I went and had a great time. As a Kings fan, it was a great way to return to my childhood and cheer for the Oilers one more time. Of course, any mention of the current Oilers got a boo from me. (I am a devout Kings fan now and after 26 years of cheering for them I stick with my team.) I know the first Cup was special, but I wonder if they will do this again next year for the '84-'85 Cup team? I know I would go again for that.
Also, since you weren't there Replacement Wayne thanked Wild Bill for bringing the Oilers to Edmonton. But Wild Bill really had no money, I grew up in Saskatoon and know of his many schemes to get teams for Saskatoon. He was a promoter who used other people's money to make himself look good. He was very good at whipping up a buzz, I will give him credit. 17,000 people put down deposits on season tickets for the Saskatchewan Blues in an arena that hadn't been built, but that Wild Bill promised would be built and finished in 6 months. Honestly, had Peter Puck not acquired the Oilers, I doubt they would have lasted through the WHA. Wild Bill would have folded/sold and moved the team before the NHL had ever come sniffing around the WHA.
Also, it was mentioned during the Saskatchewan Blues meetings in 1983, that many of the NHL owners didn't like Wild Bill and that is why a few teams voted against moving the team to Saskatoon. Had the Oilers survived until the end of the 1978-79, they would have been the Birmingham Bulls, who were paid by the 4 surviving members of the WHA to fold. Birmingham likely would have gotten in and Edmonton would currently be home to maybe the NHL, but it would have probably come in the form of the Ottawa Senators expansion team.
You can hate Peter Puck all you want. The fact is 16,000 or so people Friday night gave him a standing ovation and based on the age of many I saw at Rexall, these were people who were adults in 1972 when the WHA started and the Alberta Oilers took the ice. They remember Peter Puck running in the 1983 Progressive Conservative Leadership race and losing to Brian Mulroney (many likely voted in that race even). They remember the fiasco with the Gainers Meat Packing plant. They remember the hostage taking of Mrs. Pocklington. etc. etc. This was not the young Oilers fans who "don't know any better" cheering a man who brought a Stanley Cup to Edmonton that they only read about in books and saw highlights on TV. These people lived it and were there through the whole thing. I only know the history as I read it, I am only 31, so I was nearly 2 when this Oilers team won the Cup.
As I became a Kings fan after the Trade, I hold no ill-will towards Peter Puck (nor towards Bruce McNall who nearly killed off my Kings with his criminal enterprise). My thinking is this: if Wayne Gretzky, who sat there and heard all the awful things Peter Puck said about him and his family to Bruce McNall and in the media, can forgive him then Oilers fans should be able to as well. I am not just talking about Friday night where Wayne can put on a smile and pretend to be happy and chummy with Peter, but Wayne also wrote the forward to Peter's book entitled I'd Trade Him Again.
So I guess unless Peter did something personal to you or your family Replacement, I think you are being overly critical for no reason. Those who had a personal relationship with Peter Pocklington and were insulted and whatnot by him can forgive the guy, so should those who have no personal stake in this. Yes, I read his comments in the Sun on Wednesday about the unwashed and like everything Sun Media took that quote out of context. You realize he wasn't painting all fans that way, he was saying I don't care about what some idiots might think of me. It is a healthy attitude to have actually, as I don't care what some idiots think of me either.
In my opinion, Peter Pocklington is not Frankenstein, who deserves the villagers chasing him with torches and pitchforks anymore. The things that happened 26 or 36 years ago are history. I understand how Oilers fans may have felt about him on August 9, 1988. But how does that translate to today? Even if Wayne had played his entire career in Edmonton, he would have been retired for 15 years now. There would be nothing linking his playing days to the current Oilers team. The struggles and poor results of the last few years have nothing to do with what happened in 1988. You want to hate someone? Hate Darryl Katz and the management of the Oilers over the last decade, they are the ones responsible. But remember this, as a fan of a team who has won two Cups in three years after several awful years of play, I can tell you that all it can take is a couple smart moves and your team can turn around.
Objectively, this current Oilers team looks like the Kings of about '06-'07. They have some young talent ready to gel, but are missing a few key pieces. Providing the Oilers go out and get those pieces, they too could be in the upper echelon of the NHL. So give up on hating Peter Puck and look forward, things can only go up for this franchise and likely will with the right components.
