As part of the NHL’s campaign honouring the best players of the past 25 years, a Quarter Century Team has been announced for each NHL club. The Edmonton Oilers Quarter Century Team was unveiled on Jan. 30, 2025.
Edmonton’s First Team includes forwards Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, defencemen Evan Bouchard and Darnell Nurse, and netminder Dwayne Roloson. The Oilers’ Second Team comprises forwards Ales Hemsky, Shawn Horcoff and Ryan Smyth, blueliners Mattias Ekholm and Jason Smith, and goalie Tommy Salo.
The Quarter Century Team was voted on by media and former players. To be eligible, a player must have appeared in at least one game for the Oilers since Jan. 1, 2000.
Of the dozen players named to Edmonton’s Quarter Century Team, many are no-brainers, while a couple might raise some eyebrows. That’s to be expected given the inherent subjectivity of the selection process. Inevitably, someone deserving of recognition was going to be left out, especially with the team being limited to just six forwards, four defencemen and two goaltenders.
With that in mind, here are three individuals that didn’t make the cut who have a very strong case to be included on Edmonton’s Quarter Century Team.
Cam Talbot
Since Jan. 1, 2000, Cam Talbot ranks second among goalies on the Oilers for regular season games (227), wins (104), and shutouts (12), trailing only Salo in each of those categories. He played with the Oilers from 2015 to 2019, serving as the team’s No. 1 netminder for virtually all his Edmonton tenure.
In 2016-17, Talbot delivered one of the greatest single-season performances by an Oiler goalie: he played in 73 games, tied for second-most by an Oilers goalie, set a franchise record with 42 wins, posted a goals-against average (GAA) of 2.39, and registered a save percentage (SV%) of .919, which is the best ever for an Oilers goalie with a minimum of 40 games played.
Moreover, Talbot helped Edmonton end its decade-long playoff drought that season, and he backstopped the Oilers to their first series win in 11 years, a 4-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks. He was phenomenal during the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs, posting a 7-6 record with a GAA of 2.48 and SV% of .924.
Chris Pronger
Chris Pronger spent only one season in Edmonton, 2005-06, but the towering defenceman was pivotal in helping the Oilers achieve something they hadn’t in the prior 15 years and wouldn’t again for another 18 years: a trip to the Stanley Cup Final.
In 80 regular season games, Pronger had 12 goals and 44 assists to total 56 points, the second most in a season by an Edmonton blueliner this century. He also had 44 power-play points to set the single-season record for Oilers defencemen, a mark that still stands today.
Pronger was an absolute force in the 2006 postseason as Edmonton became the first eighth-seeded team to reach the Stanley Cup Final, where the Oilers lost 4-3 to the Carolina Hurricanes. In 24 playoff games, the future Hall of Famer recorded five goals and 16 assists for 21 points, which was the most in one postseason by an Oilers defenceman this century until Evan Bouchard racked up 32 points last season. Pronger also logged 742:55 of ice time, which is currently the second most in a single postseason by any NHL skater this century.
Ethan Moreau
Of the four players who have served at least three seasons as captain of the Oilers this century, Ethan Moreau is the only that was left off Edmonton’s Quarter Century Team. He’s also the only player that didn’t make the cut out of the eight individuals who have appeared in more than 600 regular season games for the Oilers since Jan. 1, 2000.
A true leader by example, who left everything on the ice every night, Moreau wore the ‘C’ in Edmonton from 2007-08 to 2009-10. The left winger never put up big offensive numbers over his 10-plus years with the Oilers, scoring 20 goals in a season just once and topping 30 points in only two seasons, but was an effective checker that stabilized Edmonton’s third line for a decade.
Moreau leads Edmonton with 17 short-handed goals since Jan. 1, 2000, nearly double that of the next closest Oiler over the same period. He was named the team’s Top Defensive Forward of 2005-06, the season that preceded Edmonton’s Cinderella playoff run to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
The NHL Quarter Century campaign continues Feb. 12 to 26, with fan voting to determine the 25 players that will comprise the league’s Quarter-Century Team. Players that were named to a club’s First Team will appear on the ballot.
