1989–90 Edmonton Oilers season

1989–90 Edmonton Oilers
Stanley Cup Champions
Campbell Conference Champions
Division	2nd Smythe
Conference	2nd Campbell
1989–90 record	38–28–14
Home record	23–11–6
Road record	15–17–8
Goals for	315 (6th)
Goals against	283 (9th)
Team information
General Manager	Glen Sather
Coach	John Muckler
Captain	Mark Messier
Alternate captains	Jari Kurri Kevin Lowe
Arena	Northlands Coliseum
Average attendance	17,009 (97.2%)
Minor league affiliations	Cape Breton Oilers (AHL) Phoenix Roadrunners (IHL)
Team leaders
Goals	Mark Messier (45)
Assists	Mark Messier (84)
Points	Mark Messier (129)
Penalties in minutes	Craig Simpson (180)
Plus/minus	Randy Gregg (+24)
Wins	Bill Ranford (24)
Goals against average	Bill Ranford (3.19)
<1988–89 1990–91>

The 1989–90 Edmonton Oilers season was the Oilers' 11th season in the NHL, and they were coming off their shortest playoff run in seven years when the Los Angeles Kings defeated Edmonton in the first round of the playoffs. Edmonton would improve their point total from 84 to 90, and finish in 2nd place in the Smythe Division.

Regular season

In the first month of the season, the Oilers faced adversity on multiple fronts, on and off the ice. First, goaltender Grant Fuhr underwent an emergency appendectomy in training camp that would keep him sidelined for several weeks. Backup goaltender Bill Ranford would start the season in his place. Next, forward Jimmy Carson, the team's leading goal scorer from the previous year, abruptly left the team after the 4th game of the season and demanded a trade. Among his reasons, Carson found the pressure of replacing Wayne Gretzky, the player he was traded for, impossible to play under. In addition, Carson, who grew up in Michigan with an affluent family, did not enjoy life in the city of Edmonton, which was nearing the end of a crushing recession. Finally, the Oilers granted Carson's wish and dealt him to his hometown Detroit Red Wings. In return, The Oilers received forwards Petr Klima, Joe Murphy and Adam Graves, and defenceman Jeff Sharples from Detroit. Finally, in the Oilers' fifth game of the season, at home against the Los Angeles Kings, Wayne Gretzky broke the all time NHL points record held by Gordie Howe; watching Gretzky celebrate the milestone was tough on his former Oilers' teammates, who felt they should have been the ones celebrating with him. These incidents, combined with weak defensive play and penalty killing, combined to put the Oilers on a slide early in the season, and they reached the quarter-mark of the season with a 6-9-5 record, which sat them in last place in the Smythe Division. To make matters worse, Fuhr, who returned from his appendectomy, injured his shoulder and was sidelined again. The one bright spot on the team was forward Mark Messier, who sat 2nd in the NHL in points at the 20 game mark and would battle all season with Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Steve Yzerman for the Art Ross Trophy.

Then, buoyed by the formation of the line of Martin Gelinas, Graves, and Murphy, the Oilers embarked on a run where they lost only once in 13 games. While many of their offensive stars were not scoring as they did in previous seasons, the Oilers succeeded by playing an all-around game, and overtook the slumping Calgary Flames for first place in the division. The Oilers' record over their next twenty games was 15-3-2, and they finished the halfway point of the season with a record of 21-12-7, good for second place in the entire NHL behind the Buffalo Sabres. Messier continued his stellar play in all areas of the ice, and was considered to be one of two favourites for the Hart Trophy along with Bruins' captain Ray Bourque.

At the 41st NHL All Star Game in Pittsburgh, three players represented the Oilers: Messier, Kevin Lowe, and Jari Kurri. Lowe was voted in as a starter by the fans, the last time to date that the Oilers had a player voted into the starting lineup via fan balloting.

As the second half of the season got underway, the Oilers entered a mid-season slump. The team could not piece together any sort of meaningful winning streak, and finished the third quarter of the season with a record of 7-8-5, good enough for an overall season record of 28-20-12. One notable achievement came on January 2 in a game against the St. Louis Blues, where Jari Kurri scored the 1,000th point of his career. Another notable game occurred on January 25 at home against the Kings, where the Oilers fell behind 6-3 after 40 minutes. In the 3rd period, the Oilers mounted their biggest comeback of the regular season, scoring 4 goals en route to a 7-6 victory. Messier led the way with 4 assists in a performance that completely overshadowed Wayne Gretzky.

