1988–89 Edmonton Oilers season

The 1988–89 Edmonton Oilers season was the Oilers' tenth season in the NHL, and they were coming off a Stanley Cup championship after defeating the Boston Bruins the previous season, which was their fourth Stanley Cup in the past 5 seasons. The Oilers finished third in the Smythe Division with 84 points, their lowest point total since the 1980–81 season. For the eighth consecutive season, the Oilers had five 30-goal scorers.

1988–89 Edmonton Oilers
Division3rd Smythe
Conference3rd Campbell
1988–89 record38–34–8
Home record21–16–3
Road record17–18–5
Goals for325 (4th)
Goals against306 (11th)
Team information
General managerGlen Sather
CoachGlen Sather
CaptainMark Messier
Alternate captainsGlenn Anderson
Kevin Lowe
ArenaNorthlands Coliseum
Average attendance17,503 (100%)
Minor league affiliate(s)Cape Breton Oilers (AHL)
Denver Rangers (IHL)
Team leaders
GoalsJimmy Carson (49)
AssistsMark Messier (61)
PointsJari Kurri (102)
Penalty minutesKelly Buchberger (234)
Plus/minusCraig Muni (+43)
WinsGrant Fuhr (23)
Goals against averageBill Ranford (3.50)

Prior to the season, the Oilers was involved in one of the biggest trades in NHL history, dealing Wayne Gretzky, Marty McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas, the Kings' first round draft picks in 1989, 1991 and 1993, and $15 million.

Jari Kurri led the club with 102 points, while Jimmy Carson scored a team high 49 goals, and Mark Messier had a team best 61 assists. Charlie Huddy led the defense with 44 points, while Kelly Buchberger provided the team toughness, leading the Oilers with 234 penalty minutes.

In goal, Grant Fuhr got the majority of the starts, leading the team with 23 wins, while Bill Ranford had a team best 3.50 GAA.

The Oilers finished the regular season first in short-handed goals scored, with 27.[1]

In the playoffs, the Oilers faced Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings in the opening round of the playoffs. The heavily favored Oilers took a 3–1 series lead, however, the Kings responded by winning 3 games in a row by a combined score of 16–6 to win the series, ending the Oilers bid at winning a third straight Stanley Cup. It marked the first time since 1982 that Edmonton had lost in the first round of the playoffs, ironically it was the Kings who eliminated them in the opening round that year.

Season standings

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Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Calgary Flames 80 54 17 9 354 226 117
Los Angeles Kings 80 42 31 7 376 335 91
Edmonton Oilers 80 38 34 8 325 306 84
Vancouver Canucks 80 33 39 8 251 253 74
Winnipeg Jets 80 26 42 12 300 355 64

