The Edmonton Oilers have enjoyed some epic regular seasons, with six of the top seven spearheaded by Wayne Gretzky.
That’s about as unsurprising as seeing Connor McDavid near or at the top of the Art Ross Trophy hockey odds leaderboard.
Speaking of McDavid, he led the charge the only time Gretzky didn’t.
Three of the Oilers’ seven best regular seasons culminated in Stanley Cup wins, and they reached the final in one of the other four.
Let’s explore what made those seven regular seasons so special, with No. 99 featuring heavily.
Best Teams in Edmonton Oilers History
7. 1986-87 (50-24-6), 106 points
Finishing six points ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers, the 1986-87 Oilers won the Presidents’ Trophy. They played those same Flyers in the Stanley Cup Final, winning in a seven-game extravaganza.
Gretzky won the Art Ross Trophy with 183 points (62 goals, 121 assists), 75 points ahead of teammate Jari Kurri.
6. 1982-83 (47-21-12), 106 points
The Oilers finished the 1982-83 season tied with the Flyers for second place, four points behind the Boston Bruins.
They boasted the most explosive offence, scoring 5.30 goals per game, 0.92 more than the Montreal Canadiens, the second-most prolific team.
The season culminated in their first Stanley Cup Final, where they lost to the New York Islanders, who completed the four-peat.
5. 2022-23 (50-23-9), 109 points
The Oilers’ fifth-best regular season was only good enough for a share of sixth place in the 2022-23 standings with the Colorado Avalanche.
The Oilers scored the most goals per game (3.96), but ranked 16th in defence, conceding 3.12 per game. With 153 points, McDavid won the Art Ross Trophy.
The Oilers lost in the second round of the playoffs to the eventual champions, the Vegas Golden Knights.
4. 1984-85 (49-20-11), 109 points
The Flyers flexed their regular-season muscles in 1984-85, finishing four points ahead of the Oilers to win the Presidents’ Trophy.
However, the Oilers enjoyed the last laugh, beating the Flyers in the Stanley Cup Final in five games. It was the first of two final victories over the Flyers in three seasons.
Gretzky had 208 points (73 goals, 135 assists), his third-best scoring season, again finishing ahead of Kurri to win the Art Ross, this time by 73 points.
3. 1981-82 (48-27-15), 111 points
The Oilers’ 111 points were good for second place, seven points behind the eventual champion Islanders.
It marked the start of the Oilers’ ascendancy, as they finished 37 points better off than the previous campaign, Gretzky’s sophomore season.
The playoffs didn’t go as planned, losing in the first round to the sizable underdog Los Angeles Kings.
2. 1985-86 (56-17-7), 119 points
The Oilers finished with 119 points twice, in 1985-86 and in 1983-84. They won the Presidents’ Trophy in the 1985-86 season, nine points clear of the second-place Flyers.
On the back of Gretzky’s best regular season, in which he scored a record 215 points (52 goals, 163 assists), the Oilers entered the postseason as the formidable Stanley Cup odds favourites.
The Calgary Flames upset the Oilers in the second round in one of the NHL’s most memorable seven-game series, with the Montreal Canadiens beating the Flames to win the Cup.
1. 1983-84 (57-18-5), 119 points
The 1983-84 campaign featured the most wins in franchise history, and it ended with the first of five Stanley Cups.
They won the Presidents’ Trophy and were the cream of the NHL crop, finishing 15 points ahead of the Islanders, whom they beat in the final.
The Oilers scored 5.58 goals per game, 1.08 more than the Quebec Nordiques’ second-best offence.
Did I mention that Gretzky won the Art Ross?
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