Star Wears: Oilers award oil worker equipment to player of game

Welcome to Star Wears, where our Short Shifts squad will highlight each participating NHL team’s unique and creative way to honor their player of the game after each victory, handing them a token of appreciation that usually lasts at least one season, and sometimes takes on a life of its own.

Items: Oil worker pump jack piece and safety vest

Origin Story: The Oilers had given out vests of different varieties in years past, but this year coach Kris Knoblauch switched up the tradition. The pump jack was added for the player who "made something happen" to change the game, while the vest goes to the player who made the biggest "blue collar" effort, like blocking a shot at a key time, winning battles in the corners or standing out defensively.

City/Team connection (dubious or otherwise): This is an easy one, since the team's nickname is the Oilers.

Fun Fact: Alberta produces about 4/5ths of all of Canada's oil and Edmonton is home to four of the country's major refineries. It is the fourth largest proven oil reserve in the world. Edmonton City is often referred to as "Oil City" and its official slogan, adopted by the city council in the 1940s, is "The Oil Capital of Canada."

Quotable: "Part of the reason for (the pump jack) is it pulls oil out of the ground, somebody made something happen, pulled something together," Knoblauch said, giving out the item for the first time in a video shared by the team. "The vest. Hardest worker. Blue collar. That's what we are... Stuff that doesn't usually get recognized. Stuff that doesn't show up on the score sheet."

-NHL.com Independent Correspondent Gerry Moddejonge contributed to this report.