Prior to the season, the Oilers were involved in a couple of blockbuster deals, the first one occurring on September 19, as Edmonton traded Grant Fuhr, Glenn Anderson, and Craig Berube to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Vincent Damphousse, Peter Ing, Scott Thornton, and Luke Richardson.
A little over two weeks later, the Oilers then dealt Mark Messier to the New York Rangers for Bernie Nicholls, Steven Rice, and Louie DeBrusk.
Edmonton also named Ted Green as head coach as John Muckler left the Oilers for a job with the Buffalo Sabres.
Defensively, Dave Manson anchored the blueline, leading all defensemen with 15 goals and 47 points and led the club in penalty minutes with 220.
In the playoffs, the Oilers faced against Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings, who finished two points ahead of Edmonton in the standings.