Giving the Oilers situation a historical perspective.

If you're an Edmonton Oiler fan these days you can be forgiven for being disillusioned given the incredible turmoil around the team and the lack of cohesion on the ice. Especially with a player on the roster who could go down as one of the greatest in NHL history. Your frustration levels must be off the charts. This may not do much to appease your angst and disdain but take a walk back with me in time to an amazingly similar situation.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the mid to late 80's Pittsburgh Penguins. The race for league supremacy in 1983/84 was vastly overshadowed by the turtle derby of all time, the race to the bottom for the right to draft a young Quebec phenom named Mario Lemieux. With seven games to go in the season the Penguins held a comfortable lead, five points back of the Devils. Both teams had played on St. Patrick's Day and won. Two nights later the Devils resumed their losing ways dropping a close one to the Flyers. The Penguins next game they did their requisite scoring in the first period versus Toronto, popping three to the Leafs one but the two anemic squads did not score another goal and it went into the books as a W for Pittsburgh. Now with six games to go, it was a three point deficit. The horrors. That's when Pittsburgh said, hold my beer, and went out and lost 13-4 to the Flyers followed by a home and home against the Caps where they were outscored 10-3 and then allowed thirteen more goals in their final three games, all losses to secure that first pick. The Devils did their best, losing their last eight in a row but the damage was done, it was Mario Lemieux to Pittsburgh and Kirk Muller to New Jersey.

It always surprises people when I tell them that the Penguins missed the playoffs the first four years of Mario's career. We could break down the wherefores and the why's but suffice to say in a 21 team league the Penguins finished 20th, 15th, 14th and 12th before jumping up to 6th and making their first post season dance. That year was followed up very quickly by a regression to 17th and another missed cut in golf parlance. In Mario's first six seasons he had won the Calder Trophy, two Lester Pearson awards as league MVP voted by the players, two Art Ross Trophies, a Hart Trophy and had recorded six straight 100 point seasons. But his team had missed the playoffs 5/6 years.  On top of that the Penguins hired their fifth bench boss for Mario during the summer of 1990, ( Bob Berry, Pierre Creamer, Gene Ubriaco, Craig Patrick ( who then assumed GM duties) and finally the man who would guide the team to that first Cup, Bob Johnson. Interestingly Craig Patrick's ascension to the GM role was the third change in that important position during Mario's time ( Eddie Johnston, Tony Esposito) All of that in six seasons with a dominant force at center that is often referred to as the 1A to Gretzky's 1 in terms of offensive prowess.  

And it wasn't like they then tore up the next two regular seasons. 7th and 6th overall is where they finished in those back-to-back Cup winning years but some great goaltending, some great trades and some unreal play by Mario in the post season in his 7th and 8th season in the NHL propelled the Penguins to those two Cups.  So hang on Connor and you Oiler fans. It may get worse before it gets better but I truly believe they'll find a good fit for the team off ice, clean up the on ice roster and they will be a future Cup threat. May seem ridiculous to say right now but imagine how Mario felt after his fourth season in 1988.