1986–87 Edmonton Oilers season

1986–87 Edmonton Oilers
Division	1st Smythe
Conference	1st Campbell
1986–87 record	50–24–6
Home record	29–6–5
Road record	21–18–1
Goals for	372 (1st)
Goals against	284 (10th)
Team information
General manager	Glen Sather
Coach	Glen Sather
Captain	Wayne Gretzky
Alternate captains	Lee Fogolin (Oct-Mar) Kevin Lowe (Mar-Apr) Mark Messier
Arena	Northlands Coliseum
Average attendance	17,503 (100%)
Team leaders
Goals	Wayne Gretzky (62)
Assists	Wayne Gretzky (121)
Points	Wayne Gretzky (183)
Penalty minutes	Kevin McClelland (238)
Plus/minus	Wayne Gretzky (+70)
Wins	Andy Moog (28)
Goals against average	Grant Fuhr (3.44)

The 1986–87 Edmonton Oilers season was the Oilers' 8th season in the NHL, and they were coming off a heart breaking playoff loss to the Calgary Flames the year before, ending the Oilers' bid for a third-straight Stanley Cup. Edmonton would win the Presidents' Trophy, as they finished with 106 points, and win their sixth straight Smythe Division title. There was no upset this year and the Oilers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the Final to win their third Stanley Cup in four years.

Regular Season

Wayne Gretzky would lead the league with 183 points, earning his 7th Art Ross Trophy and win his 8th Hart Trophy. Jari Kurri would finish with 54 goals and 108 points, while Mark Messier had a career high 107 points. Esa Tikkanen had a break out season, getting 78 points, including 34 goals, along with 120 penalty minutes. Paul Coffey missed 21 games, but still finished with 67 points to lead Oilers defensemen.

In goal, Grant Fuhr and Andy Moog would once again split time, with Moog leading the team with 28 wins, while Fuhr posted a team best 3.44 GAA.

Final Standings

Smythe Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	PTS
Edmonton Oilers	80	50	24	6	372	284	106
Calgary Flames	80	46	31	3	318	289	95
Winnipeg Jets	80	40	32	8	279	271	88
Los Angeles Kings	80	31	41	8	318	341	70
Vancouver Canucks	80	29	43	8	282	314	66

