The hearts of Edmonton Oilers fans shattered Monday night as the team lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.
On Tuesday, many were still trying to put the pieces back together.
“I wore all black to work. I’m in mourning,” said Jamie Cessford, an Oilers fan who lives in Vancouver. “I’m definitely still reeling a bit.”
Cessford was clad in an orange Jordan Eberle jersey Monday night as he sat in a bar in downtown Seattle watching the Florida Panthers edge the Oilers 2-1 to capture the championship.
He and his friend were silent for much of the third period as Edmonton pressed, trying in vain to tie the game. After the final horn sounded, they walked to a concert nearby and Cessford thought back to the last time he’d cheered Edmonton on in a Stanley Cup final.
That was 2006, when the Oilers lost to the Carolina Hurricanes.
“I was just like, ‘Man, this doesn’t get any easier as you age,”‘ Cessford said. “The sports pain is still real as you reach your mid- to late 30s.”
The Oilers, who entered the 2023-24 season with a Cup-or-bust mentality, finished one win away from a historic comeback and becoming the first Canadian team since the 1993 Montreal Canadiens to hoist the Cup.
Fans had jammed Edmonton’s downtown to watch the Oilers play in person or on big screens for the last two months of playoffs, including father and son Cary and Callum Parsons, who came from Vancouver for Game 7, lending their support to the Oilers.
“I thought they fought hard,” Callum said. “It’s super hard to win and to crawl all the way back from down 3-0. I think that’s really special. And I think they got something to be proud of, especially through the years of ups and downs.”
Cary walked away from the loud and packed Rogers Place with a new appreciation for Oilers fans.
“I think the Oilers fans are great. And that’s kind of a reflection on how hard the team worked,” he said.
“It was pretty emotional, I guess, pretty sad being in the arena last night. But I’m sure they feel much worse than I do.”
In Florida, there are thousands of Oilers fans who made the trip down south to see Game 7. The CBC’s Sam Samson talked to some of them who were glad they made the trip even though the Oilers didn’t win the Stanley…
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