2008–09 Edmonton Oilers season

The 2008–09 Edmonton Oilers season was the team's 37th season of play, 30th as a member of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nonetheless, the Oilers celebrated their 30th anniversary.

2008–09 Edmonton Oilers
Division	4th Northwest
Conference	11th Western
2008–09 record	38–35–9
Home record	18–17–6
Road record	20–18–3
Goals for	234
Goals against	248
Team information
General manager	Steve Tambellini
Coach	Craig MacTavish
Captain	Ethan Moreau
Alternate captains	Ales Hemsky Shawn Horcoff Sheldon Souray Steve Staios
Arena	Rexall Place
Average attendance	16,839 (100%)
Minor league affiliate(s)	Springfield Falcons (AHL) Stockton Thunder (ECHL)
Team leaders
Goals	Ales Hemsky (23) Sheldon Souray (23)
Assists	Ales Hemsky (43)
Points	Ales Hemsky (66)
Penalty minutes	Zack Stortini (181)
Plus/minus	Denis Grebeshkov (+12)
Wins	Dwayne Roloson (28)
Goals against average	Dwayne Roloson (2.77)
← 2007–08 2009–10 →

Pre-season

• The NHL Board of Governors on June 18 approved the sale of the Edmonton Oilers. All 34 members of the Edmonton Investors Group agreed in February to sell the club for $200 million to Rexall pharmacy magnate Daryl Katz. The new owner has promised to keep the team in Edmonton and pursue getting a new arena to replace Rexall Place.^[1]
• On July 31, the Edmonton Oilers promoted Kevin Lowe to become president of hockey operations. They also announced that they have hired Steve Tambellini as their new general manager, and had also moved Kevin Prendergast, who was the vice-president of hockey operations, and named him the new assistant general manager.
• On Friday August 8, the Edmonton Oilers announced that Rick Olczyk has been promoted to the position of assistant general manager and director of hockey operations/legal affairs.

Regular season

Divisional standings

Northwest Division

		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	y – Vancouver Canucks	82	45	27	10	246	220	100
2	Calgary Flames	82	46	30	6	254	248	98
3	Minnesota Wild	82	40	33	9	219	200	89
4	Edmonton Oilers	82	38	35	9	234	248	85
5	Colorado Avalanche	82	32	45	5	199	257	69

Conference standings

Western Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	p – San Jose Sharks	PA	82	53	18	11	257	204	117
2	y – Detroit Red Wings	CE	82	51	21	10	295	244	112
3	y – Vancouver Canucks	NW	82	45	27	10	246	220	100
4	Chicago Blackhawks	CE	82	46	24	12	264	216	104
5	Calgary Flames	NW	82	46	30	6	254	248	98
6	St. Louis Blues	CE	82	41	31	10	233	233	92
7	Columbus Blue Jackets	CE	82	41	31	10	226	230	92
8	Anaheim Ducks	PA	82	42	33	7	245	238	91
8.5
9	Minnesota Wild	NW	82	40	33	9	219	200	89
10	Nashville Predators	CE	82	40	34	8	213	233	88
11	Edmonton Oilers	NW	82	38	35	9	234	248	85
12	Dallas Stars	PA	82	36	35	11	230	257	83
13	Phoenix Coyotes	PA	82	36	39	7	208	252	79
14	Los Angeles Kings	PA	82	34	37	11	207	234	79
15	Colorado Avalanche	NW	82	32	45	5	199	257	69

bold – qualified for playoffs, y – division winner, p – Presidents' Trophy winner
CE – Central Division, NW – Northwest Division, PA – Pacific Division

