1998–99 Edmonton Oilers season – Wikipedia

NHL team season

The 1998–99 Edmonton Oilers season was the Oilers’ 20th season in the NHL, and they were coming off a 35–37–10 record in 1997–98, earning their 2nd straight playoff appearance.

During the off-season, the Oilers franchise remaining in Edmonton looked very unlikely, as Oilers owner Peter Pocklington would be talking to a group from Houston which, if successful in the purchase, would relocate the club to Houston. At the last minute, the Edmonton Investors Group, a consortium of 37 Edmonton-based owners, raised the funds to purchase the team from Pocklington, vowing to keep the Oilers in Edmonton. The Oilers received support throughout the NHL, and the club would remain.

Also during the off-season, the Oilers would lose goaltender Curtis Joseph, as he would leave the team as a free agent and join the Toronto Maple Leafs, leaving the goaltending duties to Bob Essensa and former Mighty Ducks of Anaheim backup Mikhail Shtalenkov, and Edmonton would join the newly created Northwest Division, along with their Western Canada rivals the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks, as well as the Colorado Avalanche.

Edmonton would start the season with a 7–4–0 record in their opening 11 games, and would remain close to the .500 mark until early February, despite losing Doug Weight to injuries. Edmonton would then go into a slump, and would drop out of a playoff spot, and on March 17, the Oilers would be 25–33–10, sitting in ninth place. Three days later, the Oilers would send Mats Lindgren and an eighth-round draft pick to the New York Islanders in exchange for goaltender Tommy Salo. Edmonton would also deal Boris Mironov and Dean McAmmond to the Chicago Blackhawks for youngsters Ethan Moreau, Christian Laflamme and Chad Kilger, and acquire Jason Smith from the Toronto Maple Leafs for a fourth-round draft pick on March 23.

The moves paid off for the Oilers, as they would post an 8–4–2 record after the Salo deal and sneak into the final playoff position, finishing the season with a 33–37–12 record. On April 3, 1999, Patrick Roy defeated the Edmonton Oilers and passed Glenn Hall with his 408th victory.^[1]

Offensively, Bill Guerin would be Edmonton’s leader, scoring a team high 30 goals and 34 assists for 64 points. Josef Beranek would earn 49 points, while Mike Grier would have a breakout season, scoring 20 goals and earning 44 points. Doug Weight would register 37 points in only 43 games. Defensively, Boris Mironov would lead blueline with 40 points, but was dealt to Chicago at the trade deadline. Roman Hamrlik chipped in with 32 points, while Janne Niinimaa would earn 28. Sean Brown would have a team high 188 penalty minutes in only 51 games.

In goal, Bob Essensa and Mikhail Shtalenkov would split time for a majority of the season, each earning 12 victories. Shtalenkov would then be traded to the Phoenix Coyotes, and the Oilers would acquire Tommy Salo to become the new starter, and in 13 games, Salo would go 8–2–2 with a 2.31 goals against average (GAA).

The Oilers lead the NHL in power-play opportunities, with 438.^[2]

The Oilers opened the playoffs against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Dallas Stars, who had finished the year with 114 points, 36 higher than the Oilers. Edmonton found themselves down in the series 2–0 after dropping two close games in Dallas. The Stars quickly eliminated the Oilers, winning the next two games in Edmonton by 3–2 scores to sweep the series. The Stars continued on to win the Stanley Cup.

Season standings[edit]

Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific, NW – Northwest

bold – Qualified for playoffs; p – Won Presidents’ Trophy; y – Won division

Schedule and results[edit]

