Folks, it’s the August long weekend, otherwise known as Alberta’s Heritage Day long weekend. As we enjoy the waning months of summertime, with a Heritage Classic between the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers just shy of three months away, it might be fun to delve into some hockey history.
As of now, 52 players have suited up for both the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers in regular season games. When he presumably plays for the Flames in the fall, blueliner Jordan Oesterle will be the 53rd member of the club.
Here are the 52 players, ordered by the date in which they joined the club (bolded).
Player
Flames debut
Oilers debut
F Kari Jalonen
Oct. 7, 1982
Dec. 18, 1983
F Jeff Brubaker
Oct. 9, 1983
Dec. 15, 1985
F Kent Nilsson
Oct. 9, 1980
Mar. 4, 1987
F Mark Lamb
Jan. 9, 1985
Oct. 16, 1987
F Nick Fotiu
Mar. 19, 1986
Oct. 14, 1988
F Marc Habscheid
Oct. 15, 1991
Nov. 25, 1981
D Brian Glynn
Oct. 8, 1987
Jan. 23, 1992
F David Haas
Dec. 30, 1993
Nov. 6, 1990
D Len Esau
Dec. 30, 1993
Jan. 25, 1995
F Alan May
Apr. 8, 1995
Dec. 23, 1988
F Pat Conacher
Feb. 11, 1996
Oct. 26, 1983
D Michel Petit
Jan. 4, 1992
Oct. 24, 1996
D Frank Musil
Oct. 30, 1990
Mar. 11, 1998
D Steve Smith
Oct. 9, 1998
Dec. 29, 1984
G Fred Brathwaite
Jan. 8, 1999
Oct. 13, 1993
F Jim Dowd
Oct. 28, 1997
Jan. 12, 1999
D Bobby Dollas
Nov. 13, 1999
Jan. 9, 1998
D Brad Werenka
Mar. 15, 2000
Jan. 7, 1993
G Grant Fuhr
Oct. 2, 1999
Oct. 14, 1981
F German Titov
Oct. 5, 1993
Mar. 15, 2000
D Igor Kravchuk
Nov. 11, 2000
Feb. 27, 1993
F Dean McAmmond
Oct. 3, 2001
Oct. 6, 1993
F Martin Gelinas
Oct. 10, 2002
Oct. 7, 1988
F Josh Green
Dec. 7, 2003
Oct. 3, 2001
D Roman Hamrlik
Oct. 5, 2005
Jan. 2, 1998
D Bryan Marchment
Oct. 13, 2005
Jan. 20, 1995
G Dwayne Roloson
Nov. 13, 1996
Mar. 9, 2006
G Curtis Joseph
Feb. 4, 2008
Jan. 13, 1996
F Curtis Glencross
Oct. 9, 2008
Feb. 4, 2008
F Ales Kotalik
Feb. 3, 2010
Mar. 5, 2009
D Aaron Johnson
Oct. 20, 2009
Mar. 3, 2010
D Steve Staios
Mar. 5, 2010
Oct. 3, 2001
D Jim Vandermeer
Feb. 22, 2008
Oct. 7, 2010
F Krys Kolanos
Feb. 3, 2012
Nov. 14, 2005
D Andrew Ference
Feb. 12, 2003
Oct. 1, 2013
D Ladislav Smid
Nov. 12, 2013
Oct. 5, 2006
F Roman Horak
Oct. 8, 2011
Dec. 31, 2013
D Corey Potter
Feb. 27, 2015
Oct. 15, 2011
D Adam Pardy
Oct. 9, 2008
Mar. 1, 2016
D Kris Russell
Oct. 3, 2013
Oct. 12, 2016
F Mike Cammalleri
Oct. 9, 2008
Nov. 16, 2017
F Alex Chiasson
Oct. 12, 2016
Oct. 20, 2018
G Mike Smith
Oct. 4, 2017
Oct. 2, 2019
F James Neal
Oct. 3, 2018
Oct. 2, 2019
F Markus Granlund
Feb. 27, 2014
Oct. 2, 2019
F Milan Lucic
Oct. 3, 2019
Oct. 12, 2016
F Tobias Rieder
Oct. 5, 2019
Oct. 6, 2018
G Cam Talbot
Oct. 13, 2019
Oct. 8, 2015
D Brandon Davidson
Nov. 19, 2019
Dec. 10, 2014
F Derek Ryan
Oct. 3, 2018
Oct. 13, 2021
F Tyler Pitlick
Oct. 21, 2021
Oct. 22, 2013
D Brett Kulak
Apr. 11, 2015
Mar. 24, 2022
(Bill Flett and Gerry Under both played for Edmonton and the Atlanta Flames, so they don’t count. Similarly, Flames draft picks Kent Manderville, Adam Cracknell, Jarret Stoll, Keith Aulie and Laurent Brossoit both played games for Edmonton but since they never played games for Calgary, they don’t count. Ditto for Oilers draft pick Matthew Lombardi.)
Jalonen became the first player to play for both sides of the Battle of Alberta, and it happened during the same month. He was released by the Flames in early December 1983, with general manager Cliff Fletcher buying out his contract. A free agent, he signed with Edmonton and played three games before getting released (again) and returning to Finland.
Esau also had a weird journey between the two clubs. He played a handful of games with the Flames in 1993-94, but was claimed by the Oilers in the waiver draft preceding the 1994-95 season. He played 14 games for the Oilers but when they tried to demote him to the minors mid-season, he was claimed back off waivers by the Flames.
Overall, six goalies, 20 defencemen and 26 forwards have played for both teams. You’ll notice when skimming the names that most of them are, to be polite, more depth players than star players. And even most of the early stars to play for both teams were on the back nine of their NHL journeys by the time they switched sides – to cite examples: Kent Nilsson in Edmonton and Grant Fuhr and Steve Smith in Calgary.
The arrival and strong play of guys like Roman Hamrlik and Martin Gelinas with the Flames, and Andrew Ference and Mike Smith with the Oilers, are definitely outliers. While the frequently of players changing teams has definitely become super-charged as free agency became more prominent in team-building during the 1990s and the salary cap emerged in the 2000s, the Flames and Oilers aren’t often losing their best players to each other – it’s usually foot soldiers rather than generals switching sides.
Who’s your favourite player that’s suited up for both Calgary and Edmonton? Let us know in the comments!