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GDB 81.0: HOME ICE ADVANTAGE – Farewell To An Old Barn

By Jason Gregor

Apr 6, 2016, 15:08 EDTUpdated:

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Tonight will be the Edmonton Oilers 1,429th (they had two neutral site games listed as home games) and final NHL regular season home game at the originally named Edmonton Coliseum, then Northlands Coliseum, then SkyReach Centre and now Rexall Place. It was also home to 129 playoff games.

The Oilers lost their first home playoff game on April 11th, 1980 when Ken Linseman scored in overtime to give the Philadelphia Flyers a three-game series sweep, but they won their final home playoff game defeating Carolina 4-0 on June 17th, 2006.

The first game at the Edmonton Coliseum ended in a 3-3 tie versus the Detroit Red Wings on October 13th, 1979, and tonight the Oilers hope to give their fans one final victory before they close down the old barn and move to a swanky, state-of-the-art arena this fall.

The rink is old, the lighting is the worst in the NHL and it is time to say goodbye, but it was a special place for many years.

I remember the first time I went to the Coliseum. It was October of 1980 and my parents split a pair of season tickets. My late father took me to the game. I don’t remember the opponent, but I do remember the Oilers winning 4-2 and Brett Callighen scored two goals.

I was eight years old and was amazed at how big and loud the rink was. I wish every fan could experience going to a game at least once. Tickets were affordable back then for a middle class family, and even though we only had season tickets for two seasons, I fondly remember those games.

For the start of the 1996/1997 my buddies, Pretty Boy, Hutch, Onion and I split a pair of seats in section 216, row 32. We were in our early twenties, didn’t have a lot of money, but the Oilers were going to leave town, so we decided to buy a pair of seats and split them four ways. It was awesome.

Onion and I went to most games together. Since we used most of our spending money on tickets, for the weekend games we would sneak in a mickey of Silk Tassel, then buy a coke, go into a washroom stall, pour out half of the pop and fill up the cup with rye. You learn to improvise when you are young.

The Oilers had just finished four years without making the playoffs, and the 1997 playoff run re-ignited the passion in Edmonton. The building was electric and we had a blast for two seasons, but we couldn’t afford to renew in the fall of 1998, which, funny enough, ended up working out well for me.

The next year I enrolled in the Radio and Television program at NAIT, and in the fall of 2001 I had a job with CFRN covering the games. I worked for the legendary John Short and he told me, “You can’t do your job properly if you are a fan.”

So I went to games and learned to be neutral. If I had been a season seat holder the year before it would have made the transition much harder. It took me a full season to lose my fandom, and the only negative of my job is not having that unbridled, sometimes fanatical, passion for a hockey team.

I’m not complaining — I ended up with the best job I could imagine. I get paid to watch NHL hockey and talk about the game with coaches, players, scouts, fans and anyone who will listen.

I’m blessed. I feel I got the best of both worlds. I got to be a fan for 20 years and for the past 15 I’ve been lucky enough to have a job that pays me to report on the NHL (and other sports of course). It is my dream job.

I have many fond memories of the old rink. The Onion is still a diehard fan. He rarely gets too upset about the team, which is saying a lot consider the Decade of Darkness, but the season opener in October of 1997 was the one time the Onion broke his rule about leaving a game early. He had never shut the TV off early, nevermind left before the buzzer sounded, but with the Wings leading 8-1 after two periods the Onion said, “Let’s go.” I still chuckle thinking of him fuming as we drove to the bar to drown our sorrows.

I’ve had many memorable moments since I started “working”. They involve players, specific plays or conversations. Here are a few that stand out.

