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Originally Posted by Mark Spector, 12 May, 2017
If the Edmonton Oilers accomplished one thing this season… Well, let Patrick Maroon summarize:
"Everyone knows the Edmonton Oilers are no joke anymore," said the straight-forward winger.
Truly, Oilers fans — and everyone inside the organization — would have settled for just that. Not being the butt of the joke anymore, or walking press boxes and sports bars from coast to coast and being met with that lingering, 10-year question that we all could never quite put our finger on:
"What the heck is going on in Edmonton?!?"
We can officially file the Decade of Darkness into the history books — its chapter entitled: “The Old Boys Club — A Cautionary Tale” — and we’ll open a new book in Edmonton, one where simply having a good November is no longer the barometer...
Edmonton will answer similar roster questions this summer facing the 29 other NHL clubs, but the two people finding the answers — McLellan and GM Peter Chiarelli — are two of the best in the business.
The biggest step owner Daryl Katz made here in Edmonton was to stop hiring his former Oilers heroes, bring in Bob Nicholson as team President, and listen to Nicholson when he recommended Chiarelli. Chiarelli hired McLellan, and in two seasons those two have completely turned this organization around...
They do things right here, again, and with McDavid and Draisaitl to build around, there is every opportunity — in fact, expectation — to win Stanley Cups again.
"After 10 years of being a bad hockey team and still having the fan base that we do, I think all the players really appreciate that," said McDavid. "It has to be a different mindset. We’re not going to surprise any teams anymore.
"Teams know, we’re going to be a good hockey team."
For some time to come, we would wager.
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