1987–88 Edmonton Oilers season

1987–88 Edmonton Oilers
1987–88 Edmonton Oilers
Stanley Cup champions
Campbell Conference champions
Division	2nd Smythe
Conference	2nd Campbell
1987–88 record	44–25–11
Home record	28–8–4
Road record	16–17–7
Goals for	363 (2nd)
Goals against	288 (8th)
Team information
General manager	Glen Sather
Coach	Glen Sather
Captain	Wayne Gretzky
Alternate captains	Kevin Lowe; Mark Messier
Arena	Northlands Coliseum
Average attendance	17,503 (100%)
Minor league affiliate(s)	Nova Scotia Oilers (AHL); Milwaukee Admirals (IHL)
Team leaders
Goals	Craig Simpson ; Jari Kurri (43)
Assists	Wayne Gretzky (109)
Points	Wayne Gretzky (149)
Penalty minutes	Steve Smith (286)
Plus/minus	Steve Smith (+40)
Wins	Grant Fuhr (40)
Goals against average	Grant Fuhr (3.43)
	← 1986–87 1988–89 →

The 1987–88 Edmonton Oilers season was the Oilers' 9th season in the NHL, and they were coming off a Stanley Cup championship against the Philadelphia Flyers the previous season, which was their 3rd Stanley Cup in the past 4 seasons. This was the first time since 1980–81 that the Oilers did not win the division, break the 100 point barrier, or lead the NHL in goals.

Wayne Gretzky would lead the team with 149 points (sitting out 16 games with a knee injury), his lowest point total since his rookie season in 1979–80, and the first time since then that he failed to lead the NHL in scoring. Jari Kurri and Craig Simpson, who the Oilers acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins during the season, would lead the team in goals with 43, and Mark Messier would set a career high with 111 points. With Paul Coffey being traded during the season to the Penguins, Steve Smith would step up and lead Oilers defense with 55 points, and have a team record 286 penalty minutes.

In goal, Grant Fuhr would appear in 75 of the 80 Oilers games, winning a career high 40 games and getting 4 shutouts, while posting a 3.43 GAA and becoming the first Oilers goalie to win the Vezina Trophy.

In the playoffs, the Oilers would start off by defeating the Winnipeg Jets in 5 games, and face their Battle of Alberta rivals, the Calgary Flames in the Smythe Division finals. The Flames ended the Oilers streak of 6 straight division titles by finishing 6 points ahead of Edmonton during the season, however the Oilers would quickly sweep Calgary to advance to the Campbell Conference finals, against the Detroit Red Wings. Edmonton would have no problems getting past Detroit, winning the series in 5 games, and face the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Oilers would continue to dominate, sweeping Boston despite having to play 5 games (game 4 was canceled midway through the 3rd period with the score tied at 3 due to a power failure at the Boston Garden) to win their 4th Stanley Cup in 5 years. Grant Fuhr would set an NHL record by winning 16 playoff games, while Wayne Gretzky took home the Conn Smythe Trophy after earning a league high 43 points.

Season standings

Smythe Division
	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Calgary Flames	80	48	23	9	397	305	105
Edmonton Oilers	80	44	25	11	363	288	99
Winnipeg Jets	80	33	36	11	292	310	77
Los Angeles Kings	80	30	42	8	318	359	68
Vancouver Canucks	80	25	46	9	272	320	59

^[1]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.

