After building a profile for the ideal head coach to succeed the fired Sheldon Keefe and speaking with upwards of nine candidates, Shanahan and GM Brad Treliving conducted a deep dive into men who worked with and for Berube.
Some starving fanbase is about a month away from a Stanley Cup triumph that was a long time coming.
We’re halfway through the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs and the most recent championship won by any of the four remaining squads was 25 years ago, when the Dallas Stars downed the Buffalo Sabres in the 1999 final.
We’re about to hit the 30-year anniversary of Mark Messier leading the New York Rangers to their 1994 title and Messier was also involved the last time the Edmonton Oilers won the Cup, 34 years ago in 1991.
The Florida Panthers made the final in 2023, but have never hoisted the best banner in their 30-year history.
In terms of the Oilers specifically, it may be a long time since northern Albertans celebrated a championship, but Edmonton supporters continue to be treated to all-time individual playoff performances.
Leon Draisaitl is a Conn Smythe Trophy favourite as the post-season’s most valuable player right now thanks to his playoff-best 24 points in 12 contests. In the history of the NHL playoffs, there have been eight instances where a player averaged two points-per-game over at least a dozen-game sample size and seven of them belong to Oilers.
Back in the day, Wayne Gretzky did it three times (1983, ’85 and ’88) and Paul Coffey did it once (1985). Connor McDavid did it two years ago in 2022 and so did Draisaitl, meaning he and Gretzky are the only guys in league history to do it twice.
(Mario Lemieux also turned the trick with Pittsburgh in 1992).
Draisaitl’s career mark of 1.66 points-per-game in 66 contests is now higher than everybody in the history of hockey with at least 50 playoff games played, other than Gretzky at 1.84 in 208 showings.
It’s unbelievable stuff from a guy who wants nothing more than to end his team’s title drought. Draisaitl, of course, isn’t the only stud looking to provide a new generation of fans with a silver memory. So with two rounds down and two more to go, here’s a look at the players in the mix with Draisaitl for the Conn Smythe.