Tuesday night at Rexall Place, the fate of the Edmonton Oilers was sealed by a man who’s become public enemy No. 1 in Edmonton this season. The Oilers are on pace to finish the season with 56 points, which would be the lowest full-season point total in franchise history, and this man is high on the list of those directly responsible.
Oiler fans are furious at this man, not only for what he’s done to the team’s fortunes this season, but because his smug mug is still walking around unscathed and unrepentant. From Edmonton owner Daryl Katz to fourth-line winger Ryan Jones, nobody is holding this man accountable for his actions, making the entire franchise seem weak, soft, and unwilling to send a message that losing will not be tolerated. Now, who is this mystery man?
A) Kevin Lowe, Edmonton Oilers president of hockey operations
B) Zack Kassian, Vancouver Canucks right wing
If you’re having trouble deciding, you’re not alone. The Lowe and Kassian situations mirror one another so perfectly you would almost think they had been mapped out by the hockey gods to converge at the exact same point, on the exact same night. Both men have been the subject of increased angst and ire over the last several weeks.
While Kassian broke the jaw of Oilers center Sam Gagner during the preseason and scored the winning goal during Tuesday's 2-1 victory by the Canucks, Lowe has broken the spirits of Oiler fans over the course of the last, oh, let’s say three to 14 years. While Kassian’s case is more clear-cut, mapping the cause-and-effect of Lowe’s tenure in Oilers management is a tricky proposition, and nobody can say with any certainty exactly how much his decisions have factored into the team’s current plight.
In both situations, all Oiler fans know is that they’re mad as hell, and they’re only going to take it for as long as those making the decisions force them to. Really, what other choice do they have? I’m sure thousands of people would be thrilled to see the Oilers dole out some five-knuckle justice against Kassian, gaining retribution for his vicious attack on Gagner by feeding the Canucks thug some beaver food. Similarly, I’m sure thousands would love to see Lowe turfed by the team, cleaning out his desk and shuffling out the door before it hits him on his proud posterior. However, I fail to see how either outcome would provide more than fleeting satisfaction for those hell-bent on revenge or retribution.
Would clobbering Kassian really make the league stand up and take notice? Would it send a message to future opponents that the Oilers aren’t to be trifled with? While it would be bloody, it’s not bloody likely. It would simply subject a guy like Luke Gazdic to supplemental discipline, pushing him up to the press box for a handful of games and taking a dent out of his pocketbook. Would giving Lowe his walking papers really make any tangible difference in the on-ice product? Would it prevent the Oilers from giving up the most goals in the league? Not one iota. It wouldn’t help the Oilers score goals or rise in the standings. In my mind, Lowe’s dismissal would only have one benefit: Helping people focus on a new scapegoat who’s closer to the actual on-ice product.
Belittling Katz for his recent letter to the fanbase doesn’t help matters either. Yes, it was the latest in a long line of questionable PR maneuvers by Edmonton’s version of Willy Wonka, and it was tone deaf to several of the actual concerns that fans have expressed during his tenure as the club’s owner. However, he can’t really do much else but preach patience.
Nobody can really expect Katz to publicly chastise members of the staff, railing against them and increasing the fervor surrounding the team. As much as we would all like to see the Oilers return to respectability, no amount of wishing for it, begging for it, or looking skyward and praying for it is going to change the current situation overnight. We’re all pissed off, but there isn’t any easy or quick fix, no matter how many heads Katz sends rolling.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not here defending the letter, applauding Kassian’s actions, or arguing that Lowe has been anything more than inept in his current role. However, picking out random scapegoats, avenging past wrongdoing, or directing frustration at anything other than the on-ice performance is just an exercise in futility. The Oilers have passed the buck for such a long time, it’s sad to see loyal fans doing the same and turning the franchise into an even bigger circus. All the billboards, petitions, campaigns, bumper stickers and paper-bag-adorned heads have only helped turn the Oilers into the laughingstock of the entire league, both on and off the ice.
What should Katz do in order to justify keeping Lowe around? My solution: Take the “president of hockey operations” title from his office door and replace it with “personal lapdog.” That might help appease the bloodthirsty masses that see Lowe’s fingerprints all over the Oilers’ current crime scene. But in the end, what difference does it make? Katz is the one calling the shots, Craig MacTavish is pulling the strings, and Dallas Eakins is directing the players. Laying blame on anyone outside of those three men – from Scott Howson to Steve Smith to Sam Gagner to Jeff Petry – is just an unnecessary distraction.
As usual, winning is the only solution to the Oilers’ myriad of problems, because capturing public enemy No. 1 and bringing him to justice doesn’t ever put an end to crime, it just makes way for someone else to fill the void left behind.
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