[2]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

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Vs. Campbell Conference

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Vs. Wales Conference


Schedule and results

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# Date Visitor Score Home Record Pts
1 October 7 New York Islanders 1–5 Edmonton Oilers 1–0–0 2
2 October 9 Winnipeg Jets 4–5 Edmonton Oilers 2–0–0 4
3 October 12 Vancouver Canucks 6–2 Edmonton Oilers 2–1–0 4
4 October 14 Edmonton Oilers 1–6 Calgary Flames 2–2–0 4
5 October 16 Edmonton Oilers 3–3 Winnipeg Jets 2–2–1 5
6 October 17 Minnesota North Stars 3–3 Edmonton Oilers 2–2–2 6
7 October 19 Los Angeles Kings 6–8 Edmonton Oilers 3–2–2 8
8 October 23 Edmonton Oilers 5–6 Vancouver Canucks 3–3–2 8
9 October 25 Edmonton Oilers 5–4 Los Angeles Kings 4–3–2 10
10 October 29 Washington Capitals 3–4 Edmonton Oilers 5–3–2 12
11 October 30 Chicago Blackhawks 5–2 Edmonton Oilers 5–4–2 12
12 November 2 St. Louis Blues 4–5 Edmonton Oilers 6–4–2 14
13 November 4 Buffalo Sabres 3–7 Edmonton Oilers 7–4–2 16
14 November 6 Edmonton Oilers 2–5 Detroit Red Wings 7–5–2 16
15 November 8 Edmonton Oilers 7–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 8–5–2 18
16 November 9 Edmonton Oilers 3–2 New Jersey Devils 9–5–2 20
17 November 12 Edmonton Oilers 6–2 Toronto Maple Leafs 10–5–2 22
18 November 13 Edmonton Oilers 5–4 Buffalo Sabres 11–5–2 24
19 November 16 Winnipeg Jets 2–1 Edmonton Oilers 11–6–2 24
20 November 19 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–9 Edmonton Oilers 12–6–2 26
21 November 20 Edmonton Oilers 4–7 Winnipeg Jets 12–7–2 26
22 November 23 Edmonton Oilers 3–3 Minnesota North Stars 12–7–3 27
23 November 24 Edmonton Oilers 4–2 St. Louis Blues 13–7–3 29
24 November 26 Edmonton Oilers 5–7 Montreal Canadiens 13–8–3 29
25 November 28 Edmonton Oilers 7–4 Quebec Nordiques 14–8–3 31
26 November 30 Vancouver Canucks 2–4 Edmonton Oilers 15–8–3 33
27 December 2 Calgary Flames 7–4 Edmonton Oilers 15–9–3 33
28 December 4 New York Rangers 6–10 Edmonton Oilers 16–9–3 35
29 December 7 Quebec Nordiques 3–8 Edmonton Oilers 17–9–3 37
30 December 8 Edmonton Oilers 3–5 Calgary Flames 17–10–3 37
31 December 10 Winnipeg Jets 7–6 Edmonton Oilers 17–11–3 37
32 December 14 Edmonton Oilers 8–2 Toronto Maple Leafs 18–11–3 39
33 December 15 Edmonton Oilers 3–4 Boston Bruins 18–12–3 39
34 December 17 Edmonton Oilers 4–2 Hartford Whalers 19–12–3 41
35 December 19 Edmonton Oilers 5–5 Buffalo Sabres 19–12–4 42
36 December 21 Vancouver Canucks 2–1 Edmonton Oilers 19–13–4 42
37 December 23 Calgary Flames 1–4 Edmonton Oilers 20–13–4 44
38 December 31 Montreal Canadiens 4–2 Edmonton Oilers 20–14–4 44
39 January 2 Edmonton Oilers 3–2 Minnesota North Stars 21–14–4 46
40 January 4 Quebec Nordiques 2–4 Edmonton Oilers 22–14–4 48
41 January 7 Edmonton Oilers 2–7 Calgary Flames 22–15–4 48
42 January 8 Calgary Flames 0–6 Edmonton Oilers 23–15–4 50
43 January 10 Edmonton Oilers 4–5 Los Angeles Kings 23–16–4 50
44 January 13 Edmonton Oilers 3–5 Washington Capitals 23–17–4 50
45 January 15 Edmonton Oilers 0–1 New Jersey Devils 23–18–4 50
46 January 16 Edmonton Oilers 2–2 Chicago Blackhawks 23–18–5 51
47 January 18 Edmonton Oilers 9–4 Winnipeg Jets 24–18–5 53
48 January 20 Philadelphia Flyers 1–1 Edmonton Oilers 24–18–6 54
49 January 21 Pittsburgh Penguins 7–4 Edmonton Oilers 24–19–6 54
50 January 23 New York Rangers 3–2 Edmonton Oilers 24–20–6 54
51 January 25 Chicago Blackhawks 6–3 Edmonton Oilers 24–21–6 54
52 January 28 Edmonton Oilers 7–6 Los Angeles Kings 25–21–6 56
53 January 31 Edmonton Oilers 2–6 Vancouver Canucks 25–22–6 56
54 February 1 Vancouver Canucks 3–4 Edmonton Oilers 26–22–6 58
55 February 3 Detroit Red Wings 5–8 Edmonton Oilers 27–22–6 60
56 February 5 New Jersey Devils 4–2 Edmonton Oilers 27–23–6 60
57 February 9 Edmonton Oilers 3–1 Philadelphia Flyers 28–23–6 62
58 February 11 Edmonton Oilers 2–5 Boston Bruins 28–24–6 62
59 February 12 Edmonton Oilers 3–1 New York Rangers 29–24–6 64
60 February 14 Edmonton Oilers 3–5 New York Islanders 29–25–6 64
61 February 17 Washington Capitals 8–2 Edmonton Oilers 29–26–6 64
62 February 19 Boston Bruins 4–2 Edmonton Oilers 29–27–6 64
63 February 21 Hartford Whalers 4–7 Edmonton Oilers 30–27–6 66
64 February 24 Los Angeles Kings 1–4 Edmonton Oilers 31–27–6 68
65 February 25 St. Louis Blues 3–5 Edmonton Oilers 32–27–6 70
66 March 1 Montreal Canadiens 0–3 Edmonton Oilers 33–27–6 72
67 March 3 Edmonton Oilers 7–4 Winnipeg Jets 34–27–6 74
68 March 5 Edmonton Oilers 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 35–27–6 76
69 March 7 Edmonton Oilers 4–4 Philadelphia Flyers 35–27–7 77
70 March 8 Edmonton Oilers 3–7 Hartford Whalers 35–28–7 77
71 March 11 Calgary Flames 5–5 Edmonton Oilers 35–28–8 78
72 March 12 Los Angeles Kings 6–3 Edmonton Oilers 35–29–8 78
73 March 15 Detroit Red Wings 8–6 Edmonton Oilers 35–30–8 78
74 March 16 Edmonton Oilers 0–3 Vancouver Canucks 35–31–8 78
75 March 19 New York Islanders 2–3 Edmonton Oilers 36–31–8 80
76 March 21 Los Angeles Kings 4–3 Edmonton Oilers 36–32–8 80
77 March 23 Winnipeg Jets 4–5 Edmonton Oilers 37–32–8 82
78 March 25 Edmonton Oilers 2–4 Los Angeles Kings 37–33–8 82
79 March 29 Edmonton Oilers 5–2 Vancouver Canucks 38–33–8 84
80 April 2 Edmonton Oilers 2–4 Calgary Flames 38–34–8 84

