow monster list begin!

via Hungie Gungie

The Stocking

Homemade stockings have been all the rage for the last couple of years. And it seems the more layers of felt, the better. Indeed, that is the case as this home spun stocking features our hairy friend hanging out in his natural habitat with a Christmas tree hovering overhead. It’s the best of both worlds. A snapshot of Bumble’s life in one giant sock. This is something that you could make at home with the kids or merely for your own nostalgic pleasure. Either way, you can’t go wrong with this really cute depiction. I’m unsure of the size, but the execution of awesomeness is top notch. Poetic really.

via CrochetMe

The Slippers

I’m probably the least crafty person you know. But even I find crochet work fascinating. A seemingly lost art form has had a rebirth of sorts, and thanks to this lovely demonstration you can now adorn your young ones feet with abominable snow monster slippers. Soft, warm, and cuddly – the step-by-step instructions are certainly Greek to me, but the end result might be worth the time. Your kids will love them, and also give an excuse to RAWRRRRR in their best Bumble voice.

via Cafe Press

The Clock

When you yank the tree out of the attic, and unpack the ornaments, don’t forget to hang your Bumble wall clock. Scare your friends at holiday parties with this time piece. Or you can put it in your office cubicle as you dream of your late December vacation, and maybe a potential snow closing. For only $15 this guy can be yours. If you really dig this, get the matching chef apron for $22. Double abominable!

via Cupcakes by Erin

The Cupcakes

This should have been done years ago (or at least I should have discovered it years ago). Take your fluffy, primarily white snow monster and turn him into a fluffy cupcake. The fur, that beady black eyes, the dark blue face – he absolutely begs to be made into a cupcake. Here, even Rudolph gets the cuppie treatment. The vanilla cake, vanilla icing, and vanilla touches make a beautiful wintry cupcake in the time honored tradition of the can-be cutesy Bumble. I wonder how they taste? Perhaps salty with a hint of sweetness? Yes!

via Etsy

The Hat

Adorn your head with the fuzzy guy via a crocheted hat over at Etsy. The site, now very popular, specializes in homemade products, so you know when you drop $27 on this item it’s one-of-a-kind. Available in both child and adult sizes, the hat captures the snow monster in his angry face period. Capped off with lots of fuzzies, folks on the street will instantly recognize the blue face. Now that I think about it, why not buy one for your entire family? You can all head to the mall for some last minute shopping looking like complete goofballs, oops, I mean, awesome people.

via Paper Mama

The Shirt

Authentic Bumble shirts that embrace the Rankin/Bass characters are hard to come by. Most likely due to licensing. However, don’t let that stop you. Head over to the Paper Mama where you can make your very own snow monster tee. It’s pictured being worn by a child, but let your heart sore as you DIY an adult version! It seems simple, and the detailed instructions will have you wearing one to the office Christmas party this evening. Once again, it’s built mainly of felt, but the trend in snow monster designs lend itself to such resources.

via Dave Lowe Design

The Tooth

And last, but certainly not least, comes Dave Lowe. Lowe, a set designer, cartoonist, and illustrator has created a series of interesting artifacts that coincide with pop culture things he enjoyed as a child. He’s labeled them “The Cabinet of Curiosities”, and the most Christamasy of the bunch is a pretty swell to-scale abominable snow monster tooth. Plucked from the North Pole alongside the Artic Ocean, this thing is quite fantastic. It also comes with a discovery scroll paper detailing what was found alongside the bicuspid. How fantastic is this? I want one!

The NBA announced this week that the season had been resurrected following a tenative aggreement between the players and owners that is nearly a 50/50 split of basketball related incomes along with a slew of “b-sides” that slightly changed the previous collective bargaining agreement. The decision to finally have a season, which begins on Christmas Day, comes with a feeling of consternation. There are some that desperately missed the NBA, but the majority of sports fans didn’t miss the doldrums of an early season. Including this afficianado.

When it comes to my sports persuasions, I’m a bit snooty. The NBA has always been a cesspool of  arrogant man-children that care more about the highlight reel than “the team”. That’s not always a bad thing, but it doesn’t top my list of must-watch-television come mid-winter and beyond.

Of course the yankee in me loves football and hockey – while everything else just kind of gets in the way.

Bringing the conversation a bit closer to home, I’m a pro hockey fan living in a city where the other pro franchise gets the most attention.

