For the second time in less than a month, the Edmonton Oilers play the Minnesota Wild on a Thursday.

Last time they played the Wild on Nov. 21, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/throwback-thursday-how-a-trade-with-the-wild-in-2005-06-helped-the-oilers-reach-the-stanley-cup-final">we looked at the Dwayne Roloson trade in 2006</a> and how that helped the Oilers almost capture their sixth Stanley Cup in franchise history. Other than that, there hasn’t been much history between the Wild and the Oilers that&#8217;s worth talking about.
Last week, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/throwback-thursday-edmonton-oilers-trade-for-kevin-mcclelland">we looked at the Kevin McClelland trade</a>, as it was the 41st anniversary of a trade with a ripple that spanned into the 2010s. This week, we have a few things to look back at, including Edmonton moving a couple of 1980s dynasty players along with the highest-scoring game in NHL history. 
<h2>Oilers trade Dave Semenko to the Hartford Whalers</h2>
On this day 38 years ago, the Edmonton Oilers traded Dave Semenko to the Hartford Whalers for a third-round pick that ended up being Trevor Sim. it was a short National Hockey League career for Sim, as he played just three games for the Oilers in 1989-90, picking up one assist before spending the rest of his playing days in the minor leagues.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
OTD 1987 Dave Semenko was traded to the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Whalers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Whalers</a> He was devastated Glen told a couple of the vets about the trade. Dave was well liked with teammates, and never got his feathers ruffled “Dave Semenko is a real gem”<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Oilers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Oilers</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoOilers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoOilers</a> <a href="https://t.co/VzCyKptmsK">pic.twitter.com/VzCyKptmsK</a>
&mdash; Vintage Oilers (@VintageOilers) <a href="https://twitter.com/VintageOilers/status/1866947611867091419?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Rewind the clock to Aug. 9 though, and the Oilers made their fourth trade in franchise history (in the NHL), as they ironically traded a 1979 second and third round to the Minnesota North Stars in return for Dave Semenko and a third-round pick in 1979 that turned out to be Mark Messier.
Semenko had already played for the Oilers in their World Hockey Association days, but his National Hockey League rights were selected by the North Stars in the 1977 draft. More of a tough guy than a scorer, Semenko played eight seasons with the Oilers in the NHL, sitting in the box for 981 minutes, breaking the 100 PIM mark in six of his seven full seasons with the Oilers, nine of 10 seasons including the WHA seasons.
Still, Semenko managed to score a handful of goals as well, reaching the double-digit mark three times in his NHL career as he finished with 59 goals and 136 points as an Oiler. For his career, Semenko finished with 65 goals and 153 points in 575 games, ending his career after the 1987-88 season.
After his playing days, Semenko served as a colour commentator, an assistant coach, and a scout for the team. Tragically, Semenko passed away on Jun. 29, 2017.
<h2>The Oilers won the highest-scoring game in NHL history</h2>
The highest-scoring game in National Hockey League history was played 366 days before the Dave Semenko trade, as the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 12-9. Only one other game back in 1920, matched the 21 goals scored in this one. Moreover, Wayne Gretzky picked up seven assists in this game, tied for the most assists in one game.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
OTD 1985<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Oilers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Oilers</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blackhawks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Blackhawks</a>  Wayne Gretzky equals the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NHL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NHL</a> single game assist record (7 🍏) Anderson 3-3-6 Kurri 3 🚨 McClelland 1-2-3 12-9 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoOilers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoOilers</a>  <a href="https://t.co/l6jezFJ2ny">pic.twitter.com/l6jezFJ2ny</a>
&mdash; Vintage Oilers (@VintageOilers) <a href="https://twitter.com/VintageOilers/status/1867011494917050677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 12, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Edmonton got off to a great start in the game, scoring four first-period goals from Glenn Anderson, Dave Lumley, Dave Semenko, and Marty McSorley. Early in the second period, Glenn Anderson and Kevin McClelland scored to make it a 6-1 lead, before Chicago’s Denis Savard broke up Grant Fuhr’s shutout. Lee Fogolin scored his second of the season to give the Oilers a 7-1 lead, that’s enough to win, right?
