[browna]

Ference got suckered in by Lowe, who you have to hand it to, managed to sweet talk Pronger (with promises of also bringing in Neidermeyer that summer) Souray, Pat Quinn, and Renney, Erik Cole, Eric Perron and others, only to realize, (as McLellan found out) who truly dysfunctional an organization is. Ference always though does have an air of complaining about him as if he was a victim, and I don't think he's saying anything new, he's just the one that wasted his time worrying about it. Guys like Cole and Perron have exited stage right quietly, and a guy like Pronger, who asked for a trade from the Oilers at Christmas time, got steam rolled by the Oiler run media, with ridiculous accusations tossed at him. Guys like Nylander and Heatley have avoided that, based on Intel from agents and players with the Oilers under Lowe at the time. So this wasn't new, it's that these players see the money, are told by Lowe and whoever else Lowe uses to wine and dine players, how important they are to getting the Oilers back to prominence, playing up on Ference hometown connections, and anything else to have him feel wanted, so strongly they he ignored all the people telling him not to go there and join that well documented over the years, circus. But he did anyways.

Said it over and over, Lowe thinks this is 1983 and he's the Glen Sather of the Oilers again. Thinking he know better then most coaches or GMs or agents, letting players just go out and play, especially their young guys right out of junior, as their natural talent will pull through like it did Mess and Glenny and Fuhrsie.

Ference jumping Lee Stempniak into a fight after he got hit by Stempniak was cowardly and pathetic. Even worse was Hartley's "no pp against" rules so the Flames never squared up with Ference, in that game or any future game.