Most recently, the Oilers sent Ben Gleason to the Flyers for Ronnie Attard early into the 2024-25 season. Before that, the Oilers traded their 2025 first-round pick to the Flyers for the 32nd overall pick, using it to select Sam O’Reilly, who was traded for Isaac Howard last off-season.

However, the most notable trade between the two teams was the Jari Kurri trade on May 30, 1991. On that day, the Oilers sent a key piece of their dynasty, along with Dave Brown and Corey Foster, to the Flyers in exchange for Scott Mellanby, Craig Fisher, and Craig Berube.

Everyone knows how good Kurri was as an Oiler, scoring 474 goals and 1,043 points in 754 games alongside Wayne Gretzky. The Finn was a six-time All-Star and a five-time Stanley Cup winner as a member of the Oilers. That said, Kurri never played for the Flyers, as they sent him to the Los Angeles Kings on the same day, in exchange for Steve Kasper, Steve Duchesne, and a 1991 fourth-round pick that turned out to be Aris Brimanis.

Kurri didn’t win another Stanley Cup, but he was still a productive player after he was traded. Over his next 497 games, Kurri scored 127 goals and 355 points, playing parts of five seasons with the Kings, as well as a season with the New York Rangers, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and Colorado Avalanche. He earned a nod to the All-Star Game in 1992-93, but also went to the 1997-98 All-Star Game in his final season.

Ironically, Kurri’s final game in the National Hockey League came against the Oilers in the 1998 postseason. It didn’t take long for the Helsinki native to enter the Hall of Fame, as he was elected in 2001, the first Finn to have his name immortalized.

Brown was a Flyers’ draft pick and was traded to the Oilers during the 1988-89 season, winning the Stanley Cup with the team in 1990. Overall, he scored three goals and 15 points in 140 games with the team. He played another four seasons with the Flyers, before ending his career with the San Jose Sharks in 1995-96.

Foster played just 45 NHL games, none of which were with the Oilers and only 25 of which were with the Flyers. On the other side of the Kurri trade, Steve Kasper played 37 games with the Flyers in 1991-92 and 1992-93, while Steve Duchesne played 78 games with them in 1991-92, scoring 81 goals and 56 points. Aris Brimanis played 113 NHL games, scoring two goals and 14 points. Only 21 of those games came with the Flyers. They probably would’ve been better off with Kurri.

Trading a future Hall of Famer tends not to work out well, but the Oilers got a solid return given the circumstances. Mellanby was the big piece coming back, and he scored 38 goals and 82 points in 149 games in 1991-92 and 1992-93. They left him unprotected in the 1993 Expansion Draft, with the Florida Panthers claiming him.

Mellanby played eight seasons with the Panthers, scoring 157 goals and 354 points in 522 games. He also helped them make the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals. He was traded to the St. Louis Blues during the 2000-01 season, spending four seasons there, before finishing his career with the Atlanta Thrashers in the two seasons after the 2004-05 lockout.

Fisher never played a game with the Oilers (but did win the Calder Cup with their American Hockey League team in 1992-93). Apparently, the Oilers don’t like players named Craig, as Berube also didn’t play a game with the Oilers.

Instead, Berube was involved in a second trade that saw the departure of two key pieces of the Oilers’ dynasty. On Sep. 19, 1991, Berube was packaged with Glenn Anderson and Grant Fuhr and sent to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Vincent Damphousse, Peter Ing, Luke Richardson, and Scott Thornton.

That’s a whole other can of worms, but two notes about this trade. First off, Damphousse scored 38 goals and 89 points in his one and only season with the Oilers. Of any trade mentioned in this article, the one he was involved in when he was sent to the Montréal Canadiens was probably the worst of the three.

Well, there is bad trade that tops that, as today is the 34th anniversary of the Flames trading away Doug Gilmour for essentially nothing. The big piece going back to the Flames was Berube, and it’s widely considered one of the worst trades in their franchise history.

While the Oilers and Flyers have made plenty of trades, there hasn’t been a massive one, even when a Hall of Famer like Kurri was involved.

Oilersnation wants to hear from you, the reader, in our new weekly “Letters to the Editor” segment. Letters can be emailed to Oilersnation’s managing editor Zach Laing (zach.laing@bettercollective.com), titled “Letters to the Editor.” Please include a letter up to 200 words, including your name, place of residence (city, town, province, or state). Your letters may be edited for length and/or clarity. Letters must be submitted by 6 PM MT Saturday night to be considered for feature on Sunday mornings.

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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