Have you ever wondered about the history of the so-called Battle of Alberta? This intense rivalry has been raging for decades, and it’s often just a staple part of matches between the Calgary Flames and their rivals, the Edmonton Oilers. Nevertheless, this wasn’t always the case; in fact, the rivalry actually can be traced back all of the way to its roots in 1980.
As such, today, we’ll be taking a look at the history of the so-called Battle of Alberta. What’s more, we’ll consider who, according to the historical statistics at the least, has the edge over the other for this year’s upcoming matches.
The History of the Battle of Alberta
Many hockey fans just take the Battle of Alberta as an annual, expected event – but the history of this rivalry is much more complex and diverse than this, and it’s always interesting as such to see how the Battle of Alberta has evolved over time.
The Battle of Alberta saw its foundations in 1980 when the Atlanta Flames moved to Calgary. From then on, a raging dispute grew up between the two teams – and this was largely spurred by some of the most professional and successful NHL players of all time.
These included Wayne Gretzky, who played for the Edmonton Oilers and who achieved a massive 133 goals; meanwhile, on the side of the Flames, Al MacInnis certainly held his own with high success rates of 82 goals overall. Meanwhile, in the modern-day, Connor McDavid continues to live up to the role of his predecessor; at just twenty-five years of age, his skills on the hockey field are unparalleled.
Though the Battle of Alberta and the rivalry involved predates the rivalry between the two teams, it’s undeniable that the battle nevertheless gained momentum following the move. To this day, even among non-sports fans, there remains a friendly rivalry between the cities, although this tends to become a lot more pronounced whenever a hockey event is announced.
Who Holds Bragging Rights Historically?
As we look to 2022, it can often seem difficult to weigh up these two teams. Indeed, as explained by Betway Insider, the long-term feud between Zack Kassian and Matthew Tkachuk continues to leave chances for each team at an impasse.
As such, hockey fans from around the world are sure to be left feeling a little unsure about how their favourite team is likely to perform for the coming year. And, with the teams appearing to be largely matched in terms of their skills, a brief look at the history of this iconic hockey rivalry may shine a little more light on how the fates will settle.
How the Wins Compare
From statistics alone, Betway explains that Calgary holds the upper hand, with a total of 126 wins against their rival historically; nevertheless, Edmonton has still held their own in this regard, with a total of 109 wins in response. As such, while there might be a small difference between the teams in terms of overall wins, Calgary holds a slightly more optimistic record overall.
However, there’s a big catch here that we need to mention. Indeed, while Calgary might hold the record for the most wins overall during the Battle of Alberta, the Edmonton team actually clinches the win when it comes to the play-off matches themselves. Indeed, with the Oilers achieving a massive 19 play-offs in head-to-head games compared to the Flames’ 11, it’s easy to see who wins when it really matters the most.
A further factor to consider which complicates things is that, although the Flames have statistically won more matches, they only appeared in the Stanley Cup matches once; by contrast, the Oilers appeared in the Stanley Cup five times.
How Many Goals Has Each Team Scored?
In terms of overall goals, as one might expect, the Flames take the win – but, again, not by much. In fact, there’s only a difference of 38 goals between the teams, and this once again makes it difficult to determine which team is more likely to come out on top this year.
Who is Statistically More Likely to Win?
Based on the statistics we’ve presented above, it’s undeniably difficult to determine based on the stats alone which team likely has the upper hand. With this in mind, based on past performances, it’s generally fair to say that the Battle of Alberta is largely well-matched overall.
Of course, we can never tell how things will play out; as such, hockey fans wanting to see which team will take the crown for this year will just have to follow the feud with interest and see how things play out. And, whichever team you might be rooting for this year, we wish both teams all the best and hope that they’re given the chance to play to the best of their abilities for 2022.
Final Thoughts
The Battle of Alberta has been raging for decades, and with this in mind, it’s well worth considering how this rivalry is likely to continue as we look to the future. Indeed, it can be a little hard to work out who actually holds bragging rights after the many years of battling it out for the title – but whatever the future might bring, it seems likely that we’ll still continue to see the same great intensity in any case.
