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Top 100 Oilers: No. 13 — Doug Weight

Originally posted on Oilersnation | By Michael Menzies | Last updated Nov 12, 2026 10:20 AM ET

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Oilersnation is reviving the Top 100 Edmonton Oilers of All Time list, a project originally created by the late Robin Brownlee in 2015. Doug Weight comes in at No. 13 on our updated 2025 list. He was ranked No. 10 on Brownlee’s original list.

The denouement of the dynasty Edmonton Oilers of the 1980s led to a pesky, competitive, but aging group in the early 1990s. It was a franchise in transition, with the great sales of stars to teams who could afford their salaries underway.

The New York Rangers took advantage, routinely snagging major pieces en route to an elusive Stanley Cup of their own in 1994, all while looking like the Oilers East.

No piece was bigger than Mark Messier, who was asked out after the 1991 playoffs, but Kevin Lowe and Craig MacTavish helped fill out the roster. Adam Graves wasn’t traded, but the offer sheet debacle saw an important young piece wrestled away.

And what made it all worse was that the returns weren’t great. Prospects like Steven Rice weren’t turning out.

But there was one trade, a big loss for the Oilers, yes, that worked wonderfully considering the circumstances. Under humorous circumstances, Esa Tikkanen (who is still to come in the Top 100) was dealt for Doug Weight in March 1993.

Via The Nation Network

Notable

The Rangers selected Doug Weight in the second round in a strong 1990 NHL Draft out of the NCAA’s Lake Superior State. He’d play a second collegiate season before making the leap to the pros, and in 1991-92, he played most of a rookie year for a President’s Trophy-winning New York squad.

When he got traded to the Oilers in 1992-93, he had 40 points in 65 games, but the way he was dealt was unique. With the Oilers visiting the Big Apple, general manager Glen Sather made the trade before the game. That forced Weight and Tikkanen to grab their equipment, jump into the other locker room, and play against their former teammates.

Weight didn’t even have time to tell his wife. She scanned the Rangers’ starters, and it wasn’t till her eyes met Doug’s in an Oilers jersey that she clued in.

“I didn’t know much about Edmonton, didn’t know where it was on the map to be honest with you,” said Weight, who was just 22 at the time. “Glen Sather, Ron Low, the organization, they put pressure on me. They challenged me. They made me a better player, made me compete, made me a leader, and for that I thank them.”

It took little time for Weight to ingrain himself as the offensive driver for the Oilers for the 1990s. In 588 games, Weight scored 157 goals and 577 points. But eventually, like many others before him, he would get too expensive to keep.

After difficult talks with general manager Kevin Lowe, St. Louis acquired Weight and Michel Riesen, for Marty Reasoner, Jochen Hecht, and Jan Horachek in July 2001. If there was solace in losing the 2006 Stanley Cup Final, the Carolina Hurricanes were able to give Doug Weight his long-awaited championship.

The Story

Weight was unquestionably the franchise’s MVP through tumultuous times, playing the strong, two-way, gritty type of hockey that signified late 1990s hockey.

In total, Weight led Edmonton in scoring seven times, and the only season he didn’t finish first in points was because he missed half the 1998-99 season. Only Wayne Gretzky and Connor McDavid have led the Oilers in single-season scoring more often.

With him leading the charge, the Oilers authored sensational upsets of the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche in 1997 and 1998. He’d become the captain for his last two seasons after the departure of Kelly Buchberger.

“I think the craze of hockey in this city, but the volume it came with and the way the whole city felt during those times, there’s nothing like going to the rink,” he said about playing playoff hockey in Edmonton.

“I think it’s the credit of management and this team structure and the culture that they developed with the winning. We had that ingrained in us and it was a challenge for us to continue it.”

It’s no surprise that in 2023, Weight was inducted into the Oilers Hall of Fame. For a generation of Oilers fans, he remains their favourite player, a perennial offensive threat, and the ultimate team-guy.

Doug Weight 1999-00.

What Brownlee said

“With the Dynasty Days of the Oilers done and most of the Boys on the Bus traded away or sold by owner Peter Pocklington, Weight and younger, cheaper players like him – Jason Arnott, Zdeno Ciger, Dean McAmmond and Kirk Maltby – were supposed to be the new core of the five-time Stanly Cup champions. It didn’t take Weight long to establish himself as the Oilers’ marquee guy. He had 104 points in 1995-96. Weight was named team captain, taking over from popular Kelly Buchberger, in 1999.

“During his nine-year tenure in Edmonton, the final two as captain, Weight led the Oilers to five consecutive playoff berths, including what became an annual spring rite – showdowns with the Dallas Stars. During the back-half of that stretch Weight was Edmonton’s best player, the highlight reel guy on a team that always found itself battling in the middle of the pack instead of running out front like in the glory days. Highlights? Just a few.