Schedule and results

1987–88 Game Log

October: 6–5–0 (Home: 3–2–0 ; Road: 3–3–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
1	October 9	Detroit Red Wings	4 – 1	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		0–1–0	0	^[2]
2	October 11	Edmonton Oilers	9 – 2	Los Angeles Kings		Fuhr		1–1–0	2	^[3]
3	October 14	Calgary Flames	5 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		1–2–0	2	^[4]
4	October 16	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 2	Calgary Flames		Fuhr		2–2–0	4	^[5]
5	October 17	Boston Bruins	3 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		3–2–0	6	^[6]
6	October 21	Los Angeles Kings	2 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		4–2–0	8	^[7]
7	October 23	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 4	Vancouver Canucks	OT	Fuhr		5–2–0	10	^[8]
8	October 24	Vancouver Canucks	5 – 9	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		6–2–0	12	^[9]
9	October 27	Edmonton Oilers	0 – 5	Quebec Nordiques		Fuhr		6–3–0	12	^[10]
10	October 28	Edmonton Oilers	1 – 3	Montreal Canadiens		Fuhr		6–4–0	12	^[11]
11	October 31	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 6	New Jersey Devils		Fuhr		6–5–0	12	^[12]

November: 8–3–2 (Home: 5–1–0 ; Road: 3–2–2)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
12	November 1	Edmonton Oilers	7 – 6	New York Rangers		Reaugh		7–5–0	14	^[13]
13	November 4	New York Rangers	2 – 7	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		8–5–0	16	^[14]
14	November 5	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 4	Calgary Flames	OT	Fuhr		8–5–1	17	^[15]
15	November 7	Buffalo Sabres	0 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		9–5–1	19	^[16]
16	November 10	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 4	Los Angeles Kings	OT	Fuhr		9–5–2	20	^[17]
17	November 14	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 5	St. Louis Blues	OT	Fuhr		10–5–2	22	^[18]
18	November 15	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 5	Chicago Blackhawks		Fuhr		10–6–2	22	^[19]
19	November 18	Quebec Nordiques	1 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		11–6–2	24	^[20]
20	November 20	Pittsburgh Penguins	1 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		12–6–2	26	^[21]
21	November 22	Edmonton Oilers	3 – 4	Winnipeg Jets	OT	Fuhr		12–7–2	26	^[22]
22	November 25	New Jersey Devils	8 – 7	Edmonton Oilers	OT	Fuhr		12–8–2	26	^[23]
23	November 27	Chicago Blackhawks	3 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		13–8–2	28	^[24]
24	November 29	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 2	Buffalo Sabres		Fuhr		14–8–2	30	^[25]

December: 9–4–1 (Home: 7–1–1 ; Road: 2–3–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
25	December 1	Edmonton Oilers	2 – 4	Washington Capitals		Fuhr		14–9–2	30	^[26]
26	December 2	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 7	Detroit Red Wings		Fuhr		14–10–2	30	^[27]
27	December 5	Toronto Maple Leafs	2 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		15–10–2	32	^[28]
28	December 6	Minnesota North Stars	4 – 10	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		16–10–2	34	^[29]
29	December 9	Winnipeg Jets	0 – 2	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		17–10–2	36	^[30]
30	December 11	Vancouver Canucks	1 – 2	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		18–10–2	38	^[31]
31	December 12	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 3	Vancouver Canucks		Fuhr		19–10–2	40	^[32]
32	December 16	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 7	Los Angeles Kings		Fuhr		19–11–2	40	^[33]
33	December 18	Winnipeg Jets	5 – 5	Edmonton Oilers	OT	Fuhr		19–11–3	41	^[34]
34	December 19	Hartford Whalers	4 – 3	Edmonton Oilers		Reaugh		19–12–3	41	^[35]
35	December 22	Los Angeles Kings	2 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		20–12–3	43	^[36]
36	December 26	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 4	Calgary Flames		Fuhr		21–12–3	45	^[37]
37	December 28	Vancouver Canucks	3 – 7	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		22–12–3	47	^[38]
38	December 30	Philadelphia Flyers	0 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		23–12–3	49	^[39]

