GDB XLI: Nowhere to go but forward
bingofuel
December 31 2009 02:24PM
You'll notice that the title of this post says "forward" rather than "up." There are places we can decend to from here, but after a slight spanking of the Maple Leafs last night, I say we nod knowingly at the notch in the win column and focus on what needs to be done tonight: ringing in the New Year after humiliating the Flames.
Don't get me wrong, friends, the DFF is alive and well. But it's still the holidays and I still don't like losing — least of all to Calgary. So pour yourself some eggnog, make sure there's plenty 'o spiced rum in there and lets wave goodbye and say a hearty f@%k off to 2009, the Year of the Sad.
Oh sure we have a new owner, we scored ourselves some new coaches — and a skid full of magic herbs which work on everything except the game-winning gene which somehow surfaced last night — but we continued our slide into mediocrity.
And here we are on the cusp of a New Year. Nowhere to go but forward.
The Battle of Alberta has been terribly one-sided this year, the Flames collecting wins in each of the teams' four meetings this season. We're into the second-last game in the rivalry this season. Both teams are coming off wins. It stands to reason that, just like the Oilers' recent losing streak, the losing streak to the Flames has to end as well. I can taste it.
Other things I can taste
- The sweet bubbly I will be consuming this evening — by bubbly I mean a Heineken Bubba Keg.
- The fear of the Flames, as their defenders puzzle over the reasons why none of them made Canada's Olympic team
- Victory
The verdict
I've made this one short and sweet, because I'm hitting the highway to send some time with family out in the country. Quadding, cow-tipping, and illegal fireworks are the order of the day. I do it to ring in 2010, but I also do it for the Mighty Oil, who will capture the hearts and minds of Edmonton fans tonight with a 3-2 SO win against the Flames.
Happy New Year, OilersNation! See you next year!
The Oilers will win. Even the DFF crowd will be disappointed this season.
So as I understand it, a 40 game winning streak will just about put us in the playoffs?
Hope springs anew!
Last first of 2009, my time zone anyway....cmon Oil, what is this? winning when chasing draft #1???
Truth. DFF is loser talk*.
*Which I suppose by definition it is, but you get my drift.
crap, well I'll take last 3rd of 09..
DFF is loser talk. We long term winners have raised (?) our expectations- Fall for Hall!
Now as for tonight- GOILERS!!! BOOFLAMES!!!
Tip a cow for me bingofuel.
Not terribly relevant I know, but since we're all big Kevin Lowe fans around these parts, here's a little anecdote from today at the Sweden vs. Finland game in Regina.
I wore my Oilers jersey in support of Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson (and to a lesser extent, Toni Rajala on Finland). A few minutes into the first period a bunch of guys wearing expensive looking pea-coats walk by, and one of those guys has a sweet combover, and then I realize that it was Kevin Lowe. He saw my jersey and smirked, not smiled. Their suite door was locked so they sat down right behind us for most of the first.
Nothing terribly exciting, I wussed out on the swift kick to the jewels with heavy boots I had promised in another talkback, done while shouting "This is for Horcoff's contract!" To his credit, Kevin was signing autographs for every little kid that came up to the suite door. I figured I'd just leave the guy alone while he (presumably) is on the job.
I didn't see much from Rajala, he had a nice little scoring opportunity, but Markstrom had a great game for the Swedes. MPS had a fantastic goal where he blew by seemingly the entire Finnish team all alone.
Seeing him play gave me hope for our few stand out prospects.
If we can't beat the Flames, hurt em!!!
@David S
Wrong only 38 games. But after yeaterdays game i think they can do it.
@Canadian Maniac
Rajala played like a pussy. He looked like he was scared to get hit. I saw him turn away from the puck or give up on the puck at least 3 times because he was going to get hit. Not a good game for him.
Happy New Year Nation! May 2010 treat us a damn sight better than 09 :/
Happy New Year to all of you. Let's hope 2010 is a 'Hall' of a year.....hahahaha...eeeeggghhh.
Librarian I've been away so forgive me if the avatar is old news but I dig the Bea Arthur vibe you've got going on.
Happy New Year all!
Cool. So the boys can still mail a few in like they're used to doing.
Holy crap. Roger Millions needs to lay off the tanning bed.
Our mighty Juniors are trailing the Yankees. They are generating nothing on the powerplay.
