Building the all-time American Edmonton Oilers roster

Once upon a time, hockey was a sport dominate by two nations: Canada and the USSR.

The amount of raw talent from both those countries was phenomenal for a long time and led to some of the most epic battles in hockey history. The most notable being the 1972 Summit Series that saw the Canadians win four of eight games (Game three ended in a tie.)

Noticeably absent during this time was the United States. The Americans had some very good players in the NHL but weren’t commonly perceived as a hockey nation. After the Miracle on Ice at the 1980 Olympics, that all changed. Now, the Americans are typically held as one of the best hockey nations and consistently finishes in the top-three in international competition.

The Edmonton Oilers are no stranger to having American players not only pull on the royal blue, but be superstars in the process. In fact, some of the most beloved Edmonton Oilers are from the U.S of A.

What would a team full of American Oilers look like? Good question…

Forwards

Todd Marchant – Doug Weight – Bill Guerin

Erik Cole – Jimmy Carson – Mike Grier

Patrick Maroon – Mike York – Kailer Yamamoto

Nick Fotiu – Marty Reasoner – Josh Archibald

This is a VERY good looking forward group, perhaps the best one we have seen in this series thus far.

That top-line is ripped straight out of the 1990s and it’s a good one. Weight is perhaps one of the most underrated and least talked about Oilers greats. Luckily, the team will be giving him the recognition he deserves with an induction into the Edmonton Oilers Hall of Dame. He isn’t just a good top-line centerman, he’s a perfect fit.

Guerin and Marchant flanking him on the wings is a match made in heaven as well. Marchant’s speed and ability to find the back of the net, combined with mean streak and equally as gifted knack at scoring make this line a force to be reckoned with.

Keeping the scorers trend going, we have Carson anchoring a second line that features Cole and Grier. Carson was a great goalscorer and, in his prime, he 55-goal guy. Cole never reached those heights but was a very reliable top-six winger for a long time. Grier might seem odd as a top-six winger for this team, but rest assured, I think he fits. Like Guerin, he adds a dimension of grit and skill to the group and should work as a compliment here.

Unlike some other teams, America’s depth doesn’t dry up as we head to the bottom-six. Oilers fans of late will remember Maroon remaking his career with a couple of career years. He should be a great bumper off of York, who had 322 points over the course of a 579 game career. Having Yamamoto on the right-side should work well here.

I’ll keep my fourth line description brief, and just say it’s the definition of character. These guys will grind with the best of them.

Defence

Tom Poti – Jeff Petry

Ryan Whitney – Lee Fogolin

Don Jackson – Mo Mantha

Defensive group for the Americans is not quite as good as their forward corp, but it’s still pretty decent.

Petry in his prime was a serviceable top-pairing guy while Poti played over 800 games in the league. There’s a good mix of defensive and offensive play-styles on that top pair.

While Whitney might be more well-known for his podcasting nowadays, many forget that he was a very good NHL defender in his playing days. An offensive defender by nature, Whitney put up 259 points in 481 games. To help offset those offensive instincts will be Fogolin, a very reliable defensive player, who, like Weight, was inducted into the Oilers Hall of Fame.

Lastly, a few deep cuts from Oilers history with Jackson and Mantha. The former was a depth defender during the team’s first two Stanley Cups while Mantha played just 25 games in Edmonton but had a very successful career.

Goaltending

Jack Campbell

Ty Conklin

Goaltending could be a problem for the Americans.

The de-facto starter will be Campbell, who has had some good stretches in the NHL, but has really struggled to maintain his starter status of late. He isn’t a bad option here but he’s also not the best starter we’ve seen in this series.

Conklin should be a fine backup. Similar to Campbell, Conklin struggled to be a consistent starting goaltender in the NHL but had a fine career as a more than serviceable backup.

---

Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire