Author: Stephen Vani
Oilers fan in Toronto. Staying up past my bedtime for Western games since the mid 2000s.
Edmonton Oilers Pregame Thoughts
- Stephen Vani
- October 13, 2024
This is the first Battle Of Alberta since the sudden passing of former Flames star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew in a car-on-bike collision. It’s not a key to the game, but how can it not cross your mind? It’s normal for Edmonton and Calgary fans to throw friendly jabs at each other, but […]
Read MoreEdmonton Oilers Pregame Thoughts
- Stephen Vani
- October 12, 2024
Oilers fans on Twitter jumping into paranoia after only the first game of the season? It’s good to be back. My apologies to fans who attended that game, I’d guess you’d rather have spent the money on something else. Look at it this way, the Oilers allowed eight goals in last year’s season opener and […]
Read MoreEdmonton Oilers Game 1 Thoughts
- Stephen Vani
- October 9, 2024
Was Edmonton’s preseason bad? Yeah. Am I concerned? Not really. We’re talking about practice. During the Decade Of Darkness, the Oilers sometimes had much better preseasons than regular seasons. Jack Campbell was pretty good in last year’s preseason and a lot of us thought that meant he’d have a bounce back year. Spoiler alert, he […]
Read MoreRaphael Lavoie Claimed Off Waivers
- Stephen Vani
- October 7, 2024
On Monday afternoon, it was announced that forward prospect Raphael Lavoie got claimed off waivers from the Edmonton Oilers by the Vegas Golden Knights. The 24-year-old, drafted 38th overall in 2019 by Edmonton, had 131 points in 202 games with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Before that, his junior career was even better. 227 points through […]
Read More2024-25 Edmonton Oilers Expectations
- Stephen Vani
- October 6, 2024
There is a famous old joke told by comedian Jerry Seinfeld that was about silver medals in the Olympics. His punchline was, “Congratulations, you almost won.” For fans of the Edmonton Oilers, it was absolutely worth celebrating during the summer how far the team got last season and how close they were to winning it all. […]
Read MoreOpinion: My Projection For The Oilers Defense Pairings
- Stephen Vani
- October 1, 2024
On paper, this group of six on the backend looks slightly worse than it did a year ago. After Philip Broberg’s showing in Rounds 3 and 4 last season, I was hopeful that he’d change his feelings about staying with the Oilers. The offer sheet signed with the St. Louis Blues proved my hope wrong. […]
Read MoreJasper Weatherby Signs PTO With Edmonton Oilers
- Stephen Vani
- September 19, 2024
Another day, another PTO. On Thursday morning, the Edmonton Oilers signed forward Jasper Weatherby to a professional tryout. The 26-year-old center was a 4th-round draft pick of the San Jose Sharks. He played 50 NHL games for them in the 2021/2022 season and put up 11 points. In 161 AHL games, he has 57 points. […]
Read MoreMike Hoffman Signs PTO In Edmonton
- Stephen Vani
- September 18, 2024
On Wednesday morning, the Edmonton Oilers signed forward Mike Hoffman to a professional tryout. It’s their second PTO in less than a week after the one they signed Travis Dermott to. The 34-year-old left winger has played in 745 NHL games and has scored 487 points, 228 of which are goals. Earlier in his career, […]
Read MoreProjected Oilers Forward Lines
- Stephen Vani
- September 17, 2024
Every once in a while, an Oilers fan on Twitter will retweet Edmonton’s lineup from the 2018/2019 season. We can laugh at it now, but this roster has come a long way from what we used to sit through. The mouths of every fan in Oil Country got watery after July 1st. An already elite […]
Read MoreTravis Dermott Signs PTO
- Stephen Vani
- September 14, 2024
On Friday afternoon, it was announced that the Edmonton Oilers signed defenseman Travis Dermott to a professional tryout. The 27-year-old has played in 329 NHL games since being drafted 34th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2015. He has put up 62 career points. Needless to say, he is not meant to be used […]
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