January: 6–5–4 (Home: 4–1–1 ; Road: 2–4–3)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
39	January 2	Edmonton Oilers	0 – 2	Washington Capitals		Fuhr		23–13–3	49	^[40]
40	January 4	Edmonton Oilers	2 – 2	Boston Bruins	OT	Fuhr		23–13–4	50	^[41]
41	January 6	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 1	Hartford Whalers		Fuhr		24–13–4	52	^[42]
42	January 8	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 4	Winnipeg Jets	OT	Fuhr		24–13–5	53	^[43]
43	January 9	New York Islanders	1 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		25–13–5	55	^[44]
44	January 11	Washington Capitals	2 – 3	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		26–13–5	57	^[45]
45	January 13	Calgary Flames	3 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		27–13–5	59	^[46]
46	January 15	Winnipeg Jets	4 – 4	Edmonton Oilers	OT	Fuhr		27–13–6	60	^[47]
47	January 18	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 6	Montreal Canadiens		Fuhr		27–14–6	60	^[48]
48	January 19	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 4	Quebec Nordiques	OT	Fuhr		27–14–7	61	^[49]
49	January 21	Edmonton Oilers	1 – 3	Philadelphia Flyers		Fuhr		27–15–7	61	^[50]
50	January 23	Edmonton Oilers	2 – 3	New York Islanders		Fuhr		27–16–7	61	^[51]
51	January 25	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 4	Pittsburgh Penguins		Fuhr		28–16–7	63	^[52]
52	January 29	Calgary Flames	5 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		28–17–7	63	^[53]
53	January 30	Hartford Whalers	2 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		29–17–7	65	^[54]

February: 6–4–1 (Home: 3–2–1 ; Road: 3–2–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
54	February 3	New Jersey Devils	5 – 8	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		30–17–7	67	^[55]
55	February 6	Edmonton Oilers	2 – 7	Los Angeles Kings		Fuhr		30–18–7	67	^[56]
56	February 11	Edmonton Oilers	7 – 2	Vancouver Canucks		Fuhr		31–18–7	69	^[57]
57	February 12	Boston Bruins	7 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		31–19–7	69	^[58]
58	February 14	Vancouver Canucks	6 – 7	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		32–19–7	71	^[59]
59	February 17	Toronto Maple Leafs	4 – 4	Edmonton Oilers	OT	Fuhr		32–19–8	72	^[60]
60	February 19	Pittsburgh Penguins	3 – 7	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		33–19–8	74	^[61]
61	February 21	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 3	Winnipeg Jets	OT	Fuhr		34–19–8	76	^[62]
62	February 23	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 4	St. Louis Blues		Fuhr		35–19–8	78	^[63]
63	February 24	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 6	Chicago Blackhawks		Fuhr		35–20–8	78	^[64]
64	February 28	Calgary Flames	3 – 2	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		35–21–8	78	^[65]

March: 7–4–3 (Home: 5–1–0 ; Road: 2–3–3)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
65	March 1	Los Angeles Kings	3 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		36–21–8	80	^[66]
66	March 4	Philadelphia Flyers	4 – 7	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		37–21–8	82	^[67]
67	March 5	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 7	Calgary Flames		Fuhr		37–22–8	82	^[68]
68	March 7	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 0	Winnipeg Jets		Fuhr		38–22–8	84	^[69]
69	March 9	Montreal Canadiens	4 – 1	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		38–23–8	84	^[70]
70	March 12	Edmonton Oilers	3 – 3	Vancouver Canucks	OT	Ranford		38–23–9	85	^[71]
71	March 15	Buffalo Sabres	4 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		39–23–9	87	^[72]
72	March 18	Winnipeg Jets	1 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Ranford		40–23–9	89	^[73]
73	March 20	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 5	Minnesota North Stars	OT	Ranford		40–23–10	90	^[74]
74	March 22	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 4	Detroit Red Wings		Fuhr		41–23–10	92	^[75]
75	March 24	Edmonton Oilers	1 – 6	New York Rangers		Fuhr		42–23–10	94	^[76]
76	March 26	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 5	New York Islanders		Fuhr		42–24–10	94	^[77]
77	March 28	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 4	Toronto Maple Leafs		Ranford		43–24–10	96	^[78]
78	March 30	Minnesota North Stars	3 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		44–24–10	98	^[79]

