To expand, I think reasonable expectations are for him to have a complete season in the AHL and I would be satisfied with 30-35 points and happy with anything over. He also needs to work on some skating deficiencies and has issues with general hockey sense that I'm not sure can be overcome. If, and that's a big if, he makes it to the NHL he needs to focus on what he can do as a 3rd/4th liner. Solid defensive play, hit anything that moves, PK work and occasionally create offense. Having said all that i highly doubt he becomes anything more than an AHL journeyman.
What happened to.... Ryan O'Marra
- Thread starter JL17
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To expand, I think reasonable expectations are for him to have a complete season in the AHL and I would be satisfied with 30-35 points and happy with anything over. He also needs to work on some skating deficiencies and has issues with general hockey sense that I'm not sure can be overcome. If, and that's a big if, he makes it to the NHL he needs to focus on what he can do as a 3rd/4th liner. Solid defensive play, hit anything that moves, PK work and occasionally create offense. Having said all that i highly doubt he becomes anything more than an AHL journeyman.
Typical victim of the 'safe player paradox' whereby so-called 'safe' players are often the most risky draft picks because they don't do anything that will distinguish themselves at higher levels.
O'Marra was a very good all-around CHL player who had decent size, a bit of grit, and enough skill to be a point-per-game player at that level.
When he turned pro, he was an average skater with average size and a mediocre skill package. Not good at anything, low-impact player who is a checker in the AHL.
Will probably eventually develop into a decent two-way 40-point AHL player who sees a cup of coffee in the NHL, but he'll never be a decent asset for that organization.
__________
As for that trade, Snow absolutely schooled the Oilers.
Isles sold high on two failing prospects, and a couple years later have essentially given up nothing of substance in the deal. Acquired one of the most sought-after trade deadline rentals in recent memory, enabled themselves to take a good run at signing the player, and got some good hockey out of Smyth.
Edmonton, on the other hand, got a terrible return given the demand that would have been in place for a two-way playoff warrior like Smyth. They should have had at least one elite prospect in that deal, but there wasn't and Lowe bought the hype on two guys that had seen their stock fall considerably well before the trade was made.
On top of that, Edmonton cut the heart out of their club with that deal. Nickel-and-dimed their best forward (a contract with Smyth should have been easily reachable given the bargaining positions of the two parties), while at the same time giving out ridiculous deals to players like Horcoff and Pisani.
O'Marra was a very good all-around CHL player who had decent size, a bit of grit, and enough skill to be a point-per-game player at that level.
When he turned pro, he was an average skater with average size and a mediocre skill package. Not good at anything, low-impact player who is a checker in the AHL.
Will probably eventually develop into a decent two-way 40-point AHL player who sees a cup of coffee in the NHL, but he'll never be a decent asset for that organization.
__________
As for that trade, Snow absolutely schooled the Oilers.
Isles sold high on two failing prospects, and a couple years later have essentially given up nothing of substance in the deal. Acquired one of the most sought-after trade deadline rentals in recent memory, enabled themselves to take a good run at signing the player, and got some good hockey out of Smyth.
Edmonton, on the other hand, got a terrible return given the demand that would have been in place for a two-way playoff warrior like Smyth. They should have had at least one elite prospect in that deal, but there wasn't and Lowe bought the hype on two guys that had seen their stock fall considerably well before the trade was made.
On top of that, Edmonton cut the heart out of their club with that deal. Nickel-and-dimed their best forward (a contract with Smyth should have been easily reachable given the bargaining positions of the two parties), while at the same time giving out ridiculous deals to players like Horcoff and Pisani.
Stammer Time*
Sons of Pirates
Darth Milbury
Registered User
Really. IF you are going to take that logic, then signing Souray was a dumb move because it kept EDM from acquiring a better prospect in this year's draft.
Eytinge
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Canad93
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Fixed.
And Alex Plante looked like a bad pick at the time, but he is developing very nicely into a 15th overall pick type player should be.
Did Sam Gagner decide to let the Oilers draft him after this deal?
Because it was Nilsson, O'Marra and a 1st, which became Plante.
Edit:
Okay, I see the point about Smyth making the Oilers fall, but to be fair, they wouldn't have really been that far off.
I don't think it's fair to use that in the comparison..
SCampo98
Registered User
I’m not sure if commenting on a post this old is allowed (if not, Mods feel free to delete it) but as I came across this page, I thought it would be interesting to tie off he loose ends left by this post over a decade ago.
The post was made two months before his NHL debut, and he ended up p,aging 3 games in the 09/10 season. He was mostly an AHLer the next few seasons although he did see time in the NHL in the 10/11 and 11/12 seasons. He left for Europe for a few years and came back to Canada in 2015, playing in the Allan Cup in the 17/18 season.
While he was in Europe, he got a Master’s Degree in Finance and now is a Vice-President for National Bank in Canada, and works directly with, among other things, the Canadian Government’s money.
I just thought it would be cool to wrap up this post, as I couldn’t find any other post on him and this one seemed to stop right before his NHL career began and the rest of his career kicked off.
The post was made two months before his NHL debut, and he ended up p,aging 3 games in the 09/10 season. He was mostly an AHLer the next few seasons although he did see time in the NHL in the 10/11 and 11/12 seasons. He left for Europe for a few years and came back to Canada in 2015, playing in the Allan Cup in the 17/18 season.
While he was in Europe, he got a Master’s Degree in Finance and now is a Vice-President for National Bank in Canada, and works directly with, among other things, the Canadian Government’s money.
I just thought it would be cool to wrap up this post, as I couldn’t find any other post on him and this one seemed to stop right before his NHL career began and the rest of his career kicked off.
IslesNorway
Registered User
I think he even ended up playing in Norway for a little while, which means you are perilously close to hitting rock bottom. Good to hear he's done well for himself outside of hockey.
SCampo98
Registered User
I found it really interesting to see what he was up to now. He was definitely a favourite of mine growing up. I think the fact that he was born in Tokyo (which I thought was super cool) and the fact that he was a 2-time WJC gold medallist made him one of my favourites. Would’ve been cool to see him have a solid NHL career, but he’s definitely doing cool things nowadays despite that never happening. And on top of that, he made one of the hardest hits I’ve ever seen:
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