To my BFF, Ales Hemsky

Photo courtesy of Wanye Gretz. (Not pictured: Scott Hood)

What's up bro? How have you been? I hope you’re starting to feel better. When last we spoke, you informed me that you were still a little sore but you were confident that you were over the injury troubles that have plagued you in the last couple of years. I, as well as the majority of the fan base in Edmonton have been waiting patiently and hoping for nothing more than that. For your sake, and for the sake of our beloved Edmonton Oilers. I remember telling you that you were going to score 90 points and that you need to sign long term. You smiled and said you would do your best. I left that day feeling more confident in the state of this team than I have in many years. Unfortunately, I’m writing you this letter because I have some bad news. Something is happening in Oilernation. Something very troubling.

I’ll explain.

Do you remember your first few seasons in the league, when you were the most talented player on the team? Those were difficult times, for you and us. I remember how you would set up shop on the power play and I’d watch in frustration as you’d serve up big sexy saucer passes to every open player on the team, but they’d swing and miss far too many times. I know that was frustrating for you too. But you kept on dangling and serving them up. We as a fan base kept wishing for management to hook you up with a sniper to convert those beauty passes. We were convinced that, if that was to happen, you’d be in the top ten in league scoring and the team would finally gain back some respect around the league.

I believe I got drunk at this point...

In the 10 years you’ve been in the league, there was exactly ONE year when management surrounded you with a decent team. We all remember 2006. I especially remember you putting the mighty Red Wings away with a pair of beauties in game 6 to start the march to the Cup finals. That ranks right up there with Todd Marchant’s OT goal in Dallas back in ’97 as one of the most beautiful memories for diehard fans. Unfortunately, we all know what happened to that team immediately after that heart breaking game 7 loss. Sorry to bring it up.


For the next five years, there was only one thing to cheer about as a fan of the Oilers... Well, until we actually gave up and started cheering for losses. You were that one thing. Ales, you were the only shining light on a team of plugs. You seemed to be capable of making magic happen at any moment. I remember after a particularly dazzling performance against the Avalanche, Joe Sakic called you: “The smoothest player in the league.” You were good enough to impress Joe Sakic! We as a fan base kept watching your every shift, fully expecting to have our minds blown at any moment by your brilliance. We’d watch you make the best defencemen in the world look silly on some nights.


But, there was NO ONE to help you. The team continued to struggle. Do you remember the day that management made a trade to get Dany Heatly? The fan base nearly blew its collective load!!! We knew we finally had the trigger man that you needed to carry this team back to greatness. But it wasn't meant to be... Heatly blocked the trade. He blocked it because everyone in the league has seen what you had to work with and he didn’t want to spend the next few years going through that.

No Heart

Ales, you never bitched when you had Toby Peterson trying to one-time your sweet passes on the PP. You kept your chin up when Pat Quinn decided to give you JFJ as a left winger. You just kept your nose to the grindstone and played like you were the size of Dustin Penner. Unfortunately, you are only a 6’0, 190lb man. Playing so big and going through all the traffic, trying to show Robert Nilsson, Patrick O’Sullivan and Joffrey Lupul how to play like men, while much appreciated by the fan base, has derailed your career over the last couple of seasons.

"Hey guys, you think we should do something about that?"

Ales, as you are more than aware, the result of the team’s struggles in the last few years (partly due to your unfortunate injuries) has been a few sweet draft picks. We can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel! This team is going to be good again because of the young kids coming to help you. The best part is that you are still only 28 years old so you will surely be able to enjoy this ride, productively, in your prime for the next 4 or 5 years.

"What would Hemmer do?"

That's actually what I'm writing to you about... I’m not sure if you’ve noticed but, there is something I have to point out. There seems to be a bit of smear campaign against you. Some of the media guys and bloggers are telling fans that you have no heart. They are forgetting everything you’ve been through with this team. They forget that the reason you got those injuries was because you went to the areas of the ice that your team mates were too afraid to go to. They think because you’re only now just starting to get healthy, and therefore have struggled a little offensively this season, that perhaps you don’t want to be in Edmonton (forgetting that you signed a long term deal at a discounted rate to stay).

