Getty Edmonton Oilers forward Zach Hyman doesn't know if Toronto will root for his team.
It’s been more than 30 years since Canada had a chance to celebrate the country winning a Stanley Cup.
This summer, however, the Edmonton Oilers will have the opportunity to parade the Cup north of the border after becoming Canada’s team in the 2024 NHL finals. Or is it?
If you ask Oilers forward Zach Hyman about that, he puts the “Canada’s Team” label in question when it comes to Edmonton, the capital of Alberta.
That’s what Hyman (a native of Toronto, Ontario) did during his postgame press conference after the Oilers defeated the Dallas Stars 2-1 in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals on June 2.
“I don’t know if Toronto is cheering for us.” 😅
Zach Hyman on the prospect of a Canadian team winning the #StanleyCup
“I don’t know if Toronto is cheering for us,” Hyman told reporters.
Hyman started his NHL career with the Maple Leafs, debuting in 2016 and spending the next five years (from the 2016-17 season through the end of the 2020-21 campaign) in Toronto.
The Oilers signed Hyman in the summer of 2021 as the forward moved west from Ontario to Alberta to play for Edmonton.
Although the 2024 season hasn’t been the best of Hyman’s career on a points basis (he scored 83 in 2023 compared with 77 in 2024), Hyman explored for a career-high 54 goals and became one of only 52 players in NHL history to score 54-plus goals in a single season, per StatHead.
Oilers to Represent Canada in the Stanley Cup Final
Reporters asked a few other Oilers players about the extra pressure that representing Canada will put on Edmonton’s shoulders.
The two highest-profile superstars in the Oilers roster, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, shared the postgame press conference stage on Sunday, June 2.
They were asked whether they would feel any extra pressure having to represent Canada in the Stanley Cup Final, and McDavid lost no time in taking over.
“No,” McDavid said. “There’s going to be pressure playing in the Stanley Cup Final no matter where your team is from.
“Obviously we’re a Canadian team, we got great Canadian fans, and it feels good to maybe unite the country a little bit and have something to bring people together.
“That’s what sports are all about, bringing people together. And hopefully, we’re doing that for Canadians across the country.”
As Hyman explained after sharing his thoughts about Toronto’s rooting preferences, hockey is the No. 1 sport in Canada and that alone is already a good reason for him and his fellow Canadians to root for the Oilers to win the cup.
“Hockey means so much to Canada and to Canadians,” Hyman said. “It’s been a long time since a Canadian team has won the Cup. So it would mean a lot to Canadians whether they are Oiler fans or not I’m sure. Some pride over the Americans.”
Edmonton Chasing 6th Stanley Cup Trophy
With no Canadian team winning the cup since Montreal last brought it home in 1993, the angle is ripe for use ahead of the 2024 finals as it makes for a great narrative.
Since that championship, there have been many Canadian teams in the finals but none could ever lift the cup again, including Vancouver (1994 and 2011), Calgary (2004), Edmonton (2006), Ottawa (2007), and Montreal (2021).
The Oilers were not part of the Original Six teams that founded the NHL, but they have already won five championships in franchise history, spanning 44 seasons.
Edmonton last won the cup in 1990, however, nearly 35 years ago. They made the finals in 2006 but they only reached the conference finals once after that (2022) before doing so again this season on their way to the Stanley Cup Final.
It took the Oilers six games against the best team in the Western Conference this season, but Edmonton rallied from a 1-2 series deficit, won three consecutive games, and clinched their place in the finals on Sunday beating the Stars 2-1 at home.
The finals are scheduled to start on June 8 with the first two games played in Florida as the Panthers will host the Oilers following their conference finals 4-2 series win over the New York Rangers.