Grant Fuhr was plagued by injury problems throughout the season and struggled to find his form, and was in net for a March 9 game against the Winnipeg Jets where the Oilers squandered a 4-0 first period lead and lost the game 7-5. Fuhr injured his shoulder shortly afterward and would miss a month with the injury. Ranford started most of the games during Fuhr's injury absences, but he too was injured by an errant stick in a game against the New Jersey Devils on February 6, forcing third string goaltender Pokey Reddick into service. The club also made use of minor league goalies Randy Exelby and Mike Greenlay at this time. On February 25, the Oilers lost to their provincial rivals, the Flames, by a lopsided score of 10-4. The loss put the Oilers in an unfriendly mood, and during their next game in Los Angeles on February 28, the teams combined for a then-NHL record 86 penalties, mostly in fighting majors, in a 4-2 Edmonton loss. Incidents in the game drew the ire of commentators, and even earned negative commentary from the NHL's head office.^[1] In the second last game of the season against Calgary, Grant Fuhr re-injured his bad shoulder and would have to sit out for the entire playoffs. The team finished the last quarter of the season with a 10-8-2 record: the Oilers finished the season with a record of 38-28-14, good for 2nd place in the Smythe Division and 5th place overall in the NHL. Owing to the team's fierceness at varying points in the season, culminating with the brawl in Los Angeles, the Oilers were the most penalized team in the NHL for the first time in team history.

Mark Messier finished second in the NHL scoring race; he finished with a career high 129 points (45 goals, 84 assists), 13 points behind Wayne Gretzky, 2 ahead of Steve Yzerman, and 6 ahead of Mario Lemieux (who missed 21 games with back injuries). Messier was the lone Oiler to break the 100-point barrier. Jari Kurri recorded 93 points (33 goals, 60 assists); it was Kurri's lowest point total in 8 seasons, but in keeping with the Oilers' new two way philosophy under coach John Muckler, Kurri finished with a +18, second highest among Oiler forwards. Craig Simpson provided some scoring, getting 29 goals and 61 points, and provided some toughness, leading the club with 180 penalty minutes. Veteran defenceman Randy Gregg led the team in plus-minus with a +24. In goal, Bill Ranford got the majority of starts, winning a club-high 24 games and having a 3.19 GAA. Grant Fuhr put together a 9–7–3 record with a 3.83 GAA despite being injured throughout the season.

For the second consecutive year, the Oilers finished first in most short-handed goals scored, with 22. They were also the most penalized team in the league, being short-handed 417 times.^[2]

Playoffs

In the opening round of the playoffs, the Oilers faced the 3rd place Winnipeg Jets for the sixth time in club history; the Oilers had won all previous five series played against the Jets, and had only lost one game in the five series combined. However, the Jets stunned Edmonton by winning the first game 7-5 at Northlands Coliseum, and took a commanding 3 games to 1 series lead with two thrilling one-goal victories on home ice. In Game Five in Edmonton, the Jets built up a 3-1 lead in the second period, and the Oilers' season appeared to be over. However, late in the second period, the Jets had back-to-back breakaways on the same shift, and goalie Bill Ranford stopped them both. After the second breakaway the Oilers immediately transitioned to offence, and Craig Simpson scored to make it 3-2. Seconds later, the Oilers scored again to tie the game 3-3 heading to intermission. Messier scored the winner in the third period for a 4-3 Edmonton win. In Game Six in Winnipeg, The Oilers pulled out another 4-3 victory to tie the series. Kurri scored the winner on a slapshot from the right faceoff circle late in the third period. Edmonton won Game Seven on home ice 4-1, completing the comeback and moving on to the Smythe Division Finals.

In the Smythe Division Finals, the Oilers faced the Los Angeles Kings, the team that eliminated the Oilers from the playoffs the previous season. In Game One, the Oilers served notice that this time would be different, dominating from start to finish and cruising to an easy 7-0 victory. It was Bill Ranford's first career playoff shutout. Game Two was much closer for the first 45 minutes, as the Oilers held a slim 2-1 lead before scoring 4 goals in the final 6 minutes en route to an easy 6-1 victory. Game Three in Los Angeles saw the Kings jump out to a 3-1 first period lead before the Oilers scored 4 unanswered goals en route to a 5-4 win. Game Four was another high-scoring battle as the teams traded goals throughout regulation, and the game was tied 5-5 at the end of three periods. Joe Murphy scored in the first overtime to clinch the sweep for Edmonton. The Oilers got their revenge for the previous season's playoff loss, sweeping the Kings 4-0 and outscoring them 24-10. Oilers forward Esa Tikkanen almost totally neutralized Wayne Gretzky throughout the series with relentless checking and sound positional play, holding Gretzky to a single point in the entire series.

