New York Islanders NHL Playoff Guide: Dont Cheer These Teams

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Apr 16, 2017; San Jose, CA, USA;San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl (48) misses a shot against Edmonton Oilers goalie Cam Talbot (33) in the third period of game three in the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at SAP Center at San Jose. The Oilers won 1-0. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports /

Edmonton Oilers

Guys. The Oilers ended our dynasty. They took our fifth Stanley Cup and they did it far too handily for our tastes. They boasted Wayne Gretzky, who perhaps really got the ball rolling on the notion of league wide loathing of a single player.

Sure there were others before him – the guys we and generations before us loved to hate. It was different with Gretzky. It was so different that we starved for someone like Mario Lemieux to unseat him.

It never happened and in retrospect, as lovers of the game, Gretzky is the greatest. The Oilers of the 1980’s are one of the greatest teams and they took the attention off the Islanders.

If nothing else, they totally stole our color scheme.

San Jose Sharks

When the Islanders moved from Nassau to Brooklyn the sentiment was that the Isles would immediately become the hipsters choice of teams. Because you know, Brooklyn is the epicenter of hipster activity on the planet, or so we’re told.

Well there’s only one team in the NHL team that sports ridiculous beards and man buns, and it’s the Sharks. Both Joe Thornton and Brent Burns have beards made for the birds.

So if anything it’s important to try and discourage that type of behaviour. And hopefully the boys will maintain those beards so we don’t find a family of magpies or whatever living there.