Golden Knights fans react to Edmonton Oilers losing in the Stanley Cup Final

Ah, the beauty of rivalries. It ignites emotions never seen in us, making us feel alive. Vegas Golden Knights fans know this, especially when it comes to a key Pacific Division rival.

They haven't forgotten the second-round loss to the Edmonton Oilers. They remembered some fans making tasteless jokes about the shooting on October 1, 2017. They suffered through aspiring Dave Portnoy clones doing a conga line at Rogers Place.

Heck, there was even talk of Edmonton being a "machine," courtesy of some faceless guy named Phil.

You see, "Phil," you actually have to win the title first to be considered a machine. Looking at teams like the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners softball team, and the current Florida Panthers squad, you'll see well-oiled machines that generally don't crack under pressure. Plus, Patrick Mahomes (a.k.a. "Football Eichel") and Jocelyn Alo are stars under the bright lights, unlike McDavid. It's no wonder Mahomes still gets a ton of love from NFL analysts!

As for the Oilers? Well, they're the modern-day San Francisco 49ers. They're a legendary franchise in their respective sport. They also have all the talent in the world, only to choke against those same Chiefs on the biggest stage. Looks like home-ice advantage was meaningless in the Stanley Cup Final (boy, that sounds familiar...).

Oh, and you need your defense and goaltender to not be the NHL version of Jimmy Garoppolo to be part of the "machine". That's important, too. Let's not forget that Vegas beat the Panthers in 2023. That's even more important.

How Golden Knights fans reacted to watching their rivals lose

But the loss wasn't just rough for the Oilers. It was also the biggest case of schadenfreude for a Golden Knights fanbase that had to endure endless harassment.

Sure, Golden Knights fans will concede that they lost the second round to their rivals. They suffered a debilitating blow from two overtime losses, the brilliance of Leon Draisaitl and company notwithstanding. There's also the part of not scoring when called upon that'll do you in. All of that led to a heaping dose of humble pie.

However, they also witnessed players like Jake Walman and Evander Kane get in their heads. They saw Kane post a prior picture of him blowing a kiss to a Golden Knights fan in 2023. Referencing the Las Vegas mass shooting will also rile up a fanbase (don't ever do that, by the way).

Now? All that blew up in the Oilers' face, with Golden Knights fans smiling from ear to ear. They're still the last Western Conference team to hoist the Stanley Cup and technically prevented a Florida Panthers three-peat. Plus, Nate Schmidt and Tomas Nosek got their Stanley Cups at an old rival's expense. You always love it when one of your old buddies makes it big for themselves.

It's almost as good as winning the Stanley Cup in 2023. Almost.