In the Campbell Conference Finals, the Oilers met the Norris Division champion Chicago Blackhawks. The Oilers would take Game One of the series, stretching their playoff win streak to eight games, before Chicago even the series at Northlands Coliseum with a 4-3 victory. Game Three at Chicago Stadium was dominated by the Blackhawks 5-1, as they took advantage of several Oiler defensive zone turnovers. In Game Four at Chicago Stadium, Mark Messier ran roughshod over the Blackhawks in what New York Times reporter Jeff Klein called "the most terrifying one-man wrecking crew display in hockey history."^[3] Messier scored two goals, added two assists, threw several hard hits, and broke multiple hockey sticks over Blackhawks' players in a 4-2 Edmonton victory. The Oilers returned home and won Game Five by a tight 4-3 margin, and returned to Chicago Stadium and thumped the Blackhawks 8-4 to clinch the series in 6 games. Forward Glenn Anderson led the way in the final game, scoring a goal and two assists. The Oilers advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the sixth time in eight seasons, and in their 11-year NHL history.

The team the Oilers would face for the Stanley Cup was the Presidents Trophy champions, the Boston Bruins, whom the Oilers swept to win the 1988 Stanley Cup. Game One, played at the Boston Garden, saw the Oilers jump to a 2-0 lead early in the second period on goals from Adam Graves and Glenn Anderson, before the Bruins tied the game in the third on two goals from Ray Bourque. The game went into overtime, and was won by the Oilers in the third overtime period on a goal from Petr Klima. The Oilers pulled off a stunning victory despite being outshot in the game 52-31. It was the longest Stanley Cup Finals game in NHL history at 115:13, a record that still stands. In Game Two, Bill Ranford kept up his great play, and the Oilers led 2-1 at the end of the first period despite being outshot 10-2. The Oilers cruised to a 7-2 victory on Boston ice behind a 3 goal, 2 assist performance from Jari Kurri. With his third goal, Kurri surpassed Wayne Gretzky as the NHL's all time leading playoff goal scorer. The Oilers returned home for Game Three with a comfortable 2-0 series lead, but on home ice, surrendered two quick goals to the Bruins, who never looked back in cruising to a 2-1 victory. Game Four saw the Oilers jump on the Bruins early and often: Esa Tikkanen and Steve Smith shut down Bruin forwards Craig Janney and Cam Neely respectively, and the Oilers cruised to a 5-1 win. The Oilers' top line of Simpson, Messier and Anderson combined for 4 goals and 11 points. Anderson also made a major impact in Game Five in Boston: after a fast and furious first period, where both teams failed to score, Anderson scored on an end-to-end rush early in the second by walking right through two Boston defenders. Later in the period, Anderson struck again, setting up Simpson for the eventual game-winner with a spinning behind-the-back backhand pass. The Oilers would score twice more in the third and cruise to an easy 4-1 victory to claim the team's fifth Stanley Cup in seven years. Mark Messier, Glenn Anderson, Jari Kurri, Grant Fuhr, Randy Gregg, Charlie Huddy, and Kevin Lowe each won their 5th Stanley Cup with Edmonton. Goaltender Bill Ranford, a former Bruin, won the Conn Smythe Trophy after he tied an NHL record by winning all 16 playoff games. Ranford was especially spectacular in the Cup Finals, posting a 1.35 GAA and .949 save percentage against his former team. Craig Simpson led all playoff goal scorers with 16: Simpson tied with Mark Messier for the scoring lead in the playoffs with 31 points each.

Post-season

At the NHL Awards, Mark Messier was voted the winner of the Lester B. Pearson Trophy as the NHLPA's most outstanding player, and the winner of the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player. Messier was also voted to the NHL's first all-star team at centre. Assistant captain Kevin Lowe was voted the winner of the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for his humanitarian contributions to the community.

Season standings

Smythe Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Calgary Flames	80	42	23	15	348	265	99
Edmonton Oilers	80	38	28	14	315	283	90
Winnipeg Jets	80	37	32	11	298	290	85
Los Angeles Kings	80	34	39	7	338	337	75
Vancouver Canucks	80	25	41	14	245	306	64

^[4]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.

