Revisiting Edmonton Oilers' Disastrous 1990 Draft – Hockey Writers – Oilers History
In June 1990, the Edmonton Oilers were on top of the world. They had just won their fifth Stanley Cup in seven years, after defeating the Boston Bruins 4-1 in the best-of-seven championship series. Goaltender Bill Ranford received the Conn Smythe Trophy, and captain Mark Messier was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy.
Life was good, maybe too good, because during all their celebration, the Oilers apparently forgot about the NHL Entry Draft. How else can you explain what happened at BC Place in Vancouver on June 16, 1990, when Edmonton general manager Glen Sather selected 11 players, from Scott Allison at No. 17 to Sami Nuttinen at No. 248, none of whom played a single game of the NHL.
Worst writing ever. Except for the last four drafts (2017-2020), only three times has a team not had one pick reach the NHL, and, in each case, the team made fewer picks than the Oilers in 1990 and didn't have a pick as high: 2003 Phoenix Coyotes – eight picks, highest at No. 77; 2007 Vancouver Canucks – six picks, as high as No. 25; 2008 Montreal Canadiens – five picks, highest at No. 56.
To make matters worse, the 1990 Draft is considered one of the NHL's deepest; one in six players selected (42 of 252) played at least 400 career games, including 15 who surpassed 1,000. Seventeen players have appeared in the All-Star Game or been named to the All-Star Team at least once.
Edmonton options
| The player | Cycle/No | Position | The Amateur Club |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scott Allison | 1/17 | C | Prince Albert Raiders (WHL) |
| Alexandre Legault | 2/38 | RW | Boston University (Hockey East) |
| Joe Crowley | 3/59 | LW | Lawrence Academy (US high school) |
| Joel Blain | 4/67 | LW | Hull Olympiques (QMJHL) |
| Greg Louder | 5/101 | G | Cushing Academy (US high school) |
| Keijo Sailynoja | 6/122 | LW | Jokerit (Finland) |
| Mike Amandla | 7/143 | G | Western Michigan (CCHA) |
| Roman Mejzlik | 8/164 | LW/C | Dukla Jihlava (Czechoslovakia) |
| Richard Zemlicka | 9/185 | LW/RW | Sparta Praha (Czechoslovakia) |
| Petr Korinek | 10/206 | C | Skoda Plzen (Czechoslovakia) |
| Sami Nuutinen | 12/248 | D | Espoo (Finland) |
Coming off a season in which he ranked fifth in points with the WHL's Prince Albert Raiders, Scott Allison was considered worthy of a first-round pick by the Oilers, who may have been hurt by the forward's size (he had just turned 18 and was already there. six-foot-four and about six pounds -200).
Allison had the most successful professional career of Edmonton's 1990 draft class, but that's not saying much. He spent four seasons (1992-93 to 1995-96) in the AHL and one in the IHL (1996-97) before heading overseas and spending several years in the British Ice Hockey Super League. He was even named as a Second Team BISL All-Star in 2002. He played one more season in North America, with the Wichita Thunder of the CHL in 2004-05, before calling it quits.
Neither Edmonton's second nor fourth pick, Alexandre Legault and Joel Blain, played at a higher level than the ECHL and came out of pro hockey in 1994 and 1993, respectively. Third-round pick Joe Crowley played 107 games over three seasons in the IHL, but that was after the Oilers traded him to the Chicago Blackhawks for top prospect Justin Lafayette in October 1992. Lafayette spent that season in the ECHL. then he retired.
With their fifth and seventh round picks, the Oilers selected goaltenders Greg Louder and Mike Power. The former played one pro season, making eight appearances between the AHL and ECHL in 1994-95, while the former qualified for 10 games over two seasons in the Sunshine Hockey League, a “Class A level-league loop” in Florida. Louder and Power both retired from hockey in 1996.
Edmonton used their picks in rounds six, eight, nine, 10 and 12 on European players who were overseas. Crossing the pond was not as common three decades ago as it is now, and indeed, none of the five players selected had ever shot in North America. However, they all had long careers on their side of the Atlantic, and Keijo Sailynoja (Finland) and Richard Zemlicka (Czechoslovakia) both competed at the 1992 Winter Olympics.
Who Could Be The Oilers?
Along with 17th pick, the Oilers passed 500-point club member and 1,000-point forward Keith Tkachuk (picked 19th), and the NHL's all-time leader in goals in games, wins and shutouts, Hockey Hall-of-Famer Martin Brodeur (20th). They could also take two-time All-Star goaltender Felix Potvin at No. 31, four-time All-Star center Doug Weight (later an Oilers standout after Edmonton acquired him from the New York Rangers in 1993) at No. 34, and two-time All-Star Geoff Sanderson (who played his final NHL season with the Oilers in 2007-08) at No. 36.
Mikael Renberg (40th), who became a member of the Philadelphia Flyers' iconic “Legion of Doom” line, was acquired when Edmonton selected in the second round. So is the scorer of 11 goals, Slava Kozlov (the 45).th overall pick), who won two Stanley Cups with the Detroit Red Wings.
Edmonton had four chances to draft nine-time 20-goal scorer Alexei Zhamnov, taken No. 77 and could have used any of his first four goals to knock down Hall-of-Fame defenseman Sergei Zubov (81). Zubov returned to haunt the Oilers by helping the Dallas Stars to five consecutive playoff appearances from 1998 to 2001 and 2003.
Goaltender Roman Turek, a 2000 NHL All-Star Second Team and two-time recipient of the William Jennings Trophy, was selected 113.th12 picks after Edmonton selected Louder who is a network producer. Forward Craig Conroy, who played more than 1,000 games and served as NHL captain with the Calgary Flames, was taken 123.rdshortly after the Oilers selected Sailinoja at No. 122.
You may also like:
Five-time All-Star and 500-goal scorer Peter Bondra came in at No. 156 after the Oilers had already made seven trips to the podium. They also had several cracks at All-Stars Jaroslav Modry (pick No. 179) and Espen Knutsen (204). The list goes on, but I think you get the picture.
Where Are They Now?
None are involved in hockey, although the North Americans drafted by the Oilers have found success in business. Allison is a real estate agent in Dartmouth, NS, Legault is a vice president at Allard, Allard & Associés portfolio managers in Montreal, Louder is a direct sales specialist in Maine, and Power is a business development officer at Viecure in Denver.
“I met Paul Coffey the other day and he said 'Geez, what happened to you?' I said I never really got the chance. I played in three or four exhibition games in six camps. I had no one to pull me.”
– Scott Allison (from 'Oilers fans still freak out when they think about the 1990 draft', The Edmonton Journal6/21/10)
European draftees stay in sports. Petr Korinek is the head coach in the Czech U17 league, Roman Mejzlik is a youth coach in the Czech Republic, and Nuutinen is a regional coach with the Finnish Hockey Association, while Zemlicka coaches with the Czech club Sparta Praha. Sailynoja was the chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Players' Association, served as the CEO of the famous Hartwell Arena in Helsinki, and recently became the CEO of the Finnish Volleyball Association.
The result
While 1990 is the worst example, the Oilers had started the draft for years. Of their eight first-round picks between 1983 and 1990, only one player played more than 19 NHL games. Three of Edmonton's four first-round picks between 1987 and 1990 never even made it to the NHL.
Even as the pillars of their dynasty left town one by one, the Oilers had a deep playoff run in 1991 and 1992, until the bottom fell out completely. Without a prospect pool to replace their departed stars, the Oilers fell to the bottom of the standings in 1993 and did not return to the playoffs until 1997.
Source link
