“For anywhere there’s been problems, it’s a clean slate for me.”

A polarizing character on the ice for the Edmonton Oilers is forward Linus Omark.

The skilled forward signed a one-year contract with Edmonton on August 27, which brought Omark back from playing in Switzerland.

Oilers Head Coach Dallas Eakins fielded questions about Omark after an intrasquad scrimmage today at training camp. Eakins says that for him and with this team, Omark has the same clean slate as everyone else and will compete like everyone else.

“This is a fresh set of eyes and he is in a fight for ice-time,” said Eakins. “There’s a number of ways we can load up our forward lines and there will be a great debate moving as we move forward on how we’re going to do it.

“Like a number of guys in his spot. He needs to go out and dance with the girl that he brought to prom. Don’t go out there and try to be something you’re not. I don’t think he’s a guy that’s going to go out there and run around and cause problems and be a real pain in the butt, checking guy. He needs to put up some numbers. He needs to be responsible defensively. He’s going to have to compete.”

Omark had a good showing in the scrimmage, with a goal in regulation and a fancy shootout goal that he has been know for displaying. Omark head faked goaltender Richard Bachman in the shootout.

When asked if he has any problems with Omark’s “showboating” shootout goals, like the spin-o-rama he scored in Tampa Bay in 2010, a highly publicized and criticized move.

“Did he score on it?,” asked Eakins.

He did indeed.

“Well, he backed it up then. If he didn’t score then there’d probably be a far bigger problem.”