Playoffs

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Los Angeles Kings 4, Edmonton Oilers 3

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# Date Visitor Score Home Record
1 April 5 Edmonton Oilers 4–3 Los Angeles Kings 1–0
2 April 6 Edmonton Oilers 2–5 Los Angeles Kings 1–1
3 April 8 Los Angeles Kings 0–4 Edmonton Oilers 2–1
4 April 9 Los Angeles Kings 3–4 Edmonton Oilers 3–1
5 April 11 Edmonton Oilers 2–4 Los Angeles Kings 3–2
6 April 13 Los Angeles Kings 4–1 Edmonton Oilers 3–3
7 April 15 Edmonton Oilers 3–6 Los Angeles Kings 3–4

Season stats

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Scoring leaders

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Player GP G A Pts PIM
Jari Kurri 76 44 58 102 69
Jimmy Carson 80 49 51 100 36
Mark Messier 72 33 61 94 130
Esa Tikkanen 67 31 47 78 92
Craig Simpson 66 35 41 76 80

Goaltending

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Player GP TOI W L T GA SO Save % GAA
Bill Ranford 29 1509 15 8 2 88 1 .877 3.50
Grant Fuhr 59 3341 23 26 6 213 1 .875 3.83

Playoff stats

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Scoring leaders

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Player GP G A Pts PIM
Mark Messier 7 1 11 12 8
Jari Kurri 7 3 5 8 6
Steve Smith 7 2 2 4 20
Esa Tikkanen 7 1 3 4 12
Jimmy Carson 7 2 1 3 6
Normand Lacombe 7 2 1 3 21

Goaltending

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Player GP TOI W L GA SO Save % GAA
Grant Fuhr 7 417 3 4 24 1 .894 3.45

