The Edmonton Oilers are in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 2006. No matter whether they win or lose, this is going to go down as one of the most memorable teams in recent memory. Years from now, we will all tell stories about where we were when the Oilers made the finals this year in 2024, as many of us with greying hairs do of the 2006 cup run.
The cup run team of 2006 will forever have a place in our hearts, and inspired a generation of Oilers fans the way that Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and co are doing today. Let’s take a look back at that team’s roster and see where they have ended up since then.
Forwards
Shawn Horcoff
The former Oilers alternate captain then captain put up 19 points in 24 playoff games this season, and would go on to play with the team until the end of the 2013–14 season. Shawn Horcoff then finished his career in Dallas then Anaheim, retiring as a Duck at the end of the 2015–16 season.
Horcoff would join the Detroit Red Wings organization as the director of player development. He is still with the team, currently an assistant general manager and the general manager of the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins.
Ryan Smyth
Ryan Smyth is an Oilers legend and the heartbeat of this team. He played the most pivotal years of his career in Edmonton and had 16 points in 22 games this season. He would then play with the New York Islanders, Colorado Avalanche, and Los Angeles Kings before coming back to Edmonton and retiring with the team at the end of the 2013–14 season.
Since retiring, he has done several different things. He spent time with the Oilers in a conditioning role, coaching his kids in hockey, and owning a few small businesses in Edmonton. He also is a part-owner of the Spruce Grove Saints of the AJHL.
Ales Hemsky
The Czech forward was drafted in the first round in 2001 by the Oilers. He would play for the team for most of his career before being traded to the Ottawa Senators in 2013–14. He finished his career in Montreal in 2017–18, playing just seven games that season. A history of concussions was a big part of why his career ended prematurely.
Ales Hemsky currently lives in Dallas with his wife and two kids.
Fernando Pisani
The breakout star of the 2006 cup run team, Fernando Pisani had 14 goals and 18 points in 24 games, and was the first player to score a shorthanded overtime winning goal in the Stanely Cup Finals. Following the playoffs, he was diagnosed with ulerative colitis, but played the majority of the following season with the Oilers. He would go on to be nominated for the Bill Masterton Trophy that season.
Unfortunately, he would only play five more seasons before handing up his skates in the NHL at the end of the 2010–11 season.
Since then, he has been an assistant coach in the CIS with the University of Alberta Golden Bears, a development coach in the WHL with the Edmonton Oil Kings, and most recently was hired by the Montreal Canadiens as an amateur scout.
Michael Peca
The former captain of the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders played just this season with the Edmonton Oilers, putting up 23 regular season points and 11 playoff points with the team.
The 1992 draft pick would then sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs for a season then the Columbus Blue Jackets for two more years before hanging up his skates at the end of the 2008–09 season.
Following his retirement, Michael Peca became the GM of the OJHL’s Buffalo Jr. Sabres, where he spent time in that role and as a coach for various teams in that system. He then transitioned to the big leagues, spending time in the AHL as an assistant coach for the Rochester Americans before spending this season as an assistant coach for the New York Rangers.
Raffi Torres
Drafted fifth overall by the New York Islanders in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Raffi Torres would be traded to the Oilers along with Brad Isbister in exchange for Janne Niinimaa and a draft pick. He never popped off as an elite scorer in his career, but had eleven points in the playoffs.
He would play in Columbus, Buffalo, Vancouver, and Phoenix, before ending his career in San Jose. In his final season, he threw a late check on Jakob Silfverberg in a pre-season match, and was given a whopping 41 game suspension. He would never play in the NHL again, and hung up his skate officially a year later.
He has been coaching at the youth level for years since retiring, and is currently coaching the U13 Markham Waxers AAA Team.
Radek Dvorak
A former first-round pick of the Florida Panthers, Radek Dvorak was traded to Edmonton in 2003 In the Anson Carter deal. He would go on to put up a 50-point season then 28 points in the 2005–06 season before adding just two in 16 playoff games for the Oilers.
Dvorak would go on to play for a number of different teams before ending his career in Carolina in 2013–14. He apparently lives in South Florida with his family. He is not related to Christian Dvorak.
Jarret Stoll
Drafted initially by the Calgary Flames but selected by the Oilers after re-entering the draft in 2002. He would play his second season with the team in 2005–06, putting up 68 points in 82 games. Then in the playoffs, he put up 10 points in 24 games.
Stoll was later traded to the Los Angeles Kings, where he would spend most of the rest of his career. He would retire at the end of the 2015–16 season, just one season after being arrested for cocaine and ecstacy possession in a hotel room in Vegas.
After retiring, he joined the Los Angeles Kings as a development coach until 2022–23. He has since had a child with his partner and seems to be enjoying the joys of fatherhood.
Sergei Samsonov
Drafted in the first round by the Boston Bruins, Sergei Samsonov was a Calder Trophy winner in his first year in the league. He was traded to Edmonton in March of 2006 in exchange for Marty Reasoner, Yan Stastny, and the second round pick that was used to select former Oiler Milan Lucic.
Samsonov played more playoff games than regular season games, putting up 15 points in 24 games, but then signed with the Montreal Canadiens following the season. He would subsequently bounce around the league before retiring at the end of the 2010–11 season.
He then joined the Carolina Hurricanes organization as a scout then development coach until the end of last season.
Brad Winchester
The 6’5″ forward was drafted by the Oilers in 2000, but would only play parts of two seasons with the team. He did however have three points in ten playoff games with the team.
Edmonton did not qualify Brad Winchester following his entry-level deal, and he then signed with Dallas following the 2007–08 year. He then bounced around the NHL and AHL before hanging up his skates after the 2014–15 season.
