Top 3 Oilers Players Who Returned for Edmonton’s Second Stint
By Brian Swane on July 11, 2023
Drake Caggiula, a forward, was signed by the Edmonton Oilers on the first day of free agency. The contract is two-year, two-way, and has an average annual value (AAV) of $775,000.
The 29-year-old center is back in Edmonton, where he split three seasons (2016)–17–19, totaling 156 games played. Since then, he has played for the Buffalo Sabres, Arizona Coyotes, Chicago Blackhawks, and most recently, the Pittsburgh Penguins (2022–2023), where he made four appearances.
Caggiula is currently one of just 15 players in franchise history to return to the Oilers for a second stint following their NHL play elsewhere. Some returns haven’t gone as planned; in 1996, for example, future Hall of Famer Glenn Anderson was brought back against his will when general manager (GM) Glen Sather claimed him off waivers; Anderson lasted just 17 games.
However, other players’ returns to Edmonton have gone considerably better, with players leading by example, finishing their story, or helping the team succeed. The top three are as follows:
Kevin Lowe
Not too many months after Anderson decided he didn’t want to play for the rebuilding Oilers, another key player from the team’s dynasty era freely returned to Edmonton.
The Oilers were Confirmed and Lowe was the Oilers: in 1979, Edmonton chose the blueliner with its inaugural NHL draft pick, and Lowe went on to score the team’s first-ever NHL regular season goal. Following the trades of Mark Messier, Anderson, and Grant Fuhr in 1991, Lowe was the only player from the five Oilers championship teams that remained (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990); he also took over as team captain from Messier.
Throughout the 1992–93 season, Lowe refused to sign a deal, which finally led to the trade of the franchise’s leading player in terms of games played to the
Two weeks before Christmas, the New York Rangers. After spending four seasons with the Blueshirts, Lowe played 217 games and won his sixth Stanley Cup in 1994.
After signing with the Oilers on September 20, 1996, Lowe returned to an Edmonton team that had struggled since his departure and had missed the playoffs for four seasons in a row. With a core of young players led by center Doug Weight and a fantastic goalie in Curtis Joseph, the Oilers were on the rise, though. However, they lacked a great deal of successful experience. Let’s get Lowe started.
Although the veteran defenseman only appeared in 71 games during his two stints with the Oilers (seven in 1997–98 and 64 in 1996–97), his experience is invaluable;
The Oilers made it to the second round of the playoffs after welcoming Lowe back to their locker room. They defeated the Colorado Avalanche in 1998 and the Dallas Stars in 1997.
In the summer of 1998, Lowe retired at the age of 39. He was the Oilers’ assistant coach.
was elevated to head coach in 1998–1999, succeeded Sather as general manager on June 9, 2000.
The Oilers had been in the NHL for 19 seasons when Lowe announced his retirement. With Lowe, they were 15/15 to make the playoffs; without him, they were 0/4. The Oilers wouldn’t advance past the first round of the playoffs without Lowe’s presence until 2006, following the team he put together as general manager.
Beranek, Josef
Josef Beranek, who was selected by Edmonton in 1989 with the 78th overall pick, led the Oilers in goals and assists in 58 games during his rookie season of 1991–1992. The next season, the Czech centerman played in 26 games for Edmonton and scored eight points before Sather dealt him to
January 16, 1993, against the Philadelphia Flyers.On June 16, 1998, Beranek was traded by the Pens back to the Oilers after having previously played for the Philadelphia Flyers, Vancouver Canucks, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Vancouver Canucks.
When Weight sustained a serious knee injury just eight games into the 1998–99 season, keeping the Oilers’ top offensive player out of commission for two and a half months, Edmonton’s decision to reacquire Beranek proved to be fortunate. Beranek tied for the most goals (12) and points (12) on the Oilers in the 34 games that Weight missed between October 30, 1998, and January 16, 1999. During that time, Edmonton managed to maintain its position in the Western Conference standings.
The file SBY_OSH.mp4.