April: 1–0–1 (Home: 1–0–1 ; Road: 0–0–0)
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Pts	Recap
79	April 1	St. Louis Blues	2 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Ranford		44–25–10	98	^[80]
80	April 3	Los Angeles Kings	5 – 5	Edmonton Oilers	OT	Fuhr		44–25–11	99	^[81]

Legend: Win (2 points) Loss (0 points) Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1988 Stanley Cup Playoffs

1988 Smythe Division Semi-final
Edmonton Oilers won series 4–1
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series	Recap
1	April 6	Winnipeg Jets	4 – 7	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		1–0	[1]
2	April 7	Winnipeg Jets	2 – 3	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		2–0	[2]
3	April 9	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 6	Winnipeg Jets		Fuhr		2–1	[3]
4	April 10	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 3	Winnipeg Jets		Fuhr		3–1	[4]
1	April 12	Winnipeg Jets	2 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		4–1	[5]

1988 Smythe Division Final
Edmonton Oilers won series 4–0
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series	Recap
1	April 19	Edmonton Oilers	3 – 1	Calgary Flames		Fuhr		1–0	[6]
2	April 21	Edmonton Oilers	5 – 4	Calgary Flames	OT	Fuhr		2–0	[7]
3	April 23	Calgary Flames	2 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		3–0	[8]
4	April 25	Calgary Flames	4 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		4–0	[9]

1988 Campbell Conference Final
Edmonton Oilers won series 4–1
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series	Recap
1	May 3	Detroit Red Wings	1 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		1–0	[10]
2	May 5	Detroit Red Wings	3 – 5	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		2–0	[11]
3	May 7	Edmonton Oilers	2 – 5	Detroit Red Wings		Fuhr		2–1	[12]
4	May 9	Edmonton Oilers	4 – 3	Detroit Red Wings	OT	Fuhr		3–1	[13]
5	May 11	Detroit Red Wings	4 – 8	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		4–1	[14]

1988 Stanley Cup Final
Edmonton Oilers won series 4–0
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Series	Recap
1	May 18	Boston Bruins	1 – 2	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		1–0	[15]
2	May 20	Boston Bruins	2 – 4	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		2–0	[16]
3	May 22	Edmonton Oilers	6 – 3	Boston Bruins		Fuhr		3–0	[17]
4	May 24	Edmonton Oilers	3 – 3	Boston Bruins		Fuhr		3–0	[18]
5	May 26	Boston Bruins	3 – 6	Edmonton Oilers		Fuhr		4–0	[19]

Season stats

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Wayne Gretzky	64	40	109	149	24
Mark Messier	77	37	74	111	103
Jari Kurri	80	43	53	96	30
Glenn Anderson	80	38	50	88	58
Esa Tikkanen	80	23	51	74	153

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Bill Ranford	6	325	3	0	2	16	0	.899	2.95
Grant Fuhr	75	4304	40	24	9	246	4	.881	3.43
Daryl Reaugh	6	176	1	1	0	14	0	.877	4.77
Warren Skorodenski	3	61	0	0	0	7	0	.720	6.89

Playoff stats

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Wayne Gretzky	19	12	31	43	16
Mark Messier	19	11	23	34	29
Jari Kurri	19	14	17	31	12
Esa Tikkanen	19	10	17	27	72
Glenn Anderson	19	9	16	25	49

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Grant Fuhr	19	1136	16	2	55	0	.883	2.90

Awards and Records

Awards

Records

1,050: A new NHL record for most assists in a career by Wayne Gretzky on Mar 1, 1988.
286: An Oilers record for most penalty minutes in a single season by Steve Smith.

266: A new Oilers record for most penalty minutes in a single season by a defenceman by Steve Smith on ???, 1988.

51: A new NHL record for most career even strength goals in a playoffs by Jari Kurri on ???, 1988.
40: An Oilers record for most wins in a single season by Grant Fuhr.