1998–99 Game Log
November: 7–5–1 (Home: 3–3–0 ; Road: 4–2–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 10 November 2 Vancouver Canucks 3 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 15,260 6–4–0 12 [14] 11 November 4 Nashville Predators 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 14,054 7–4–0 14 [15] 12 November 6 Colorado Avalanche 5 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 17,100 7–5–0 14 [16] 13 November 8 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Chicago Blackhawks OT Shtalenkov 16,395 8–5–0 16 [17] 14 November 11 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Toronto Maple Leafs Shtalenkov 15,726 8–6–0 16 [18] 15 November 12 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 1 Ottawa Senators OT Essensa 14,680 8–6–1 17 [19] 16 November 14 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Montreal Canadiens Shtalenkov 20,341 9–6–1 19 [20] 17 November 18 Detroit Red Wings 6 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 17,100 9–7–1 19 [21] 18 November 20 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim OT Shtalenkov 16,367 10–7–1 21 [22] 19 November 21 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Phoenix Coyotes OT Shtalenkov 16,210 10–8–1 21 [23] 20 November 25 Colorado Avalanche 0 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 15,499 11–8–1 23 [24] 21 November 27 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Calgary Flames Shtalenkov 17,104 12–8–1 25 [25] 22 November 29 Chicago Blackhawks 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 15,515 12–9–1 25 [26]
December: 3–8–2 (Home: 2–4–0 ; Road: 1–4–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 23 December 2 Phoenix Coyotes 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 14,281 13–9–1 27 [27] 24 December 4 Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 15,303 13–10–1 27 [28] 25 December 6 Dallas Stars 6 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 16,458 13–11–1 27 [29] 26 December 8 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 Nashville Predators OT Shtalenkov 14,529 13–11–2 28 [30] 27 December 9 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 3 Chicago Blackhawks Shtalenkov 15,546 13–12–2 28 [31] 28 December 11 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Detroit Red Wings Essensa 19,983 13–13–2 28 [32] 29 December 13 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 2 Philadelphia Flyers OT Shtalenkov 19,513 13–13–3 29 [33] 30 December 15 Edmonton Oilers 0 – 3 Carolina Hurricanes Shtalenkov 5,684 13–14–3 29 [34] 31 December 18 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Tampa Bay Lightning Essensa 10,289 14–14–3 31 [35] 32 December 19 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 3 Florida Panthers Shtalankov 17,953 14–15–3 31 [36] 33 December 23 San Jose Sharks 5 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 16,350 14–16–3 31 [37] 34 December 27 Vancouver Canucks 0 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 17,100 15–16–3 33 [38] 35 December 29 Montreal Canadiens 5 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 17,100 15–17–3 33 [39]
January: 4–3–4 (Home: 2–2–2 ; Road: 2–1–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 36 January 3 Philadelphia Flyers 3 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Shtalenkov 17,100 15–17–4 34 [40] 37 January 5 Los Angeles Kings 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Shtalenkov 14,370 15–18–4 34 [41] 38 January 7 Edmonton Oilers 7 – 1 Phoenix Coyotes Essensa 15,102 16–18–4 36 [42] 39 January 9 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 1 Los Angeles Kings OT Essensa 14,936 16–18–5 37 [43] 40 January 10 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 6 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Shtalenkov 17,174 16–19–5 37 [44] 41 January 12 Dallas Stars 2 – 2 Edmonton Oilers OT Essensa 16,201 16–19–6 38 [45] 42 January 14 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 1 Vancouver Canucks Essensa 15,910 17–19–6 40 [46] 43 January 17 Detroit Red Wings 1 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 17,100 18–19–6 42 [47] 44 January 21 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 3 San Jose Sharks OT Essensa 17,483 18–19–7 43 [48] 45 January 27 Chicago Blackhawks 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Essensa 16,281 18–20–7 43 [49] 46 January 30 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 0 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 17,100 19–20–7 45 [50]
