Monday’s Edmonton Journal contains a feature in which David Staples inquires into why and how the Edmonton Oilers seem to have built up the NHL’s strongest group of fan weblogs. The strength of wit and analysis in the “Oilogosphere” continues to be a mystery: while there are a half-dozen or more pretty amusing sites dedicated to the Oilers, the equally large and demographically similar Calgary fanbase can’t seem to add to its grand total of 0.5. Is this some bizarre accident of history or geography? Can it have anything to do with the example set by the lone “hard-nosed” trailblazer who laid the Oilogosphere’s foundations? We may never know.
Comments (21)
Get a pair, grow a pair, whatever. All I know is that you were obsessed with my pair.
Posted by Andy Grabia | November 19, 2007 6:19 PM
Posted on November 19, 2007 18:19
All I know is that you were obsessed with my pair.
I'm pretty sure that the next line from the exchange was Andy saying "well, you'd know all about being out in public".
Posted by Tybalt | November 19, 2007 6:37 PM
Posted on November 19, 2007 18:37
For some reason I'm feeling more and more sympathetic about his original jackass-commenter problem every single day.
Posted by Colby Cosh | November 19, 2007 6:45 PM
Posted on November 19, 2007 18:45
Might the difference between Edmonton and Calgary be that during the blog explosion of 2005/2006, the Oilers were the ones who made the miracle cup run, while Calgary's preceeded the blogosphere explosion?
There were probably a fair number of startup Flames blogs around the same time, but limited magical interest kept them from ever being noticed. We had Chris Pronger and Mike Peca, remember? Even pre-season we had all the buzz.
Posted by FACLC | November 19, 2007 7:02 PM
Posted on November 19, 2007 19:02
I prefer my columnists "hard-boiled," but you'll do. ;-)
Posted by Garth Wood | November 19, 2007 9:03 PM
Posted on November 19, 2007 21:03
Even pre-season we had all the buzz.
Yeah, it's not like a ton of sportswriters picked the Flames as a leading favourite to win the Cup that year while declaring Pronger a washed-up cheap-shot artist. Also the Oilers barely finished eighth in the conference. Also, I really have no idea what "blog explosion" you're talking about--there has been steady growth since long before 2003, when I got in, though Canada (luckily for me) was slow in adopting the format.
There has been an active, aggressive search for a half-decent Flames weblog going on for about three years now, and it's yielded nothing, not even the remains of a dead site that looked promising. I think Matt Fenwick would be thrilled if there were one other guys writing about the team and producing ideas he could ricochet off of. Instead he's had to endure taunts about how he cheers for a franchise that is short on Stanley Cups and long on illiterate goober fans.
Posted by Colby Cosh | November 20, 2007 10:13 AM
Posted on November 20, 2007 10:13
I suppose I should be insulted.
Oh well. At least Grabia is mentioning me in WWE parodies.
Posted by metrognome | November 20, 2007 1:01 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 13:01
Wait, you have your own site? I thought commenting at BoA was a full-time gig for you. That's a classy banner you've got, it must be good.
Posted by Colby Cosh | November 20, 2007 1:06 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 13:06
I'll play to stereotypes and say that people in Calgary are too busy enjoying Banff and Jasper and making gobs of money to spend their time at computers blogging.
Edmontonians ... well, it's like what Dieter ("Don't call me Ralph") Brock once said about Winnipeg: "There's nothing else to do in Winnipeg but go to the Zoo." Except Edmonton doesn't even have a half-decent zoo. So we blog.
Yup, that's my story. Sticking to it.
Posted by Mike Jenkinson | November 20, 2007 1:11 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 13:11
Mike Jenkinson is critiquing Edmonton's nightlife now? Hey, I'll be right back, I'm going down to the CNIB to ask around about what a rainbow looks like.
Posted by Colby Cosh | November 20, 2007 1:56 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 13:56
Wait, you have your own site? I thought commenting at BoA was a full-time gig for you. That's a classy banner you've got, it must be good.
Sadly, I can't take credit for the banner. A friend of mine made it up for me.
I'm somewhat surprised you don't remember commenting at my humble blog once before. Unless you DO remember, which probably means my sarcasm detector is busted.
Posted by metrognome | November 20, 2007 2:51 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 14:51
I probably followed a Google News alert for my name to get there that time. Happens a fair amount.
Posted by Colby Cosh | November 20, 2007 4:56 PM
Posted on November 20, 2007 16:56
Mike Jenkinson, how does that account for the fact that a lot of Oilers weblogs are based outside of, well, Alberta? MC79's in TO and his co-conspirator Dennis is in Newfoundland, I'm in Waterloo ON, Grabia, you're in TO too, right? And there's a bunch more whose names escape me. It might almost be fair to say that the majority of the Oilers blogs live outside of Alberta.
Sorry, try again. Unless you're prepared to claim that there's nothing to do in southwestern Ontario either, in which case a big horselaugh will go your way.
Posted by MikeP | November 21, 2007 6:38 AM
Posted on November 21, 2007 06:38
Grabia is in Edmonton, but two of the three CinO guys are in TO.
Posted by Julian | November 21, 2007 8:41 AM
Posted on November 21, 2007 08:41
Can you Oiler bloggers/fans do us out East a favour, and tell your ownership that your home camera sucks? Seriously, when you guys were making the cup run, sometimes I thought it was the same on Zapruder used.
Posted by Ty | November 21, 2007 10:20 AM
Posted on November 21, 2007 10:20
Mike P: I was just being facetious.
Posted by Mike Jenkinson | November 21, 2007 11:15 AM
Posted on November 21, 2007 11:15
Ty -
There's reams of evidence that they aren't listening to us. Plus, none of us particularly want the current edition to be in sharper focus.
Posted by Tyler | November 21, 2007 12:25 PM
Posted on November 21, 2007 12:25
Ty: The suckiness of the camera is the least of the Oilers' concerns. Management sucks, coaching sucks, a lot of the players suck ...
Posted by Mike Jenkinson | November 21, 2007 1:21 PM
Posted on November 21, 2007 13:21
"Plus, none of us particularly want the current edition to be in sharper focus."
Hahaha...
Well, I guess you can be thankful you guys don't have "EDMONTON" written on the front of your sweaters.
Posted by Ty | November 21, 2007 2:36 PM
Posted on November 21, 2007 14:36
Yes, here on the West Coast, we're just crying over that misfortune. Yes, we weep as we contemplate the horror that is our uniform's manifold deficiencies...wait, 6-2-2 in the last ten games? Suck it Edmonton, and your ridiculous tan elbow trim-things, too!
Posted by Ryan Cousineau | November 23, 2007 5:20 PM
Posted on November 23, 2007 17:20
Got to love the Dy fans. They've been winning Stanely Cups in their imaginations for the last decade, and alas there organization is still a championship virgin.Thanks for playing Vancouver.
Posted by Chris | November 27, 2007 1:45 AM
Posted on November 27, 2007 01:45