Party on: fans, business owners riding high on the Edmonton Oilers' playoff run

Edmontonians are still revelling after the Oilers' clutch victory Saturday night.

The Oilers shut out the Los Angeles Kings 2-0 in Game 7 of the opening round series, booking their ticket to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the the first time since 2017.

Downtown Edmonton filled with the sound of fans, sporting orange, blue and white, cheering on the streets; traffic was jammed and drivers honked their horns to celebrate.

"Yesterday was a dream come true," said Blair Gladue — also known as Superfan Magoo, who is driving around the city today to keep the fans energized.

"With COVID and everything, and the darkness days of the Edmonton Oilers, and us getting swept last year... it was like everyone knew we were going to come home [for Game 7] and we weren't going to be denied."

The crowd inside Rogers Place Saturday night was amped. It reminded Gladue of the Oilers dynasty during the 1980s.

The club will face the winner of Sunday's Game 7 between the Dallas Stars and Calgary Flames.

Gladue hopes the Stars win, but if Calgary wins the second round will be like "the Stanley Cup of Alberta," he said.

A date for Game 1 of the second round has yet to be determined.

The Oilers advancing means the party continues for downtown restaurants and bars too.

Since the Stanley Cup playoffs began, Oilers fans have flocked to downtown bars and restaurants on game days to cheer for the home team.

Fans lucky enough to get tickets to watch the Oilers from inside Rogers Place will eat and drink downtown before and after games; those without tickets pack those establishments for hours.

"It's been awesome," said Sarmad Rizvi, a partner at Home & Away, a sports bar across the street from Rogers Place. "Home games, away games. Both