I’ve learned to live in a zen-like state where I can embrace both sports vehemently because, well, I can. And maybe even moreso because I’m an Oklahoman (transplanted from Ohio). Supporting my local teams is something I learned as a young child. Why? Because it’s good for me, and it’s even better for my locality. So I’m done complaining about having to compete with the NBA in my own selfish world where I’d rather watch AHL hockey (yes, you read that right). I’m done badgering on people to make a choice. You can have your Kevin Durant and your Kevin Montgomery too. In fact, if it weren’t for the NBA becoming a major player in this city, the Edmonton Oilers may not have taken a second look at Oklahoma City. The burgeoning downtown scene was a deciding factor in choosing Oklahoma City as an affiliated landing spot. So I have love for the NBA for all the wrong reasons.

Going forward, does this help or hurt the Barons of the American Hockey League? To be perfectly honest, not having an NBA season certainly wasn’t helping, and adding 18,000 people on a twice weekly basis just might encourage more curious onlookers to support another local sports team. Article after article has highlighted the lost revenue for cities with no or even shortened NBA seasons (good NY Times read alert). And in some alterna-universe, the ho-hum activity activity downtown without Thunder basketball kept the “event” mentality away from the city save for huge Taylor Swift concerts.

So with the NBA comes a new hub of activity downtown, and hopefully some extension towards the Cox Center across the street. Understand that with the bad of not liking the NBA comes the ca-ching of the cash drawer that comes with channeling a major pro sports franchise. The Barons are anything but a minor league team in my heart, but they can’t sustain a decent attendance without some help. Thus the NBA becomes a blessing minus any real noticeable curse (oh, wait, except for parking).

Oklahoma City as well as our fair neighbors in Edmonton have been kicked in the shins. Kicked in the shins, and jabbed in the face. No stranger to injury filled seasons, the Oilers organization seems to find themselves in another bout with Mr. Gimpy. Tis the season for the grind of professional sports to wear down even the toughest of competitors. For the Oilers it’s all about the defensive injuries plus one young phenom. Cam Barker and Corey Potter are dealing with ankle injuries that won’t be healed any time soon. Andy Sutton gets the honor of wearing the badge of “first-groin-pull-of-the-season” and isn’t expected to be out as long as the ankle-biters, but out nonetheless. Then comes the jab in the face. Taylor Hall, with an undisclosed shoulder injury that might keep the offensive threat out for nearly a month or more. Ouch. This pushes a ton of weight onto the shoulders of two Oilers goaltenders and a random assortment of minor league up-and-comers.

Like it’s major counterpart, the minor league Barons are coming up limping. Fortunately, in the grand scheme of things, the Barons have a handful of forwards on the IR, and a healthy sked of defensive players. But as in any good development league, seeing the future get snake bitten by injury is tough. Tough for fans wanting to see potential greatness; tough for the player who wants to prove said greatness.

There is somewhat of an ironic twist to this tale. The Barons, while really banged up on the forward lines find themselves the best team in the American Hockey League. Wrapping up the month of November with only three total losses is impressive. Doing so with integral names gone in the lineup – stupendous.

At center the Barons are missing AHL-contracted tough guy Andrew Lord who hasn’t seen even a single game in the still young, but moving on season. His injury stemmed from a bang up (concussion) in training camp that never has fully healed. He’s a fan favorite, but his off-ice activities with the fans have kept his place on the team warm and fuzzy. Josh Green, the other centerman on the ir, was one third of what was shaping up to be a stout first scoring line alongside Keller and Hartikainen. His absence has forced the coaching staff to rely on a rookie (Tyler Pitlick), an AHL winger playing center (Marc Arcobello), and a deep line grinder (Chris VandeVelde). So far, those stepping into the center position have been incredible play makers.

Antti Tyrvainen broke his arm in a game two weeks ago in Abbotsford and this thinned the right wing even more than it had already been. The team misses his grit along the boards, and his ability to frustrate the opposition. Indeed the need for right handed shots is getting depleted, but even prior to Tyrvaninen’s injury this was a problem. But the team hasn’t suffered too badly on the right and continues to adjust where needed.

The two most eye-popping names on the injured list are two of the most important prospects to the Oilers franchise. Omark, suffering a broken ankle, has led some to wonder why the team sent him down in the first place, and if it was worth it in retrospect. What seemed like a textbook slew foot, Omark would take a wicked turn into the boards that initially looked like a knee injury, but proved to be a broken ankle. Forget how dynamic of a player he is with the Barons, because he’s also out for the Oilers when they probably need him the most. Perhaps easing Omark into that Hall spot with the big club would be a natural maneuver. Now, it’ll be a while before that’s even an option. The other scenario would place Omark on the trading block if the Oilers needed to do so. Once again, that may not be an immediate option moving forward.

