Vancouver

Halleluiah, Ales Hemsky is still an Oiler. I did not see this happening. Of course, I hope when training camp opens in a few weeks he is still here. Maybe I am a bit paranoid but I expect him to traded for a bag of pucks because the Oilers are stupid.

Do I dare expect him in the lineup on opening night?  I want this SO badly.

Dude can still play. Oilers need NHL players. It is a no-brainer that we MUST keep him. I know MacT wanted to trade him so I cannot fully get on board with the MacT-is-smart. Sure Hemsky remains an Oiler because MacTavish did not ditch him for some idiot third line checker. So yes, MacT is not a complete idiot but he did want to trade him in the first place.

Speaking of trades, I am sad to see little Shawn Horcoff leave us. While he was overpaid, he was a VERY useful player. The Oilers will miss his defensive play. He played those tough minutes, along with our Hemsky, for many years. His tenure with the Oilers should not be noted for getting one of the greatest contracts one could get for having a good year (points-wise).

The pre-season starts in a month and yes I am starting to look forward to hockey. Seriously, in the past week, I am jonesing for hockey BIG TIME!  Let’s go Oilers, hook me up.

Opening night is set for October 1st when the Jets come to town for the first time in…..how long?  According to hockey-reference.com, it appears the last time a team from Winnipeg played in Edmonton was March 29, 1996. Oilers won (OF COURSE) 3-2.  Fun fact, Nikolai Khabibulin played goal for those Jets. Oh and Satan scored two goals for the Oilers. Good thing they traded him not long after for basically a bag of pucks.

My last game in Winnipeg was way back in 1995 (October 11) when I cheered on Mark Messier’s Rangers. They did win 6-4.  The Moose had two assists and the players loaded the bus from an area blocked off from the fans so I could not snag an autograph. I did get a blurry picture….must find that somewhere.

Sadly, I may miss the home-opener because I have tickets to John Cleese’s show, “Last Time to See Me Before I Die.”  I cannot miss an opportunity to see Cleese before he dies.  His show kept selling out so damn fast, they added three more shows. I have a ticket to the first show. If I can switch my tickets, I will be in Rexall cheering on my Oilers over the Jets, just like the days of old in Manitoba.

I was born and raised in Manitoba and NEVER cheered for the Jets. I was the annoying kid in the stands cheering for the Oilers. And believe me, I was SUPER annoying.  I took a lot of pride in that.

So as I told me brother and several other Jets’ fan when I was in Manitoba for vacation this summer (and hope it is true), welcome to the Western Conference BITCH!  🙂

Last thing, check out my travel blog, The Travelling Historian. I’ll be posting about my travels and giving tips. Plus I will post as we lead up to the Sochi Olympics.  I’ve been to Europe five or six times and am planning another trip for this upcoming February 2014 to Moscow, the Sochi Olympics and Prague.  I have been to the last two Olympics in London and Vancouver so I am ready to cheer on my Canadians one more time.

In particular, I am hoping to see both hockey teams win again. I was lucky enough to have tickets to both events in Vancouver and hey, I have tickets to both events again in Sochi. Women’s and men’s hockey, let’s go!!!!!