Thursday, November 13, 2008
Losing My Religion
Yawn. Another night, another Oilers loss. I dunno, I've been spending some time reading through the gameday threads at LT's and it's like Groundhog Day over there every fuckin' night: "the underlying numbers are good, this team is fun to watch...whoops they fucking lost again."
Maybe I'm missing something here, but how is this team any different from every other sad sack bunch of dinks we've seen sporting the Drop over the past, I dunno, 15 years? Better question: when was the last time it was actually fun to be an Oilers fan? April 2006? May 1990? Nineteen-fucking-eighty-four?
Ain't fun the point?
It's probably easier for those lucky/miserable sods back in Edmonton who are-ahem-covered in Oil. If you can't just flick on the TV or mosey down to your local and catch a game, fandom requires a bit more effort and commitment, more than most busy 30-somethings with jobs, girlfriends, interests etc can probably squeeze in.
Example: Tonight I went for a nice dinner and a couple of drinks before coming home and flicking on Sportsnet's ticker to see the score, which reminded me what a good decision it was not to crouch in front of the computer and squint at a shitty little streaming video feed, or make the trek across the creek to the expat bar for the game. Not that I needed it, because nothing I've seen or heard from this team so far has convinced me they are worthy of more than a dilettante's passing interest. In short: I'm having a few commitment issues around this team right now.
I wish it were otherwise. I would like to believe, but these peckers are making it difficult with their up and down routine, the three-headed goalie monster, the plucking psychos off the waiver wire, the continued mediocrity of guys like Horcoff and the gallingly decent play of personal whipping boys Souray and Moreau. Etcetera, etcetera.
Don't get me wrong: this is not a cri de coeur or a letter of resignation à la Berry and Winters. I'm just a little frustrated by the fact that it doesn't seem to matter who steps on stage with these guys: the song remains the same.
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8 comments:
You know what this means:
We need a new arena. A downtown arena.
And also to stop wearing those beautiful but utterly cursed third jerseys. I think Chris! is right, we have only won one game while wearing them since the turn of the century.
Where is this ex-pat bar? East side or something?
Also, I just assumed you're in Toronto. Maybe you're not.
I understand where you are coming from, as I felt the same when when living in Ontario in 2006. Thankfully there was a certain cup run and a move back to Edmonton which solved that issue...
Good comment, Chris!
I'm talking about Vancouver here. Dunno any Oiler bars in your town.
doogie:
And also to stop wearing those beautiful but utterly cursed third jerseys. I think Chris! is right, we have only won one game while wearing them since the turn of the century.
I agree with everything except the "beautiful" part.
not to crouch in front of the computer and squint at a shitty little streaming video feed, or make the trek across the creek to the expat bar for the game.
You left out all those over priced games at GM place where you watched the Oilers lose to the Canucks.
But... the jerseys... are so nice!
When I left Edmonton to go to college, I adopted the Rags as my bandwagon team(since I was in NY). They stunk, but supporting the most hated team in hockey at that time(late 90s) was kind of fun. More fun than anytime I'd see the Oilers, with their AHL defence, and annual trading 1 good player away for 3 prospects, punctuated by the odd heroic loss to their boyfriends, the Stars.
The mantra from Kevin Lowe was always "wait until the new CBA"
Well, it's now in the 4th season since that new CBA. if anything, the Oilers are worse than ever. Yes, the 2006 run.
MacTavish looks ready to fall off the wagon, both by his coaching "methods" and body language. The current team look individually skilled enough to make the playoffs, but...but...
Something tells me Lowe and his alumni association simply aren't capable of being anything more than those lovable pre-CBA shmucks.
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