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Flashback Friday: Looking at the which Oilers represented their country at the 1998 and 2002 Olympics
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Photo credit: Youtube/Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame
Ryley Delaney
Feb 6, 2026, 21:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 6, 2026, 21:05 EST
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In just a few days, men’s hockey at the 2026 Olympics will begin.
This year, the Edmonton Oilers will send three players, with Connor McDavid representing Team Canada, and both Leon Draisaitl and Josh Samanski representing Team Germany. It’s the first time since 2014 that National Hockey League players have played in the tournament.
The first year NHL players were eligible was back in 1998, with NHL players also heading to the 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014 tournaments. In this edition of Flashback Friday, we’ll look at the Oilers who attended the 1998 and 2002 Olympics. Next Friday, we’ll look at the Oilers who attended the 2006, 2010, and 2014 Olympics, before looking at former Oilers who attended the 2018 and 2022 Olympics on the following Wednesday.

1998 Olympics

The 1998 Olympics were held in Nagano, Japan, running from February 7th until the 22nd. It featured 14 teams, and saw Czechia knock off Russia in the gold medal game, while Team Canada had a disappointing tournament, falling to Finland in the bronze medal game.
In total, the Oilers sent seven players to the tournament. Representing Canada was netminder Curtis Joseph, but he failed to appear in any games. Makes sense, as the other two goalies on Team Canada were Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy. Former Oiler captains Wayne Gretzky and Shayne Corson played for Team Canada, while Chris Pronger also played for Canada.
Nearly half the players that the Oilers sent to Japan played for Team Russia. Defenceman Boris Mironov and forwards Valeri Zelepukin and Andrei Kovalenko represented the silver medal winners. Mironov had two assists in six games, Kovalenko had four goals and five points in six games, and Zelepukin had a goal and three points in six games. Igor Kravchuk, German Titov, and Mikhail Shtalenkov all suited up for the Oilers at one point in their career.
Team Sweden, who lost in the quarterfinals to bitter rivals, Finland, had just one Oiler suit up for the team, Mats Lindgren. He shouldn’t be confused with his son, also named Mats Lindgren, a Buffalo Sabres prospect. In 1997-98, Lindgren scored 13 goals and 26 points in 82 games for the Oilers, but was held pointless in four games for Sweden.
The two other Oilers who attended the 1998 Olympics dressed for Team USA, Doug Weight and current GM of Team USA today, Bill Guerin. Weight served as the Oilers alternate captain at the time (as did Mironov), and he picked up two assists in four games at the Olympics. He had a much better regular season for the Oilers, potting 26 goals and 70 points in 79 games.
Guerin didn’t have a letter on his Oilers sweater, yet, but he picked up three assists in Team USA’s four games. Guerin, Mironov, and Weight all wore a letter for the 1998-1999 Oilers.

2002 Olympics

Four years later, the 2002 Olympics were hosted in Salt Lake City, United States. The tournament lasted from February 9th until February 24th, featuring 14 teams. This time, Team Canada left the tournament with the gold medal, defeating hosts Team USA in the gold medal game. Team Russia defeated Team Belarus for the bronze medal.
Two Oilers represented Team Canada at the 2002 Olympics, defenceman Eric Brewer and forward Ryan Smyth, nicknamed “Captain Canada”. Brewer scored two goals in the six games Team Canada played, then later added two goals and five points in seven World Championship games at the end of the season. Smyth didn’t have as good a tournament, picking up just one assist in six games as he finished as a -4. Team Canada’s head coach was Pat Quinn, who would later coach the Oilers.
Team Canada sent Team Finland packing in the quarterfinals thanks to a 2-1 win. That game ended the tournament for two Oilers: Jussi Markkanen and Janne Niinimaa. Much like Joseph four years before, Markkanen didn’t appear for the Finns. Niinimma picked up three helpers in four games and fell two points shy of matching his career-best year during the regular season.
Before Draisaitl and Samanski, Jochen Hecht represented both the Oilers and Team Germany during the 2002 Olympics. In his one and only season with the Oilers, Hecht scored 16 goals and 40 points in 82 games, then added a goal and two points in four games at the Olympics. You have to imagine Draisaitl will put up better numbers than that.
In net for Team Sweden was Tommy Salo. He was a darn good goaltender for the Oilers, but what he’s infamous for is allowing a slapshot from centre ice in a 3-3 game in the quarterfinals against Team Belarus. Salo actually had a solid tournament, finishing with a .924 save percentage in three games.
Like the 1998 Olympics, the Oilers had some representation on Team USA, this time in the form of defenceman Tom Poti. In the six games he played, he picked up an assist as Team USA fell in the gold medal game to Team Canada. About a month later, Poti was traded to the New York Rangers for Mike York and a draft pick.
Next Friday, we’ll look at which Oilers represented their country in the 2006, 2010, and 2014 Olympics.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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