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“I see Connor every day, he’s the best, couldn’t ask for a better captain or guy. Every day he comes in and does his work. Being able to work out with him and skate with him is awesome. If I get a chance to play with him now that would be great, the way he dishes the puck fits my style.” said Neal, who first encountered Roberts’s regimen when he was in high school.

Neal played one season with Tippett in Dallas as an NHL rookie 11 years ago.

“Long time ago,” said Neal. “But when you have a guy like Tip it’s a recipe for winning. He’s a perfect fit there.”

We’ll see if Neal is too. The jury’s always out after a seven-goal season but in defence of Neal, he wasn’t in a top-six role in Calgary for much of the season and the Flames survived his slump in the regular-season with no problems.

“I can go to the record book and see James has built up a resume,” said Oilers GM Ken Holland. “I looked at the resume and then I looked at the opportunity on our hockey club. I don’t know how Dave Tippett is going to play Connor, Leon (Draisaitl) and (Ryan) Nugent-Hopkins but ultimately two of those guys are going to be our top-two centremen. Any of those three has the ability to create scoring opportunities for their linemates.”

ON THE BENCH: The Oilers have $2.433 million in cap space now so signing a free-agent third-line C, preferably a right-shot, seems a reach … Neal doesn’t have a no-move clause so Oilers don’t have to protect him in the Seattle expansion draft if they don’t want to, but Lucic will have to be protected with his no-move unless he waives it and is left available to Seattle … Lucic will likely get his old No. 17 in Calgary. Couldn’t take Jari Kurri’s number down from the rafters here … Neal will have no trouble getting his usual 18 here. Ryan Strome had it before he was traded to the Rangers … Now that Lucic is gone, Oilers can put No. 27 back in mothballs. Even though Lucic and Georges Laraque wore it, it’s symbolic for the late Dave Semenko who died of pancreatic cancer two years ago. They’re not retiring Semenko’s number but maybe a Ring of Honour would be a nice Oilers’ touch for players like him, Charlie Huddy, Lee Fogolin and Doug Weight.