Top 5 Goaltenders in Edmonton Oilers Franchise History
Welcome back to the fifth edition of this series, one in which ranks the best five players of each position in Edmonton Oilers franchise history. To this point, the list has covered all the forward positions, as well as the defencemen.
Like the others, this list includes some high-class players, including a Hall-of-Famer. Let’s take a look at who made the cut.
5. Dwayne Roloson
During the 2005-06 season, the Edmonton Oilers had a fairly talented team, but were often losing games as a result of poor goaltending. Then general manager Kevin Lowe addressed that problem by acquiring Dwayne Roloson from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for a first-round pick as well as a conditional third-round pick.
The trade worked out fantastically, as Roloson carried the Edmonton Oilers all the way to the Stanley Cup Final that very season. Unfortunately, he was injured in Game 1 of the Cup final versus the Carolina Hurricanes and was forced to miss the remainder of the series.
Roloson spent three more seasons in an Oilers uniform, and despite the team not qualifying for the postseason in any of them, he was able to play quite well throughout. After the 2008-09 season, he signed as a free agent with the New York Islanders, whom he spent parts of two seasons with. He then went on to play parts of two seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning before announcing his retirement after the 2011-12 season.
Roloson’s 193 games as an Oiler rank sixth all time in franchise history, as do his 78 wins. Over that span he was able to post a respectable 2.78 goals against average (GAA) along with a .909 save percentage (SV%). He will forever be remembered in Edmonton for his fantastic play during the 2006 playoffs.
4. Tommy Salo
One goaltender who often fails to get brought up when looking back throughout the history of the franchise is Tommy Salo, who played with the Oilers from 1999-2004. During his time in Edmonton, he was twice chosen to play in the All-Star Game, once in 2000 and the other in 2002.
Salo’s best season of not only his Oilers tenure, but his entire career, came in 2001-02 where he put up a 2.22 GAA along with a .913 SV% in 69 games. As proven by the 69 games he played in that season, Salo was an absolute workhorse during his time in Edmonton, and played in at least 65 games in each of his four full seasons with the team, while appearing in a career-high 73 in 2000-01.
Of Salo’s 526 career NHL games, 334 of them came in an Oilers sweater, which is good enough for third all-time. During that span, he put up a 2.44 GAA along with a .906 SV% and a 147-128-23 record. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a ton of team success when Salo was around, but it shouldn’t take away from the very solid tenure he had.
3. Andy Moog
Though they didn’t know it at the time, the Oilers drafted one of the best goaltenders in franchise history when they selected Andy Moog in the seventh round (132 overall) at the 1980 draft. He went on to spend parts of seven seasons in Edmonton from 1980-1987 and formed a great tandem over the years with another franchise great in Grant Fuhr.
During his time with the Oilers, Moog played a role in three of the team’s Stanley Cup wins in 1984, 1985, and 1987. After that third Cup win, Moog demanded a trade as he wanted to get a crack at being a starting netminder, something that wasn’t possible with Fuhr in the way.
After sitting out a good chunk of the 1987-88 season, Moog finally got his wish at the trade deadline that year, as he was traded to the Boston Bruins for another player who will soon pop up on this list in Bill Ranford, as well as Geoff Courtnall. During his time as a Bruin, Moog was indeed able to become the team starting netminder, and lead them to the Stanley Cup Final in 1990. In that Cup final, he met up against his former team in the Oilers, but he and his teammates were defeated in just five games.
After his time with the Bruins, Moog went on to play four seasons with the Dallas Stars, as well as a single season with the Montreal Canadiens in 1997-98, which marked the final campaign of his playing career. By the time his career was said and done, he played in a total of 713 NHL games, 235 of which came in an Oilers sweater. He also appeared in 37 playoff games with the Oilers, and his 23 wins during that span are third all time in franchise history.
2. Bill Ranford
As mentioned previously, the Oilers acquired Ranford at the 1988 trade deadline in exchange for Moog. At the time, Ranford was quite unproven, having only played in 45 career NHL games. However, it didn’t take him long to establish himself, as just two years later he became the team’s starting goaltender, and was able to lead them to their fifth Stanley Cup Championship that very same year, while also being awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy.
Though the Oilers dynasty run came to an end after that fifth Cup, Ranford remained a very good starting goaltender for them until he was traded back to the Bruins during the 1995-96 season. From there, he spent time with the Washington Capitals, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Detroit Red Wings before re-joining the Oilers as a free agent for the 1999-2000 season, the final of his playing career.
Ranford played in a total of 449 games with the Oilers, which has him atop the leaderboard, while his 167 wins trail only Fuhr. When it comes to former Oilers, he doesn’t get talked about nearly enough, as he truly was the second-best goaltender they have ever had. He now provides his expertise for the L.A. Kings, whom he has spent the past 14 seasons as their goalie coach.
1. Grant Fuhr
Given the number of times he has already been listed throughout this article, it was pretty easy to figure out that Fuhr would come in at number one on this list. Not only is the now 59-year-old undoubtedly the best goalie in Oilers history, but he is widely considered to be one of the best to ever play the game.
Fuhr was destined for greatness from the get-go, having being taken eighth overall by the Oilers at the 1981 draft. He made the team that very same year and quickly established himself as one of the league’s best. He was a part of all five Cup wins in Edmonton and had his best personal season in 1987-88, one in which he posted a 3.43 GAA along with a .881 SV% and a 40-24-9 record en route to winning the Vezina Trophy.
His final season with the Oilers in 1990-91 was a controversial one, as he was suspended by the league for 59 games due to off-ice conduct, and as a result, played in just 13 games that year. He was then traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the 1991-92 season, marking the end of an era for the goaltender who is highly regarded as one of the most clutch players of all time.
Fuhr went on to play several more NHL seasons, split between the Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, L.A. Kings, St. Louis Blues, and finally the Calgary Flames, where he spent his final season in 1999-00. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2003 and had his jersey number 31 retired by the Oilers that very same year. His former teammate in Wayne Gretzky has been on record on numerous occasions saying that he is the best goalie of all time.