February: 4–8–2 (Home: 2–4–2 ; Road: 2–4–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 47 February 1 St. Louis Blues 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Shtalenkov 14,021 19–21–7 45 [51] 48 February 3 Ottawa Senators 2 – 2 Edmonton Oilers OT Essensa 14,487 19–21–8 46 [52] 49 February 5 Nashville Predators 2 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 15,552 20–21–8 48 [53] 50 February 8 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 2 Calgary Flames Essensa 16,842 20–22–8 48 [54] 51 February 9 Boston Bruins 2 – 0 Edmonton Oilers Shtalenkov 16,173 20–23–8 48 [55] 52 February 11 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 4 Detroit Red Wings Essensa 19,983 20–24–8 48 [56] 53 February 13 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 St. Louis Blues Essensa 20,209 21–24–8 50 [57] 54 February 15 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 4 Dallas Stars Essensa 16,928 21–25–8 50 [58] 55 February 17 Edmonton Oilers 6 – 2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Shtalenkov 14,540 22–25–8 52 [59] 56 February 18 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Los Angeles Kings Shtalenkov 11,287 22–26–8 52 [60] 57 February 21 New York Rangers 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers OT Essensa 17,100 22–27–8 52 [61] 58 February 24 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Passmore 16,001 22–28–8 52 [62] 59 February 26 Buffalo Sabres 3 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 17,100 23–28–8 54 [63] 60 February 27 Carolina Hurricanes 2 – 2 Edmonton Oilers OT Passmore 17,100 23–28–9 55 [64]
March: 5–7–2 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 61 March 1 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 3 Colorado Avalanche Essensa 16,061 24–28–9 57 [65] 62 March 3 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 3 Buffalo Sabres Passmore 18,595 25–28–9 59 [66] 63 March 5 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 2 Pittsburgh Penguins OT Essnesa 15,688 25–28–10 60 [67] 64 March 6 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 4 Washington Capitals Passmore 19,740 25–29–10 60 [68] 65 March 10 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 7 Dallas Stars Shtalenkov 16,928 25–30–10 60 [69] 66 March 13 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 6 St. Louis Blues Essensa 18,071 25–31–10 60 [70] 67 March 14 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 3 Nashville Predators Passmore 16,148 25–32–10 60 [71] 68 March 17 New Jersey Devils 4 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Passmore 15,581 25–33–10 60 [72] 69 March 20 Vancouver Canucks 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 26–33–10 62 [73] 70 March 22 Calgary Flames 2 – 2 Edmonton Oilers OT Salo 17,100 26–33–11 63 [74] 71 March 24 Montreal Canadiens 2 – 0 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 26–34–11 63 [75] 72 March 26 St. Louis Blues 1 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Salo 16,318 27–34–11 65 [76] 73 March 28 San Jose Sharks 2 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Salo 16,512 28–34–11 67 [77] 74 March 30 Phoenix Coyotes 7 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Essensa 17,100 28–35–11 67 [78]
April: 5–2–1 (Home: 3–1–0 ; Road: 2–1–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 75 April 1 Toronto Maple Leafs 5 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 28–36–11 67 [79] 76 April 3 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 5 Colorado Avalanche Essensa 16,061 28–37–11 67 [80] 77 April 7 Calgary Flames 2 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 29–37–11 69 [81] 78 April 9 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Calgary Flames Salo 17,104 30–37–11 71 [82] 79 April 10 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 1 Vancouver Canucks OT Salo 16,217 30–37–12 72 [83] 80 April 12 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 4 San Jose Sharks OT Salo 17,483 31–37–12 74 [84] 81 April 16 Colorado Avalanche 1 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 32–37–12 76 [85] 82 April 17 Calgary Flames 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 33–37–12 78 [86] Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs[edit]

