Happy American Thanksgiving to all of our U.S. Edmonton Oilers fans and also to those who happen to celebrate the holiday in other parts of the globe! Considering the situation most of us find ourselves in, I hope that everybody has a wonderful day and is lucky enough to have some special people with them.
Now, even though we don’t have any hockey to watch right now, that’s no excuse not to go around the horn here and say what we’re thankful for when it comes to your favorite team! I’ll start.
- I’m thankful that my favorite hockey team hired Peter Chiarelli because, without him and his staff, the club wouldn’t have Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto, Ethan Bear, Caleb Jones, Zack Kassian, Adam Larsson, Mikko Koskinen, Evan Bouchard, Kris Russell, William Lagesson, Phil Kemp, or Dmitri Samorukov. Not to mention having the two best centers in the NHL signed to long-term VALUE contracts.
- In turn, I’m thankful the Oilers fired Peter Chiarelli, Todd McLellan, and decided not to bring back Ken Hitchcock. Now we’ve got one of the most successful GMs in the history of the NHL in Ken Holland as well as one of the most revered coaches to ever step onto the bench in Dave Tippett. The combination of the two will without a doubt take the organization to the next level.
- When Jay Woodcroft accepted the job as head coach of the Bakersfield Condors, I was happy. When they brought in former Oilers defenceman Dave Manson as Woodcroft’s assistant coach, that also brought me happiness. What I’m thankful for though is the right-glorious job they’ve done guiding Edmonton’s best and brightest prospects since taking over. For the longest time, the Oilers couldn’t grow their own talent in-house, and now we’re seeing the consistent progression from the farm to the big house.
- Unfortunately, with the pandemic rearing its ugly head, U.S.-based clubs aren’t allowed to come into Canada. I’m thankful for that because, if the season finally gets started, we’re going to get an all-Canadian division and with that some playoff-like hockey games. If you liked those Battle of Alberta’s last season and the Kassian/Tkachuk rivalry, this year is going to take you back to a time you may have forgotten or possibly never witnessed. When teams didn’t need a playoff series to get their hate on for each other, it came organically through the regular season since they played one another six or seven times a year.
- They say that most teams who aren’t in a playoff spot by American Thanksgiving don’t make the playoffs. Well, this year, nobody is in a playoff spot and I’m thankful for that because that means the field is still wide open and the Oilers have as good-a-chance as any other team to make it in.
Most of all, I’m thankful that I have you to visit our site almost every day. You don’t know how much it means to me that with your help, this little website is now one of the top Oilers blogs online today.
Thank. You.
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