Campbell Conference^[5]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Calgary Flames	SMY	80	42	23	15	348	265	99
2	Edmonton Oilers	SMY	80	38	28	14	315	283	90
3	Chicago Blackhawks	NRS	80	41	33	6	316	294	88
4	Winnipeg Jets	SMY	80	37	32	11	298	290	85
5	St. Louis Blues	NRS	80	37	34	9	295	279	83
6	Toronto Maple Leafs	NRS	80	38	38	4	337	358	80
7	Minnesota North Stars	NRS	80	36	40	4	284	291	76
8	Los Angeles Kings	SMY	80	34	39	7	338	337	75
9	Detroit Red Wings	NRS	80	28	38	14	288	323	70
10	Vancouver Canucks	SMY	80	25	41	14	245	306	64

Divisions: NRS – Norris, SMY – Smythe

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

1989–90 Game Log
October: 4–5–3 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 3–2–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 5 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Vancouver Canucks Ranford 16,087 1–0–0 2 [6] 2 October 7 Edmonton Oilers 6 – 5 Los Angeles Kings Ranford 16,005 2–0–0 4 [7] 3 October 11 Vancouver Canucks 5 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,047 2–1–0 4 [8] 4 October 13 Boston Bruins 3 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Ranford 16,094 2–1–1 5 [9] 5 October 15 Los Angeles Kings 5 – 4 Edmonton Oilers OT Ranford 17,503 2–2–1 5 [10] 6 October 18 Winnipeg Jets 2 – 7 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 15,676 3–2–1 7 [11] 7 October 20 Boston Bruins 3 – 0 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,886 3–3–1 7 [12] 8 October 22 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 5 Winnipeg Jets Ranford 12,654 3–4–1 7 [13] 9 October 24 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 New York Islanders OT Ranford 10,409 3–4–2 8 [14] 10 October 25 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 New York Rangers OT Ranford 15,501 3–4–3 9 [15] 11 October 28 Edmonton Oilers 6 – 3 Quebec Nordiques Ranford 15,399 4–4–3 11 [16] 12 October 29 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 5 Montreal Canadiens Fuhr 16,564 4–5–3 11 [17]
November: 8–5–2 (Home: 4–1–2 ; Road: 4–4–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 13 November 1 New Jersey Devils 6 – 6 Edmonton Oilers OT Fuhr 15,728 4–5–4 12 [18] 14 November 3 Calgary Flames 2 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Fuhr 17,503 5–5–4 14 [19] 15 November 4 Pittsburgh Penguins 3 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Fuhr 17,503 5–6–4 14 [20] 16 November 6 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 5 Calgary Flames Fuhr 20,107 5–7–4 14 [21] 17 November 9 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 6 Boston Bruins Fuhr 14,076 5–8–4 14 [22] 18 November 11 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 3 Washington Capitals Ranford 18,130 6–8–4 16 [23] 19 November 12 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 6 Buffalo Sabres Fuhr 15,138 6–9–4 16 [24] 20 November 15 Los Angeles Kings 2 – 2 Edmonton Oilers OT Ranford 16,647 6–9–5 17 [25] 21 November 17 Buffalo Sabres 0 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Fuhr 17,167 7–9–5 19 [26] 22 November 19 Chicago Blackhawks 4 – 5 Edmonton Oilers OT Fuhr 16,675 8–9–5 21 [27] 23 November 21 Vancouver Canucks 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,228 9–9–5 23 [28] 24 November 24 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 5 Philadelphia Flyers Ranford 17,423 9–10–5 23 [29] 25 November 25 Edmonton Oilers 7 – 2 New York Islanders Fuhr 13,200 10–10–5 25 [30] 26 November 27 Edmonton Oilers 6 – 2 Detroit Red Wings Fuhr 19,875 11–10–5 27 [31] 27 November 30 Edmonton Oilers 7 – 6 Los Angeles Kings Fuhr 16,005 12–10–5 29 [32]
December: 9–2–2 (Home: 8–0–1 ; Road: 1–2–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 28 December 2 Minnesota North Stars 1 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,211 13–10–5 31 [33] 29 December 3 Toronto Maple Leafs 3 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,321 14–10–5 33 [34] 30 December 8 Los Angeles Kings 4 – 5 Edmonton Oilers OT Fuhr 17,503 15–10–5 35 [35] 31 December 11 Calgary Flames 3 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Fuhr 16,649 15–10–6 36 [36] 32 December 13 Quebec Nordiques 1 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,213 16–10–6 38 [37] 33 December 16 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 St. Louis Blues OT Fuhr 13,807 16–10–7 39 [38] 34 December 17 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 6 Chicago Blackhawks Ranford 17,591 16–11–7 39 [39] 35 December 19 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 0 Minnesota North Stars Ranford 10,724 17–11–7 41 [40] 36 December 21 Winnipeg Jets 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,521 18–11–7 43 [41] 37 December 23 Calgary Flames 1 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 19–11–7 45 [42] 38 December 27 Philadelphia Flyers 1 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 20–11–7 47 [43] 39 December 29 Montreal Canadiens 2 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 21–11–7 49 [44] 40 December 31 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Winnipeg Jets Ranford 13,435 21–12–7 49 [45]
January: 5–5–3 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 2–2–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 41 January 2 Edmonton Oilers 6 – 4 St. Louis Blues Ranford 14,530 22–12–7 51 [46] 42 January 3 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Chicago Blackhawks Ranford 17,616 22–13–7 51 [47] 43 January 6 Hartford Whalers 4 – 4 Edmonton Oilers OT Ranford 17,385 22–13–8 52 [48] 44 January 7 Calgary Flames 3 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 22–14–8 52 [49] 45 January 9 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Calgary Flames OT Ranford 20,107 23–14–8 54 [50] 46 January 11 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 Los Angeles Kings OT Ranford 16,005 23–14–9 55 [51] 47 January 16 Detroit Red Wings 6 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,191 23–15–9 55 [52] 48 January 17 Winnipeg Jets 3 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,664 24–15–9 57 [53] 49 January 23 New York Rangers 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,101 24–16–9 57 [54] 50 January 25 Los Angeles Kings 6 – 7 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 25–16–9 59 [55] 51 January 27 Vancouver Canucks 2 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 26–16–9 61 [56] 52 January 30 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 4 Hartford Whalers OT Ranford 15,013 26–16–10 62 [57] 53 January 31 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 7 Detroit Red Wings Ranford 19,483 26–17–10 62 [58]
