Last week, the Condors opened the second half of their 72-game schedule, and currently sit third in the AHL’s Pacific Division with a 22-12-6 record<\/p>\n
Published Jan 27, 2026 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 2\u00a0hours ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 5 minute read<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n You can save this article by registering for free here<\/a>. Or sign-in<\/a> if you have an account.<\/p>\n Josh Samanski is the latest bit of produce to be harvested from the farm by the Edmonton Oilers<\/a>.<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the e-Edition, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalism and the next generation of journalists.<\/p>\n SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the e-Edition, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalism and the next generation of journalists.<\/p>\n REGISTER \/ SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to keep reading.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one account.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite journalists.<\/p>\n THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authors<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Called up in place of Isaac Howard in time to make his NHL debut against the visiting Anaheim Ducks on Monday, the German-born forward isn\u2019t the first nor the last one to be plucked from the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League, whose primary job is to develop talent for if and when the opportunity arises to perform in the NHL.<\/p>\n Of course, as one of 32 AHL teams in competition for the Calder Cup, the Condors are also looking to reap what they sow in the standings and put on a good show for their fans. Winning is still the name of the game after all.<\/p>\n Last week, the Condors opened the second half of their 72-game schedule, and currently sit third in the AHL\u2019s Pacific Division with a 22-12-6 record, six points behind the division-leading Ontario Reign.<\/p>\n And they hit the second half running, carrying momentum over on a stretch that has seen them go 8-0-1 to open January before dropping their past two games.<\/p>\n Advertisement 3<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n But, just like in Edmonton this season, things started off at a much slower pace.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a lot of new players, and a group of new players from Europe, as well,\u201d said Condors head coach Colin Chaulk. \u201cSo, we felt that it would take some time for this team to really see what we had. We wanted to make it fun, and we wanted to be offensive and attacking.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, that was our main focus in the beginning, and we found out that we could score. And that was our focus point.\u201d<\/p>\n With 139 goals in 40 games, the only AHL team that\u2019s put more pucks in the net than the Condors is the Belleville Senators. By one goal. And they\u2019ve needed four more games to do it.<\/p>\n But the Senators are a cautionary tale this season, having also given up a league-high 155 goals.<\/p>\n \u201cWe also found out that we were giving up too much,\u201d said Chaulk, whose squad has tightened up from early on to now sit 23rd out of 32 teams with 126 goals-against. \u201cThat\u2019s what our players really valued, was offence. So, we had to continue to keep that attack mentality and always pressure to make a fun, exciting brand of hockey. And also be a little more responsible without the puck.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 4<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Off the ice, the team has also grown closer together.<\/p>\n \u201cJust the relationship building, it takes about 20-25 games, in my experience in the American Hockey League, to see what kind of team you have,\u201d said Chaulk, who is in his fifth season as bench boss of the Condors. \u201cAre you a rush team? Are you a grind-\u2019em-out offensive team? Do you live on the power play? What\u2019s your identity?<\/p>\n \u201cWe took some time to find that, and now we\u2019re playing good two-way hockey.\u201d<\/p>\n And through it all, AHL teams not only have to deal with injuries and their own guys filling in on the lineup, but they also have to deal with players getting called up to the NHL, quite unexpectedly at times, which causes a change of plans.<\/p>\n \u201cGenerally speaking, one of your high-end players is getting called up,\u201d Chaulk said. \u201cIt\u2019s extremely difficult in the minor leagues to win. Our mindset is we want to give ourselves a chance to win every game, we want to be competitive, we want to be in games and that\u2019s the message.<\/p>\n Advertisement 5<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not talking about winning, we\u2019re talking about doing what we\u2019re supposed to do and that\u2019s the main focus. And really, what that is, is developing. You\u2019re trying to develop those learning moments.\u201d<\/p>\n Bakersfield\u2019s loss, of course, can be Edmonton\u2019s win, as the likes of Howard, Quinn Hutson, Connor Clattenberg and now Samanski, have had opportunities with the Oilers to showcase some of the fresh young talent coming down the pipeline.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s about development. And if you\u2019re developing properly and you\u2019re living by your process, then you have to believe that the competitiveness and wins will come,\u201d Chaulk said. \u201cWe\u2019re seeing this team get a little bit better.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I will say that in the five years that I\u2019ve been in Bakersfield with our coaches and players, the team has gotten a little bit better each year. We\u2019re seeing a little bit more growth a little bit sooner. Part of that is we have some highly skilled offensive players. Management\u2019s done a great job of finding (Viljami) Marjala, (Atro) Leppanen, Samanski.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 6<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n And that\u2019s been easier said than done for an Oilers club that\u2019s been light on draft picks after pushing the pedal to the medal over their current Stanley Cup window.<\/p>\n \u201cThe trade for Howard brings a high-end player to the American league a year earlier,\u201d Chaulk said of former first-round draft pick Sam O\u2019Reilly, of the Ontario Hockey League\u2019s Kitchener Rangers, who is younger and not as far along in his development. \u201cO\u2019Reilly, we would have saw him next year.<\/p>\n \u201cAll of those things help the minor-league affiliate. And at the end of the day, those experiences are going to help the NHL team. And that\u2019s our main job, we need to get the Vincent Desharnais, the Ryan McLeods and the Matt Savoies, the Dylan Holloways and the Philip Brobergs, and the Stuart Skinners and the Calvin Pickards.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve got to go up and help the big club. That\u2019s our job. And it\u2019s hard to win down here when you\u2019re in that mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 7<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n E-mail: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n On X: @StarkRavinMod<\/a><\/p>\n Read More<\/p>\n Edmonton Oilers defence delivers history-making night against Anaheim<\/p>\n <\/a> Connor Ungar hungry to feast on AHL opportunity with Bakersfield Condors<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Bookmark our website and support our journalism:Don\u2019t miss the news you need to know \u2014 add EdmontonJournal.com<\/a> and EdmontonSun.com<\/a> to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.<\/a><\/p>\n You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal<\/a> | The Edmonton Sun.<\/a><\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Share this article in your social network<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Breadcrumb Trail Links SportsHockey Last week, the Condors opened the second half of their 72-game schedule, and currently…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":151923,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[151,153,152],"class_list":{"0":"post-151922","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bakersfield","8":"tag-bakersfield","9":"tag-bakersfield-headlines","10":"tag-bakersfield-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151922","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=151922"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/151922\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/151923"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=151922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=151922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=151922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/20260123db013.ej_300978048-1.jpg\")
The Edmonton Oilers’ Josh Samanski (81) battles the Anaheim Ducks Olen Zellweger (51) during first period NHL action at Rogers Place, in Edmonton Monday Jan. 26, 2026. Photo by David Bloom \/PostmediaArticle content<\/p>\n![\"Telegraph-Journal\"](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/20.4.0\/websites\/images\/identity\/logo-identity-tj.svg\"){kind=logo}
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Ike Howard (53) of the Edmonton Oilers shoots the puck against the Calgary Flames at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. Photo by Shaughn Butts \/Postmedia<\/p>\n![\"Edmonton](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/20250926db025.ej_298960794.jpg\")
Edmonton Oilers forward Quinn Hutson battles with Winnipeg Jets defenceman Ville Heinola and forward Morgan Barron during third period preseason NHL action at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025. Photo by David Bloom \/Postmedia File Photo<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/20260126db011.ej_300978770.jpg\")
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