Wife of new Oilers coach Knoblauch makes surprise dressing room speech
You couldn’t have drawn it up any better for new Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch.
His first game as an NHL head coach ended with his first victory as the Oilers cruised to a 4-1 win over the New York Islanders on Monday night. The win marked the first time the team has been able to string together consecutive wins this season and got captain Connor McDavid off of a rare scoring slump.
Though Leon Draisaitl was the team’s best player, scoring a goal and four points, the Oilers opted to give the game puck to Knoblauch. They also surprised him with a special guest.
“After the game, [the team] did something very special,” Knoblauch told reporters. “They presented the puck and they had my wife up on the TV just saying a few words… that was very nice of them to do.”
A special night for Coach Knoblauch 💙🧡 pic.twitter.com/UlNwHwP2wT
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) November 14, 2023
Planning to get Knoblauch’s wife connected via a live stream apparently got going late in the game, once it became clear that the Oilers were going to win.
“Usually I go in after a win and say a few words and I walk right out,” explained Knoblauch. “Obviously, [the team] said, ‘No, you’re not going anywhere’ and they obviously presented me the puck and then, I was in the middle of the room, and then they turned me around and I saw my wife on the screen.”
Knoblauch is clearly very happy to be coaching in the NHL but it hasn’t been an easy transition for the 45-year-old. After being hired over the weekend, he had to quickly leave his wife and two kids back in Hartford, where he was previously coaching in the AHL.
In his first pre-game media availability on Monday morning, he got emotional talking about leaving his family to pursue his dream.
A very raw & human moment this morning.
Kris Knoblauch was asked, by @SportsnetSpec, about who helped him get here as the Head Coach of the Edmonton Oilers. #Oilers pic.twitter.com/5F5g1maO1E
— Tony Brar (@TonyBrarOTV) November 13, 2023
Once things get settled for the new Oilers head coach, there is no doubt his family will be making the move to Alberta’s capital. His two kids will have some souvenirs when they arrive in the form of two game pucks presented to Knoblauch before and after the victory.
“I did get the game puck, it felt incredible,” said Knoblauch. “I had a game puck on my desk before the game started and I was like ‘Aw, I only have one but I got two kids’ and then we won and I got two, so now we can make everyone happy.
“Maybe I won’t tell [my kids] which one is the game puck and [which] is the souvenir puck.”