“I didn’t know much about Adam before he came to camp here. Obviously, scouts had a high opinion of him,” Head Coach Jay Woodcroft said. “I thought he had a good Camp, and just given some of the dynamics of the roster situation, he’s been patient.
“I know in chatting with him he’s excited to be a part of our team, part of our city and part of our organization here. We’re looking forward to having him be part of our team.”
The former Tampa Bay Lightning and Detroit Red Wings forward impressed the coaching staff and management enough over the preseason to keep him in Oil Country – even after the club confirmed its 20-man opening lineup on Monday while being tight to the salary cap ceiling.
“They told me that they wanted me to stick around,” Erne said. “They had some stuff they had to figure out with the cap, which is kind of out of everybody’s control, but so I’m just happy to be playing tonight.”
When you look at the New Haven, Conn. product’s on-ice ability, coupled with his determined work ethic towards earning a spot on a competitive Edmonton roster, it’s not hard to see why the Oilers coaching and management staffs were keen to keep him around to ultimately serve in a bottom-six and special teams role.