Pronger's Truth: The Oilers Trade Saga

0:00It's April 16th. Welcome in. This is NHL News Today, where a team coverage meets AI. Nearly 20 years after the Edmonton Oilers traded Chris Pronger, the Hall of Fame defenseman finally spilled the real reason he bailed. They picked him up before the 2005-2006 season, made it to the Stanley Cup final, lost in 7 to Carolina, and then, boom, he asked out. In his new book, Pronger emits he signed a five-year extension while drunk, which kicked off the whole mess. His wife wasn't even in the loop on that deal until it hit the news, according to him. She wasn't against staying in Edmonton forever, but this blindsided her. Pronger kept quiet about it for two decades, but now he's airing it all out publicly. That didn't sit well with Kevin Low, the Oilers GM, back then, who built that contender squad. Low fired back on LinkedIn Tuesday night, saying he's super disappointed in how Pronger framed the story, like it's a joke. Low regrets trading him so quick, and wishes he'd made Pronger sit it out instead.

1:01Fans mostly back low for sticking up for the team in the city, especially since Edmonton often gets distanced in the league. After the trade, the Oilers misplayoffs for a full decade, picked first overall four times in six years, and lost jobs left and right. These days, though, with Conor McDavid leading the charge alongside Leon Drysaddle and Evan Bouchard, Edmonton's a top contender again, players even, take pay us to join. It's a solid reminder of the turnaround from those dark times.