Nope, as the Blackhawks rattled off four consecutive goals to make it 7-5. The Oilers stopped the bleeding as Jari Kurri scored his 20th of the season, just for the Blackhawks to make it a two-goal game once again thanks to Keith Brown’s goal.
Once and for all, the Oilers pulled ahead late in the second period, as McSorley and Anderson each scored, with Anderson picking up his hat trick goal, as the Oilers took a 10-6 lead. Murray scored once again to give the Blackhawks life, but the two teams traded goals the rest of the game, with Kurri scoring two more for the 21st regular-season hat trick of his career.
There have been four 20+ goal games in NHL history. The Montréal Canadiens defeated the Toronto St. Patrick’s 14-7 on Jan. 10, 1920. This was the only game to not involve the 1980s Oilers. On Jan. 8, 1986, less than a month after the 12-9 game, the Oilers fell 11-9 to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Just over two years before that game, the Oilers defeated the Minnesota North Stars 12-8.
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<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-166011" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/you-can-buy-the-madison-square-garden-rink-that-the-rangers-won-the-1994-stanley-cup-on-1024x679.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="679" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/you-can-buy-the-madison-square-garden-rink-that-the-rangers-won-the-1994-stanley-cup-on-1024x679.jpg 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/you-can-buy-the-madison-square-garden-rink-that-the-rangers-won-the-1994-stanley-cup-on-300x199.jpg 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/you-can-buy-the-madison-square-garden-rink-that-the-rangers-won-the-1994-stanley-cup-on-768x509.jpg 768w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/you-can-buy-the-madison-square-garden-rink-that-the-rangers-won-the-1994-stanley-cup-on.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
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<h2>Kevin Lowe traded to the New York Rangers</h2>
It’s a mini-trade tree featuring an Oilers legend! On Dec. 11, 1992, the Oilers traded long-time defenceman Kevin Lowe to the New York Rangers for Roman Oksiuta and a 1993 third-round pick that turned out to be Aleksandrs Kerčs. If Kerčs’ name sounds familiar, he played for Latvia in the 2002 Olympics, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/throwback-thursday-all-of-the-oilers-who-played-at-the-2002-salt-lake-city-olympics">covered in a recent Throwback Thursday article</a>. 
Lowe was the Oilers’ first-ever draft pick in the NHL, as they selected him 21st overall in the 1979 draft. In his first 13 seasons with the Oilers, the defenceman scored 42 goals and 369 points in 1,254 games, winning the Stanley Cup with the team in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990. 
After the trade, he won another Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers in 1994, alongside Oiler teammates Mark Messier, Esa Tikkanen, Jeff Beukeboom, Adam Graves, Glenn Anderson, and Craig MacTavish. Lowe returned to the Oilers before the 1996-97 season for two seasons before retiring and serving in various front-office roles with the franchise.
This also kicked off a small trade tree, unlike the Dave Semenko trade. Kerčs played five games with the Oilers in 1993-94, along with 57 American Hockey League games where he scored 24 goals and 62 points. However, his career in North America saw him play one more game in 1994-95 with the Boston Bruins’ American Hockey League team before heading back to Europe.
Roman Oksitua played parts of two seasons with the Oilers, scoring 12 goals and 16 points in 36 games. In Apr. 1995, he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Jiří Šlégr. Oksitua played two more seasons in the NHL.
Šlégr played two seasons with the Oilers, scoring five goals and 23 points in 69 games. In the summer of 1997, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a 1998 third-round pick who turned out to be Brian Gionta. Šlégr played seven more seasons, scoring 41 goals and 156 points in 415 games with the Penguins, Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Atlanta Thrashers, and a reunion with the Canucks.
Getting Gionta would’ve been nice, as the 5’7” forward had a lengthy career where he scored 291 goals and 595 points in 1,026 games. However, the Oilers traded that pick at the 1998 draft for a 1998 fourth-round pick (Kristian Antila), a 1998 fifth-round pick (Oleg Smirnov), and Fredrik Bremberg.
Bremberg is the only player of the three to have played in the NHL, playing eight games in the NHL with the Oilers in 1998-99. He had solid scoring in the American Hockey League that season, potting 18 goals and 54 points in 57 games, but he finished his career in Europe.
Smirnov never left Russia, playing in the top flight of the country’s league until 2003-04, before playing in the second tier for the rest of his career. Antila played 32 games in North America, but never played in the National Hockey League. He passed away suddenly on Nov. 4 of this year