Schedule and results

2008–09 Game Log
October: 4–4–1 (Home: 2–0–1 ; Road: 2–4–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 12 Colorado Avalanche 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 1–0–0 2 2 October 15 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Anaheim Ducks Garon 16,604 2–0–0 4 3 October 17 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 3 Calgary Flames Deslauriers 19,289 3–0–0 6 4 October 18 Calgary Flames 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 4–0–0 8 5 October 22 Edmonton Oilers 0 – 3 Chicago Blackhawks Roloson 21,168 4–1–0 8 6 October 23 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 4 Colorado Avalanche Garon 14,898 4–2–0 8 7 October 25 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 6 Vancouver Canucks Garon 18,630 4–3–0 8 8 October 27 Boston Bruins 1 – 0 Edmonton Oilers OT Roloson 16,839 4–3–1 9 9 October 30 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 3 Nashville Predators Garon 11,294 4–4–1 9
November: 6–7–1 (Home: 0–3–1 ; Road: 6–4–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 10 November 1 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 1 Carolina Hurricanes Roloson 15,016 5–4–1 11 11 November 2 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 4 Philadelphia Flyers Roloson 19,437 6–4–1 13 12 November 5 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 5 Columbus Blue Jackets Roloson 11,228 6–5–1 13 13 November 6 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 5 Pittsburgh Penguins Garon 16,971 6–6–1 13 14 November 9 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 1 New Jersey Devils Deslauriers 14,193 7–6–1 15 15 November 10 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 New York Rangers SO Deslauriers 18,200 8–6–1 17 16 November 13 Toronto Maple Leafs 5 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Deslauriers 16,839 8–7–1 17 17 November 15 Colorado Avalanche 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers SO Roloson 16,839 8–7–2 18 18 November 17 Edmonton Oilers 0 – 4 Detroit Red Wings Roloson 18,934 8–8–2 18 19 November 18 Edmonton Oilers 7 – 2 Columbus Blue Jackets Roloson 12,689 9–8–2 20 20 November 20 Detroit Red Wings 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 9–9–2 20 21 November 26 Los Angeles Kings 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 9–10–2 20 22 November 29 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 2 St. Louis Blues Roloson 19,150 10–10–2 22 23 November 30 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 4 Dallas Stars Deslauriers 16,650 10–11–2 22
December: 7–5–1 (Home: 4–3–1 ; Road: 3–2–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 24 December 3 Dallas Stars 2 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 11–11–2 24 25 December 5 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 4 Los Angeles Kings SO Garon 14,920 12–11–2 26 26 December 6 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 San Jose Sharks OT Roloson 17,496 13–11–2 28 27 December 11 Florida Panthers 2 – 0 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 13–12–2 28 28 December 13 Vancouver Canucks 0 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 14–12–2 30 29 December 16 Chicago Blackhawks 9 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 14–13–2 30 30 December 17 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 4 Vancouver Canucks Roloson 18,630 14–14–2 30 31 December 19 Anaheim Ducks 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers SO Roloson 16,839 14–14–3 31 32 December 22 Phoenix Coyotes 2 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 15–14–3 33 33 December 26 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Vancouver Canucks Roloson 18,630 16–14–3 35 34 December 28 Nashville Predators 2 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 17–14–3 37 35 December 30 Ottawa Senators 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Garon 16,839 17–15–3 37 36 December 31 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 6 Calgary Flames Roloson 19,289 17–16–3 37
January: 8–4–0 (Home: 6–3–0 ; Road: 2–1–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 37 January 3 Dallas Stars 1 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 18–16–3 39 38 January 5 New York Islanders 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 19–16–3 41 39 January 7 Vancouver Canucks 4 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 19–17–3 41 40 January 9 San Jose Sharks 4 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 19–18–3 41 41 January 11 St. Louis Blues 1 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 20–18–3 43 42 January 13 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 2 Washington Capitals Roloson 17,498 21–18–3 45 43 January 15 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 5 Minnesota Wild Roloson 18,568 21–19–3 45 44 January 16 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Colorado Avalanche Garon 15,681 22–19–3 47 45 January 18 Phoenix Coyotes 3 – 6 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 23–19–3 49 46 January 20 Columbus Blue Jackets 3 – 4 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 24–19–3 51 47 January 27 Buffalo Sabres 10 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 24–20–3 53 48 January 30 Minnesota Wild 1 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 25–20–3 53
February: 6–6–2 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 3–3–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 49 February 1 Nashville Predators 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 25–21–3 53 50 February 3 Chicago Blackhawks 3 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 25–22–3 53 51 February 5 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 1 St. Louis Blues SO Roloson 15,668 26–22–3 55 52 February 7 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 8 Detroit Red Wings Roloson 20,066 26–23–3 55 53 February 8 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Minnesota Wild SO Roloson 18,568 26–23–4 56 54 February 11 Montreal Canadiens 2 – 7 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 27–23–4 58 55 February 14 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 2 Los Angeles Kings SO Roloson 18,118 28–23–4 60 56 February 16 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 1 Phoenix Coyotes Roloson 14,547 29–23–4 62 57 February 17 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 4 San Jose Sharks Roloson 17,496 29–24–4 62 58 February 19 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 4 Dallas Stars Roloson 17,792 29–25–4 62 59 February 21 Calgary Flames 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers SO Roloson 16,839 29–25–5 63 60 February 24 Tampa Bay Lightning 3 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 30–25–5 65 61 February 26 Columbus Blue Jackets 1 – 0 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 30–26–5 65 62 February 28 Minnesota Wild 2 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 31–26–5 67
March: 5–6–4 (Home: 1–3–2 ; Road: 4–3–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 63 March 3 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 6 Nashville Predators OT Roloson 14,194 31–26–6 68 64 March 5 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 4 Ottawa Senators Roloson 17,904 31–27–6 68 65 March 7 Edmonton Oilers 4 – 1 Toronto Maple Leafs Roloson 19,364 32–27–6 70 66 March 10 Edmonton Oilers 3 – 4 Montreal Canadiens OT Roloson 21,273 32–27–7 71 67 March 12 Atlanta Thrashers 4 – 3 Edmonton Oilers OT Roloson 16,839 32–27–8 72 68 March 14 Colorado Avalanche 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers OT Roloson 16,839 32–27–9 73 69 March 17 St. Louis Blues 1 – 2 Edmonton Oilers SO Roloson 16,839 33–27–9 75 70 March 19 Edmonton Oilers 8 – 1 Colorado Avalanche Roloson 13,612 34–27–9 77 71 March 20 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 4 Chicago Blackhawks SO Roloson 22,151 35–27–9 79 72 March 22 Edmonton Oilers 0 – 3 Minnesota Wild Roloson 18,568 35–28–9 79 73 March 24 Detroit Red Wings 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 35–29–9 79 74 March 26 Edmonton Oilers 2 – 3 Phoenix Coyotes Roloson 14,337 35–30–9 79 75 March 27 Edmonton Oilers 5 – 3 Anaheim Ducks Roloson 17,257 36–30–9 81 76 March 29 Minnesota Wild 3 – 2 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 36–31–9 81 77 March 31 Anaheim Ducks 5 – 3 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 36–32–9 81
April: 2–3–0 (Home: 2–2–0 ; Road: 0–1–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 78 April 2 San Jose Sharks 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 36–33–9 81 79 April 4 Vancouver Canucks 3 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 37–33–9 83 80 April 7 Los Angeles Kings 2 – 1 Edmonton Oilers Roloson 16,839 37–34–9 83 81 April 10 Calgary Flames 1 – 5 Edmonton Oilers Deslauriers 16,839 38–34–9 85 82 April 11 Edmonton Oilers 1 – 4 Calgary Flames Deslauriers 19,289 38–35–9 85 Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)
Schedule

Playoffs

The Oilers were in the thick of the playoff race all the way until March 20. However, they struggled down the stretch finishing 3-8-0 and missing the postseason by a total of six points.

Player statistics

Skaters

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals 

Regular season Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Ales Hemsky 72 23 43 66 +1 32 Sheldon Souray 81 23 30 53 +1 98 Shawn Horcoff 80 17 36 53 +7 39 Tom Gilbert 82 5 40 45 +6 26 Sam Gagner 76 16 25 41 -1 51 Denis Grebeshkov 72 7 32 39 +12 38 Andrew Cogliano 82 18 20 38 -6 22 Dustin Penner 78 17 20 37 +7 61 Lubomir Visnovsky 50 8 23 31 +6 30 Robert Nilsson 64 9 20 29 +1 26 Erik Cole‡ 63 16 11 27 -3 63 Kyle Brodziak 79 11 16 27 +4 21 Ethan Moreau 77 14 12 26 0 133 Marc-Antoine Pouliot 63 8 12 20 +1 23 Fernando Pisani 38 7 8 15 -1 14 Steve Staios 80 2 12 14 -5 92 Liam Reddox 46 5 7 12 -6 10 Ales Kotalik† 19 7 4 11 +2 6 Zack Stortini 52 6 5 11 -3 181 Ladislav Smid 60 0 11 11 -6 57 Jason Strudwick 71 2 7 9 -4 60 Patrick O'Sullivan† 19 2 4 6 -7 12 Rob Schremp 4 0 3 3 +2 2 Gilbert Brule 11 2 1 3 -3 12 Ryan Potulny 8 0 3 3 +2 0 Steve MacIntyre 22 2 0 2 -2 40 Jean-Francois Jacques 7 1 0 1 0 9 Jesse Boulerice 2 0 0 0 0 0 Tim Sestito 1 0 0 0 0 0 Theo Peckham 15 0 0 0 -1 59 Taylor Chorney 2 0 0 0 -4 0

Goaltenders

Note:  Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Regular season
Player GP Min W L OT GA GAA SA SV Sv% SO Dwayne Roloson 63 3596 28 24 9 166 2.77 1953 1787 .915 1 Mathieu Garon‡ 15 814 8 9 0 43 3.17 408 365 .895 0 Jeff Deslauriers 10 539 4 3 0 30 3.34 302 272 .901 0

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Oilers. Stats reflect time with Oilers only.
^‡Traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with Oilers only.

Awards and records

Records

• 39 Years, 177 Days: an NHL record for the oldest goaltender ever played 60 games or more in a season by Dwayne Roloson.
  • 39 Years, 170 Days: A new NHL record for the oldest goaltender ever played 60 games or more in a season by Dwayne Roloson on March 31, 2009.
• 36: Oilers record for most consecutive starts by Dwayne Roloson.
  • 21: A new Oilers record for most consecutive starts by Dwayne Roloson on March 7, 2009.

Milestones

Regular Season
Player	Milestone	Reached
Dustin Penner	100th NHL Point	October 12, 2008
Lubomir Visnovsky	500th NHL Game
Steve MacIntyre	1st NHL Game	October 15, 2008
Jeff Deslauriers	1st NHL Game 1st NHL Win	October 17, 2008
Sheldon Souray	200th NHL Point
Kyle Brodziak	100th NHL Game	October 18, 2008
Dwayne Roloson	400th NHL Game	October 22, 2008
Ladislav Smid	100th NHL PIM
Tom Gilbert	100th NHL Game	October 23, 2008
Ales Hemsky	200th NHL Assist
Zack Stortini	100th NHL Game	October 25, 2008
Jeff Deslauriers	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	November 9, 2008
Jason Strudwick	500th NHL Game	November 10, 2008
Ethan Moreau	900th NHL PIM	November 15, 2008
Liam Reddox	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point
Andrew Cogliano	100th NHL Game	November 17, 2008
Dustin Penner	200th NHL Game	November 18, 2008
Shawn Horcoff	500th NHL Game	November 20, 2008
Tim Sestito	1st NHL Game	November 26, 2008
Sam Gagner	100th NHL Game	November 29, 2008
Marc-Antoine Pouliot
Shawn Horcoff	300th NHL Point 1st NHL Gordie Howe hat trick
Steve Staios	1,100th NHL PIM
Rob Schremp	1st NHL Assist 1st NHL Point	December 3, 2008
Liam Reddox	1st NHL Assist	December 16, 2008
Jason Strudwick	700th NHL PIM	December 22, 2008
Ales Hemsky	300th NHL Point	December 26, 2008
Lubomir Visnovsky	300th NHL Point	December 28, 2008
Sheldon Souray	900th NHL PIM	December 30, 2008
Shawn Horcoff	200th NHL Assist	January 3, 2009
Zack Stortini	400th NHL PIM
Erik Cole	300th NHL Point	January 13, 2009
Steve MacIntyre	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point
Steve Staios	800th NHL Game	January 15, 2009
Mathieu Garon	200th NHL Game	January 16, 2009
Ethan Moreau	1st NHL Hat-trick	January 18, 2009
Ales Hemsky	400th NHL Game	February 26, 2009
Jean-Francois Jacques	1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point	March 3, 2009
Sheldon Souray	600th NHL Game	March 17, 2009
Sam Gagner	1st NHL Hat-trick	March 19, 2009
Ladislav Smid	200th NHL Game	March 26, 2009
Ethan Moreau	1,000 NHL PIM	March 27, 2009
Patrick O'Sullivan	200th NHL Game

Transactions

The Oilers have been involved in the following transactions during the 2008–09 season.

Trades

Date	Details
June 6, 2008	To Philadelphia Flyers Danny Syvret	To Edmonton Oilers Ryan Potulny
June 29, 2008[2]	To Los Angeles Kings Jarret Stoll Matt Greene	To Edmonton Oilers Lubomir Visnovsky
July 1, 2008	To Carolina Hurricanes Joni Pitkanen	To Edmonton Oilers Erik Cole
July 1, 2008	To Columbus Blue Jackets Raffi Torres	To Edmonton Oilers Gilbert Brule
January 29, 2009	To Pittsburgh Penguins Mathieu Garon	To Edmonton Oilers Dany Sabourin Ryan Stone 4th round pick in 2011
March 4, 2009	To Buffalo Sabres 2nd round pick in 2009	To Edmonton Oilers Ales Kotalik
March 4, 2009	To Carolina Hurricanes Erik Cole 5th round pick in 2009	To Edmonton Oilers Patrick O'Sullivan 2nd round pick in 2009

Free agents acquired Date Player Former team Contract Terms July 10, 2008 (2008-07-10) Jason Strudwick[3] New York Rangers 1 year, $650,000 July 15, 2008 (2008-07-15) Carl Corazzini[4] Detroit Red Wings 1 year, $500,000

Free agents lost Date Player New team Contract Terms July 2, 2008 (2008-07-02) Curtis Glencross Calgary Flames 3 years, $3.6 million July 7, 2008 (2008-07-07) Ryan Flinn Montreal Canadiens 1 year, $500,000 July 8, 2008 (2008-07-08) T. J. Kemp Pittsburgh Penguins 1 year July 17, 2008 (2008-07-17) Marty Reasoner Atlanta Thrashers 1 year, $1 million July 22, 2008 (2008-07-22) Troy Bodie Anaheim Ducks 1 year, $500,000

Waivers Date Player Team Ref September 30, 2008 (2008-09-30) Steve MacIntyre from Florida Panthers [5] November 11, 2008 (2008-11-11) Jesse Boulerice from Colorado Avalanche [6] November 21, 2008 (2008-11-21) Jesse Boulerice to Colorado Avalanche Player signings Player Contract terms Tom Gilbert 6 years, $24 million Robert Nilsson 3 years, $6 million Denis Grebeshkov 1 year, $1.5 million Ryan Potulny 1 year, $645,000 Marc-Antoine Pouliot 2 years, $1.65 million Jean-Francois Jacques 2 years, $1.05 million Zack Stortini 3 years, $2.1 million

Draft picks

Round	#	Player	Nationality	NHL team	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	22	Jordan Eberle (C)	Canada	Edmonton Oilers (from Anaheim Ducks)	Regina Pats (WHL)
4	103	Johan Motin (D)	Sweden	Edmonton Oilers	Bofors IK (Sweden-2)
5	133	Philippe Cornet (LW)	Canada	Edmonton Oilers	Rimouski Océanic (QMJHL)
6	163	Teemu Hartikainen (C)	Finland	Edmonton Oilers	KalPa (Finland Jr.)
7	193	Jordan Bendfeld (D)	Canada	Edmonton Oilers	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)

Farm teams

See also

• 2008–09 NHL season

References

1. "Oilers sale to Daryl Katz approved by NHL". CBC News. June 18, 2008. Archived from the original on June 19, 2008. Retrieved June 19, 2008.
2. Oilers acquire Visnovsky from L.A.; ship Stoll and Greene
3. Oilers sign Jason Strudwick
4. Oilers sign Carl Corazzini to one-year deal
5. Oilers claim Steve MacIntyre off waivers
6. Oilers claim Jesse Boulerice off waivers

• Player stats: Edmonton Oilers player stats on espn.com
• Game log: Edmonton Oilers game log on espn.com
• Team standings: NHL standings on espn.com