1999 Stanley Cup playoffs
1999 Western Conference Quarterfinals Dallas Stars won series 4–0 # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 April 21 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 2 Dallas Stars Salo 17,001 0–1 [87] 2 April 23 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Dallas Stars Salo 17,001 0–2 [88] 3 April 25 Dallas Stars 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Salo 17,100 0–3 [89] 4 April 27 Dallas Stars 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers 3OT Salo 17,100 0–4 [90]

Season stats[edit]

Scoring leaders[edit]

Goaltending[edit]

Playoff stats[edit]

Scoring leaders[edit]

Goaltending[edit]

Player	GP	Min	W	L	GA	SO	Save %	GAA
Tommy Salo	4	296	0	4	11	0	.926	2.23

Awards and records[edit]

Awards[edit]

Milestones[edit]

Regular Season
Player	Milestone	Reached
Fredrik Bremberg	1st NHL Game	October 10, 1998
Tom Poti
Ryan Smyth	200th NHL Game	October 17, 1998
Andrei Kovalenko	400th NHL Game	October 21, 1998
Mike Grier	1st NHL Gordie Howe hat trick	October 24, 1998
Sean Brown	100th NHL PIM	October 31, 1998
Craig Millar	1st NHL Assist
Andrei Kovalenko	300th NHL PIM	November 8, 1998
Todd Marchant	300th NHL Game	November 12, 1998
Tom Poti	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point	November 18, 1998
Kelly Buchberger	1,700th NHL PIM	November 25, 1998
Tom Poti	1st NHL Assist	November 29, 1998
Josef Beranek	100th NHL Assist	December 6, 1998
Bill Guerin	600th NHL PIM	December 23, 1998
Marty McSorley	900th NHL Game
Boris Mironov	500th NHL PIM	January 3, 1999
Georges Laraque	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point	January 7, 1999
Todd Reirden	1st NHL Game
Todd Reirden	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	January 19, 1999
Janne Niinimaa	100th NHL Point	January 14, 1999
Georges Laraque	1st NHL Assist	January 17, 1999
Janne Niinimaa	200th NHL Game	February 1, 1999
Josef Beranek	200th NHL Point	February 3, 1999
Mike Grier	200th NHL Game	February 17, 1999
Alexander Selivanov	1st NHL Hat-trick
Dean McAmmond	100th NHL Assist	February 21, 1999
Dan LaCouture	1st NHL Game	February 24, 1999
Georges Laraque	100th NHL PIM
Steve Passmore	1st NHL Game
Sean Brown	200th NHL PIM	February 26, 1999
Dean McAmmond	300th NHL Game	February 27, 1999
Ryan Smyth	200th NHL PIM
Rem Murray	200th NHL Game	March 1, 1999
Steve Passmore	1st NHL Win	March 3, 1999
Steve Passmore	1st NHL Assist	March 17, 1999
Mike Grier	1st NHL Hat-trick	March 20, 1999
Marty McSorley	3,300th NHL PIM
Janne Niinimaa	200th NHL PIM
Pat Falloon	500th NHL Game	March 22, 1999
Bill Guerin	300th NHL Point
Janne Niinimaa	100th NHL Assist	March 28, 1999
Chad Kilger	200th NHL Game	March 30, 1999
Bill Guerin	500th NHL Game	April 12, 1999
Tommy Salo	200th NHL Game	April 17, 1999

Transactions[edit]

Trades[edit]

June 16, 1998	To Pittsburgh Penguins Bobby Dollas Tony Hrkac	To Edmonton Oilers Josef Beranek
June 18, 1998	To New York Islanders Mike Watt	To Edmonton Oilers Éric Fichaud
June 27, 1998	To New Jersey Devils 3rd round pick in 1998 (Brian Gionta)	To Edmonton Oilers Fredrik Bremberg 4th round pick in 1998 5th round pick in 1998
October 1, 1998	To Nashville Predators Drake Berehowsky Greg de Vries Eric Fichaud	To Edmonton Oilers Jim Dowd Mikhail Shtalenkov
October 5, 1998	To Philadelphia Flyers Valeri Zelepukin	To Edmonton Oilers Daniel Lacroix
January 29, 1999	To Philadelphia Flyers Andrei Kovalenko	To Edmonton Oilers Alexandre Daigle
January 29, 1999	To Tampa Bay Lightning Alexandre Daigle	To Edmonton Oilers Alexander Selivanov
February 3, 1999	To Washington Capitals Barrie Moore	To Edmonton Oilers Brad Church
March 11, 1999	To Phoenix Coyotes Mikhail Shtalenkov	To Edmonton Oilers 5th round pick in 2000
March 20, 1999	To Chicago Blackhawks Boris Mironov Dean McAmmond Jonas Elofsson 2nd round pick in 1999	To Edmonton Oilers Ethan Moreau Chad Kilger Christian Laflamme Daniel Cleary 2nd round pick in 1999
March 20, 1999	To New York Islanders Mats Lindgren 8th round pick in 1999	To Edmonton Oilers Tommy Salo
March 23, 1999	To New York Rangers Kevin Brown	To Edmonton Oilers Vladimir Vorobiev
March 23, 1999	To Toronto Maple Leafs 4th round pick in 1999 2nd round pick in 2000	To Edmonton Oilers Jason Smith

Free agents[edit]

Draft picks[edit]

Edmonton’s draft picks at the 1998 NHL Entry Draft

References[edit]

• Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Kingston, New York: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
• Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
• Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
• Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.

Notes