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Game Log

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record	Pts
1	October 9	Edmonton Oilers	1–2	Philadelphia Flyers	0–1–0	0
2	October 11	Edmonton Oilers	5–4	Montreal Canadiens	1–1–0	2
3	October 12	Edmonton Oilers	3–5	Winnipeg Jets	1–2–0	2
4	October 15	Quebec Nordiques	2–5	Edmonton Oilers	2–2–0	4
5	October 17	Detroit Red Wings	3–4	Edmonton Oilers	3–2–0	6
6	October 19	Edmonton Oilers	6–7	Los Angeles Kings	3–3–0	6
7	October 21	Chicago Blackhawks	1–9	Edmonton Oilers	4–3–0	8
8	October 22	Edmonton Oilers	3–6	Calgary Flames	4–4–0	8
9	October 24	Boston Bruins	2–6	Edmonton Oilers	5–4–0	10
10	October 26	Vancouver Canucks	2–3	Edmonton Oilers	6–4–0	12
11	October 29	Washington Capitals	3–6	Edmonton Oilers	7–4–0	14
12	October 31	Edmonton Oilers	6–2	Vancouver Canucks	8–4–0	16
13	November 2	Los Angeles Kings	5–5	Edmonton Oilers	8–4–1	17
14	November 5	Calgary Flames	3–1	Edmonton Oilers	8–5–1	17
15	November 7	Edmonton Oilers	4–6	Calgary Flames	8–6–1	17
16	November 8	Montreal Canadiens	3–4	Edmonton Oilers	9–6–1	19
17	November 11	Edmonton Oilers	3–2	New York Islanders	10–6–1	21
18	November 13	Edmonton Oilers	3–4	Boston Bruins	10–7–1	21
19	November 15	Edmonton Oilers	2–6	Hartford Whalers	10–8–1	21
20	November 16	Edmonton Oilers	8–6	New York Rangers	11–8–1	23
21	November 19	New York Rangers	4–5	Edmonton Oilers	12–8–1	25
22	November 22	Vancouver Canucks	2–5	Edmonton Oilers	13–8–1	27
23	November 24	Edmonton Oilers	5–6	Calgary Flames	13–9–1	27
24	November 26	Winnipeg Jets	3–4	Edmonton Oilers	14–9–1	29
25	November 28	Chicago Blackhawks	6–5	Edmonton Oilers	14–10–1	29
26	December 3	New York Islanders	1–7	Edmonton Oilers	15–10–1	31
27	December 5	Edmonton Oilers	4–2	Pittsburgh Penguins	16–10–1	33
28	December 7	Edmonton Oilers	2–5	Philadelphia Flyers	16–11–1	33
29	December 9	Edmonton Oilers	3–2	Minnesota North Stars	17–11–1	35
30	December 10	Edmonton Oilers	7–4	Winnipeg Jets	18–11–1	37
31	December 12	Winnipeg Jets	1–6	Edmonton Oilers	19–11–1	39
32	December 14	Edmonton Oilers	4–2	Los Angeles Kings	20–11–1	41
33	December 17	Quebec Nordiques	3–5	Edmonton Oilers	21–11–1	43
34	December 19	Vancouver Canucks	2–4	Edmonton Oilers	22–11–1	45
35	December 20	Los Angeles Kings	8–8	Edmonton Oilers	22–11–2	46
36	December 23	Winnipeg Jets	2–1	Edmonton Oilers	22–12–2	46
37	December 28	Philadelphia Flyers	4–6	Edmonton Oilers	23–12–2	48
38	December 30	Edmonton Oilers	7–3	Vancouver Canucks	24–12–2	50
39	January 3	Edmonton Oilers	8–1	Los Angeles Kings	25–12–2	52
40	January 7	Los Angeles Kings	6–1	Edmonton Oilers	25–13–2	52
41	January 9	St. Louis Blues	1–5	Edmonton Oilers	26–13–2	54
42	January 11	Calgary Flames	3–5	Edmonton Oilers	27–13–2	56
43	January 13	Edmonton Oilers	5–3	Detroit Red Wings	28–13–2	58
44	January 15	Edmonton Oilers	4–1	Quebec Nordiques	29–13–2	60
45	January 17	Edmonton Oilers	7–4	Toronto Maple Leafs	30–13–2	62
46	January 18	Edmonton Oilers	5–6	Buffalo Sabres	30–14–2	62
47	January 21	Edmonton Oilers	5–3	Winnipeg Jets	31–14–2	64
48	January 23	New York Rangers	4–7	Edmonton Oilers	32–14–2	66
49	January 24	Pittsburgh Penguins	2–4	Edmonton Oilers	33–14–2	68
50	January 27	Edmonton Oilers	4–4	Vancouver Canucks	33–14–3	69
51	January 28	Vancouver Canucks	3–7	Edmonton Oilers	34–14–3	71
52	January 30	Minnesota North Stars	2–2	Edmonton Oilers	34–14–4	72
53	February 1	Edmonton Oilers	4–6	Chicago Blackhawks	34–15–4	72
54	February 3	Edmonton Oilers	4–2	St. Louis Blues	35–15–4	74
55	February 4	Edmonton Oilers	6–5	Minnesota North Stars	36–15–4	76
56	February 6	New York Islanders	3–3	Edmonton Oilers	36–15–5	77
57	February 8	St. Louis Blues	2–6	Edmonton Oilers	37–15–5	79
58	February 15	Washington Capitals	5–3	Edmonton Oilers	37–16–5	79
59	February 18	Toronto Maple Leafs	2–9	Edmonton Oilers	38–16–5	81
60	February 22	Edmonton Oilers	2–5	Winnipeg Jets	38–17–5	81
61	February 24	Edmonton Oilers	2–5	Pittsburgh Penguins	38–18–5	81
62	February 25	Edmonton Oilers	2–4	New Jersey Devils	38–19–5	81
63	February 27	Edmonton Oilers	2–5	Washington Capitals	38–20–5	81
64	March 4	Edmonton Oilers	8–5	Vancouver Canucks	39–20–5	83
65	March 6	Los Angeles Kings	3–9	Edmonton Oilers	40–20–5	85
66	March 7	Montreal Canadiens	3–5	Edmonton Oilers	41–20–5	87
67	March 11	Detroit Red Wings	3–6	Edmonton Oilers	42–20–5	89
68	March 14	Buffalo Sabres	3–5	Edmonton Oilers	43–20–5	91
69	March 15	Hartford Whalers	1–4	Edmonton Oilers	44–20–5	93
70	March 17	New Jersey Devils	4–7	Edmonton Oilers	45–20–5	95
71	March 19	Edmonton Oilers	4–5	Calgary Flames	45–21–5	95
72	March 20	Calgary Flames	6–3	Edmonton Oilers	45–22–5	95
73	March 23	Edmonton Oilers	7–6	New Jersey Devils	46–22–5	97
74	March 25	Edmonton Oilers	5–3	Hartford Whalers	47–22–5	99
75	March 26	Edmonton Oilers	1–4	Boston Bruins	47–23–5	99
76	March 28	Edmonton Oilers	2–4	Toronto Maple Leafs	47–24–5	99
77	March 29	Edmonton Oilers	3–2	Buffalo Sabres	48–24–5	101
78	March 31	Winnipeg Jets	4–5	Edmonton Oilers	49–24–5	103
79	April 2	Calgary Flames	4–4	Edmonton Oilers	49–24–6	104
80	April 4	Edmonton Oilers	7–3	Los Angeles Kings	50–24–6	106

