The NHL Saturday momentum rolls on with the Edmonton Oilers, a team absorbed from the fledgling World Hockey Association that existed from 1971 to 1979. In fact, the next “wave” of expansion for the NHL came in the form of four teams from the WHA, and among those, the Oilers were the most successful in an immediate sense: Edmonton won five Stanley Cups by 1990, while losing three other times in the Cup Finals.

No. 10: Bill Ranford, G—67 PS (1987-1996, 1999-2000)

In two different stints with the franchise, he lost more games than he won in the regular season (167-193-54); that’s not good. However, he did win the Conn Smythe in 1990 when the Oilers won their most recent Stanley Cup. That says something, eh? He also posted a 25-16 record in the postseason with Edmonton, but otherwise, he was mostly a journeyman third rounder who played for five different NHL franchises.

No. 9: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, C—69 PS (2011-present)

For a No. 1 overall pick, he’s been a disappointment, for sure: never an All Star, he’s also never topped the NHL in any significant statistical category. His best season came in 2022-2023 when he posted double-digit Point Shares (10.9) for the only time in his career. On the bright side, he did finish second in the Calder vote in 2012, but again, the great expectations that come with his draft status have not been realized at this point.

No. 8: Grant Fuhr, G—71 PS (1981-1991)

The No. 8 overall pick in the draft, he made two All-Star squads while helping the team win all five NHL championships in its existence. He didn’t play in the 1990 postseason, however, despite posting a 9-7-3 record in the regular season. Seven times, however, between 1982 and 1989, he earned Top 6 Vezina votes—including a vote win in 1988 when the Oilers won their fourth Cup title. He’s in the Hall of Fame, of course.

No. 7: Glenn Anderson, RW—73 PS (1980-1991, 1996)

Not one of the more famous names from the Edmonton glory days, he still managed to contribute to all five Cup winners as a fourth rounder with grit. He never was an All Star, but he did contribute 8-plus PS in four different seasons (1982-1984, 1986). He also posted three 100-point seasons (1982-1983, 1986). And with 798 PIMs in 845 regular-season games with the Oilers, he did a lot of dirty work, too, to protect his teammates.

No. 6: Mark Messier, LW/C—67 PS (1979-1991)

Can someone be both overrated and underrated? Yes; that person is right here! He won all five Cups with the organization and was a four-time All Star (1982-1984, 1990), as well. He did this as a third-round pick, too, so in that sense he was underrated. But we’d argue he won a Conn Smythe (1984) he didn’t deserve as well as a Hart trophy he didn’t deserve (1990), either. Hence, the overrated bit. Oh well: Hall of Famer, eh?

No. 5: Paul Coffey, D—81 PS (1980-1987)

It says something that he is so high on this list despite playing fewer seasons than the players above. He made five consecutive All-Star teams (1982-1986) and won two straight Norris trophies (1985-1986) as well. He actually finished in the Top 5 Norris voting for six years (1982-1987) in a row! So after three Cups, the Oilers traded him away after his age-25 season for … very little in return. Hmmm. Not the best move?!

No. 4: Jari Kurri, W/C—93 PS (1980-1990)

A five-time Cup winner and a five-time All Star, he made the most out of his fourth-round draft status with the Oilers—like a lot of players did when on the ice with You Know Who (see below). He topped the NHL with 68 goals in 1986 while winning the Lady Byng in 1985. During the first four Edmonton Cup runs, he was the postseason’s top goal scorer, too. Talk about being in the right place at the right time: Hall of Fame.

No. 3: Leon Draisaitl, C—98 PS (2014-present)

The No. 3 pick in the draft, he is a two-time All Star (2020, 2023) who also won the 2020 Hart vote after leading his peers in assists and points during the Covid season. In addition, he’s become a team leader who just helped the team reach yet another Game 7 of the Finals before finally losing. Overall, he has 850 points in 719 regular-season games, in addition to 108 points in 74 postseason contests. Yeah, he’s been pretty good.

No. 2: Connor McDavid, C—115 PS (1987-1996, 1999-2000)

Another No. 1 overall pick, he’s been outstanding and a force in the league: seven-time All Star (2017-2019, 2021-2024); five-time scoring champion (2017-2018, 2021-2023); three-time Hart vote winner (2017, 2021, 2023). He has led his peers in assists four times (2017, 2021, 2023-2024), in addition to being the goals king once as well (2023). Did we mention he just won the Conn Smythe despite the Oilers losing Game 7? Legend.

No. 1: Wayne Gretzky, C—151 PS (1987-1996, 1999-2000)

We can’t say enough about The Great One, so we’re not going to try (again?). Just click on his name and read all the stats and trophies. We gave him eight consecutive Harts here (1980–1987) and three different Conn Smythes (1984, 1987, 1988), too. It still seems insane that the Oilers traded him away at age 28, but they had their reasons. It’s also nuts to imagine Edmonton actually somehow winning another Cup without him.