I was always a fan of Ales Hemsky’s ability. He was fearless. He never shied away from contact and he was such a talented player. In November of 2006 I was sitting in JJ Hebert’s (Oilers media guy) office and we were discussing shinny hockey. Hemsky strolled in and overheard our conversation. “I can’t wait to play shinny with my buddies when I’m retired. I will dominate,” he said with a smile. He was serious, and said it very passionately. He could undress NHL defenders one-on-one, but was still excited to burn his buddies. I’d love to see him dance around in the Czech Republic men’s league.
Shawn Horcoff always had time to talk hockey. He was always gracious, even when I asked the odd dumb question. I learned the best way to get him talking was to discuss NCAA sports. Ryan Smyth, Ethan Moreau, Steve Staios were always great to talk to long after the microphone was off. Their passion for the game was apparent.
Matt Greene and Marty Reasoner were comedic gold. Those two would exchange barbs constantly, and their dry sense of humour was a welcome relief from canned cliches.
Georges Laraque had a shooter’s mentality, at least in the dressing room. After almost every practice he would make a ball with his sock tape, bet one of his teammates he could hit the garbage can and attempt to drain it. If no one bet him, he’d still take the shot. He made 25% of the shots I saw, but every time he made one he would emphatically say, ” I never miss.” He never remembered his misses.
Laraque was also involved in the only time I felt nervous. It was after practice in 2004. In the old dressing room you would walk down a slight ramp into the room, and at the bottom of the ramp, the room opened up to the left. I walked in, turned left and was scanning the room to see who I wanted to speak with. Within seconds Laraque, still in his skates, stormed towards me. He was furious. “What is your (#&$@ing) problem?” he asked, getting right in my face. I was stunned. “What are you talking about?” I asked. I had no idea what he was talking about, but he was livid.
He continued to berate me about calling him names on the radio, and before he could finish, Hebert comes running over and said, “Wrong guy, Georges,” and tried to calm him down. Turns out the morning guy on our station at the time, Jake Daniels, had called Georges an idiot on the radio. Some of his friends had heard and told him. It got lost in translation from Jake to Jason… (Funny thing was Jake never called him an idiot either, but Georges friends misheard and he was fired up.)
Fifteen minutes later Georges tracked me down and apologized. We laughed about it and I was just thankful he didn’t grab me. I’d never seen Laraque that mad. He rarely got mad on the ice, but it is no surprise the few times he did, he absolutely destroyed guys. Just ask Rob Ray.
Watching Sam Gagner and Andrew Cogliano try to banter with Jason Strudwick. Struds is witty (please don’t tell him I wrote that) and Gagner and Cogliano would chirp him, but he would fire back some zingers that left them speechless. I don’t think I ever saw a player who liked to engage in chirping more than Strudwick. I also never saw anyone who dressed worse than Struds. Thankfully he got into Television, and the wardrobe lady cleaned out his array of Ralph Furley suits.
I’ll miss the 300 section. It is right behind where I sit in the pressbox, and I can hear the chants, chirps and catcalls from the “rowdy” crowd. I love it when a fan beaks one of the media guys walking on the catwalk. I’ve heard some great chirps and the odd compliment over the years. I’ll miss the passion of the 300s. The layout in the new rink won’t allow me to hear you. Thanks for the laughs.
During my time covering the Oilers I’ve only encountered two players I could have done without. The rest were great to deal with. We didn’t always see eye to eye, and many didn’t agree with what I said or wrote, but I always felt respected. Thank you.
Tonight is very unique. I equate the game to being the warm up act before the headliner. The game will matter, and the players really want to win. The Alumni want nothing more than to close down the ol’ barn with a victory. They will be cheering as loud as you tonight, and it will be a very emotional for everyone at the rink, and watching at home. Enjoy the memories, and for everyone involved I hope you get one final victory.
Do you have a favourite memory or story? Share it the comments

LINEUPS…

Oilers lineup courtesy of DailyFaceoff.com

Canucks lineup courtesy of DailyFaceoff.com

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING…

From CanucksArmy.com

The Canucks do ok in Edmonton and if it was possible to play run time so they could get out of that giant pothole they would. The pre-game will probably carry into dinner time so if you happen to get home like the rest of us at a normal time, you may not miss much. That being said, it could start on time-ish. Wayne Gretzky’s gonna be there, Grant Fuhr’s gonna be there and Mark Messier will be too! So exciting.
Did you know, are you aware, have you checked out….Jannik Hansen and his little streak as of late? 2 goals and 3 helpers in his last 5, that’s good. He managed a PPG last game which is impressive as it was his first of the year! Hansen has been a surprise even by Hansen standards. How great would it be if he scored on a breakaway tonight? Pretty great I think, pretty great.
This goal was pretty nice. Did Quick bite a bit early? Yes he did. Was it still a great goal for a guy that is now on the wing? Absolutely. Even if McCann should have been sent down, when you score goals like that on goalies like him, you belong.

TONIGHT…

GAME DAY PREDICTION: The Oilers are 3-0 in their final home game of the season when Vancouver is the opposition. They won 8-4 in 1986, 7-2 in 2013 and 5-2 in 2014. That streak continues with a high scoring 6-3 win.

OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: The crowd will be on their feet for the final five minutes of the game. It will be the loudest the building has been since June of 2006.

NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins both scored in their first NHL games at Rexall, and both will score in their final game at Rexall.