Playoffs

See also: 1987 Stanley Cup Finals

In the playoffs, the Oilers would get a bit of a scare in their opening game against the Los Angeles Kings, losing 5–2, but Edmonton would rebound, winning game two by a 13–3 score, and would win eight games in a row to get past the Kings, and sweep the Winnipeg Jets in the process. Edmonton would have little trouble getting past the Detroit Red Wings in the Conference Final, defeating them in five games, and would face the only other 100-point team in the NHL in the Stanley Cup Final, the Philadelphia Flyers. The series would go the full seven games, with Edmonton winning the seventh and deciding game by a 3–1 score to capture their third Stanley Cup in the past four years. No Oiler won the Conn Smythe Trophy, as Ron Hextall of the Flyers won it despite failing to win the Stanley Cup.

Edmonton Oilers 4, Los Angeles Kings 1

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	April 8	Los Angeles Kings	5–2	Edmonton Oilers	0–1
2	April 9	Los Angeles Kings	3–13	Edmonton Oilers	1–1
3	April 11	Edmonton Oilers	6–5	Los Angeles Kings	2–1
4	April 12	Edmonton Oilers	6–3	Los Angeles Kings	3–1
5	April 14	Los Angeles Kings	4–5	Edmonton Oilers	4–1

Edmonton Oilers 4, Winnipeg Jets 0

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	April 21	Winnipeg Jets	2–3	Edmonton Oilers	1–0
2	April 23	Winnipeg Jets	3–5	Edmonton Oilers	2–0
3	April 25	Edmonton Oilers	5–2	Winnipeg Jets	3–0
4	April 27	Edmonton Oilers	4–2	Winnipeg Jets	4–0

Edmonton Oilers 4, Detroit Red Wings 1

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	May 5	Detroit Red Wings	3–1	Edmonton Oilers	0–1
2	May 7	Detroit Red Wings	1–4	Edmonton Oilers	1–1
3	May 9	Edmonton Oilers	2–1	Detroit Red Wings	2–1
4	May 11	Edmonton Oilers	3–2	Detroit Red Wings	3–1
5	May 13	Detroit Red Wings	3–6	Edmonton Oilers	4–1

