Originally posted on ClutchPoints
The Edmonton Oilers were one of the greatest teams of the 1980s, winning four Stanley Cups then adding a fifth in 1990. There’s no surprise that the majority of this list comes from those 1980s teams. However, the current iteration of the Oilers is also featured on this list, bridging the gap after some lean years. The Oilers are thankful for the lean years, as it helped them get some top picks in the NHL Draft and land three of the players on this list. Those players led the Oilers to the Stanley Cup Final this season against the Florida Panthers. We know about legends like Wayne Gretzky, Connor McDavid, and Mark Messier, but what other players cracked the top ten greatest Edmonton Oilers?
The top-ten list features Hall of Famers as well as active players who will one day be Hall of Famers. The active players already have good rankings on this list, but a Stanley Cup victory this season, plus any future success, could send them vaulting upwards.
Check out the gallery below for our top 10 Edmonton Oilers of all time.
The Edmonton Oilers drafted Nugent-Hopkins as part of their run of first-overall draft picks. They took Taylor Hall, Nugent-Hopkins, Nail Yakupov, and Connor McDavid first overall over six years. However, Nugent-Hopkins and McDavid are the only remaining players, making Nuge the longest-tenured current Oiler. Nugent-Hopkins is seventh on the all-time Oilers scoring list with 251 goals and 448 assists in 881 games.
“Captain Canada” was an Oiler for 13 seasons before getting traded to the New York Islanders. Smyth spent five years away from Edmonton, but his home was always in Oil Country, returning in 2011 to finish his career. He never had much team success as an Oiler apart from the Cinderella run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Final, but he is still one of the most beloved Oilers ever. Smyth is ninth on the Oilers scoring list, with 296 goals and 335 assists in 971 games.
Fuhr played ten seasons for the Oilers and was never a goalie that stood on his head, but he didn’t have to be on those Oilers teams of the 1980s. He had a distinct strategy, performing well enough to allow fewer goals than the opposing goaltender, and it worked most of the time. Fuhr won the Stanley Cup four times in five seasons between 1983 and 1988, then added another in 1990.
The Oilers drafted Draisaitl with the third overall pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, another high pick from their run of mediocrity during the early 2010s. In 2020, Draisaitl became the first German player to win the Art Ross, Hart, and Ted Lindsay Award. He is one of the best players in the NHL and already sits sixth on the Oilers’ all-time points list with 347 goals and 503 assists in 719 games, a 1.18 points-per-game pace.
The Oilers drafted Anderson with the 69th pick in the 1979 draft. Anderson was an underrated part of the 1980s dynasty, overshadowed by the players above him on this list. However, he was a clutch player and ranks in the top ten on the all-time playoff goals, assists, and points list. He was another member, with Fuhr, who was around for all five Stanley Cups of that era.
Coffey was a member of the Bobby Orr school of playing defense, as he spent more time generating offense than defending. He was a perfect compliment to the Oilers high-flying teams of the 80s, contributing to the powerplay alongside Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri. Kurri won three Stanley Cups but demanded more money after the third victory. It led to a falling out as owner Peter Pocklington didn’t like Coffey’s non-physical style of play. Coffey is second all-time in scoring by a defenseman with 396 goals and 1135 assists but is only 48 points behind Ray Bourque in first with 203 fewer games played. Coffey will now look to win his fourth Stanley Cup as a member of the Oilers, as assistant coach on Kris Knoblauch’s staff.
The Oilers drafted Messier 48th overall in the 1979 draft, adding to their incredible run of team-building that year. Messier contributed to five Stanley Cups for the Oilers, joining Anderson, Fuhr, and Kurri as the only players on this list on every winning team. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy during the 1984 win and the Hart Trophy in 1990. Messier went on to have more success post-Oilers, notably with the Rangers. Messier is third on the Oilers’ all-time scoring list with 392 goals and 642 assists in 851 games. Being fourth on this list is no slight for Messier, as we could easily say it’s a 3A and 3B situation with him and the next player on this list.
Kurri was among the first great European players to excel in North America. He was the first Finnish player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2001. Kurri won five Stanley Cups with the Oilers and, despite his high point totals, was known for his two-way play. Kurri proved he could do it without Gretzky when he led the Oilers to the Stanley Cup in 1990. He had 195 points in 154 games after Gretzky’s departure, giving him the second spot on the Oilers all-time list with 474 goals and 569 assists in 754 games.
McDavid may never eclipse Gretzky’s all-time stats, but if he stays with the Oilers, he will undoubtedly become the highest-scoring Oiler. McDavid has 335 goals and 647 assists in 645 games, and with a healthy 2024-25 will pass Kurri and Messier to become the second-leading scorer in Oilers history. He is behind his peers in Stanley Cup victories but hopes to claim his first this season against the Panthers. McDavid could become the greatest Edmonton Oilers player one day, but for now, he has to take a backseat to No. 1 on the list.
No other player could have been No. 1 on this list. The greatest player of all time had 1669 points in 96 games with the Oilers, a staggering number when you compare him to the other players on this list. McDavid has 51 fewer games in his Oilers career but is 687 points behind “The Great One.” Unfortunately, Gretzky wasn’t an Oiler for life. However, four Stanley Cups and an astronomical amount of points were more than any Oiler-lifers could ever dream of, making him worthy of being the greatest Edmonton Oilers player ever.
The post 10 greatest Edmonton Oilers of all time appeared first on ClutchPoints.
Originally posted on ClutchPoints
Published: 5 months ago
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