from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,

The jersey lay there on the ice, crumpled in an unceremonious heap. It had been thrown from the stands and landed at the top of the circle after a 6-0 Edmonton Oilers loss, discarded and left for the rink attendant to toss away.

It was a home blue Oilers jersey. Ales Hemsky’s No. 83, with an alternate captain’s ‘A.’ Likely $250 worth of jersey, abandoned like any hopes for the 2013-14 season, a parting shot from a Rexall Place fan base that can’t stand the losing anymore.

This franchise has given its fans one playoff berth in the past 10 seasons, inheriting the Toronto Maple Leafs record of futility with the longest playoff drought (this will be nine years) in the NHL. There has not been a .500 team here since 2008-09, and this club — in year four of what was supposed to be a rebuild — is the worst edition ever, currently playing .328 hockey. No Oilers team in the 34-year history of the franchise has been this futile.

The Edmonton Oilers — groan — are in 29th place again. The season was over before it started. New coach, new GM, same old laughing stock.

continued

Mark Spector with a few tweets today after the Oilers' morning skate...

Eakins on fan: “That’s about as bad as it gets for me. It’s bull crap.” “Whoever threw that jersey, they’re out of the fight."

“This city, the people who work in the oil patch, they’re not quitters. I do not ever, ever, want our players to quit.” - Eakins

“For some fan to show us all that he quit, he’s done, he threw in the towel. I think it says volumes about the individual.” — Eakins