Edmonton Oilers 4, Philadelphia Flyers 3

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	May 17	Philadelphia Flyers	2–4	Edmonton Oilers	1–0
2	May 20	Philadelphia Flyers	2–3	Edmonton Oilers	2–0
3	May 22	Edmonton Oilers	2–5	Philadelphia Flyers	2–1
4	May 24	Edmonton Oilers	4–1	Philadelphia Flyers	3–1
5	May 26	Philadelphia Flyers	4–3	Edmonton Oilers	3–2
6	May 28	Edmonton Oilers	2–3	Philadelphia Flyers	3–3
3	May 31	Philadelphia Flyers	1–3	Edmonton Oilers	4–3

Player Stats

Regular Season

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Wayne Gretzky	79	62	121	183	28
Jari Kurri	79	54	54	108	41
Mark Messier	77	37	70	107	73
Esa Tikkanen	76	34	44	78	120
Glenn Anderson	80	35	38	73	65

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Grant Fuhr	44	2388	22	13	3	137	0	.881	3.44
Andy Moog	46	2461	28	11	3	144	0	.882	3.51

Playoffs

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Wayne Gretzky	21	5	29	34	6
Mark Messier	21	12	16	28	16
Glenn Anderson	21	14	13	27	59
Jari Kurri	21	15	10	25	20
Kent Nilsson	21	6	13	19	6

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Grant Fuhr	19	1148	14	5	47	0	.908	2.46
Andy Moog	2	120	2	0	8	0	.784	4.00

Transactions

Trades

June 25, 1986	To Montreal Canadiens Future considerations	To Edmonton Oilers Alfie Turcotte
July 3, 1986	To Winnipeg Jets Future considerations	To Edmonton Oilers Murray Eaves
October 2, 1986	To Buffalo Sabres Craig Muni	To Edmonton Oilers Cash
October 15, 1986	To St. Louis Todd Ewen	To Edmonton Oilers Shawn Evans
October 23, 1986	To New York Rangers Don Jackson Stu Kulak Miloslav Horava Mike Golden	To Edmonton Oilers Reijo Ruotsalainen Jim Wiemer Ville Kentala Clark Donatelli
December 11, 1986	To Vancouver Canucks Cash	To Edmonton Oilers Stu Kulak
December 12, 1986	To Hartford Whalers Dave Semenko	To Edmonton Oilers 3rd round pick in 1988 - Trevor Sim
March 2, 1987	To Minnesota North Stars 2nd round pick in 1988 - Link Gaetz	To Edmonton Oilers Kent Nilsson
March 6, 1987	To Buffalo Sabres Lee Fogolin Mark Napier 4th round pick in 1987 - John Bradley	To Edmonton Oilers Normand Lacombe Wayne Van Dorp 4th round in 1987 - Peter Eriksson
March 9, 1987	To Philadelphia Flyers Jeff Brubaker	To Edmonton Oilers Dom Campedelli
March 10, 1987	To Vancouver Canucks Raimo Summanen	To Edmonton Oilers Moe Lemay
May 14, 1987	To Montreal Canadiens Alfie Turcotte	To Edmonton Oilers Cash

Free Agents

Player Former Team F Tom McMurchy Calgary Flames D Craig Muni Toronto Maple Leafs D Al Tuer Los Angeles Kings F Danny Gare Detroit Red Wings

Player New Team F Simon Wheeldon New York Rangers

Draft Picks

Edmonton's draft picks at the 1986 NHL Entry Draft

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	21	Kim Issel	Canada	Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
2	42	Jamie Nicolls	Canada	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
3	63	Ron Shudra	Canada	Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
4	84	Dan Currie	Canada	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
5	105	David Haas	Canada	London Knights (OHL)
6	126	Jim Ennis	Canada	Boston University (NCAA)
7	147	Ivan Matulik	Czechoslovakia	Bratislava Slovan Harvard (Czech.)
8	168	Nick Beaulieu	Canada	Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
9	189	Mike Greenlay	Canada	Penticton Knights (BCJHL)
10	210	Matt Lanza	United States	Winthrop High School (USHS)
11	231	Mojmir Bozik	Czechoslovakia	HC Kosice (Czech.)
12	252	Tony Hand	United Kingdom	Murrayfield Racers (BHL)

References

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