Just another day of not giving a fuck apparently

They think because of the new shiny kids being here that you are expendable. They think that since you get frustrated answering the media’s silly questions over and over again, that you are a poor sport. They think that since you usually don’t spend extra time on the ice after practice that you must not want to improve. I wonder what they think you are doing off the ice…. They forget that after so many injuries and in a contract year, you are a little tentative (understandably). These things take time. It’s not like the team is ready to win the cup yet anyway. But people can be a little impatient. Forgive them, Ales. It's been as hard on us emotionally to watch this team as it has been for you to play on it.

It's a pattern that has been repeated many times in the last 30+ years with this team. It's happened to every good player that has been here. Coffey was the first major one. They said some awful things about him! They made Gretzky out to be a bad guy. They even got the city to turn on Smytty! Can you believe it? People are sheep, Ales. They believe what they are told to believe and for some reason, the media guys want the fans to believe that you are a heartless, cancer on the team who is sulking because there are finally other good players on the team! It’s unbelievable.

I'm fully convinced that since this management team has no idea how to build a winning team, they have decided that it is easier to keep getting good draft picks. It's a lot easier to keep their job when they tell the public that they are "rebuilding." It gives them carte blanche! Just sit back and let the draft picks come in and by the time they have enough star players, they will be able to say they are losing because they "couldn't sign them under the cap!" It's a simple formula: Keep losing, keep the fans in the seats by selling them hope and stay employed forever! It's hard to keep losing like that though when you already have great players. Players that actually outchance and outscore their opponents on a consistent basis. And how dare they look awesome doing it?!?!

That's why management leaks it out to the media when they plan on getting rid of a good player. With Sather and Lowe it was about control and money. With Tambellini it's about incompetency. The media then starts to try to convince the public that the player needs to go beacuse of some bullshit reasons. The problem here is that it’s working! There are actually fans buying into this bullshit. Some of them say things like, “He turns the puck over too much!” It's like they expect everything you do to result in a goal. You still create more chances than the other team! Nobody had more turnovers than the Great One himself. They are starting to think that it would make the team better if they traded you for some unknown player who they hope could someday turn into the player you already are.

They forget that this team has been pure shit (to the tune of back-to-back last place finishes) while you’ve been injured over the last 2 seasons. They forget that in the late 90’s and early 00’s with those blue collar teams, this team was an Ales Hemsky away from actually doing some damage. They forget how much they used to wish for an offensively gifted player like yourself to come along and help the anemic offense. They think that if they had a player who was happy to talk to the media and was more outgoing, that the Oilers would be a better team. They have no idea how a team works. They honestly believe that they would be better off with a team full of players like Ryan Jones! As much as I love Jones, he is never going to be a player that stirs the offensive drink… so to speak. He has a role. But he shouldn't be promoted above his level of competency! The Peter principal.

Routine

I’m writing this letter to you to let you know that, sometime in the next 7 weeks, you are going to be traded to a new team. This is all because management has no fucking clue how to build a team, and they think that they will be better off without you. You're too good to help the team keep losing! That is against management's modus operandi. They made what was once and ridiculous notion palatable by getting the media puppets to make you out to be a bad guy. I’m sorry that the fan base is so fickle, Ales. I wish so much that we lived in some remote, un-hockey loving city so that I wouldn’t have to worry about you being pushed out by so many morons. I wanted you to be an Oiler until you retired. I know you are going to light it up wherever you go and I wish nothing but the best for you in the future. You gave so much of yourself to this team, all the while entertaining the hell out of us.

Know that you will be booed by people when you come back and play against the Oilers. But please don’t take it to heart, Ales. It’s what the fans were told to do. Just know that there is a large faction of us out here who have always appreciated your gift… your genius. We will always remember you fondly and wish that it could have turned out differently. Like I said, don’t take it to heart. You’ll see that the same thing will happen to a few more guys as the seasons pass. They’ve been trying to do it do Glibert since he got here and Sam is probably next on the list. Imagine! He is one year older than Eberle and everyone is ready to throw him under the bus because he isn’t as good as YOU yet! All because they rushed him in as an 18 year old, back in 2007 so that you would have someone to play with. They needed to do that after they blew up the damn team so we had something to cheer for. Im afraid of what is going to happen when fans begin to notice that Hall doesn't score as much as Stamkos,  Tavares or RNH.....

God Dammit, Dangles!!! I’m going to miss you so much. You can safely say that I am embarrassed to be associated with so many mindless fans of the Oilers. Here’s to a fantastic career, as you enter your prime. I hope you have fun and I hope you remember that there were so many of us that appreciated you.

Thanks for keeping the game sexy. #nohomo

Travis Dakin.