Memo to the fall for Hallers: Over four hundred players have worn Oiler silks. The Oilers have only had 30 or so seasons. I quess what I'm trying to say is one prospect is WAAAY less valuable/important in the grand scheme of things than an entire NHL season.
Speaking of prospects: Eberle just tied things up.
Is anybody else finding the SNET sound feed a bit choppy?
And yeah Chris, the hugely overblown faith in prospects being able to fix our problems right out of the gate is pretty funny.
Well it looks like the VETS are going to screw this up.
No one said anything about the prospects being able to fix all our problems right out of the gate...funny how you guys like to spin things
Vishnoski can go.
Yep, SNET feed is quite choppy. Every 25 seconds or so. Just something else to go along with having to listen to Loubardious and Simmer (not to mention Thousands).
The Calgary color guys are just plain bad.
Happy New Year Nationeers!
@ David S
if you listen on line off the Oilers site its the same as sports net in Shaw Firect
Rod and Fred
I'm tuned in to the ched feed way the hell over here. Phillips seems on the ball to me. How he can get excited about a team like this shows what a pro he is - sounds like a playoff game the way he is calling it.
http://oilers.nhl.com/club/RadioPlayer.htm?id=2009020608
Jeez JDD really sells those saves.
Calgary scores in the last 10 seconds of the period.
Awww fuuuuufejfmje2fnunzmpomiz!!!!!!!!
Oh good! Lubo is injured....
CURSE YOU LADY LUCK
Canada wins on the back of Jordon Eberle!!! Well mostly in my mind at least.
Word from a buddy that just messaged me from Saskatoon is that the 50/50 at the game tonight is at 100k.
That could pay Shaun Horcoff's salary for 87.9 seconds. What a huge sum!
Well this was my first full Juniors game this tourny so I can't put too much weight on this analysis, but I wasn't all that impressed with Hall's game. Could be tired, could be young, could be an off game. I was watching for him all game and didn't feel like I saw too much of that John Tavares feel from last years juniors. Any other opinions?
I think given Eberle's performance we should be doing backflips and renaming existing statues in his honor.
yeah Eberle is looking like a stud right now, however, I do notice his speed from time to time. He tends to float a bit when away from the puck but he showed much improved speed especially in the OT period. Having said that, he shows the kind of puck sense and savy both with and without the rubber on most occasions that he almost always seems to be in the right place when needed. Gotta be excited for this guy.
Hellooooo. Oilers game here.
Aw crap. Flames just scored again.
Glencross with the screen. Of course it had to be Glencross.
Now do you understand? Ha ha at least we were keeping it Oiler related right?
BTW. Eberle will be a factor in about three years. Maybe.
Better watch out for Craig Conroy! After sniping his 1st of the season on an empty net last night, he's potted another tonight. ~He may score 50 now~
YEAH! Langkow!
Shuddup Calgary lover.
We don't do something on this PP and its over.
Yah, whatever
Man are we weak. Its really embarrassing.
This one came in by Fedex.
Put us out of our misery if your going to rebuild, make some trades now, keep us as fans.
The kid has a nose for the net and great hands too boot ! He is a difference maker, no doubt about it !!!
May not need to make any trades at the way the Oilers are joining the IR. If Lubo is gone for a while, we will slide even further in the basement, challenging Carolina. We won't need any trades.
If Lubo is injured for any length of time I am going to go work in an underground sugar mine in Equador and you guys can send me a letter when things return to anything better than 'super sucky.'
Oh good Horcoff scores (!)
-10 in the last 8 games. Bra-VO
Oilers STINK, SUCK, and are PATHETIC. What an embarrassment to this city. Apart from a few players, how useless the rest of these clowns are ! Grebeshkov, Gilbert, Cogliano, O'sullivan, Moreau, Horcoff, Pouliot, Pisani, Staios, ..can all go for all I care. These guys are either useless or just not good enough in this league. As for Gagne and Nilsson, they're too small. Watching Gagne get manhandled by bigger guys is simply embarrassing. He's got skill, but can't do anything with it due to a lack of size. This team is hopeless. Time to plan other winter activity. Watching these guys is not an option anymore.!!!
So you don't want the Edmonton Oilers pyjamas/bed sheet combination I got you for new years?
Now we can get a bag of pucks for Horcoff he increased his value. Make a clean sweep , get rid of the vets. starting with Moreau.