BLOG: Campbell getting comfortable in new Oilers surroundings

EDMONTON, AB - Goaltender Jack Campbell hasn't even been a resident of Edmonton for a week, but the city already feels like home.
The 30-year-old is coming into his first season of manning the crease for the Oilers after penning a five-year, $25-million-dollar contract on the first day of Free Agency and making the decision to swap the hockey hotbed of Toronto for another in Oil Country.
"It's been great," he said, speaking from the Oilers Hall of Fame Room for the first time on Friday. "It's definitely huge to get comfortable and figure my way around this building. It's a beautiful arena, we're spoiled, and just getting to know everybody, getting to know the guys and getting on the ice and working together, it's just been a great couple of days and I can't wait to keep building."
There's already a lot of familiar faces for Campbell to consult on exchanging the Blue & White for the Orange & Blue, and because of those connections, the newest Oilers netminder is feeling quite acclimatized already to his new city and Rogers Place almost two weeks in advance of Training Camp.
"It always helps to know teammates and there's quite a few guys I've played with throughout the years," he said.

Campbell shared a locker room with Zach Hyman, Tyson Barrie and Cody Ceci in Toronto, where he seized the opportunity to become a starting goaltender over the last two seasons and registered a 31-9-6 record, .914 save percentage and 2.64 goals-against average in 71 games during the 2021-22 campaign. Back in 2011-12, his final year of junior, Campbell was a teammate of Darnell Nurse with the OHL's Soo Greyhounds.
The Port Huron, Mich., product first sought the advice of a player who made the transition to Edmonton the season prior in Hyman, who sold him on the excitement of being a member of the Oilers, before turning to another for some logistical help like where his family should live.
"I called Tyson Barrie," he said. He's hilarious and a great guy, so I called him and got his opinion on it," Campbell said. "He brought me over towards him and it's going to be nice to be neighbours."
Finding his perfect every-day route to the rink has revealed another added benefit in leaving Toronto, and that's less time spent on your commute.
"There's no traffic and it's an easy drive to the rink," Campbell said. "Great food so far and I just can't wait to keep getting familiar."
The path that Campbell has taken to arrive in Edmonton on a five-year deal as the club's starting goalie came through the ECHL, AHL and time in the NHL with the Dallas Stars, Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs. His first extended opportunity in a starter's role came in 2020 with the Maple Leafs -- almost 10 years after he was drafted in the first round by Dallas Stars in 2010.
"Getting that opportunity in Toronto to be that number-one guy just gave me the feeling I was looking for my whole career," he added.
"I just knew that I could be a number-one goalie. It's not just to be a number-one goalie, my goal is to be the best I can be and help this team win the Stanley Cup and continue from there."
Coming into the fold for the Oilers, Campbell believes the hardships makes him a better goaltender who's well-suited to lead the Oilers between the pipes.

"We're here and I just want to be the best I can," he said. "I learned a lot and I've gone through a lot of adversity, but I think playing in Toronto and the different markets I've played in have prepared me for this moment.
"The team's ready to do special things and I think my adversity will allow me to be prepared to do that."
Campbell's new Oilers teammates don't need any more convincing on the character or talent of their new goaltender who'll become an integral part of their quest for the Stanley Cup.
"I think we all have all the confidence in the world in him. He's shown it over the last couple of years," Leon Draisaitl said. "He's played for a good team and he's going to play for another good team in us. We're going to help him out as much as we can and we know he will do whatever he can to help us win hockey games."