Oct 22, 2013; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Edmonton Oilers defenseman
Anton Belov(77) falls over Montreal Canadiens forward
Lars Eller(81) during the second period at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
The Hockey Gods represent the pantheon of the sport we love. They reward hard work, dedication, and sacrifice. They are the magical beings that sit in judgment over all things puck, and they have been known to dispense glorious favor and divine retribution. Last night, we got to witness the Hockey Gods in action.
Montreal Canadiens (the only name you need to know for arrogant blowhards) forward Lars Eller fired off a series of insults to canoe.ca on his limited opinion of the Edmonton Oilers. Eller, who was tied for the lead in scoring for the Canadiens thought little of the upcoming match.
“It can be anything, you know? They play a little bit like a junior team, I think, sometimes. They take a lot risks, a lot of chances. They’re a little all over the place. There’s not a lot of structure always in their game. It can really be anything. You don’t know.
“I prefer a little more structured game. Then again, I don’t mind high-scoring games, too. Obviously, we’re going to try with their skilled players to limit their chances.”
If that wasn’t flipping the bird to the Edmonton Oilers and the Hockey Gods, I don’t know what is. Eller ended up with a single shot on goal last night, and wasn’t able to score any points in the game against Edmonton.
The Edmonton Oilers used those remarks as fuel. The Oilers went down 2-0 early but fought back with a vengeance, scoring four straight goals to give Edmonton a 4-3 victory. Oilers head coach Dallas Eakins later stated that Eller’s comments were just what his team needed last night. He even went so far to invoke the Hockey Gods in his comments to the press after the game.
”When you’ve got some young player who’s trying to get his feet wet calling an organization a junior team, people take notice,” Eakins said. ”I knew it was going to turn. It makes for great banter in our dressing room. That is a total hockey god thing. I’m sure that young man has learnt his lesson, and I highly doubt you’ll see anything like that out of his mouth again.”
Even the Canadiens head coach took a moment to acknowledge the Olympic grade blunder made by Eller. ”He’s a young player,” Canadiens coach Michel Therrien said regarding Eller’s comments. ”I think he’ll learn from that. He made inappropriate comments.”
All in all, it was a good night. An overconfident Montreal team had two points taken away by a team that fought hard for every chance they got. The Hockey Gods once again showed their wisdom in giving the right team the right win.