Hartikainen, the durable winger, suffered what looked like a separated shoulder in a game this past weekend. The injury hasn’t been classified, but in a pre-game interview Coach Todd Nelson called it an injury that “would be of a multi-week duration”. This being Hartiakainen’s first serious injury of his North American career, he’ll bounce back quickly. The Oilers GM and company seemed prepared to wait Teemu out as he gained a heavy amount of playing time and respect for his future in Oil Country. And they’ll wait. Wait for him to heal, and wait for him to regain his momentum through the new year.

With 31 standings points, the Barons are the best team in the American League right now. The wild hot streak is being cultivated with players like Hunter Tremblay who has three short-handed goals this season. With Tyler Pitlick who is a raging fire ball of speed and tenacity down the center. With Curtis Hamilton that plays on the grinder line one night, and then on the top scoring the next. With Ryan Lowery and Kiril Tulupov, two defenders who are rookies in this league and almost nightly make a difference when called up. With the best goaltending tandem in the league who leap frog each other statistically week-after-week.

Just how good is this team? Per the Barons in an official release, they are the team with the most wins in North American professional hockey:

Team League Record
Oklahoma City Barons AHL 15-5-0-1
Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 14-6-4
Chicago Blackhawks NHL 14-7-3
Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 14-8-2
Detroit Red Wings NHL 14-7-1
Boston Bruins NHL 14-7-1
Alaska Aces ECHL 13-4-1-1
Wichita Thunder CHL 11-4-0
Augusta Riverhawks SPHL 11-2-1

Winning while wounded is a true test of both coaching and the heart of a team. Todd Nelson knows how to rally the troops, and the troops are poised to follow. The culture of “buying into the system” is something that Oklahoma City coaches have preached since before training camp. That system is smart on defense, disciplined on the power play, and open to interpretation to an extent on offense. On the rare occasion that the team dips, the coaching staff conjures up a game plan shoring up the weak points that failed. Injuries, call-ups, and roadtrips are looming, but the Barons take it all in stride. Whether they face a demanding foe in Grand Rapids or a fast pressing enemy in Charlotte – OKC weathers the storm. Will this team be tops by March? Time will tell, but for now the Oklahoma City Barons will win while wounded.

It’s Black Friday. You’ve traversed far and wide towards the local mall. You brace yourself for the worst crowds imagineable. You’re in luck, you’ve found a spot less than a mile from the front doors. You relish in your small victory, park your car, lock your doors, and head towards the great madness that is retail shopping around the holidays. One problem. Upon your return, bags in hand, you’ve forgotten where you parked. No problem, because you used the “Find My Car” app that pinpoints the GPS location of your car. Smart app, easy to use, and now with multiple plot points you can GPS locate more than one location if you choose to shop with others equally as insane as you. My personal use of the app pinpointed my location within 15 feet. That’s pretty solid. Also, the Google Maps integration was seamless, and this was a HUGE benefit.

Candy Swipe
Amazon App Store – FREE ($2.99 ad free)

Sweet tooth bugging you while you simultaneously find yourself waiting in an long and winding line at the cash register? No problem. Curb your cravings with the Candy Swipe game. Link together similar candies in just about any direction. The more you link, the the higher the point total. Candy corn, kisses, gingerbread men, and candied apples all make a tummy grumbling appearance. Don’t worry. The game is simple, short, and, of course, sweet!

Sports Tap
Android Market – FREE

Missing college basketball because your significant other dragged you to Sears for a $10 toaster? Maybe you missed this year’s Lions game because you’re stuck in traffic? No worries. Sports Tap is the best app for sports scoring needs. Latest team news, player info, and automatically refreshing scoreboards; this one’s a keeper. Yes, it has ads, but the notification of scores puts this one over the top.

Any.DO
Android Market - FREE

It’s easy to say, “I don’t need to write it down, I’ve got it all stored right up here (pointing to head)”. But can you say that same thing, and stick to it, with throngs of people yammering in your ears? I can’t. Thus comes the straight-forward and simplistic any.do app. Clean, sharp, and user-friendly, this app does all the things you want it to without the filler or ads. And with the voice recognition built in, you can go hands free when making a list…or checking it twice.

