Artistic Oilers fans churning out best work during motivating playoff run

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid is portrayed in this painting by Edmonton artist and Oilers fan Taleb Choucair. (Nahreman Issa / CTV News Edmonton)

The Edmonton Oilers' playoff run is inspiring the team's most creative fans.

"Creativity comes in random spurts, more often than not," artist Taleb Choucair told CTV News Edmonton in a recent interview.

"So usually during the playoffs I get that hype… I feel that's when the Oilers paintings, for me, really thrive and I get my best paintings out during that time."

Since last season's playoff run, he has created about 20 portraits of the Oilers' star players.

• Complete coverage of the Edmonton Oilers' Stanley Cup Playoffs run

The paintings portray the players on the ice, perhaps gliding back to the centre line or celebrating a goal. Like his other work, the portraits feature some abstract styling and high contrast colouring.

They are displayed in a gallery at Hectic Cutz, a barbershop that has been frequented by some of the Oilers' star players.

Edmonton Oilers fan and artist Taleb Choucair stands beside his paintings of the team's star players Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman. (Nahreman Issa / CTV News Edmonton)

"(Customers) really like them. I've noticed they're really engaged in sports, especially because we're Edmonton," Choucair said.

Playoffs have also spurred interest in Catherine Hiller's bedazzled jerseys and bead bracelets.

The latter came first, inspired by the "Taylor Swift craze," she says.

"I was like, well, why can't I do the same for hockey players or hockey? So when I posted the idea, a bunch of people had reached out," she told CTV News Edmonton.

Then a TikTok user put her on to bedazzling and she ventured out to an old Connor McDavid jersey with glue and jewels.

Edmonton Oilers fan Catherine Hiller holds up a Connor McDavid jersey she bedazzled. (Nahreman Issa / CTV News Edmonton)

"I'm pretty happy with the outcome of it. I learned a couple new techniques along the way," she said. "You learn how to outline and line up the beads a little bit. It definitely helps cover a lot of the spaces. In the beginning I was always worried I'd have to put another little bead to fill it in. If you honeycomb it, it actually works pretty well."

Bedazzling all of the numbers and letters on the jersey took about 40 hours.

"So many (beads). I had to order extra, too, because I thought I had enough then I ran out," she said.

Even the oil drop on the Edmonton Oilers' logo was bedazzled when Catherine Hiller took jewels and glue to an old jersey. (Nahreman Issa / CTV News Edmonton)

By now, her bracelets have been sent out across the country and interest in bedazzled jerseys is spreading, too. Hiller is even willing to work on Flames memorabilia, she said.

"I love my Oilers, but if there's another team I can do and jazz it up for them, that would be pretty wicked."

The Oilers sit 1-1 in the first round against the Los Angeles Kings. They play next on Sunday in L.A.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Nahreman Issa