It’s been a couple of days in the spotlight for Vincent Desharnais.
The Edmonton Oilers defenceman scored his first NHL goal in Sunday’s 5-2 win over the Calgary Flames in the Heritage Classic at Commonwealth Stadium.
“It was really awesome to see how everyone was so happy for me,” Desharnais said after practice on Tuesday back at Rogers Place.
He received a lot of messages of congratulations Sunday night and enjoyed a very special conversation.
“Once I got home, I FaceTimed my parents and my brother. They were pretty emotional for me to score a goal in such a big game,” Desharnais recalled.
“I had the puck with me too. It was pretty sweet.”
Meanwhile, the Oilers on Tuesday afternoon signed Sam Gagner to a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000.
Gagner, 34, will join the Oilers after getting five points in three games with the AHL‘s Bakersfield Condors. He’d been with the Oilers during training camp on a professional tryout.
“Sam will come up and we’re going to look to adjust the complexion of that group,” said head coach Jay Woodcroft, who noted that forward Adam Erne has been placed on waivers.
“Nobody feels good that a good person is being made to pay the price so that we can shake up that bottom six. That doesn’t absolve any of our other players in that regard for their lack of production or their lack of effect on games. We’ve got to get more out of that group and that’s what this is in service of.”
Captain Connor McDavid missed practice but it had nothing to do with the upper-body injury that kept him out of the two games prior to the Heritage Classic.
“McDavid had dental surgery,” Woodcroft said. “He’ll be on the ice tomorrow.”
The Oilers will host the Dallas Stars on Thursday (630 CHED, Face-off Show at 5:30 p.m., game at 7 p.m.).
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