via Edmonton Oilers Twitter feed

Oilers, City of Edmonton make #SpiderMable’s wish come true

By James O'BrienSep 28, 2015, 6:21 PM EDT
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In a wonderful gesture that echoed the Bay Area’s “Batkid,” the Edmonton Oilers and City of Edmonton teamed up to make one child’s dream come true on Monday.

The Children’s Wish Foundation of Canada learned that Mable Tooke – or #SpiderMable – wanted to battle crime while she battles cancer.

The Edmonton Police beckoned Spider Mable by noting that Oilers captain Andrew Ference was “kidnapped” by the diabolical Mysterio.

The Ference family begged for her help:

Wisely, #SpiderMable loaded up for a big day with a tasty breakfast:

Who needs web-slinging when you have a SPIDER-LIMO?

Spider-Man pitched in to help, too.

You really can’t have a superhero without a sweet theme song, by the way.

Ultimately, #SpiderMable saved the day, and captured many hearts along the way. Here are some additional photos from the Oilers:

Awww.

McLellan: ‘You won’t hear us talk a lot about playoffs’

By Dhiren MahibanSep 6, 2015, 8:30 PM EDT
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The Edmonton Oilers haven’t made the playoffs since losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2006 Stanley Cup Final, but new coach Todd McLellan is asking fans of the northern Alberta franchise to remain patient with the hockey club.

McLellan, who took over from Todd Nelson behind the Oilers’ bench, is part of a complete front office overhaul in Edmonton, which also includes GM Peter Chiarelli taking over from Craig MacTavish.

“It’s hard for us to go to our great fans here in Edmonton and across the country and ask them to be patient again because it’s been a while,” McLellan recently told Sportsnet’s Gene Principe. “With that being said, we also have to establish a foundation as a new group, a new set of coaches (and) new players coming in – a foundation that will allow us to be successful, not only for as much as we can right now, but also months down the road and years down the road.”

Edmonton finished last season with a 24-44-14 record good for 13th in the Western Conference and 28th overall. The Oilers surrendered a league-high 276 goals and were 26th overall in goals for (193).

Despite upgrades throughout the lineup, McLellan remains focused on the big picture.

“You won’t hear us talk a lot about playoffs (this season),” the 47-year-old said. “I know there will be a lot of conversations and questions asked of me and the players, but my answer is always going to be we’ve got to formulate the foundation and get doing things right before we can take that big step.”

Part of that foundation could include a new captain. Veteran defenseman Andrew Ference has worn the ‘C’ for the past two seasons, but the 36-year-old has had conversations with McLellan about his future as the club’s captain.

“I brought it up … I like things out in the open,” Ference told the Edmonton Journal in August per NHL.com. “I don’t like walking on eggshells or awkward moments, player to coach, player to GM. This isn’t a vanity project. We should want everybody pulling on the same rope for the Oilers.”

Ference scored three goals and 14 points while registering a minus-17 rating and averaging 18:53 a night in ice time in 70 games last season.

“I sat and talked to Andrew about that situation,” said McLellan “I felt that my relationship with him at that time was really strong, and you have to have that as a coach-captain situation.”

Related: Report: McDavid to live with Hall this season

PHT Morning Skate: Hockey fans celebrate National Dog Day

By Ryan DadounAug 27, 2015, 8:00 AM EDT
5 Comments

PHT’s Morning Skate takes a look around the world of hockey to see what’s happening and what we’ll be talking about around the NHL world and beyond.

It’s looking more and more like Eric Staal and Cam Ward will enter the Carolina Hurricanes’ training camp without new contracts. (News & Observer)

Armed with a tryout contract, Tom Sestito hopes to earn a job with the Pittsburgh Penguins out of training camp so that he can “deter a guy from taking a run at the 90,000 stars on the team.” (Penguins.nhl.com)

The ECHL’s Greenville Road Warriors have changed their name to the Greenville Swamp Rabbits. Their new logo features a rabbit who is wielding a mix between a hockey stick and carrot. (Greenville Online)

The Edmonton Oilers might be a significantly different team with a new bench boss, substantially changed front office, and a new hope in Connor McDavid, but one thing Andrew Ference doesn’t expect to change is his position as the team’s captain. (Edmonton Journal)

Ryan Johansen threw out the first pitch for Cincinnati on Monday and that event gave him a chance to talk with the Reds players about the differences and similarities between the two sports. (Bluejackets.nhl.com)

Finally, it was National Dog Day on Wednesday and that involved a lot of hockey-themed pictures. Here are some of the highlights:

PHT Morning Skate: Canucks skate back to uniform nostalgia, too

By James O'BrienAug 14, 2015, 9:00 AM EDT
7 Comments

PHT’s Morning Skate takes a look around the world of hockey to see what’s happening and what we’ll be talking about around the NHL world and beyond.

Honestly, NHL Twitter accounts doing a #NHLMovieNight was a little annoying at times on Thursday as people watched “D2: The Mighty Ducks,” but it did prompt an adorable dog moment that should brighten your day:

Speaking of nostalgia for things from the 90’s, the Vancouver Canucks will embrace one of their most popular old duds, at least for one night:

Check out the letter Andrew Ference sent out after he was snubbed by Central Scouting. It still took him until the eighth round (208th overall in 1997) to get drafted, though.

Ranking all 30 NHL teams by their off-season moves. (Sportsnet)

Why Mike Green could fit in really well with the Detroit Red Wings. (Eye on Hockey)

The Nashville Predators continue to tweak their brand. (Predators)

PHT Morning Skate: Yep, Patrick Sharp’s Stanley Cup photos with his kids are adorable

By James O'BrienJul 27, 2015, 9:00 AM EDT
6 Comments

PHT’s Morning Skate takes a look around the world of hockey to see what’s happening and what we’ll be talking about around the NHL world and beyond.

OK, so this is actually field hockey related, but still pretty wild stuff about Cuban players defecting. (AFP)

Continuing with the theme of “peripherally about hockey but mostly about another sport” reads, check out this fascinating story about AVM, the company that in many ways spearheaded baseball’s stats movement. Hey, there’s at least a mention of Corsi. (Grantland)

The oral history of Lou Lamoriello’s New Jersey Devils’ days is absolutely worth a read. (The Hockey News)

Twenty-one things to note from Steve Moore’s Smashfest IV, which happened this past weekend. (Sportsnet)

A profile of Gilles “Bad News” Bilodeau. (Greatest Hockey Legends)

Is it time for the Edmonton Oilers to find a new captain as Andrew Ference fades from relevance? (Oilers Nation)

ESPN’s Scott Burnside is the latest to take a stab at the “who missed the playoffs last season but will make it in 2015-16?” question. (ESPN)

Get this, these photos of Patrick Sharp, his children and the Stanley Cup are awfully cute. Shocking, right?