The Edmonton Oilers in the mid-1990s were something.
There were Oiler legends like Doug Weight, Ryan Smyth, Curtis Joseph, and Todd Marchant, but we all know those players. What about the depth role players? This is a weekly series called “An Oiler from the past”, where we look at those depth role players. This week, the Wheel of Names landed on the 1994-95 season and we’ll look at Mike Stapleton.
Stapleton played for the Cornwall Royals of the Ontario Hockey League (bring them back!) for three seasons from 1983-84 until 1985-86, scoring 104 goals and 258 points in 182 games, leading him to be picked 132nd overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1984. He also played in the 1986 World Juniors for Canada, scoring three goals and six points in seven games as Canada won the Silver Medal.
The forward made his National Hockey League debut in 1986-87, scoring three goals and nine points in 39 games. The following season, Stapleton played 31 games in the International Hockey League, scoring 11 goals and 30 points. In the NHL, he scored two goals and 11 points in 53 games.
In 1988-89, he spent the majority of the season in the IHL, scoring 21 goals and 68 points in 69 games, playing seven games with the Blackhawks in the NHL where he had an assist. The following season, Stapleton played entirely in the IHL, scoring five goals and 16 points in 16 games, along with 13 games in the postseason scoring nine goals and 19 points as the Indianapolis Ice won the Turner Cup.
Stapleton returned to the ice for the Ice in 1990-91, scoring 29 goals and 81 points in 75 games as they fell in seven games in the 1991 IHL playoffs. Moreover, he played another seven games in the NHL where he had one assist with the Blackhawks. In 1991-92, he scored 18 goals and 59 points in 59 games in the IHL, along with 19 games in the NHL where he had four goals and eight points.
Just when it looked as if Stapleton would be stapled to a minor league roster, he became an NHL regular starting in 1992-93. That season, he played 78 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins where he scored four goals and 13 points. He followed it up with a seven-goal, 11-point season in 58 games with the Penguins before ending up on the Oilers to end the season.
The forward found success with the Oilers to end the 1993-94 season, as Stapleton scored five goals and 14 points in 23 games. In The following season, the 1994-95 season, he scored six goals and 17 points in 46 games as the Oilers missed the postseason. Stapleton’s tenure as an Oiler didn’t last long, scoring 11 goals and 31 points in 69 games, not too shabby.
His post-Oiler playing days saw him score a career-high 10 goals and 24 points in 58 games with the Winnipeg Jets in 1995-96. He struck with the team after they moved to Phoenix, scoring four goals and 15 points in his second season with the team. In 1997-98, the Sarnia native scored five goals and 10 points in 64 games. Stapleton’s final season in Phoenix saw him score nine goals and 18 points in 76 games.
The forward’s 1999-2000 season was spent with the Atlanta Thrashers after they selected him in the expansion draft. He matched his career-high in goals with 10 and picked up 22 points. After this season, he played 34 games with the New York Islanders and 18 games with the Vancouver Canucks in 2000-01, before heading to the Nordic countries to finish out his career.
Three of those seasons were spent in Finland, where he scored 32 goals and 83 points in 92 games. He also played 19 games in Sweden, where he scored five goals and 10 points. Stapleton retired after the 2003-04 season and was the head coach of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 2011-12 and 2012-13.
He joined the Anaheim Ducks front office in 2014, serving as a scout for seven seasons, the Director of Player Personnel for two seasons, and now is the team’s assistant general manager. Not a bad career for a player selected 132nd overall, even if he only spent parts of two seasons with the Oilers.
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