34: A new Oilers record for most wins in a single season by Grant Fuhr on February 23, 1988.

31: A new NHL record for most assists in a playoffs by Wayne Gretzky on May 26, 1988.

Milestones

Regular Season
Player	Milestone	Reached
Kelly Buchberger	1st NHL Game	October 9, 1987
Jim Ennis	1st NHL Game	October 9, 1987
Glenn Anderson	16th NHL Hat-trick	October 11, 1987
Jim Ennis	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point
John Miner	1st NHL Game 1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point
Jari Kurri	400th NHL Assist	October 14, 1987
Craig Muni	100th NHL Game	October 14, 1987
Glenn Anderson	17th NHL Hat-trick	October 16, 1987
John Miner	1st NHL Goal	October 16, 1987
Normand Lacombe	100th NHL Game	October 17, 1987
Craig MacTavish	200th NHL PIM	October 17, 1987
Charlie Huddy	300th NHL PIM	October 23, 1987
Wayne Gretzky	300th NHL PIM	October 24, 1987
Kevin McClelland	1,000th NHL PIM	October 24, 1987
Grant Fuhr	30th NHL Assist	October 31, 1987
Steve Graves	1st NHL Assist	November 1, 1987
Craig MacTavish	200th NHL Point
Daryl Reaugh	1st NHL Win
Ron Shudra	1st NHL Game
Esa Tikkanen	100th NHL Point
Wayne Gretzky	42nd NHL Hat-trick 1,000th NHL Assist	November 4, 1987
Mike Krushelnyski	300th NHL Point	November 5, 1987
Ron Shudra	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	November 7, 1987
Craig Muni	100th NHL PIM	November 15, 1987
Steve Smith	400th NHL PIM	November 25, 1987
Mike Krushelnyski	400th NHL Game	November 29, 1987
Mark Messier	800th NHL PIM	November 29, 1987
Esa Tikkanen	200th NHL PIM	December 5, 1987
Wayne Gretzky	43rd NHL Hat-trick 4th Five-Goal NHL Game	December 6, 1987
Craig MacTavish	400th NHL Game	December 11, 1987
Marty McSorley	700th NHL PIM 200th NHL Game	December 12, 1987
Mark Messier	600th NHL Game	December 12, 1987
Mark Messier	400th NHL Assist	December 16, 1987
Craig Simpson	2nd NHL Gordie Howe hat trick	December 16, 1987
Wayne Gretzky	1,600th NHL Point	December 22, 1987
Jeff Beukeboom	200th NHL PIM	December 30, 1987
Dave Hannan	300th NHL Game
Jari Kurri	800th NHL Point
Kevin McClelland	1,100th NHL PIM
Scott Metcalfe	1st NHL Game	January 4, 1988
Grant Fuhr	300th NHL Game	January 15, 1988
Mark Messier	700th NHL Point	January 15, 1988
Kelly Buchberger	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point	January 19, 1988
Selmar Odelein	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	January 19, 1988
Dave Hannan	??? NHL Hat-trick	January 25, 1988
Craig Simpson	100th NHL Game	January 29, 1988
Steve Smith	500th NHL PIM	January 30, 1988
Marty McSorley	800th NHL PIM	February 3, 1988
Esa Tikkanen	3rd NHL Hat-trick	February 3, 1988
Dave Hannan	400th NHL PIM	February 12, 1988
Mark Messier	9th NHL Hat-trick	February 14, 1988
Kevin Lowe	700th NHL PIM	February 17, 1988
Jeff Beukeboom	100th NHL Game	February 19, 1988
Steve Dykstra	400th NHL PIM	February 19, 1988
Charlie Huddy	200th NHL Assist	February 21, 1988
Glenn Anderson	18th NHL Hat-trick 2nd Four-Goal NHL Game 2nd NHL Natural Hat-trick	March 4, 1988
Kevin McClelland	1,200th NHL PIM	March 4, 1988
Jeff Beukeboom	300th NHL PIM	March 7, 1988
Kevin McClelland	400th NHL Game	March 7, 1988
Glenn Anderson	500th NHL PIM	March 9, 1988
Geoff Courtnall	??? NHL Hat-trick	March 15, 1988
Mark Messier	300th NHL Goal
Craig Simpson	50th Goal in 71 Games
Mike Krushelynski	300th NHL PIM	March 18, 1988
Craig MacTavish	100th NHL Goal	March 18, 1988
Glenn Anderson	700th NHL Point	March 22, 1988
Steve Smith	600th NHL PIM	March 24, 1988
Keith Acton	400th NHL PIM	March 26, 1988
Glenn Anderson	600th NHL Game	March 30, 1988
Steve Smith	100th NHL Point
Esa Tikkanen	100th NHL Assist
Esa Tikkanen	300th NHL PIM	April 1, 1988
Jari Kurri	600th NHL Game	April 3, 1988

