Ryan O'Marra News

The Springfield Falcons were not half bad last weekend. The birds took three of a possible six points after winning a shootout on the road against Albany, losing at home in overtime to Lowell and dropping another road game in Worcester.

It didn't take long for Ryan Smyth, the heart and soul of the Oilers for 12 years, to tear up.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The second-best league in hockey is populated by boys on the bubble and older, career minor-leaguers with the odd can't-miss kid.

Ryan O'Marra, of the Springfield Falcons, controls the puck in front of Hartford's Artem Anisimov in American Hockey League game at the MassMutual Center in Springfield in January.

The Edmonton Oilers see Ryan O'Marra, shown here roughing up a member of the University of Alberta Golden Bears in September 2008, as having the ability to be a shutdown-type centre with an edge.

Subscription Sales - Sell subscriptions to the oldest and biggest digital sports magazine on the internet, SZ , the magazine of minor league and independent professional sports.

The Canadiens have held this clearance a couple times per season for maybe five years, advertised mostly word-of-mouth among regular buyers and faithful collectors, staged when inventory threatens to overwhelm the Bell Centre.