According to his LinkedIn, he is the Director of Construction and Real Estate at M3 Insurance in Madison, Wisconsin.
Rem Murray
The former sixth-round pick of the Oilers is one of the only NHL players to play more than 82 games in a season after being traded to the New York Rangers in the 2002-03 season. Rem Murray would then return to the Oilers in 2005-06, and suit up in all 24 playoff games that year.
That would be his last NHL season before he went over to Europe to play in Finland and Austria before retiring. He is now in real estate in suburban Detroit.
Todd Harvey
A former ninth overall pick of the Dallas Stars in 1993, Todd Harvey never really lived up to his potential as a player. He signed with the Oilers following the 2004 NHL Lockout and had two points in ten playoff games. Following the playoffs, his contract was bought out and he never played in the NHL again.
Following that, he served as an assistant coach for the OHL’s Guelph Storm for a few years. He then transitioned back to the NHL, joining the Vancouver Canucks as an amateur scout. He then was promoted to the Director of Amateur Scouting in 2020, where he still serves today.
Defencemen
Chris Pronger
The 6’6″ defenceman was drafted second overall by the Hartford Whalers in 1993. He was traded from St. Louis to Edmonton following the lockout in exchange for Jeff Woywitka, Eric Brewer, and Doug Lynch. Pronger was the team’s leader in scoring in the playoffs in 2005–06, with 21 points in 24 games.
Following the season, Chris Pronger requested a trade out of Edmonton and was traded for Joffrey Lupul, Ladislav Smid, and a first-round pick. He would go on to play six more seasons before injuries forced him off the ice. He would retire when his contract expired after the 2016–17 season.
He then served as the senior advisor to the director of hockey operations for the Florida Panthers. Since then, he has taken on a number of business opportunities including starting a boutique travel company, a whiskey firm, and more. He also sits on a number of boards including the Cardinal Glennon Hospital.
Jaroslav Spacek
The Czech international was traded to Edmonton from the Chicago Blackhawks that season, and would go on to put up 14 points in the playoff run. However, he would then sign a contract with the Buffalo Sabres the following season.
Jaroslav Spacek would retire during the 2012–13 lockout, and join HC Skoda Plzen as an assistant coach. He is currently the director of youth hockey and coach of the U17 and U20 teams. Spacek’s son David was drafted in the fifth round by the Minnesota Wild in 2022.
Jason Smith
The team’s captain through the 2005–06 season, Jason Smith was traded to the Oilers from the New Jersey Devils in 1999. Through the playoffs, Smith would put up five points in 24 games that year.
He would be traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2007, and would play just two more seasons in the NHL before retiring. Following retirement, he would join the Ottawa Senators as a consultant then assistant coach. He would then move over to the WHL as an associate coach and head coach for a couple of different teams. He spent last season as an assistant coach in the AHL with the Lehigh Valley Phantom, where he has been for the last three seasons.
Steve Staios
Steve Staios was a former first-round pick, drafted 27th overall in 1991 by the St. Louis Blues. He would join the Oilers as a free agent in 2001, and would put up six points in the 2006 playoffs. Staios would go on to be part of the first ever trade between the Flames and Oilers, and would join the division rivals in 2010, but missed most of the season with injuries.
He would play just one more season in the NHL with the New York Islanders, retiring after his 1001st career game.
Following retirement, he would join the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, serving as an advisor and later as part of the team’s coaching staff. He would then go on to join the Hamilton Bulldogs in the OHL as President and General Manager for a number of years. Staios would briefly come back to Edmonton in an advisory role before being announced as the President of Hockey Operations for the Ottawa Senators. Following the firing of Pierre Dorion this past season, he was named as GM of the team and continues as the President of Hockey Operations.
Marc-Andre Bergeron
The undrafted blueliner was signed by the Oilers in 2001 due to his speed and skills with the puck. The power play specialist would add just three points in the playoffs, and was better known for falling with Andrew Ladd into netminder Dwayne Roloson, forcing the goalie out of the playoffs.
He would then go on to play with six different NHL teams before going over to Europe and retiring in 2017. Following his NHL career, Marc-Andre Bergeron would join the QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes in a development role then go up to the ECHL as the GM and vice president with the Trois-Rivieres Lions. He is currently the head coach of the Estacades M18 AAA Team.
Dick Tarnstrom
The Swedish defenceman was drafted 272nd overall in 1994 by the New York Islanders, and spent five seasons in the NHL. His first season in Edmonton started with him being traded from the Penguins in early 2006 and ended with just two assists in the playoffs. However, he would later be traded for Curtis Glencross.
He currently runs a hockey development company called Winnerheads. Dick Tarnstrom’s son Oliver was drafted by the New York Rangers in the 2020 draft.
Goaltenders
Dwayne Roloson
The journeyman NHL goalie was undrafted despite being a Hobey Baker nominee. He was traded to the Oilers in 2006 for a first-round pick. He was outstanding in the playoffs for the Oilers, going 12–5 before being injured and forced out of the series. Roloson would remain an Oiler for three more seasons before going to the New York Islanders then Tampa Bay Lightning before retiring in 2012.
Post-retirement, Roloson has been a goalie consultant for NHL, AHL, NCAA, and WHL teams as well as for individual goalies. He most recently spent time with Lake Superior State University as a development and goalie coach.
Jussi Markkanen
Nearly an Oiler for his whole NHL career, Jussi Markkanen was drafted in the fifth round of the 2001 NHL Draft. Following the injury to Roloson, the Finnish netminder was thrown in, and went 3–3 in the final six games of the finals, posting a 0.905 save percentage.
Markkanen would then spend the next season in Edmonton before going back to Europe and retiring in Finland in 2018.
Since retirement, he has been working in Finland’s Liiga and currently serves as the GM of SaiPa.