February: 5–6–2 (Home: 3–2–0 ; Road: 2–4–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 54 February 2 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 6 Pittsburgh Penguins Exelby 16,236 26–18–10 62 [59] 55 February 4 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 4 Washington Capitals OT Ranford 18,130 27–18–10 64 [60] 56 February 6 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 2 New Jersey Devils OT Reddick 15,185 27–18–11 65 [61] 57 February 7 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 5 New York Rangers Reddick 16,227 27–19–11 65 [62] 58 February 11 Winnipeg Jets 4 – 7 Edmonton Oilers Reddick 17,228 28–19–11 67 [63] 59 February 14 Washington Capitals 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Reddick 16,145 28–20–11 67 [64] 60 February 16 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 2 Vancouver Canucks OT Reddick 15,862 28–20–12 68 [65] 61 February 18 Minnesota North Stars 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Reddick 17,503 29–20–12 70 [66] 62 February 20 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 2 Vancouver Canucks Reddick 15,555 30–20–12 72 [67] 63 February 21 Buffalo Sabres 3 – 7 Edmonton Oilers Reddick 16,374 31–20–12 74 [68] 64 February 23 Toronto Maple Leafs 6 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Reddick 17,503 31–21–12 74 [69] 65 February 25 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 10 Calgary Flames Reddick 20,107 31–22–12 74 [70] 66 February 28 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 4 Los Angeles Kings Ranford 16,005 31–23–12 74 [71]
March: 6–5–2 (Home: 4–2–1 ; Road: 2–3–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 67 March 3 Philadelphia Flyers 3 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Fuhr 17,503 32–23–12 76 [72] 68 March 4 Vancouver Canucks 3 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,197 33–23–12 78 [73] 69 March 6 Pittsburgh Penguins 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers OT Fuhr 17,042 34–23–12 80 [74] 70 March 9 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 7 Winnipeg Jets Fuhr 15,564 34–24–12 80 [75] 71 March 10 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Toronto Maple Leafs Ranford 16,382 34–25–12 80 [76] 72 March 13 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Quebec Nordiques Ranford 15,174 35–25–12 82 [77] 73 March 14 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 Montreal Canadiens OT Ranford 17,915 35–25–13 83 [78] 74 March 17 New Jersey Devils 4 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 35–26–13 83 [79] 75 March 18 Hartford Whalers 3 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,127 35–27–13 83 [80] 76 March 21 St. Louis Blues 6 – 8 Edmonton Oilers Reddick 17,332 36–27–13 85 [81] 77 March 24 New York Islanders 5 – 5 Edmonton Oilers OT Ranford 17,503 36–27–14 86 [82] 78 March 27 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Vancouver Canucks Ranford 14,960 37–27–14 88 [83] 79 March 30 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 6 Calgary Flames Fuhr 20,107 37–28–14 88 [84]
April: 1–0–0 (Home: 0–0–0 ; Road: 1–0–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 80 April 1 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 2 Winnipeg Jets Ranford 15,509 38–28–14 90 [85] Legend:       Win (2 points)       Loss (0 points)       Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1990 Stanley Cup Playoffs
1990 Smythe Division Semi-final Edmonton Oilers won series 4–3 # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 April 4 Winnipeg Jets 7 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,423 0–1 2 April 6 Winnipeg Jets 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Ranford 17,410 1–1 3 April 8 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 2 Winnipeg Jets Ranford 15,547 1–2 4 April 10 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 4 Winnipeg Jets 2OT Ranford 15,572 1–3 5 April 12 Winnipeg Jets 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 2–3 6 April 14 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 3 Winnipeg Jets Ranford 15,567 3–3 7 April 16 Winnipeg Jets 1 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 4–3
1990 Smythe Division Final Edmonton Oilers won series 4–0 # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 April 18 Los Angeles Kings 0 – 7 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 16,778 1–0 2 April 20 Los Angeles Kings 1 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 2–0 3 April 22 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 4 Los Angeles Kings Ranford 16,005 3–0 4 April 24 Edmonton Oilers 6 – 5 Los Angeles Kings OT Ranford 16,005 4–0
1990 Campbell Conference Final Edmonton Oilers won series 4–2 # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 May 2 Chicago Blackhawks 2 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,228 1–0 2 May 4 Chicago Blackhawks 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 1–1 3 May 6 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 5 Chicago Blackhawks Ranford 18,472 1–2 4 May 8 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 2 Chicago Blackhawks Ranford 18,472 2–2 5 May 10 Chicago Blackhawks 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 3–2 6 May 12 Edmonton Oilers 8 – 4 Chicago Blackhawks Ranford 18,472 4–2
1990 Stanley Cup Final Edmonton Oilers won series 4–1 # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 May 15 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Boston Bruins 3OT Ranford 14,448 1–0 2 May 18 Edmonton Oilers 7 – 2 Boston Bruins Ranford 14,448 2–0 3 May 20 Boston Bruins 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 2–1 4 May 22 Boston Bruins 1 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Ranford 17,503 3–1 5 May 24 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Boston Bruins Ranford 14,448 4–1

