OILERS CALL UP VARSITY PRESENCE ON THE BACK END
When Allan Rourke steps on the ice, other players notice. The 6’2”, 215-pound defenseman has always been a physical presence. A member of the Kitchener Rangers at age 16, Rourke spent four seasons in the OHL. In his final year, Rourke amassed an impressive 31G-43A-74P during the regular season.
Originally drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1998 (6th Round – 154th Overall), Rourke would eventually play his first NHL game during the 2003-2004 season with the Carolina Hurricanes. After the NHL lockout season, Rourke joined the New York Islanders and played parts of two seasons on the island, splitting his time between the NHL and the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers. Still looking for a full-time spot on defense in the NHL, Rourke was acquired by the Edmonton Oilers during this past off-season. In order to develop the explosiveness and speed that Varsity athletes are known for, Rourke began attending the Varsity Training Centre in mid-summer and signed up for the remaining weeks of the Elite Training Program. “The program is great. I’m looking forward to getting in there and training right from the start of it in May next year,” said Rourke. After starting the season in the AHL with the Springfield Falcons, Rourke was called up for the November 10th, 2007 edition of the ‘Battle of Alberta’ in Calgary. Setting the tone early, Rourke did not back down when the Flames’ Eric Nystrom came towards him in the middle of the first period. The ensuing scrap was evenly matched until the sheer strength, size and conditioning of Rourke became too much of a strain on Nystrom’s balance. The Oilers won the game 4-2, ending a four-game slide. The Oilers have now used 11 defenseman in their first 17 games of the 2007-08 season. With notable injuries to half of their top 6 defensemen (Souray, Pitkanen, Greene), Rourke should have a few more chances to impress the coaching staff before the regulars come looking for their jobs back. As all players know, “whatever happens, happens” says Rourke. “All I can do is play hard and play my best and not worry about anything else.” No matter where he finishes the season, Rourke knows where he will start the summer. On top of making plans to return, for a full summer this time, he has also been spreading the word around about the Varsity Training Centre and expects a few other card-carrying members of the NHLPA to be training at Varsity starting in May 2008. “It’s great for us. It shows that our program can prepare guys for the best of the best, and for our younger guys, it gives them someone in the gym that they can look up to and maybe go to for advice or something,” says Geoff Schomogyi, Head Instructor of the Elite Training Program. “Just being able to compete day-to-day with and against guys who have been there, that’s just another thing that makes the summers so great here.”
Watch Allan Rourke vs Eric Nystrom on YouTube: http://pl.youtube.com/watch?v=5rA_IFSnYqw 
http://oilers.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=342897
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