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G82 Oilers vs Canucks: Farewell Sedins |
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As the Oiler 2017-2018 season mercifully comes to an end, so too do the wonderful careers of Henrik and Daniel Sedin. The Sedins took a lot of verbal abuse from opposing fans in their 17 season career. They’ve been called every name under the sun, but nobody can deny that they were special to the city of Vancouver and incredible players. They finish their careers with more than 2600 games and 2000 points between them. They will surely be hall of famers.
As an Oiler fan, my memories of the Sedins are almost exclusively of them on the Power Play picking apart brutal Oiler defenses and racking up points. Those memories aren’t exaggerated caricatures of the past that can tend to happen in the mind. The Sedins have combined for more points against the Oilers than any other team in the league. The two players both have 84 points each against the Oil. Of course it’s the same amount.
One thing about the Sedins that now gets overlooked is that the Canucks showed a ton of patience with them. When Henrik turned 25 years old, his career high in points was just 42. I think about that and how quickly the fans and media would have turned on so many young players by that time. RNH takes a load of heat for his production and he’s eclipsed that mark in every single full season he has played. The Canucks let these players develop and once they were handed the keys to the franchise they exploded offensively.
It’s been highlighted many times, and will be for a very long time, that the two players simply knew where each other were on the ice in a way that didn’t seem possible. It’s the kind of connection that only seemed possible by twins – Only possible by two men whose lives have been lived together, inseparable, for 37 years.
The Oilers have opened the owners box to the families of Henrik and Daniel Sedin. It’s a classy move by the organization to make for men who have consistently abused the club, but the send off tonight will be overshadowed, no doubt, by the performance made by the Sedins in their final home game in Vancouver.
What they did, saying goodbye to the fans who stuck with them through all the ups and downs of a near 20 year career, was incredible. I don’t believe in horoscopes, numerology, or other hokum but somehow the magic between Vancouver’s number 22 and 33 produced Daniel’s 22nd goal 33 seconds into the 2nd period. The overtime goal was scored at the imaginary 22:33 mark of the 3rd period. And, scored at 2233 on the 24 hour clock. Movie magic.
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The Oilers will go into this final game with no chance to come out of this season with a positive spin, but at least there’s Connor McDavid. The Oiler captain is the most dominant offensive player in the world. And, in my estimation, he is the best player in the league. If the Hart trophy was given to the best player in the league, it would be his without question. However, the voting class has twisted and perverted the definition so that many wont vote for a player whose team is otherwise too awful to make the playoffs.
Instead of going to Connor McDavid, the award will likely go to Taylor Hall. If someone other than the best player in the world should get the award, it’s the man who is worth exactly 1 Adam Larsson in the eyes of Edmonton’s demented management. I think it’s probably the best case scenario for anyone who had to endure the water carrying masses gloating about how Adam Larsson’s 19 points and total inability to turn or pass put Edmonton into the playoffs a year ago.
The Oiler captain has a 6 point stranglehold on the scoring race. It’s his to walk away with this year. We’ll break that down further after this game has been played.
We’ve done 82 of these game day blogs this season, plus the preseason, and it’s always sad when the last one is completed. Thank you for reading during this difficult season. I appreciate your continued support.
LINEUP
RNH McDavid Rattie
Khaira Draisaitl Puljujarvi
Lucic Strome Caggiula
Slepyshev Cammalleri Kassian
Nurse Larsson
Russell Bear
Lowe Benning
Talbot
OILERS KEYS TO THE GAME
1) Even Strength Dominance. Fittingly, Connor McDavid is tied with the most Even Strength points scored since Henrik Sedin scored 83 in 2009-2010. One more point at Even Strength in this final game, against Henrik, would make McDavid the ES king of the modern NHL. Nobody can do the things McDavid can because his speed makes him impossible to defend via traditional angles and tactics. There’s a reason he has 35 more even strength points than the next closest player over the last 2 seasons (with the same number of games played). He’s a mad genius of pure skill and determination.
2) Final Auditions. Edmonton has a bevy of young or unproven players on the club whose status moving forward is entirely unknown. Ty Rattie, Drake Caggiula, Anton Slepyshev, Ryan Strome, and Mike Cammalleri are all without contracts next year. Where do these men fit into the plan moving forward for the club? Can Rattie put himself on an NHL only deal? Is Strome definitely the guy Edmonton wants at 3C? Most of these decisions ought to be made already, but it’s an 82 game season and the runway ends tonight for these players.
3) Goodbye Henrik and Daniel. When Ryan Smyth played his final game, the Sedins pulled their entire team out back onto the ice to pay their respects to Edmonton’s beating heart. Tonight we expect that the Oilers will stick around at the end of the game – not just to raise their sticks to the home crowd one final time – but to say farewell to a pair of Canuck players who embodied class and grace for their entire careers. Congratulations on an excellent career.
Puck drops tonight at 8PM Mountain Time on HNIC. Farewell!
Follow me on Twitter @Archaeologuy
Last night as the news unfolded and information started to trickle out, it became clear that the hockey community had been struck by unfathomable tragedy. On a stretch of highway in Saskatchewan, the team bus for the Humboldt Broncos was struck by a semi-truck causing devastation and heartache. There were 28 people on that bus and at the time of writing this, 14 lives have been lost and the remaining 14 are injured – some in critical condition.
The Humboldt Broncos are a Saskatchewan Junior Hockey Team. These players were between 17 and 20 years old. There have been so many young lives cut short in one night that it is hard to imagine the collective grief and pain felt by these families. Humboldt, Saskatchewan is a town of less than 5,900 people. The loss of these young men and the coaches who dedicated their lives to teaching them is profound. All eyes in Canada are on this small community and our hearts are broken for them.
No parent should bury their child. This morning we woke to the news that roughly a dozen families will be forced to do exactly that. Sport is more than athletic competition. It binds communities. It brings us together. I wish it was not for this reason, but we are with the Humboldt Broncos today and we hope that the hockey community pulls together as one in support of these families.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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