Edmonton Oilers Heritage Website

Throughout the National Hockey League, Kevin McClelland's name is synonymous with tough physical hockey. Edmonton fans remember McClelland as a player who scored one of the most important goals in Oilers history In Game 1 of the 1984 Stanley Cup finals, he netted the 1-0 winner in an Edmonton win over the defending-champion New York Islanders. In the previous season the Islanders routed the Oilers in the 1983 final, winning the Cup in the minimum four games. McClelland’s goal the next year boosted the Oilers and eventually the team won the Stanley Cup.

McClelland arrived in Edmonton earlier in the 1983-84 season. The native of Oshawa, Ontario, had played parts of three seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins before Oilers coach and general manager Glen Sather acquired his services. Known for his mean streak, Sather felt his physical play would compliment the team's enforcer, Dave Semenko.

In that first season with Edmonton, McClelland scored eight times and earned 152 penalty minutes. From 1984-85 to 1988-89, McClelland would not dip under the 200-PIM mark. IN 1987-88, he was marked for 281 penalty-minutes, more than tough guys Dave Semenko or Marty McSorley ever earned in a single season with the Oilers.

McClelland was the one constant during the Oilers' changes of enforces. When he first came to Edmonton, he partnered with Semenko as the team’s one-two punch; in his later years with the team, he would team with McSorley as the resident tough guy.

He would outlast both Semenko and McSorley when it came to the staying in Edmonton and would win four Cups with the Oilers. In 1989, the Oilers traded McClelland and Jimmy Carson to the Detroit Red Wings, in a deal that brought Adam Graves, Joe Murphy and Petr Klima the other way. He would last just over a season with the Wings before Detroit dispatched him to the minors. He attempted a couple of comeback attempts with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets before leaving the game permanently. He finished with 1,672 PIM and 188 career points in 588 career NHL games.