There are 32 teams in the NHL. So, all things being equal, your favourite team is on schedule if it wins the Cup once out of every 32 years. Or, in the case of the Oilers, winning a conference final should only happen once every 16 years. So, doing it two years in a row is pretty significant.
The day after a first-round elimination, Oilers fans probably don’t want to hear about how good they had it over the previous couple of seasons. They don’t want to hear about how injuries to key players and the fatigue of two long playoff runs meant that this season was likely doomed a long time ago. Hope is the currency in which sports fans trade, being realistic is a fleeting thing that happens after elimination and ends long before the NHL draft.
So, hours after the team took to the handshake lineup, it might be a bit early to tell Oilers fans to look on the bright side. But, here goes.
Other Opportunities for Edmonton
While some will see this as a bummer, festival managers, some businesses and even the bean counters at city hall might be looking at the bright side. Maybe some businesses that don’t depend on the Oilers will see a bump. Maybe that money fans had earmarked for a long playoff run will be spent elsewhere. Maybe fans will discover that there are other things to do in Edmonton in the spring.
World Cup Runneth Over
Cindy Medynski, the director of sports, culture and events for Explore Edmonton, believes that a lot of sports bars will be insulated from the Oilers’ early playoff exit by the upcoming FIFA World Cup. It’s the biggest sporting event on the planet, and with it being held in North America, the game times will be optimal for bars to have watch parties.
“We are such a hockey city, we know that, it’s in our blood,” said Medynski. “But we’re also a soccer city, and there’s so many people in the city who played at a grassroots level, or new Canadians who love the game from back home and are continuing to play it here. So for those bars and restaurants, if they’re showing those World Cup games, that’s going to drive people into these businesses.”
Canada’s men’s national team will play Uzbekistan in a pre-World Cup “send off” match on June 1. With disposable income that might have gone to Oilers tickets freed up, there’s hope that this game can sell out. There’s still a ways to go in order to get that sellout. A Ticketmaster search shows that most of the lower bowl is spoken for, but there are still thousands of tickets available in the second deck.
As well, for Canada Day, FIFA and the Oilers Entertainment Group will team up to throw a World Cup party.
“So, Ice District will host this massive activation, a watch party for the World Cup games that are on July 1 and really bring some additional vibrant street life Downtown, and something different than we typically see.”
Other Major Events
And, there’s the CPKC Women’s Open, held Aug. 20-23 at the Royal Mayfair, where the world’s top female golfers will try to earn $2.75 million in prize money. The World Rugby Nations Cup takes place on the new turf at Clarke Stadium July 4, while the World Triathlon Cup goes July 18-19. That’s on top of the schedules for the Elks, Stingers and Riverhawks — so there’s plenty of choice out there for sports fans.
