The Edmonton Oilers staged their annual season’s ticket holders event at Rexall Place, Sunday. All of the active players make themselves available for autographs and photos. It is a wonderful family afternoon, for a number of obvious reasons.
But given two very recent developments, this year’s gathering for me is particularly poignant. One is the acquisition of Zack Kassian. The other is the very public vilification of Jake Virtanen, after Canada’s loss at the World Junior’s.
Caveat: This article is not about performance on the ice. It is about something far more important than that.