Nextag
Android Market – FREE

If you’ve not used Nextag, whatcha waiting for?! Price comparison is a must for those looking for a good deal. Now you can do all that the Nextag site does on your mobile phone. Using photo recognition or barcode scanning, you can find price comparisons on nearly all types of products. And with the addition of GPS, you’ll be able to see where the closet deals are at and if those items are in stock. Amazing, right? The app does need some work, but in the end saving is the eye catcher.

Mytubo
Android Market - FREE

For most, Black Friday is an experience not just a shopping excursion. It’s an annual pilgrimage to places not so far, and not so foreign. And along the way, you have fun with your gal pals, family members, and significant other. So why not document the insanity. Built on the Instagram framework, Mytubo is an overseas app that allows photo filtering and sharing. A tilt shifted Starbucks cup or an 80′s filtered picture of Macy’s before 4am; all can be captured using this fantastic service. Register your account via the app, or online and get to snapping.

Turkey Blast: Reloaded
Android Market – FREE

By the time you hit Black Friday you’ve probably had more turkey than your midsection can handle. Take out that frustration by playing Turkey Blast: Reloaded. Like Duck Hunt on steroids and with festive flare, navigate through multiple stages using multiple weapons to simply blast those turkeys. It’s fun. It’s timely. And it’s a catharsis of Thanksgiving bulge. Take back your regret of over-eating on Thanksgiving by stickin’ it to the food that got you in this debacle.

What about you? Any apps that you’d like to recommend for surviving Black Friday? Leave them in the comments, and we’ll add them to the list! Happy Thanksgiving & godspeed as you shop like you’ve never shopped before.

After a ghastly defensive game on Saturday evening we  started to see a developing trend with our Oklahoma City Barons. Colten Teubert and Taylor Chorney, the two most recent call-ups to the fill the injured defensive gaps in Edmonton, aren’t the greatest blue line prospects, but they did provide some rock solid work in the minors. Like Petry before them, we never realized what we had until it was gone. More precisely, our young Barons defenders are nearing a struggle. A struggle involving consistency on a blue line that needs to be good in the post-November/December second half of the season. The trouble with the defense is knowing when to adjust.

Below are the remaining Barons defensemen as of of Thanksgiving week (listed in what I call “proper depth” order)

Alex Plante
AHL GP: 17 G: 0 A: 5 PIM: 48 +/-: 9

Plante’s the only “NHL-ready” defensemen left on the Barons, and that’s not saying much. Teubert and Chorney being called up prior to Plante this time around, proves what the Oilers are needing. Not just brawn, but smarts with the puck. Plante’s penalty-prone ways have hurt him at the minor league and major league levels. However, he’s going to have to be a solid and careful puck player if he’s going to lead the Barons blue line to greatness.

What he needs to do:
It’s do or die time for Alex. He’s the most potent strong man on the squad, but he absolutely has to squash that propensity for bad penalties at really bad times.

Kevin Montgomery
AHL GP: 15 G: 1 A: 4 PIM: 10 +/-: 7

Seemingly forgotten by the Barons, Montgomery was brought in late to camp. However, he didn’t miss a beat from where he left off last season. And no one benefited more from Montgomery’s signing than Colten Teubert, whose game virtually got better as soon as they were paired together. Kevin is a careful player, and is thin, fast, and smart. He has promise, and just might pan out as the Barons top defender by the first day of 2012.

What he needs to do:
He needs to play consistent minutes and really work in tandem with Plante or even Tulupov. Going forward, he also needs to shoot the puck more. The addition of extra power play time will mean he’ll need to protect the puck very well. He’s got the wheels to overcome mistakes, but he’ll need to become the chess-master when quarterbacking the diagrammed plays. He also need a big boy contract because that PTO won’t last long.

Ryan Lowery
AHL GP: 16 G: 1 A: 5 PIM: 14 +/-: 3

The rookie has been very solid after playing four years of collegiate hockey. He gets the “Helmer treatment” as the young/old pairing attempts to overcome their slight builds and truly pass the puck well. Lowery is a very quick-handed defenseman, and thus he’ll pinch quickly to create scoring chances for his forwards. He does seem to be lost at times which is completely expected from a rookie. Yet his sold +/- and 6 points in 16 games are good signs of progress. Not the best player on the squad, but certainly the most promising for his age.