For the second time in less than a month, the Edmonton Oilers play the Minnesota Wild on a Thursday.



Last time they played the Wild on Nov. 21, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/throwback-thursday-how-a-trade-with-the-wild-in-2005-06-helped-the-oilers-reach-the-stanley-cup-final">we looked at the Dwayne Roloson trade in 2006</a> and how that helped the Oilers almost capture their sixth Stanley Cup in franchise history. Other than that, there hasn’t been much history between the Wild and the Oilers that's worth talking about.

Last week, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/throwback-thursday-edmonton-oilers-trade-for-kevin-mcclelland">we looked at the Kevin McClelland trade</a>, as it was the 41st anniversary of a trade with a ripple that spanned into the 2010s. This week, we have a few things to look back at, including Edmonton moving a couple of 1980s dynasty players along with the highest-scoring game in NHL history. 
<h2>Oilers trade Dave Semenko to the Hartford Whalers</h2>
On this day 38 years ago, the Edmonton Oilers traded Dave Semenko to the Hartford Whalers for a third-round pick that ended up being Trevor Sim. it was a short National Hockey League career for Sim, as he played just three games for the Oilers in 1989-90, picking up one assist before spending the rest of his playing days in the minor leagues.

https://twitter.com/VintageOilers/status/1866947611867091419

Rewind the clock to Aug. 9 though, and the Oilers made their fourth trade in franchise history (in the NHL), as they ironically traded a 1979 second and third round to the Minnesota North Stars in return for Dave Semenko and a third-round pick in 1979 that turned out to be Mark Messier.

Semenko had already played for the Oilers in their World Hockey Association days, but his National Hockey League rights were selected by the North Stars in the 1977 draft. More of a tough guy than a scorer, Semenko played eight seasons with the Oilers in the NHL, sitting in the box for 981 minutes, breaking the 100 PIM mark in six of his seven full seasons with the Oilers, nine of 10 seasons including the WHA seasons.

Still, Semenko managed to score a handful of goals as well, reaching the double-digit mark three times in his NHL career as he finished with 59 goals and 136 points as an Oiler. For his career, Semenko finished with 65 goals and 153 points in 575 games, ending his career after the 1987-88 season.

After his playing days, Semenko served as a colour commentator, an assistant coach, and a scout for the team. Tragically, Semenko passed away on Jun. 29, 2017.
<h2>The Oilers won the highest-scoring game in NHL history</h2>
The highest-scoring game in National Hockey League history was played 366 days before the Dave Semenko trade, as the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 12-9. Only one other game back in 1920, matched the 21 goals scored in this one. Moreover, Wayne Gretzky picked up seven assists in this game, tied for the most assists in one game.

https://twitter.com/VintageOilers/status/1867011494917050677

Edmonton got off to a great start in the game, scoring four first-period goals from Glenn Anderson, Dave Lumley, Dave Semenko, and Marty McSorley. Early in the second period, Glenn Anderson and Kevin McClelland scored to make it a 6-1 lead, before Chicago’s Denis Savard broke up Grant Fuhr’s shutout. Lee Fogolin scored his second of the season to give the Oilers a 7-1 lead, that’s enough to win, right?

