Brampton Battalion goaltender Bryan Pitton was rewarded for a good season this week.
The three-year Ontario Hockey League veteran, who was among the league-leaders in save percentage this year, has inked a three-year entry level deal with the Edmonton Oilers.
The Oilers drafted Pitton in the fifth round of the 2006 National Hockey League entry draft and have been keeping close tabs on the netminder the past couple of seasons.
Pitton, who had a good camp with the Oilers this past fall, posted a 2.54 goals-against average in the OHL this season and earned a selection to the OHL Eastern Conference All-stars.
Following the Battalion’s early playoff exit, the Brampton native suited up for the American Hockey League’s Springfield Indians. He got into one game for the AHL club, playing 12 minutes.
“I had a pretty good feeling it was going to happen,” admitted Pitton. “It was just a manner of when.”
He admitted that there was a sense of relief when it finally happened.
“I’m glad to have it done,” admitted the puckstopper. “It’s a dream come true. ”
Pitton celebrated the occasion  with a nice family dinner of steak and lobster.
\Pitton was 22-13-2 with the troops over the course of the season, playing in 39 games. In the 2006-2007 season Pitton was a workhorse for the troops, appearing in 61 of the teams 68 regular season contests.
In this year’s playoffs, the 6-foot 2, 176-pound Pitton was 1-4 but had an outstanding 1.80 goal-against average and a .938 save percentage.
A Brampton native and former Brampton Youth Hockey Association player, Pitton also took time this season to start the Pitton’s Saves for Kids campaign, raising money for the pediatrics ward at the Brampton Civic Hospital. Through Pitton’s puck-stopping efforts and donations from the community the effort raised nearly $5,000 for the cause.
The netminder leaves Monday for a week of training in Los Angeles and will head to Edmonton next month.
As for the immediate future, he’s still not sure.
“They don’t have too many goaltenders in the system,” noted Pitton of the Oilers’ depth chart. “That’s good. Hopefully I can make the American League team.”
Pitton is the second from his family to earn a pro contract. His brother Jason, a New York Islanders draft pick, played the past two seasons with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL.