Early Oiler Memories of the NHL (1979-1983)

Before the Oilers arrived in the NHL, no single player had ever come close to registering 200 points in a season or scoring more than 90 goals. No team  scored 400 goals in a season, and no Finnish player entrenched himself near the top of the scoring charts.

It only took the young, upstart Oilers a few seasons to establish themselves as not only the most entertaining team in the NHL, but the most revolutionary club as well. Long-standing NHL records fell with regularity. Wayne Gretzky would score 92 goals and register 212 points in a season. Jari Kurri became the most-feared winger in hockey, amassing point totals comparable to only the best forwards in hockey, and Paul Coffey scored more points than any other defenceman.

Prior to the Oilers' dynesty, the New York Islanders had reigned with their famous four-Cup dynasty from 1980 to 1983, and the Oilers readied themselves for being next.

Along the way to the Oiler Stanley Cup drives, there were moments of disillusionment.  For example, the Kings humbled the Oilers in 1982, in one of the greatest single-game comebacks in playoff history.

In this section, some of those great memories will be highlighted—memories from the era right before the Cups began to be an almost annual tradition in Edmonton.

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