Playoffs
Player	Milestone	Reached
Glenn Anderson	200th NHL PIM 2nd NHL Hat-trick	April 6, 1988
Dave Hannan	1st NHL Game 1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point
Normand Lacombe	1st NHL Game
Kevin Lowe	100th NHL Game
Craig Simpson	1st NHL Game 1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point
Glenn Anderson	100th NHL Game	April 7, 1988
Jari Kurri	100th NHL Game	April 7, 1988
Normand Lacombe	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point	April 9, 1988
Marty McSorley	150th NHL PIM	April 9, 1988
Grant Fuhr	50th NHL Win	April 10, 1988
Kevin McClelland	200th NHL PIM	April 10, 1988
Wayne Gretzky	150th NHL Assist	April 12, 1988
Kevin Lowe	100th NHL PIM	April 12, 1988
Jari Kurri	150th NHL Point	April 21, 1988
Esa Tikkanen	50th NHL PIM	April 21, 1988
Dave Hannan	1st NHL Goal	April 25, 1988
Mark Messier	50th NHL Goal
Steve Smith	100th NHL PIM
Wayne Gretzky	50th NHL PIM	May 7, 1988
Keith Acton	50th NHL PIM	May 9, 1988
Mark Messier	150th NHL Point	May 9, 1988
Grant Fuhr	10th NHL Assist	May 11, 1988
Mike Krushelnyski	50th NHL Point	May 11, 1988
Randy Gregg	100th NHL Game	May 20, 1988
Kevin McClelland	250th NHL PIM	May 20, 1988
Esa Tikkanen	1st NHL Hat-trick	May 22, 1988
Esa Tikkanen	100th NHL PIM 50th NHL Game	May 24, 1988
Wayne Gretzky	250th NHL Point	May 26, 1988

Transactions

Trades

October 19, 1987	To Montreal Canadiens Cash	To Edmonton Oilers Dave Donnelly
November 24, 1987	To Pittsburgh Penguins Paul Coffey Dave Hunter Wayne Van Dorp	To Edmonton Oilers Moe Mantha Dave Hannan Craig Simpson Chris Joseph
January 22, 1988	To Minnesota North Stars Moe Mantha	To Edmonton Oilers Keith Acton
February 11, 1988	To Buffalo Sabres Scott Metcalfe 9th round pick in 1989 - Donald Audette	To Edmonton Oilers Steve Dykstra 7th round pick in 1989 - Davis Payne
March 8, 1988	To Boston Bruins Andy Moog Moe Lemay	To Edmonton Oilers Bill Ranford Geoff Courtnall Alan May 2nd round pick in 1988 - Petro Koivunen

Free agents

Player	Former Team
F Gary Emmons	New York Rangers
G Warren Skorodenski	Chicago Blackhawks

Player	New Team
F Murray Eaves	Detroit Red Wings
F Don Biggs	Philadelphia Flyers
D Jim Playfair	Chicago Blackhawks

