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Top 100 Oilers: No. 95 — Marty Reasoner

Originally posted on Oilersnation | By Cam Lewis | Last updated Aug 25, 2025 1:17 PM ET

Oilersnation is reviving the Top 100 Edmonton Oilers of All Time list, a project originally created by the late Robin Brownlee in 2015. Marty Reasoner comes in at No. 95 on our updated 2025 list. He wasn’t ranked on Brownlee’s original list.

Marty Reasoner was never the headline act, but he was the centre that coaches could trust when games were tight. This sort of player was a fan favourite during an era where the Oilers often punched above their weight class.

Reasoner arrived as part of the return in the Doug Weight trade from the St. Louis Blues and settled into Edmonton’s middle-six forward group. He took hard defensive shifts, killed penalties, and won faceoffs. Over two tours with the Oilers, he produced the same steady value, and that quiet utility earns him a spot on this list.

Via The Nation Network

The Story

Reasoner was selected 14th overall by the Blues in the 1996 NHL Draft after a 45-point freshman season at Boston College. The Honeoye Falls, New York, native capped his NCAA career with a 73-point year for the Eagles in 1997-98 and made his NHL debut with St. Louis the following season.

Edmonton traded star centre Doug Weight to the Blues on July 1, 2001, and Reasoner was one of the three players the Oilers got in return. The two-way pivot gave the Oilers faceoff wins and safe minutes until March 9, 2006, when the club pushed in its chips and moved Reasoner, Yan Stastny, and a 2006 sec ond to the Boston Bruins for skilled winger Sergei Samsonov.

While the Bruins missed the playoffs, the Oilers made a surprising run to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. Following Edmonton’s loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, the team saw an exodus of veteran players. Chris Pronger requested a trade, while Samsonov, Mike Peca, and Jaroslav Spacek were among the players to leave in free agency.

The Oilers brought back Reasoner on a two-year contract on July 4, 2006, and he provided the same steady middle-six presence as before. After that deal expired, Reasoner played five more NHL seasons with the Atlanta Thrashers, Florida Panthers, and New York Islanders. Over 798 NHL games, he recorded 97 goals and 266 points, including 351 games and 121 points with the Oilers

Via The Nation Network

Notable

Reasoner’s most memorable twist is one that encapsulates the Copper and Blue era of the 2000s. He was traded at the 2006 deadline in the Samsonov deal, then re-signed with Edmonton four months later. Boston used the included second-round pick on Milan Lucic, which adds to the lore.

Back in Edmonton, Reasoner won the club’s Unsung Hero award during a difficult 2006-07 campaign. He finished his Oilers run with 351 games, 45 goals, 76 assists, and 121 points. Not flashy, just reliable, and reliably useful during a time when many players weren’t interested in playing in Edmonton.