Some people don’t appreciate the incredible runs of the Edmonton Oilers, which is a horrible shame – Hockey Writer – Edmonton Oilers

After the Edmonton Oilers lost to the Florida Panthers for the second consecutive year, oil nations have had a lot of depression in recent days.

Oilers fans defeated Edmonton 5-1 at Amerant Bank Arena at Sunrise on Tuesday (June 17) to win the NHL seven-title series in six NHL games.

Related: In Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals, the Oilers lost 4 5-1.

Edmonton has been focusing on returning to the Stanley Cup final since the Oilers lost to Florida in seven games last year and brought the trophy back to Alberta for the first time since 1990.

Although there are high hopes of winning the championship in 2024, it is indeed believed that the Oilers will occupy the Stanley Cup this time. Compared to 12 months ago, oil workers are more in-depth, more experienced, and better. At least, that’s what everyone thinks.

But Black Panther proves that this idea is very, very wrong, and that performance is absolutely dominant. Florida led the series 255:49, setting an all-time championship series record. As a result, the Stanley Gorge drought in Edmonton lasted for 35 years and the numbers have been counted.

“Cup or Bust” attitude

There is a concept in an oil country that nothing can fail without winning a championship. After all, the Oilers have Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, a duo with the greatest central duo in hockey history, from Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier to Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

Edmonton has been waiting for thirty and a half years, once again occupying the semi-permanent trophy in the city from 1984 to 1990.

But it’s a horrible shame for some fans to be locked in by an all-or-nothing “cup or bust” attitude that they can’t enjoy the amazing ride that the Oilers took Edmonton away.

Oiler’s Rare success

The past four years have indeed been a very special period in oil countries. During this period, the Oilers won at least one series in each playoffs, reached the Western Conference Finals three times and are now in the Stanley Cup finals in a row. To appreciate the rareness of this success, consider the following:

• Nearly half (15) of the NHL’s current 32 franchises have won at least one playoff round for four consecutive years.
• In the era of salary caps (since 2005-06), only eight teams have won at least one playoff round for four consecutive years.
• Since the NHL officially started the conference championship in 1982, only 11 teams have reached the finals three times in four years.
• In the salary cap era, only seven teams reached at least three conference finals in four years.
• Less than half of the NHL’s current 32 franchises (15) have reached the Stanley Cup final in a back-to-back years.
• Since the NHL expanded to 16 teams in 1980, only eight teams have entered the championship series in a row. There are only four, including Edmonton and Florida, doing so in the era of salary caps.

Oiler: Easy to be spoiled

It is very easy to be spoiled by success. Sometimes it can be a harsh reminder of life on the other side to truly appreciate it.

No one knows this better than Edmonton hockey fans of a certain age. At one point, things were so good that Edmonton called itself the “City of Champions” with a welcome sign.

From the late 1990s and early 2000s, these fans suffered a lot in the last three decades when the team failed to make the playoffs for 10 consecutive seasons.

In those days, the level the oilers team had reached was almost impossible for Fathom. It was a huge deal to just get into the playoffs and get a few home playoffs before the NHL established its salary cap. In 2000, Edmonton fans did not dream of hockey in June. They were happy about hockey in May.

The Oilers have won six playoff series over the past 14 months. This is as many playoff series as 1993-2021 won.

Believe in the future

Edmonton players, along with its head coach Kris Knoblauch and general manager Stan Bowman, held playoff media availability on Thursday (June 19) and Friday (June 20), respectively. Naturally, everyone expressed the belief that the oil man could win the championship. It’s also a spell that fans started to cheer up after Tuesday’s failure.

“Hopefully we can keep doing what we do and building our own work because I don’t think there is anything better than winning everything in a place like this.”

Read the full transcript from today #oilers GM Stan Bowman and head coach Kris Knoblauch. https://t.co/nqhovrhqkl

— Edmonton Oilers (@edmontonoilers) June 20, 2025

Faith is a beautiful thing. This is something every player, coach, executive and fan should have, whether they are the Panthers’ two defending champions or their fewest points in the NHL in the past two seasons (like the San Jose Sharks).

The truth is, it can take a long time anywhere the Oilers are approaching the championship. Based on the current number of teams in the NHL, the average team will win the playoff series every four years, reach the conference finals every eight years, and lift the Stanley Cup every 32 years.

Sure, it was disappointing that McDavid and his oilers hadn’t reached their final destination yet, but it was awesome. If the oil country is lucky, the ride is far from over and Edmonton will be the champion city again. If not, running is just as incredible.