Revisiting the Oilers’ Chris Pronger Trade 20 Years Ago

On July 3, 2006, I was in my car listening to Bob Stauffer and Mark Spector on Team 1260 in Edmonton when they announced that Chris Pronger was being traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Anaheim Ducks for Joffrey Lupul, Ladislav Smid, two first-round picks and a second-round pick. One pick would eventually turn into Jordan Eberle, but nothing could replace one of the greatest defencemen the Oilers have ever had.

A Great Take on the Trade That Changed the Oilers

Stauffer, who now works for 880 CHED, interviewed both general managers, Kevin Lowe (Oilers) and Brian Burke (Ducks), who were involved in the deal on the 20th Anniversary of the trade. Lowe surprisingly opened the interview by mentioning that Pronger’s agent had started talking about a possible trade around Christmas 2005. Burke, meanwhile, said that as soon as the Oilers dropped an envelope on their table at the 2006 NHL Draft, he immediately wanted to make the deal. When Burke spoke with Lowe on July 1, 2006, Lowe told him, “I’m punching your ticket to the Stanley Cup Final.”

The Ducks Went to the Promised Land; The Oilers Went Into the Dumpster

The Oilers have traded away some of the greatest players in NHL history, including Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Grant Fuhr and Jari Kurri, but losing Pronger might have had the biggest impact on the franchise. The Oilers went from Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Final to the Decade of Darkness, missing the postseason for a decade until the 2016-17 NHL Season.

Meanwhile, Pronger joined Scott Neidermeyer, Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Teemu Selänne in Anaheim as the Ducks became the first California-based team to win the Stanley Cup in 2007.

Tough Times After the Pronger Trade

Pronger brought Edmonton the highest highs and the lowest lows. When the Oilers announced they had signed Pronger and Michael Peca in the summer of 2005, fans knew the new salary cap era had begun, and they could now compete with the big boys. Compete they did. Lowe built a great team around Pronger, adding goalie Dwayne Roloson and Sergei Samsonov, and the underdog Oilers reached the 2006 Final before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes.

Just a few short weeks after the playoffs, the Oilers received that big kick to the groin, announcing the Pronger trade. Just before the 10th anniversary of the trade, Edmonton won the 2015 Draft Lottery and the right to select the league’s next superstar, Connor McDavid.

Pronger Still One of the Greatest Oilers

Despite the controversy and only spending a single season in Edmonton, Pronger remains one of the best players to ever wear an Oilers uniform. I was fortunate to work at a local ad agency when he lived in Edmonton. I wrote a radio ad for him and had the pleasure of meeting him in person when he recorded it.

I don’t know why he requested a trade out of town, but had he stayed, the Oilers might have had a two- to three-year window of competing for the Stanley Cup.

Oilers Have McDavid Now

After Pronger left, it took the Oilers ten years to start winning again. Now, their Stanley Cup window is wide open with talents like McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard on the roster. It’s possible the Pronger trade made ownership a bit jittery about winning at all costs. That’s why well-meaning decisions have been made hastily, and only some have worked out while others have not.

With players like Pronger, Gretzky, Messier, and McDavid, the franchise has seen some of the greatest players in the history of the game call Edmonton home. Now, twenty years after a devastating trade tanked the franchise for a decade, the Oilers are ready for a championship.