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Which Team Should Oilers Fans Hate Most? |
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Oilers fans hate Flames fans. Flames fans hate Oilers fans. I am not trying to start a war by saying this. Call it a provincial rivalry, or maybe the history that is most relevant here has more to do with the Oilers and Flames having the two best teams in hockey in the 80's...For one to get a cup, they had to walk over the other. The irresistible force vs. the unmovable object, so to speak. The Oilers had more raw talent, and the Flames were a more complete team. It was a brilliant time in hockey that will never be repeated.
It's not the 1980's anymore, and the Flames and Oilers are on very different paths. For the Flames, they must win a cup in the next two seasons. The good news is, the Flames are as good as they can get right now. The bad news? They might not be good enough now to even make the playoffs. I've discussed a few times the direction this team is headed, and it's not a cheery little story. A combination of terrible contracts and aging veterans will eventually result in the Flames turning into a last-placed team, forcing a complete rebuild to occur. It's a painful process, Flames fans. Ask any Oilers fan and they'll tell you last-place sucks. Enjoy the next two years of battling for the playoffs, because the following 3-5 years are going to be gut-wrenching.
The Oilers have tasted the basement for two years in a row. But going into 2011/2012, the Oilers are one of the league's biggest mysteries. Numerous off-season changes could push the Oilers as far as being a playoff team this season. At worst? 2011/2012 will end in yet another last-place finish. Most predictions suggest the Oilers will finish around 24th - 26th in the league. The people making these predictions seem to agree that Oilers fans should be happy and excited, because this is a team on the rise. They are, in many ways, the Anti-Flames: The next two years could be painful, but the following 3-5 could be amazing.
Considering the directions the teams are going, I just don't see the Oilers/Flames rivalry as being significant anymore. Provincial bragging rights is one thing, but it won't be the Flames the Oilers will need to get past when they start challenging for cups.
So who are the Oilers biggest rivals? Let's take a look at some of the candidates:
1. Vancouver Canucks - If I had to make this decision in five seconds or less, I would say the Canucks win. Why? Because they have depth of talent needed to be great for the next five seasons, because Oilers fans can't stand the arrogance of Canucks fans, because of Edmonton's massive inferiority complex as a city...hmmm, perhaps I should address this before I continue.
K, when I started going to post-secondary, I went to college in Calgary. Eventually I went to the University of Lethbridge, and then ended up in Edmonton to finish my education. So let's just say I've lived all over this province. Calgary is a wonderful city, and is regarded as one of the best places to live in the world. I adored Lethbridge. I come from a smaller community, so I could identify better with a city Lethbridge's size. It had all the services a person would want, but was small-town like and the people were tremendously friendly. Out of the three cities, I lived in Edmonton the longest. It's a nice city. Most of the people who live there know it's a nice city. But Edmonton does not get the praise Calgary does. It's not considered a "nice" place to live internationally or even nationally. What do people know about Edmonton? It's the most northern provincial capital.
Edmontonians are defensive about their city. The whole time I lived in Calgary (3 years) I didn't hear Edmonton mentioned at all. Not negatively or positively. The six years I lived in Edmonton, I constantly heard Edmontonians running Calgarians. It got annoying after a while because the inferiority complex was so obvious. And before any of you point out that I am a hypocrite because I say negative stuff about the Flames, keep in mind I am a hockey blogger, and the Flames are a team. They could be on the North Pole and I'd still say their management sucks and the team is headed for disaster. My thoughts on the Flames have nothing to do with Calgary.
Anyway, Vancouver is considered as a great place to live, and Edmontonians hate that. Now back to the blog. Where was I? The Canucks, right.
Vancouver's management will do their part to hold on to and to maintain the talent level of the team. Even if the league re-aligns, there is a strong likelihood that Edmonton and Vancouver will continue to play each other 4-6 times per season. Both teams will be similar in that they will have a few stars, plus plenty of depth talent.
While the Oilers roster is small now, one of the focuses in player development is to get bigger and meaner, especially on D and in the Bottom 6 forward group. How can I say this politely? The Canucks employ a certain amount of pansies and cheap-shot artists. I suspect the eventually-bigger, meaner Oilers will enjoy slapping Canuck players around. There will be some epic battles, my friends.
2. Winnipeg Jets - It's about time someone starts talking smack about the Jets. Welcome to the NHL, Winnipeg. Oilers fans liked you for a while, but now, you officially suck. Get use to it.
For this season, there won't be much of a rivalry between the two teams. For one thing, they are in different conferences, so they will only play each other once. The other limiting factor to the rivalry has to do with where both teams are. They are, in many ways, in the exact same position. Both in small cities that players don't necessarily want to go to. Both teams packed with young talent. Both teams are underdogs to make the playoffs this season, and in fact, both could potentially finish last in the league. While the Jets have solid D prospects, but are lacking up front, the Oilers are weak on D prospects, and are incredibly forward-prospect loaded. These teams sound more like great trade partners this season than enemies.
Very soon will come a day when the Jets join the Oilers, Flames, Canucks and possibly the Minnesota Wild in a Division. Both teams will be on the rise at the same time. Unlike the Canucks who have players with questionable toughness, the Jets roster possesses some meanness. There could be brawls between the Oilers and Jets. I can't wait.
3. Montreal Canadiens - The Oilers and Canadiens hardly ever play, so how could they possibly be a huge rival? Simple. When the Habs come to town, there are more people in the rink cheering for them than the Oilers. If I was an Oilers player, hearing "Go Habs Go" in my own rink would make me want to destroy them.
The Habs always have a good team, and the Oilers in modern history feel competitive towards them. The Habs won five straight cups in the 1970, and were one of the last great dynasties. The Oilers WERE the last great dynasty, and could have won eight or more cups if Gretzky et al wasn't traded away. I suspect when the Oilers become a cup threat again in a few seasons, the Habs will continue to be in the playoff mix in the NHL East. There is no better feeling than beating a team with the Habs history in the playoffs.
4. LA Kings - You know what? This might be the Oilers biggest rivalry now. Why? Let's start with the Ryan Smyth/Colin Fraser fiasco. More than getting an injured Fraser, it must make Dean Lombardi's blood boil when he considers that all he got for Ryan Smyth is a player with minor league talent and a draft pick that won't amount to anything. Smyth forced the Kings to deal him for nothing. That's got to hurt.
Then there is the Dustin Penner deal. Penner is huge and talented, but completely disinterested in winning. The Kings are stuck with him. The Oilers received from the deal a very motivated Colten Teubert. You hear this guy speak about his Kings experience, and you know he's going to make the NHL, and he's going to live for moments to hammer one of their players through the boards. Teubert is severely underrated now...I've seen prospect lists suggesting he's not even one of Edmonton's Top 10 prospects? He's going to be a Top 4 guy, folks. He's going to be a mean, nasty defenseman in the NHL.
Aside from Teubert, the Oilers drafted Oscar Klefbom with LA's pick. He might be the steal of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.
The Kings are going to be a very good team for a bunch of seasons. They have depth at every position. Last season saw the beginning of some heat between Taylor Hall and Drew Doughty. I suspect the Oilers will forget LA is the "better team" every time they get on the ice against each other this season, and the games will be violent. The Kings have several players who can mix it up too, and Mike Richards will be a competitive edge to the roster.
Conclusion: I think the biggest rival to the Oilers now is the LA Kings. The funny thing is, I am not sure the Kings will feel that way towards Edmonton until the Oilers become "good". The teams are in very different places, for the time being. The Kings are poised to make a cup run. The Oilers main goals this season are to stay healthy and to stay out of the basement. In a few seasons, these will be very equal teams.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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