Season stats

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Mark Messier	79	45	84	129	79
Jari Kurri	78	33	60	93	48
Glenn Anderson	73	34	38	72	107
Esa Tikkanen	79	30	33	63	161
Craig Simpson	80	29	32	61	180

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Pokey Reddick	11	604	5	4	2	31	0	.890	3.08
Bill Ranford	56	3107	24	16	9	165	1	.887	3.19
Grant Fuhr	21	1081	9	7	3	70	1	.868	3.89
Randy Exelby	1	60	0	1	0	5	0	.833	5.00
Mike Greenlay	2	20	0	0	0	4	0	.765	12.00

Playoff stats

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Craig Simpson	22	16	15	31	8
Mark Messier	22	9	22	31	20
Jari Kurri	22	10	15	25	18
Esa Tikkanen	22	13	11	24	26
Glenn Anderson	22	10	12	22	20

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Pokey Reddick	1	2	0	0	0	0	1.000	0.00
Bill Ranford	22	1401	16	6	59	1	.912	2.53

Awards and records

Milestones

Regular Season
Player	Milestone	Reached
Geoff Smith	1st NHL Game	October 5, 1989
Esa Tikkanen	400th NHL PIM
Peter Eriksson	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point	October 11, 1989
François Leroux	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point
Trevor Sim	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	October 18, 1989
Craig Simpson	300th NHL Game
Geoff Smith	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point
Geoff Smith	1st NHL Assist	October 24, 1989
Peter Eriksson	1st NHL Assist	October 29, 1989
Dave Brown	1,100th NHL PIM	November 6, 1989
Kelly Buchberger	100th NHL Game
Craig Simpson	300th NHL PIM	November 11, 1989
Esa Tikkanen	100th NHL Goal
Petr Klíma	300th NHL Game	November 15, 1989
Petr Klíma	100th NHL Assist	November 17, 1989
Steve Smith	100th NHL Assist	November 19, 1989
Mark Messier	11th NHL Hat-trick	November 21, 1989
Joe Murphy	100th NHL Game
Grant Fuhr	400th NHL Game	November 24, 1989
Jari Kurri	700th NHL Game	November 25, 1989
Normand Lacombe	??? NHL Hat-trick
Glenn Anderson	20th NHL Hat-trick	December 2, 1989
Adam Graves	100th NHL PIM	December 8, 1989
Glenn Anderson	800th NHL Point	December 11, 1989
Adam Graves	1st NHL Hat-trick	December 17, 1989
Bill Ranford	100th NHL Game
Adam Graves	100th NHL Game	December 19, 1989
Kelly Buchberger	400th NHL PIM	December 27, 1989
Mark Messier	900th NHL Point	December 29, 1989
Jari Kurri	1,000th NHL Point	January 2, 1990
Kevin Lowe	800th NHL Game	January 3, 1990
Esa Tikkanen	300th NHL Game	January 6, 1990
Mark Messier	12th NHL Hat-trick	January 17, 1990
Vladimír Růžička	1st NHL Game
Steve Smith	800th NHL PIM
Kevin Lowe	900th NHL PIM	January 23, 1990
Vladimír Růžička	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	January 25, 1990
Joe Murphy	100th NHL PIM	February 2, 1990
Esa Tikkanen	500th NHL PIM
Mike Greenlay	1st NHL Game	February 25, 1980
Craig Muni	300th NHL PIM	February 28, 1990
Craig Simpson	400th NHL PIM
Jeff Beukeboom	500th NHL PIM	March 3, 1990
Petr Klíma	200th NHL PIM
Mark Messier	3rd Four-Goal NHL Game 13th NHL Hat-trick
Glenn Anderson	700th NHL PIM	March 4, 1990
