Long wait may be over for Benson
EDMONTON — Tyler Benson says he finally feels like an NHLer, although that won’t officially hit home until he sees No. 16 in the lineup Oct. 13, when the Vancouver Canucks come to town for the Edmonton Oilers’ season opener.
Or when gets his first bestleague-in-the-world paycheque after making $70,000 to play on the farm in Bakersfield, Calif.
“I feel this is where I belong,” said the left-winger.
A noble, confident thought, but Benson will need the cooperation from coach Dave Tippett, the ultimate marker when it comes to picking his 23-man NHL roster eight exhibition games and three weeks from now.
Through two scrimmages, Benson, who has done all he can in the American Hockey League as a point-a-game player through 154 games, looks faster, with more giddyup in his first step, more in the battle in Jujhar Khaira’s old number. So, we’ll see if it holds.
“His confidence is at a point where he knows he can play in this league,” said Tippett, in charge of pass-fail with prospects, and Benson has been somebody to watch since the Oilers took him 32nd overall in 2016. “He looks quicker, more determined.”
He’s never going to have a better chance at making this Oilers team because they are looking for a left-winger on the fourth-line and they saw how he worked on being a penalty-killer in Bakersfield to round out his game. He is also cheap labour, by NHL standards, at $750,000, in a tight salary-cap world.
Battling a myriad of injuries, with just seven NHL games played, Benson does not want to be known as a tweener — too good for the AHL, not good enough to make an NHL roster, except as a call-up. Local product Daniel Carr was just that in Montreal, Vegas, Nashville and Washington before going to Switzerland this season.
The flipside: Players with long histories in the AHL like Mathieu Perreault (167 games) eventually broke through (Washington, Winnipeg, now Montreal). Same with Chandler Stephenson (178 games) before making the Capitals and moving to Vegas.
Benson, 23, has 139 points in those 154 games in Bakersfield. He’s been a go-to guy in the minors, playing top-six minutes. If the local boy is on the fourth line in Edmonton, he’ll be dancing.
He got involved in the penalty kill, rightfully figuring he needed another tool in his belt to play in the NHL — he won’t be on the power play with the Oilers. He was good at it.
“I think I’ve always been a smart player and it was something I took pride in,” said Benson.
Handicapping the field, it’s Benson’s left wing spot on the fourth-line to lose. In camp, the Oilers have played fellow left-winger, Devin Shore at centre. Brendan Perlini, with 239 NHL games in Arizona, Chicago and Detroit, is certainly in the picture too after being signed to a two-way deal but the Oilers have more history with Benson.
Dylan Holloway, the Oilers best prospect forward, just had a second surgery to repair a broken scaphoid bone in his wrist.
So, it’s up to Benson, who was expected to be in the lineup against the Flames in Calgary on Sunday. He’s healthy, motivated, his skating looks better, he wore out the machines and apparatus in the gym this summer.
“Tyler’s mind-set is he doesn’t want to play anywhere but Edmonton, and he’s going to prove that. For me, that’s great when a young player does that,” said Tippett.
Benson, who has been playing with Ryan McLeod and Cooper Marody in scrimmages, has long had to fight the “he’s got heavy boots” knock.
“For me, I’m always working on getting that extra step, my speed,” said Benson. “In the past, I would think I was a hard worker in the summers but coming into this camp and seeing my (top-five) test results, it made me pretty proud of myself. I saw that all the work paid off.
“Chad (Drummond, Oilers strength and conditioning coach) and I always set goals in the summer, but I would show up at camp and it wouldn’t show the work I’d put in. I looked at the results after one of the tests at camp and it was quite a bit higher than in the past. Put a smile on my face.”
Benson’s body shape looks leaner, his foot-speed aside.
“I usually play at 190 (pounds). I’m about 185 now. I’ve lost weight and got stronger working in the gym,” said Benson. “When I was drafted, I don’t think I was in the greatest shape and I’ve tried to get better at it, trying to be as fit as possible.”
Even though he’s been at Oilers camps for years, Benson has always been the kid with his nose pressed up against the glass on the outside looking in at the roster.
“This year, I feel more comfortable around the guys stepping into the dressing room, more confident on the ice. Hopefully that makes it easier for the games,” he said.
“I feel I’ve put in the work at the AHL level, I’ve done well there for three years. This is where I want to be now. I want to be a full-time player here. I’ll keep working through camp and prove I deserve a roster spot.”
The first three left-wing spots are pretty much set in stone with Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Warren Foegele, although Hyman has also played right side in Toronto.