Edmonton is No Good VI: Chia•den•freu•de

[flamesforcup]

Edmonton media is so embarrassing its insane. I remember last game they were acting like the Oilers were absolutely killing the Flames and do the same thing this game like wtf?? It was 1-0 and the Oilers were just trapping out there and they were acting like we were dominated. Worst media in the league ainec.

[Eric Vail]

Originally Posted by midniteowl

WOW....I sure hope that culture are still alive and kicking in that dressing room.

Who would be their experienced players who know what it takes to be successful based on experiences with previous teams?

Lucic won the cup and was a big part of it.
Brodziak didn't win the cup, but had some success in St. Louis and Minnesota.

That's about it.

Good thing they can always bring Kevin Lowe down to talk to the players, because he knows a thing or two about winning. Just ask him.

[Eric Vail]

“But I think the most frustrating part for me as a player, like I said, when I went in there straight Boston was that talk is cheap. Dallas Eakins is a fantastic coach that there’s another whipping boy that got dragged over the coals. He was a fantastic coach that was dealt just a pure crap hand in a team that would actually listen. You had a group of players that talked about how they wanted to make the playoffs and talked about how sick they were of losing; and then by Game 3, after losing 6-1, they’re straight out to the bar until 3 in the morning lighting up the nightlife scene in Edmonton. Like, come on - give me a break. It was to the point where it was ridiculous. The lifestyle was way more important than playing the game and making the playoffs. But like I said, talk is cheap.

“Even in practice, you came from a group where you’re practicing against guys like Bergeon or Chara and you’re going at each other - game intensity. And that’s how you get better. That’s how you be a playoff contender. That’s how you be a champion. And you try to instill some of those values. We had other guys that had been on playoff teams, and they had the same frustrations. They’d come and practice hard and there’s a group of guys there that had ‘Too cool to try hard.’ They had derogatory terms for trying too hard in practice. That’s the culture, right.

“Like I said, you could have had any kind of defense or any kind of system. But if you go on a Western swing and your guys are out every single night until 5 in the morning, I mean, you’re not going to win too many games.”

Wow. Party boys that won't put out in practice.

[nieuwy-89]

Originally Posted by flamesforcup

Im interested in going to the Flames game in edmonton in january and have to ask is it dangerous if i go with my Flames jersey? I have never been in an opposing arena before. Will i get drinks n stuff spilled on me or should i jus go without it?

I've been to dozens of BOA games in Edmonton wearing my Flames gear. It was pretty bad back in the 90s at Rexall Place - had hats stolen and lots of over-the-line comments. In the last 10-15 years it has become way more respectful. The banter between Oilers and Flames fans is great fun and generally harmless.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Locke

Well hold on a sec here....

"it was a waste of years in your NHL career, where it’s just you never get those back."

While hes not wrong on that account, he also made way, way more money slumming it in Edmonton than he ever would have anywhere else.

He won his Cup in Boston and then cashed in and cashed in hard on Katz's dime.

He may been a 4-5 defenceman but he was making 2-3 money that was not on anyone else's table.

Its hard to listen to someone complain about winning the Cup and then phoning in the end of their career on the back on some very generous paycheques.

Edmonton is No Good but sorry Andy, if you wanted Job Satisfaction more than money then thats all you had to do. Take a lot less money to play for a much better team.

But I doubt when that contract offer was on the table his altruism-alarm was screaming that he didnt deserve that much money and that he should take less to fit into the cap of a good team.

And then theres the fact that he was a 4-5 Dman on Edmonton. The worst team in the League. He could take less money but he'd have been risking AHL or pressbox time.

I always liked Ference until he became a cheap-shotting Oiler. He very literally got his cake and got to eat it too at the expense of the Oilers, the only drawback was having to live in Dumpmonton and having to haul that horrid Oil-drop over his head on an almost nightly basis.

But he could wipe his tears with money.

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Go to the highest bidder in free agency which happens to be the worst run NHL franchise in the history of the game and after the fact complain that you wasted years of your NHL career? Some of these guys need to be a little more honest with themselves. Sure the situation sucked for him there but it's not like he didn't know what he was getting into.

Not sure if you guys read the whole thing, but he was saying that he knew full well he wasn't the most talented guy on the team, but he was trying to bring a winning culture. I mean, lots of people have been offered jobs at places that did not have the best rep, and then help to repair that. And getting some decent cash is what it takes to lure people.