Martin Gélinas	1st NHL Hat-trick
Craig Simpson	??? NHL Gordie Howe hat trick
Esa Tikkanen	300th NHL Point
Dave Brown	1,200th NHL PIM	March 9, 1990
Adam Graves	200th NHL PIM
Craig MacTavish	600th NHL Game
Craig Muni	300th NHL Game
Steve Smith	300th NHL Game	March 13, 1990
Craig Simpson	300th NHL Point	March 14, 1990
Randy Gregg	300th NHL PIM	March 21, 1990
Glenn Anderson	700th NHL Game	TBD
Mark Lamb	100th NHL Game
Peter Eriksson	1st NHL Game
Trevor Sim
Charlie Huddy	600th NHL Game
Kevin McClelland	500th NHL Game

Playoffs
Player	Milestone	Reached
Martin Gélinas	1st NHL Game	April 4, 1990
Kelly Buchberger	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	April 6, 1990
Charlie Huddy	100th NHL Game
Mark Lamb	1st NHL Goal
Joe Murphy
Craig MacTavish	100th NHL PIM
Bill Ranford	1st NHL Win
Geoff Smith	1st NHL Game	April 8, 1990
Steve Smith	50th NHL Game
Bill Ranford	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	April 10, 1990
Jari Kurri	100th NHL Assist	April 12, 1990
Esa Tikkanen	50th NHL Point
Glenn Anderson	150th NHL Point	April 16, 1990
Martin Gélinas	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	April 18, 1990
Adam Graves	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point
Charlie Huddy	50th NHL Assist
Bill Ranford	1st NHL Shutout
Randy Gregg	50th NHL Point	April 20, 1990
Steve Smith	150th NHL PIM
Adam Graves	1st NHL Goal	April 22, 1990
Craig Muni	50th NHL Game
Craig MacTavish	100th NHL Game	May 8, 1990
Anatoli Semenov	1st NHL Game
Mark Messier	150th NHL PIM	May 12, 1990
Jari Kurri	7th NHL Hat-trick 200th NHL Point	May 18, 1990
Petr Klíma	50th NHL Game	May 20, 1990
Jari Kurri	100th NHL PIM
Craig Simpson	50th NHL Point	May 22, 1990
Mark Messier	200th NHL Point	May 24, 1990

Transactions

Trades

June 17, 1989	To Boston Bruins 3rd round pick in 1989 - Wes Walz	To Edmonton Oilers Tommy Lehman
June 17, 1989	To New Jersey Devils 1st round pick in 1989 - Jason Miller	To Edmonton Oilers Corey Foster
September 28, 1989	To Winnipeg Jets Future considerations	To Edmonton Oilers Pokey Reddick
October 2, 1989	To Montreal Canadiens Cash	To Edmonton Oilers Randy Exelby
October 10, 1989	To Hartford Whalers Jim Ennis	To Edmonton Oilers Norm Maciver
November 2, 1989	To Detroit Red Wings Kevin McClelland Jimmy Carson *5th round pick in 1991 - Brad Layzell	To Edmonton Oilers Petr Klima Jeff Sharples Joe Murphy Adam Graves
December 21, 1989	To Toronto Maple Leafs 4th round pick in 1990 - Greg Walters	To Edmonton Oilers Vladimir Ruzicka
January 5, 1990	To Philadelphia Flyers Normand Lacombe	To Edmonton Oilers 4th round pick in 1990 - Joel Blain
January 19, 1990	To New York Rangers Todd Charlesworth	To Edmonton Oilers Denis Larocque
March 6, 1990	To New Jersey Devils Jeff Sharples	To Edmonton Oilers Reijo Ruotsalainen
March 6, 1990	To Hartford Whalers Cam Brauer	To Edmonton Oilers Marc Laforge
March 6, 1990	To Pittsburgh Penguins Brian Wilks	To Edmonton Oilers Future considerations