Nope, as the Blackhawks rattled off four consecutive goals to make it 7-5. The Oilers stopped the bleeding as Jari Kurri scored his 20th of the season, just for the Blackhawks to make it a two-goal game once again thanks to Keith Brown’s goal.

Once and for all, the Oilers pulled ahead late in the second period, as McSorley and Anderson each scored, with Anderson picking up his hat trick goal, as the Oilers took a 10-6 lead. Murray scored once again to give the Blackhawks life, but the two teams traded goals the rest of the game, with Kurri scoring two more for the 21st regular-season hat trick of his career.

There have been four 20+ goal games in NHL history. The Montréal Canadiens defeated the Toronto St. Patrick’s 14-7 on Jan. 10, 1920. This was the only game to not involve the 1980s Oilers. On Jan. 8, 1986, less than a month after the 12-9 game, the Oilers fell 11-9 to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Just over two years before that game, the Oilers defeated the Minnesota North Stars 12-8.

<hr />

<img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-166011" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/you-can-buy-the-madison-square-garden-rink-that-the-rangers-won-the-1994-stanley-cup-on-1024x679.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="679" />

<hr />

<h2>Kevin Lowe traded to the New York Rangers</h2>
It’s a mini-trade tree featuring an Oilers legend! On Dec. 11, 1992, the Oilers traded long-time defenceman Kevin Lowe to the New York Rangers for Roman Oksiuta and a 1993 third-round pick that turned out to be Aleksandrs Kerčs. If Kerčs’ name sounds familiar, he played for Latvia in the 2002 Olympics, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/throwback-thursday-all-of-the-oilers-who-played-at-the-2002-salt-lake-city-olympics">covered in a recent Throwback Thursday article</a>. 

Lowe was the Oilers’ first-ever draft pick in the NHL, as they selected him 21st overall in the 1979 draft. In his first 13 seasons with the Oilers, the defenceman scored 42 goals and 369 points in 1,254 games, winning the Stanley Cup with the team in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990. 

After the trade, he won another Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers in 1994, alongside Oiler teammates Mark Messier, Esa Tikkanen, Jeff Beukeboom, Adam Graves, Glenn Anderson, and Craig MacTavish. Lowe returned to the Oilers before the 1996-97 season for two seasons before retiring and serving in various front-office roles with the franchise.

This also kicked off a small trade tree, unlike the Dave Semenko trade. Kerčs played five games with the Oilers in 1993-94, along with 57 American Hockey League games where he scored 24 goals and 62 points. However, his career in North America saw him play one more game in 1994-95 with the Boston Bruins’ American Hockey League team before heading back to Europe.

Roman Oksitua played parts of two seasons with the Oilers, scoring 12 goals and 16 points in 36 games. In Apr. 1995, he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for Jiří Šlégr. Oksitua played two more seasons in the NHL.

Šlégr played two seasons with the Oilers, scoring five goals and 23 points in 69 games. In the summer of 1997, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a 1998 third-round pick who turned out to be Brian Gionta. Šlégr played seven more seasons, scoring 41 goals and 156 points in 415 games with the Penguins, Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Atlanta Thrashers, and a reunion with the Canucks.

Getting Gionta would’ve been nice, as the 5’7” forward had a lengthy career where he scored 291 goals and 595 points in 1,026 games. However, the Oilers traded that pick at the 1998 draft for a 1998 fourth-round pick (Kristian Antila), a 1998 fifth-round pick (Oleg Smirnov), and Fredrik Bremberg.

Bremberg is the only player of the three to have played in the NHL, playing eight games in the NHL with the Oilers in 1998-99. He had solid scoring in the American Hockey League that season, potting 18 goals and 54 points in 57 games, but he finished his career in Europe.

Smirnov never left Russia, playing in the top flight of the country’s league until 2003-04, before playing in the second tier for the rest of his career. Antila played 32 games in North America, but never played in the National Hockey League. He passed away suddenly on Nov. 4 of this year

Throwback Thursday: Oilers trade Dave Semenko to Hartford, Kevin Lowe to New York, and more

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