Awards and records

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Awards

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Records

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Milestones

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Regular Season
Player Milestone Reached
Martin Gelinas 1st NHL Game
1st NHL Assist
1st NHL Point
October 7, 1988
Steve Smith 200th NHL Game October 9, 1988
Charlie Huddy 500th NHL Game October 16, 1988
Kelly Buchberger 100th NHL PIM October 17, 1988
Martin Gelinas 1st NHL Goal
Greg Adams 200th NHL Point October 19, 1988
Chris Joseph 1st NHL Goal
Mark Messier 900th NHL PIM
Jari Kurri 400th NHL Goal October 23, 1988
Esa Tikkanen 200th NHL Game October 25, 1988
Keith Acton 600th NHL Game October 29, 1988
Jimmy Carson 100th NHL Assist
Craig Simpson 100th NHL Goal October 30, 1988
Jimmy Carson 200th NHL Point November 4, 1988
Mark Messier 3rd NHL Gordie Howe hat trick
Glen Cochrane 400th NHL Game November 8, 1988
Jari Kurri 18th NHL Hat-trick
Esa Tikkanen 4th NHL Hat-trick November 12, 1988
Jimmy Carson 100th NHL Goal November 13, 1988
Kevin Lowe 700th NHL Game November 16, 1988
Glenn Anderson 19th NHL Hat-trick
3rd Four-Goal NHL Game
November 19, 1988
Kevin McClelland 1,300th NHL PIM
Normand Lacombe 100th NHL PIM November 26, 1988
Craig Simpson 200th NHL Point December 2, 1988
Steve Smith 700th NHL PIM December 4, 1988
Jimmy Carson 6th NHL Hat-trick December 6, 1988
Kelly Buchberger 1st NHL Assist December 7, 1988
Jari Kurri 19th NHL Hat-trick
Esa Tikkanen 200th NHL Point
Craig Muni 200th NHL PIM December 8, 1988
Craig Muni 200th NHL Game December 10, 1988
Jari Kurri 900th NHL Point December 14, 1988
Kim Issel 1st NHL Game December 23, 1988
Kevin Lowe 300th NHL Point
Alan May 1st NHL Goal
1st NHL Point
Jimmy Carson 200th NHL Game January 4, 1989
Kelly Buchberger 200th NHL PIM January 8, 1989
Kevin McClelland 100th NHL Assist
Jeff Beukeboom 400th NHL PIM January 10, 1989
Craig Simpson 100th NHL Assist
Dave Hunter 900th NHL PIM January 16, 1989
Charlie Huddy 300th NHL Point January 20, 1989
Francois Leroux 1st NHL Game January 21, 1989
Mark Messier 800th NHL Point
Craig MacTavish 500th NHL Game January 23, 1989
Glenn Anderson 400th NHL Assist January 25, 1989
Grant Fuhr 200th NHL Win January 28, 1989
Mike Ware 1st NHL Game
Mike Ware 1st NHL Assist
1st NHL Point
January 31, 1989
Jari Kurri 500th NHL Assist February 3, 1989
Craig Simpson 300th NHL PIM
Greg Adams 1,100th NHL PIM February 12, 1989
Mark Messier 700th NHL Game
Mark Messier 10th NHL Hat-trick
2nd Four-Goal NHL Game
February 21, 1989
Craig Simpson 2nd NHL Hat-trick February 25, 1989
Normand Lacombe 200th NHL Game March 1, 1989
Mark Messier 1,000th NHL PIM March 3, 1989
Keith Acton 700th NHL PIM March 4, 1989
Randy Gregg 400th NHL Game March 11, 1989
Kelly Buchberger 300th NHL PIM March 15, 1989
Charlie Huddy 400th NHL PIM March 19, 1989
Mark Messier 500th NHL Assist March 21, 1989
Kevin Lowe 800th NHL PIM March 23, 1989
Kevin McClelland 1,400th NHL PIM March 25, 1989
Jimmy Carson 100th NHL PIM March 29, 1989
Craig MacTavish 300th NHL PIM
Jari Kurri 300th NHL PIM April 2, 1989
Playoffs
Player Milestone Reached
Dave Hunter 100th NHL Game April 5, 1989
Craig Muni 50th NHL PIM
Randy Gregg 100th NHL PIM April 6, 1989
Mark Lamb 1st NHL Assist
1st NHL Point
April 8, 1989
Normand Lacombe 1st NHL Assist April 9, 1989
Glenn Anderson 250th NHL PIM April 11, 1989
John LeBlanc 1st NHL Game April 15, 1989
Mark Messier 100th NHL Assist