Draft picks

Edmonton's draft picks at the 1987 NHL Entry Draft

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	21	Peter Soberlak	Canada	Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
2	42	Brad Werenka	Canada	Northern Michigan Wildcats (WCHA)
3	63	Geoff Smith	Canada	St. Albert Saints (AJHL)
4	64	Peter Eriksson	Sweden	HV71 (Elitserien)
5	105	Shaun Van Allen	Canada	Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
6	126	Radek Toupal	Czechoslovakia	České Budějovice (Czechoslovak Extraliga)
7	147	Tomas Srsen	Czechoslovakia	TJ Zetor Brno (Czechoslovak Extraliga)
8	168	Age Ellingsen	Norway	Storhamar Dragons (Norwegian 1. Divisjon)
9	189	Gavin Armstrong	Canada	RPI Engineers (ECAC)
10	210	Mike Tinkham	United States	Newburyport High School (USHS)
11	231	Jeff Pauletti	Canada	Minnesota Golden Gophers (WCHA)
12	241	Jesper Duus	Denmark	Rødovre Mighty Bulls (Danish Eliteserien)
12	252	Igor Vyazmikin	Soviet Union	CSKA Moscow (Soviet League)

Roster

Goaltenders

Defensemen

2 – Jim Ennis
2 – Chris Joseph
4 – Kevin Lowe
5 – Steve Smith
6 – Jeff Beukeboom
8 – John Miner
20 – Steve Dykstra
20 – Moe Mantha
21 – Randy Gregg
22 – Charlie Huddy
27 – Ron Shudra
28 – Craig Muni
32 – Jim Wiemer
36 – Selmar Odelein

Wingers

Centres

11 – Mark Messier
12 – Dave Hannan
14 – Craig MacTavish
18 – Mark Lamb
23 – Keith Acton
24 – Dave Donnelly
99 – Wayne Gretzky - C

GM: Glen Sather
Coach: Glen Sather

v t e Edmonton Oilers
Formerly the Alberta Oilers Founded in 1972 Based in Edmonton, Alberta
Franchise	Team General managers Coaches Players NHL WHA Captains Draft picks 1979 expansion expansion draft Seasons Current season
History	History NHL–WHA merger Records Award winners Retired numbers Broadcasters
Personnel	Owner(s) OEG Inc. (Daryl Katz, chairman) General manager Stan Bowman Head coach Kris Knoblauch Team captain Connor McDavid Current roster
Arenas	Edmonton Gardens Northlands Coliseum Rogers Place
Rivalries	Calgary Flames Los Angeles Kings
Affiliates	AHL Bakersfield Condors ECHL Fort Wayne Komets
Media	TV City Sportsnet West Radio 630 CHED
Culture and lore	Miracle on Manchester The night the lights went out in Massachusetts Blue Mile Edmonton Investors Group Mark Lewis Paul Lorieau Joey Moss Rod Phillips Oilogosphere Oil Change 2003 Heritage Classic 2016 Heritage Classic 2023 Heritage Classic "La Bamba"
Category Commons

v t e Edmonton Oilers seasons
1970s	1970–71 . 1971–72 . 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80
1980s	1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90
1990s	1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00
2000s	2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10
2010s	2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20
2020s	2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Highlighted seasons indicate Stanley Cup championship

v t e 1987–88 NHL season
Patrick	New Jersey NY Islanders NY Rangers Philadelphia Pittsburgh Washington
Adams	Boston Buffalo Hartford Montreal Quebec
Norris	Chicago Detroit Minnesota St. Louis Toronto
Smythe	Calgary Edmonton Los Angeles Vancouver Winnipeg
See also	Entry draft Supplemental draft Waiver draft All-Star Game Stanley Cup playoffs Stanley Cup Finals

1987–88 Edmonton Oilers season

Season standings

Schedule and results

Playoffs

Season stats

Scoring leaders

Goaltending

Playoff stats

Scoring leaders

Goaltending

Awards and Records

Awards

Records

Milestones

Transactions

Trades

Free agents

Draft picks

Roster

References

Further reading