It’s fitting that Canada Day and the opening of NHL free agency land on the same date. While the league gets busy with contracts and movement, Edmonton’s history offers a quieter kind of celebration: one player from each Canadian province and territory who left the biggest mark on Oilers lore, with Nunavut excluded because no citizen from there has played for the club.
Start with the obvious giant from Ontario. Brantford’s Wayne Gretzky isn’t just the best Oilers player from his province; the source makes the case that he’s the best player from anywhere in NHL history.
Gretzky spent the first nine seasons of his career in Edmonton, wore the captain’s “C” for five of them, and piled up 583 goals and 1,086 assists. He also collected eight Hart Trophies and seven Art Ross Trophies during his time with the Oilers.
From Alberta, the nod goes to Mark Messier, the St. Albert native who was a central figure through Edmonton’s dynasty years.
Messier played for the Oilers from 1979-80 through 1990-91 and captained the team in his final three seasons there. He was a major piece of all five Stanley Cup wins, and in 1984 he took home the Conn Smythe Trophy.
His No. 11 is in the Rogers Place rafters, and he remains one of five Oilers to top 1,000 points.
British Columbia’s pick is Glenn Anderson, the Vancouver winger who spent parts of 12 seasons in Edmonton and put up 906 points in 845 games. Anderson scored 498 goals across the regular season and playoffs combined, making him one of the franchise’s top finishers. He was also part of all five Cup teams and is one of only eight players with his number retired by the organization.
Quebec’s representative is Kevin Lowe, and the case for him is built on durability, leadership, and pure franchise importance. The Lachute defenseman spent 15 seasons with Edmonton across two separate stretches, was the team’s first-ever NHL draft pick, scored its first NHL regular-season goal, captained the club in 1991-92, and won five Stanley Cups. He also holds the Oilers record for games played in both the regular season and playoffs, and his number hangs in the rafters.
Saskatchewan’s choice is Kelly Buchberger, the Langenburg native who carved out a long career through grit and consistency. Drafted in the ninth round in 1985, Buchberger went on to play 795 games over 12 seasons with Edmonton and became the franchise’s all-time penalty minutes leader with 1,747. He won two Stanley Cups, served as captain for his final five seasons with the Oilers, and claimed the team’s Top Defensive Forward award five straight times from 1993 through 1997.
Manitoba belongs to Bill Ranford. The Brandon goaltender spent parts of 10 seasons in Edmonton and appeared in 449 games, still the most by any Oilers goalie.
Ranford backstopped the club to its last championship in 1990 and won the Conn Smythe Trophy that year. He also captured the Molson Cup four times and was named Oilers MVP four years in a row from 1990-91 to 1993-94.
Newfoundland and Labrador is represented by Daniel Cleary, who was acquired in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks in March 1999. The Carbonear native spent his formative NHL years with Edmonton from 1999-00 through 2002-03 and produced 35 goals and 51 assists in 220 regular-season games before later becoming a bottom-six regular for the Detroit Red Wings in the 2000s.
New Brunswick’s spot goes to Calvin Pickard, the Moncton goalie who helped Edmonton reach consecutive Stanley Cup Finals in 2024 and 2025. Over parts of three seasons with the Oilers, Pickard played 75 regular-season games and went 39-23-4. In the playoffs, he was 8-2, giving him a .800 win percentage, the highest among all Oilers goalies to start at least one postseason game.
Prince Edward Island’s representative is Josh Currie. The Charlottetown forward became the first player from the province to dress for Edmonton in nearly 40 years, since John Hughes in 1980-81. Recalled from Bakersfield in February 2019, Currie stayed with the Oilers the rest of that season and finished with 21 games played, two goals, and three assists.
Yukon Territory has just one Oilers player on the list: Bryon Baltimore. The Whitehorse defenseman appeared in two games in November 1979 during the franchise’s first NHL season.
He didn’t record a point, but he did finish with a plus-4. After that brief look, he spent the rest of 1979-80 in the minors and never played another NHL game.
The Northwest Territories entry is Geoff Sanderson, the Hay River winger who finished his career in Edmonton in 2007-08. By then, he was well removed from the scorer who had reached 30 goals in six different seasons. In 41 games with the Oilers, Sanderson scored three goals and added 10 assists for a team that missed the playoffs.
Taken together, the list shows how many corners of the country have fed into Edmonton’s story over the years, and the source notes that several provinces are still represented on the current roster.
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