Transactions

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Trades

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July 22, 1988 To Washington Capitals
Geoff Courtnall
To Edmonton Oilers
Greg Adams
August 9, 1988 To Los Angeles Kings
Wayne Gretzky
Mike Krushelnyski
Marty McSorley
To Edmonton Oilers
Jimmy Carson
Martin Gelinas
1st-round pick in 1989
1st-round pick in 1991
1st-round pick in 1993
($15 million) cash
August 10, 1988 To Los Angeles Kings
John Miner
To Edmonton Oilers
Craig Redmond
October 27, 1988 To New York Rangers
Ron Shudra
To Edmonton Oilers
Jeff Crossman
January 3, 1989 To Detroit Red Wings
10th-round pick in 1989
To Edmonton Oilers
Miroslav Frycer
January 23, 1989 To Detroit Red Wings
12th-round pick in 1989
To Edmonton Oilers
Doug Halward
February 7, 1989 To Philadelphia Flyers
Keith Acton
6th-round pick in 1991
To Edmonton Oilers
Dave Brown
February 15, 1989 To New York Islanders
5th round pick in 1989
To Edmonton Oilers
Tomas Jonsson
March 7, 1989 To Los Angeles Kings
Jim Wiemer
Alan May
To Edmonton Oilers
Brian Wilks
John English
March 7, 1989 To Vancouver Canucks
Greg Adams
Doug Smith
To Edmonton Oilers
John LeBlanc
5th-round pick in 1989

Free agents

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Player Former team
D Reed Larson Boston Bruins
F Stan Drulia Pittsburgh Penguins
F Nick Fotiu Philadelphia Flyers
Player New team
F Shawn Evans New York Islanders
F Dean Hopkins Quebec Nordiques
D Reed Larson New York Islanders

Waivers

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Date Player Team
October 3, 1988 (1988-10-03) Steve Dykstra to Pittsburgh Penguins
Dave Hannan
Ken Hammond from Los Angeles Kings
Dave Hunter to Winnipeg Jets
Craig Redmond to New York Rangers
Doug Smith Buffalo Sabres
November 1, 1988 (1988-11-01) Ken Hammond to New York Rangers
Craig Redmond from New York Rangers
November 7, 1988 (1988-11-07) Glen Cochrane from Chicago Blackhawks
January 14, 1989 (1989-01-14) Dave Hunter from Winnipeg Jets

Draft picks

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Edmonton's draft picks at the 1988 NHL Entry Draft

Round # Player Nationality College/junior/club team (league)
1 19 Francois Leroux   Canada Saint-Jean Castors (QMJHL)
2 39 Petro Koivunen   Finland Kiekko-Espoo (Finland)
3 53 Trevor Sim   Canada Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
3 61 Collin Bauer   Canada Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
4 82 Cam Brauer   Canada Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (ECAC)
5 103 Don Martin   Canada London Knights (OHL)
6 124 Len Barrie   Canada Victoria Cougars (WHL)
7 145 Mike Glover   Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
8 166 Shjon Podein   United States University of Minnesota Duluth (WCHA)
9 187 Tom Cole   United States Woburn Memorial High School (USHS-MA)
10 208 Vladimir Zubkov   Soviet Union CSKA Moscow (Soviet Union)
11 229 Darin MacDonald   United States Boston University (ECAC)
12 250 Tim Tisdale   Canada Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
S 24 Brian Dowd   Canada Northeastern University (Hockey East)

References

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  1. ^ "1987-88 NHL Summary". Archived from the original on September 13, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
  2. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  3. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
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