GENE'S BLOG: Fun While It Lasted

When you're an athlete and you go into a game, it doesn't matter the sport or the time of year or to some extent even the level of play. When you arrive at the rink, ball diamond, ski hill, soccer pitch, football field or any other venue, you don't go there looking to lose. The higher the level and more competitive it is, the more winning is important.

If you are playing for the fun of it, the winning part isn't as important. However, winning, again at any level, is part of the fun. The Edmonton Oilers had a ton of fun while it (the 16-game streak) lasted. In fact, last year is when it started. After a 3-1 loss on Dec. 19 on Long Island, the Oilers were unstoppable and unbeatable. Fifteen different opponents did their best.

Some like Detroit and Montreal pushed them to overtime but never any further. It truly is amazing. Take your beer league hockey or your slo pitch summerntime swings or maybe it's pickleball, and then think about winning 16 straight of anything. Seems impossible, but it wasn't. We witnessed it over the course of 49 days. There wasn't a team from the East or West, USA or Canada that could beat Edmonton until it was one of those Knights in Vegas on Tuesday.

This was shaping up to be likely their toughest test, and it was. As Stuart Skinner said the morning of Edmonton's shot at 17 straight wins to tie an NHL record set by Pittsburgh in 1992-93, the Golden Knights are the defending Cup champs for a reason. Until beaten, they are the best team in the league, and they were going up against the hottest team in the NHL.

Vegas as a city might be building up to finish the week with the best game in the NFL, but the best game in the NHL on Tuesday was also happening in Sin City. Ironically, under cloudy conditions, with a steady rain and an unseasonably single-digit temperature, Edmonton tried to stay hot despite the cool surroundings.

They were buoyed by Oil Country moving itself to Nevada for the day. Connor McDavid said it during last Friday's NHL Skills Competition that Oilers fans travel well. Did they ever? From overseas, I'm looking at you from Glasgow, Scotland, or the couple I met in the mall who were coming back from Hawaii and decided to make a stop in Vegas, or the two guys who were in Nashville on a work convention and took the long way home through Vegas, or Jason from Saskatoon who was on the wrong hotel elevator with me but was in the right city for a roofing convention and a hockey game.

A shingle win away from equaling a 30-plus-year-old record, but the Oilers couldn't nail down the elusive 17th straight win despite a push from the people who love them. For all that was said about it by everyone, there wasn't much said by the actual people who put the streak together.

I spoke to Darnell Nurse after the morning skate. It was noon Pacific time and when I asked about the streak, he said that was first time anyone had mentioned it to him at that point in the day. Could that be true? Yes, it could be, because the more they won the less they talked about it.

It's the nature of an athlete, especially a hockey player, to downplay success. They were enjoying winning. They were enjoying digging themselves out of an early-season hole and putting themselves into and above a wildcard spot.

Their ultimate goal isn't an NHL record – it's a Stanley Cup championship. That's why Mattias Ekholm said post-game he wasn't happy the streak was over, but he was happy he didn't have to talk about it anymore.

Coach Knoblauch was asked about his team and the run they've been on. He spoke of their focus on winning and resiliency and how proud he was of the group. He wasn't the only one, because the streak sure was fun while it lasted.