EDMONTON — A year ago, the Edmonton Oilers were returning to work after bitter disappointment, having clawed back from an 3-0 Stanley Cup Final deficit the previous spring, only to lose Game 7.

Today, the latest defeat at the hands of the Florida Panthers is still very much a reality. But as strange as it might sound, having gone through a second summer of discontent, getting back on the horse gets a little bit easier this time around.

“Two years ago, it was heartbreaking. And you’re a little bit broken, a little bit beaten down emotionally,” Connor McDavid told Sportsnet earlier this month. “Last year was less emotional, less of a roller coaster. It was less draining, I would say.

“Everybody feels a little bit fresher, if that makes sense. It was easier to dust yourself off and get bac

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