Top 5 Defencemen in Edmonton Oilers Franchise History
Welcome back to the fourth edition of this series, one in which ranks the best five players of each position in Edmonton Oilers franchise history. To this point, the lists have covered the center, left-wing, and right-wing positions, meaning today it is time to do the defencemen.
While the Oilers have had some great defencemen over the years for short periods of time, (hello, Chris Pronger) this list takes longevity into account, which is why certain players may be absent. With that being said, here are the top 5 defencemen in Oiler’s history.
5. Randy Gregg
Randy Gregg is a name that a good chunk of the younger fan base may not recognize, but those who watched the Oilers during their dynasty days in the 80’s know how valuable he was. The now 65-year-old was typically a stay-at-home defenceman who at times could chip in with offence, and though he wasn’t flashy was extremely consistent.
Gregg played in just 474 career NHL games, though the first 453 came as a member of the Oilers. During his time in Edmonton, he twice retired to pursue his passion in the medical field, though returned on both occasions. He played a role in all five of the Oilers Stanley Cup championships.
After the 1989-90 season, Gregg was claimed by the Vancouver Canucks, but chose to retire once again. However, for a third time, he decided to return to the league and suited up for 21 regular-season games with the Canucks, and an additional seven in the postseason in what was his final year in the NHL. He finished his career with 41 goals and 193 points.
4. Steve Smith
Unfortunately, Steve Smith is often remembered for a terrible blunder in Game seven of the Division Final versus the Calgary Flames, where in the third period of a 2-2 game he attempted to break the puck out from behind his own net, but instead had his pass bank off goaltender Grant Fuhr’s skate into the back of the Oilers net. They ended up losing the game and the Flames went on to win the series.
While it was a big mistake, it is too bad that it happened to a guy like Smith, who instead deserves to be remembered for how good of a player he was. The now 58-year-old played in 385 career games with the Oilers, recording 46 goals and 218 points. His best season statistically as an Oiler came in 1987-88, where he put up 12 goals and 55 points along with a ridiculous 286 penalty minutes in 79 contests.
Smith, who was apart of three Stanley Cup championships with the Oilers, joined the Chicago Blackhawks for the 1991-92 season. He went on to play six seasons with them before then becoming a member of the Flames, who he played with for three seasons before retiring. He finished his underrated career with 72 goals, 375 points and 2139 penalty minutes in 804 games. His 1080 penalty minutes as an Oiler rank fifth all time in franchise history.
3. Charlie Huddy
Another defenceman who was quite underrated during the Oilers dynasty years was Charlie Huddy, who was apart of all five Stanley Cup wins. The now 62-year-old was great at both ends of the ice, and was a pretty good goal scorer for a blueliner, proven by his 1982-83 season where he recorded 20 goals. During that same season, he led the entire league in plus/minus with a plus62 rating.
Huddy played in 694 career games with the Oilers, and his 81 goals rank second all time, while his 368 points are third. He left Edmonton after the 1990-91 season and joined an L.A. Kings team that featured his former teammate in Wayne Gretzky. Though his offensive numbers declined, he was still a key piece to the Kings blueline, and spent parts of four seasons with them.
After his tenure with the Kings, Huddy had stints with the Buffalo Sabres and the St. Louis Blues before retiring after the 1996-97 season. He finished his career with 1017 games played, scoring 99 goals and 453 points. Almost immediately after retiring, he became an assistant coach at the NHL level, first starting out with the New York Rangers before getting behind the Oilers bench from 2000-2009. He is currently a member of the Winnipeg Jets coaching staff.
2. Kevin Lowe
In recent days, the Oilers announced that they will be retiring Kevin Lowe’s No.4 this upcoming season, further cementing just how important of a member he was to this historic franchise. Though his legacy became somewhat tarnished due to his work as the team’s general manager after retirement, there is no denying how important of a piece he was to all five of their Stanley Cup wins.
As mentioned, Lowe was apart of all five Cup winning teams with the Oilers, and also won a sixth with the Rangers, making him one of hockey’s most decorated players. As a result, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2020.
Lowe played in a franchise leading 1037 games with the Oilers, and sits second all time in points by a defenceman with 383. During the 1982-83 season, Lowe was traded to the Rangers, who he spent four years with. However, he re-signed with the Oilers after his tenure in New York, and played parts of two seasons before announcing his retirement after the 1997-98 season.
1. Paul Coffey
Having Paul Coffey in the No.1 slot on this list was a slam dunk, as he is not only the greatest defenceman in Oilers history but one of the greatest blueliners to ever play the game. Aside from Bobby Orr, Coffey is widely considered to be the best offensive defenceman ever. In fact, he has five of the top 10 best point totals ever by a defenceman in a season, and the other five all belong to Orr.
Coffey’s best season came during the 1985-86 season, where he scored 48 goals and 138 points. The 48 goals are the most ever scored by a defenceman in a single season, while the 138 points trail Orr by only one for the most ever. Both Coffey’s 396 career goals and 1531 points are second all-time, trailing only Ray Bourque. He had five seasons in his career where he finished with north of 100 points, and to no ones, surprise has three Norris Trophies to his name.
Coffey was shockingly traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins during the prime of his career in 1987. He spent five seasons with the Penguins and then went on to have stints with the Kings, Detroit Red Wings, Hartford Whalers, Philadelphia Flyers, Chicago Blackhawks, Carolina Hurricanes and the Boston Bruins. Despite playing for a number of teams, he is thought of by all as an Oiler, and recorded a ridiculous 209 goals and 669 points in just 532 games during his time in Edmonton.