“It’s supposed to be hard and I’m excited to see what our group is made of. I’m excited to see us fight through adversity and I’m looking forward to people doubting us again.”
They were betting against the Edmonton Oilers when they sunk to 31st place in November and had to dump another coach.
They were betting against them when the Vancouver Canucks had a 3-2 series lead in the second round.
And they were betting against them in the third round when the Dallas Stars had them down 2-1 in the series and 2-0 in Game 4.
So forgive the Oilers if they don’t accept the generous funeral wreaths being delivered in the sobering wake of 3-0 and 4-1 defeats to open, and perhaps close, the Stanley Cup Final.
They’d like everyone to know that they don’t die easily.
“We’re good with our backs against the wall,” said Oilers captain Connor McDavid, his 97 pressed firmly against the cold concrete after the troubling results at Amerant Bank Arena.
The brave faces help. And until the Panthers win a game on Rogers Place ice it’s too early to stick a fork in Edmonton’s season. But it does look kind of bleak, both visually and statistically.
