Life Since the Oilers Last Made the Playoffs

Alan and I were chatting last night and an interesting subject came up. What has happened in our lives since the last time that the Oilers made the playoffs?

Here is my story:

After the Oilers lost in game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Playoffs my life really changed for the better but at the time it seemed to be a turn for the worse.

Less than a year after their playoff run the Oilers traded away the face of the franchise, Ryan Smyth. The trade occurred somewhere around noon Edmonton time and it was all I could think about for the next few hours. Then around 4PM my mom called me to let me know that my wife (at the time) had just called her to tell her she was leaving me. It was a pretty rough day.

Since that day a lot has happened in my life. In August 2007 I moved to Calgary to work for my current employer WestJet. In September of 2007 I met my current wife while fixing her computer. I "courted" her for a few months but didn't ask out on date until December (she reminds me about it all the time) and in the end I added a step son, Cody, to my family.

In December 2008 we welcomed our first son together, Magnus (based off of a name on the 2009 draft list *foreshadowing*), into the world and we also moved into our current home.

In May 2010 we welcomed our second son Isaiah into the world. I now have 4 sons Cody (Janice's Son), Zayden (My Son from a previous relationship), Magnus and Isaiah.

Since I started at WestJet the company has had 3 CEOs (Clive Bedoe, Sean Durfy and Gregg Saretsky) the Oilers have had 3 GMs. The only thing in common is the fact that both have made profits but one has been a lot more successful than the other.

I've changed job titles 6 times since the last time the Oilers made the playoffs.

Cody has finished school, Zayden started school and is now is grade 4, Magnus started school this year and Isaiah will start pre-school this year.

My wife celebrated her 10th and 15th year with WestJet!

There has been a lot of change in my life but alas the Oilers have stayed the same.

Here is Alan's last 8 years:

During the Stanley Cup run of 2006, I was a newlywed. My wife and I had just bought our first house, which hadn't even started construction yet and we were living in a rented apartment while we waited for them to build it. I remember watching every game from that apartment and screaming at the television set as the Oilers knocked off the Red Wings, and then the Sharks, and then the Ducks..and I remember wanting reach through the screen and strangle MAB when he knocked down Roli.

Since that time, our first house was built...we moved in and lived in it for 3 1/2 years...long enough for my wife to give birth to our son. We've moved twice more since then. I also changed jobs twice between then and now and have moved from my hometown of Toronto out to Atlantic Canada to be closer to my wife's family. We've been here 3 years already. My son is now almost 5 and I'm approaching my 9th wedding anniversary.

During the time since the Edmonton Oilers last played a playoff game, I've watched Rafael Nadal win 11 Grand Slam Tennis tournaments...I've also seen the entire NHL career of Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Paul Stastny, who will become a UFA in a few months because of his seniority in the league.

What is your story? What have you done in your life since you last saw the Oilers play a game after the regular season ended?