What he needs to do:
I’ll get to Helmer’s inabilities in a bit, but Lowery will really need to be sharp in the passing lanes or he’ll get abused. As the season soldiers on he’s the one guy that has me the most concerned. He’ll learn well under the tutelage of Bryan Helmer, but he really needs to close the gap and make big waves in the areas of play around the boards, in front of the net, and passing accuracy for the sake of his teammates.

Kirill Tulupov
AHL GP: 10 G: 0 A: 4 PIM: 20 +/-: 4

Tulupov virtually youtubed his way into the hearts of the Oilers GM’s as he gained a spot in the organization this season. He’s only played ten games, but he’ll get even more as the need for healthy defensemen is now. Despite being drafted by the defense-first Devils organization, Kirill gets little credit from the coaching staff, at least not yet. He finishes checks, clears space very well, and will always have a really solid size advantage. I’d like to see him on the PK more often because of those qualities listed above, but Coach Nelson wants speed on his PK unit, and Tulupov isn’t a Taylor Chorney or Jeff Petry.

What he needs to do:
He needs to make up for the lack of Johan Motin hutzpah in the lineup. Hit hard, pump those legs, and be willing to flex the Tulupov muscle. He’ll get the time and hopefully some type of contract beyond the PTO. He’ll be as important as the next guy in this lineup as the road trips commence through December & January.

Bryan Helmer
AHL GP: 17 G: 0 A: 7 PIM: 7 +/-: 0

Helmer is the old timer of the club, but his role is very important. Off the ice he’s Mr. OKC, the family man, and the fan favorite. On the ice, he’s more times than not the lone defenseman on a potent PP unit of OKC. I say potent, because it hasn’t been great. The team is mid-pack in the league on the PP, and is looking to get better with Helmer’s help. Helmer’s disadvantages are aplenty. He’s never been a quick player, but the years have decreased his wheels. He’s also not as durable as evidenced by his own decision to be scratched on the road recently. Nonetheless, Helmer will be key to the Barons success moreso for his attitude in the locker room. This is a highly motivated bunch, but Helmer’s wisdom carries a lot of weight.

What he needs to do:
Helmer needs to make as few mistakes as he can; namely with his careful puck play. If the puck sneaks around him, the opposing forwards are just too quick for him to catch up. He’ll need to continue to help the team stick to their game plan, and instill a little road warrior mentality in a group of spirited Barons. He’ll do it as long as he stays healthy.

Dan Ringwald
AHL GP: 4 G: 0 A: 0 PIM: 0 +/-: -2

The only Barons defender with a negative plus/minus, Dan Ringwald epitomizes where the Barons find themselves. A call-up from Stockton, Ringwald is the filler. He’s not been dreadful, but he’s not been great. Even his Stockton numbers aren’t great. Cameron Abney, also on the Stockton team, was passed over for the slightly more mature Ringwald this go-round, but don’t count the Cameronator out. He’s big and brawny, but lacks the wheels and experience to end up permanently on the squad. In the meantime, Ringwald will get limited minutes (but got pictured above). His pairings with Helmer, even on the slight PK, have been dreadful most of the time.

What he needs to do:
He needs to get real good real fast or he’ll be the odd man out. There are others on the market, including the AHL market, that might have better influence and be better money spent. Nonetheless, the former Connecticut Whale needs to step up or be stepped on.

On The Whole
The Barons will need to do a couple of things before Christmas rolls around. First, they’ll need to find one more healthy defender to bring the total to seven. Running six defensemen without a backup is scary. They could pull from Stockton or potentially tap into the open market. Either way, they need one more body. Second, both Tulupov and Montgomery needs contracts. Montgomery will seemingly be content with an AHL-only contract, but Tulupov is the type that needs more. As their PTO’s run out (in quite some time), these two need guarantees that they are here to stay. Third, the team really needs to work on staying out of the box. The Barons have suffered more penalties (305) than their opponents (272), but the nearly 17 PIM per game average needs to shrink a penalty or two.

In all, nothing to fuss about early except that a lot of change is on the horizon. Coach Nelson likes to mix things up, except when it comes to his defenders. Here’s how I’d see the above six being placed.

Tulupov – Plante
Lowery-Montgomery
Helmer-Ringwald 

The first pair gives a twin towers of strength, the second gives you some headsy play, and the third gives you discipline. This is how I’d play the group, but Nelson has a propensity for strong/weak pairings that give and take when necessary. Glad I’m not the coach, nor the GM of this organization because adjustments will need to be made and made often. Here’s hoping the trouble with defense is that there is no trouble at all.