*Later traded to the Montreal Canadiens

Free agents

Player Former Team D Todd Charlesworth Pittsburgh Penguins D Bruce Bell Detroit Red Wings

Player New Team F Clark Donatelli Minnesota North Stars F Gary Emmons Minnesota North Stars G Daryl Reaugh Hartford Whalers F Len Barrie Philadelphia Flyers

Draft picks

Edmonton's draft picks at the 1989 NHL Entry Draft

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	15	Jason Soules	Canada	Niagara Falls Thunder (OHL)
2	36	Richard Borgo	Canada	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
4	78	Josef Beranek	Czechoslovakia	Chemopetrol Litvinov (CSSR)
5	92	Peter White	Canada	Michigan State University (NCAA)
6	120	Anatoli Semenov	Soviet Union	Dynamo Moscow (USSR)
7	140	Davis Payne	Canada	Michigan Tech (NCAA)
7	141	Sergei Yashin	Soviet Union	Dynamo Moscow (USSR)
8	162	Darcy Martini	Canada	Michigan Tech (NCAA)
11	225	Roman Bozek	Czechoslovakia	HC České Budějovice (CSSR)

Roster

1989-90 Edmonton Oilers
Goaltenders 30 – Bill Ranford  31 – Grant Fuhr  33 – Pokey Reddick  35 – Randy Exelby  35 – Mike Greenlay		Defensemen 2 – Chris Joseph  4 – Kevin Lowe  5 – Steve Smith  6 – Jeff Beukeboom  21 – Randy Gregg  22 – Charlie Huddy  25 – Geoff Smith  26 – Reijo Ruotsalainen  28 – Craig Muni  35 – François Leroux  36 – Bruce Bell  36 – Norm Maciver		Wingers 8 – Joe Murphy  9 – Glenn Anderson  12 – Jimmy Carson  12 – Adam Graves  15 – Trevor Sim  16 – Kelly Buchberger  17 – Jari Kurri  18 – Craig Simpson  19 – Normand Lacombe  20 – Martin Gelinas  26 – Peter Eriksson  32 – Dave Brown  34 – Michael Ware  85 – Petr Klima		Centres 7 – Mark Lamb  10 – Esa Tikkanen  11 – Mark Messier  - C 14 – Craig MacTavish  23 – Tommy Lehman  24 – Kevin McClelland  29 – Vladimir Ruzicka  GM: Glen Sather Coach: John Muckler

References

1. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1990-03-02/sports/9001180390_1_referee-denis-morel-kings-right-wing-double-game-misconduct
2. http://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_1990.html
3. "Messier" by Jeff klein
4. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
5. "1989-1990 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
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11. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890070
12. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890077
13. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890089
14. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890095
15. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890100
16. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890116
17. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890123
18. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890132
19. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890141
20. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890152
21. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890160
22. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890169
23. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890181
24. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890190
25. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890199
26. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890210
27. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890222
28. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890227
29. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890241
30. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890243
31. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890256
32. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890265
33. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890280
34. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890288
35. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890305
36. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890321
37. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890329
38. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890347
39. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890353
40. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890357
41. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890368
42. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890381
43. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890393
44. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890401
45. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890412
46. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890420
47. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890425
48. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890439
49. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890444
50. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890451
51. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890462
52. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890484
53. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890488
54. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890506
55. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890514
56. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890527
57. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890539
58. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890548
59. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890554
60. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890569
61. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890577
62. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890580
63. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890602
64. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890613
65. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890622
66. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890631
67. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890642
68. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890647
69. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890655
70. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890665
71. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890678
72. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890697
73. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890704
74. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890710
75. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890723
76. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890727
77. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890743
78. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890747
79. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890760
80. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890769
81. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890779
82. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890794
83. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890808
84. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890823
85. http://www.flyershistory.com/cgi-bin/poboxscore.cgi?H19890840

• SHRP Sports
• The Internet Hockey Database
• National Hockey League Guide & Record Book 2007