Oilers’ return from wilderness leaves fans with nostalgic feeling

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There was a part of my childhood in Edmonton when I thought every kid had Wayne Gretzky show up for occasional visits on their street.

In 1984, my family lived in Tipaskan, a new part of burgeoning, blue-collar Mill Woods in the city’s south. The Great One, just at the beginning of his run of Stanley Cup wins with the Oilers, was dating my next-door neighbour’s sister – Edmonton singer Vikki Moss.

This wouldn’t have mattered, except Mr. Gretzky hung out with his then-girlfriend’s family. The neighbour, Jim Moss, was wild about hockey and regularly invited the Oilers’ star to his house – sometimes holding backyard parties in his honour.

Any noise was much to the chagrin of my dear dad, who was indifferent to all professional sports and preferred volume-down folk music and jazz to the rock anthems next door. But his lack of interest was perfect in respect to Mr. Gretzky’s privacy, as my dad was never fussed that one of the most famous athletes alive was in such close proximity

(Around the same time, Vikki and Jim’s brother – the legendary, late Joey Moss – was brought into the embrace of the team by Mr. Gretzky, beginning a decades-long career as a locker room attendant. Joey had Down syndrome and was an inspiration to people with developmental disabilities – becoming as much a part of the team as the stars.)

One day I was skipping rope on the front sidewalk when the young Mr. Gretzky pulled up in his sports car. He said, “Hey, I’ve got a new cereal” and handed me an autographed box of Pro Stars. My mom and I thanked him and went into the house and gave it to my dad. “Great. Free cereal,” my dad said. When our family was eventually done, we threw out the box.

Fast forward to today, and it feels a bit like being a 1980s Edmonton kid again. It’s not that the dynastic Oilers’ days have returned. But the team rebounding from being down 3-0 in the Stanley Cup finals against the Florida Panthers means a great Edmonton story is back. It’s not only a star like Mr. Gretzky or Connor McDavid. It’s the team around them, and the way Oilers fans are absolutely dyed in the wool.

Just like I didn’t understand the significance of that Pro Stars moment, I didn’t understand until later how special that era was. To me there was nothing tongue-in-cheek about our City of Champions slogan (those signs at the city limits were taken down in 2015 after council decided the sentiment was dated or embarrassing). I thought Queen’s We Are the Champions was written specifically for the Oilers. I took for granted that my mid-sized Prairie Canadian city would often win Stanley Cups.

Some nostalgia for this shows up in the fans’ art and costumes, even if some are too young to know it. The old cars painted orange and blue, the hard hats, the coveralls, the moustaches and the mullets – it’s all so 1984. It’s also a nod to the roots of the team, named for the city being the working heart of the Canadian oil industry. However anachronistic it might seem to some, it, too, is having another moment.

The now-famous Mama Stanley – a grandmother who dresses in silver makeup and clothing, a tinsel wig, and a homemade Stanley Cup hat for every game – became a fan in 1984 after watching the Oilers best the New York Islanders. “Being in the city was so awesome and electrifying. I got Oiler fever,” she told the St. Albert Gazette.

Of course, that period came to an end in the 1990s. But perhaps more than any other franchise, the team gets support in both its heady days, and its time in the wilderness. And this historic comeback ahead of Game 7 is a boost for the city, the province and the country. Even in Calgary – home of the Oilers’ arch-rivals and for me now – there are many cheering the team three hours north. (There are also many steadfast Flames fans who are not. Full respect.)

This all might be fleeting. But a party in Edmonton to celebrate the Oilers is always glorious. Even my mom and dad are cheering now.