Friggin pathetic stuff to read (what Russell said). That place is rotten to the core, and it still isn't changing. Guys out partying till 3-4-5am, when the team isn't winning, and then they're making fun of people trying too hard in practice? Brutal. And guys like Russell and Lucic are the guys that are trying to tell the kids what it takes to win, and the kids aren't listening because the old men are being old men, and not coming out and partying.

This is probably the most damning thing I've read about the Oilers, and it absolutely mystifies me how Lowe still has a job. He knows a thing or two about winning? Yeah, maybe from the 80s, when players still smoked in the dressing room. Lowe has no idea what it takes to win in the new millennium. He can't see that having his players out getting drunk until 5am and then making fun of the guys trying hard in practice is a bad thing. Coaches getting fired over the performance of the team, players getting traded that magically learn how to hockey as soon as they're in a winning atmosphere. Prospect after prospect that does not meet their potential. And that muppet has been at the helm for close to 20 years? And he claims to know a thing or two about winning?

Man, on one hand, I hope the Oilers never change, but on the other hand, watching NHL talent wither and die up there is pretty disappointing as a hockey fan. They need an intervention up there. Katz and Lowe really, really need to go. I almost feel sorry for Oiler fans, but I don't, because they should be calling for heads up there, and not the head of Todd McLellan.

Just pathetic. So embarrassingly pathetic. That article made shake my head and facepalm more than a Spector or Staples piece, because of truth instead of fiction.

[Reggie Dunlop]

[Redrum]

Originally Posted by direwolf

Schlemko's goal was amazing. Absolutely filthy.

And Shlemko's badass move actually had something to do with the goal. I mean... Omark took a friggin slap shot... cmon. Up until the commentators painted the broadcast booth with "ectoplasm", I didn't think the random ballerina move at center ice was terribly effective.

[djsFlames]

Originally Posted by getbak

This says it all right here...

Great reading material for future UFAs.

Not that the oilers will be able to afford them.

[Spinach]

Yeesh, reading some of those comments makes that organization look disgraceful.

I don't want to defend the Oilers here, but …

Oh wait, I really don't want to defend the Oilers.

[81MC]

All I know is if someone on my team was making fun of working hard, they wouldn’t have to worry about practise anymore. Holy cow that’s gross.

[Reggie Dunlop]

Makes it easy to see why a promising young player like Spencer Foo (who grew up in the area) would choose to sign elsewhere.

[Reggie Dunlop]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1072230606946238465

Terry Jones hates the Meth Cat mascot.

[Sutter_in_law]

Originally Posted by Reggie Dunlop

https://twitter.com/user/status/1072230606946238465

Terry Jones hates the Meth Cat mascot.

I like how he only asks the “Tier 1 fans” their opinion - no one else’s matters.

Katz’s little marionette

[Ashasx]

Obviously he'd fire the guy? Am I missing a joke?

[the2bears]

Originally Posted by Ashasx

Obviously he'd fire the guy? Am I missing a joke?

Well, the *Oilers* are a joke but that's not news nor a surprise to anyone here.

[Azhouse]

Originally Posted by Reggie Dunlop

https://twitter.com/user/status/1072230606946238465

Terry Jones hates the Meth Cat mascot.

I remember watching footage where he showed up at an event full of kids...frightening. Who was sitting in the boardroom when they paraded out the mock-up for that??

[TheCommodoreAfro]

I'll just leave this here. Guess who leads the league in playing a tired team while rested? No good.

[Coach]

Not only that, its probably usually after they've played the best team in the west...

[Scroopy Noopers]

Originally Posted by Redrum

And Shlemko's badass move actually had something to do with the goal. I mean... Omark took a friggin slap shot... cmon. Up until the commentators painted the broadcast booth with "ectoplasm", I didn't think the random ballerina move at center ice was terribly effective.

It was a muffin too.

[Ped]

Hard to know for sure what exactly happened, but it sounds like Ference went in, tried a few words of wisdom, and then gave it up as a lost cause.


He talked about in Boston going up in practice against guys like Chara and Bergeron and says thats how it has to be, but i would assume that Edmonton wanted him to be Bergeron or Chara - not the skill level, certainly, but the intensity, the lessons learned.


Edmonton is a complete disaster from top to bottom and has been for years, but imo it sounds like after a few half-hearted attempts he said screw it and took his money.