Considering Wayne Gretzky was the focus of hockey's biggest trade, forgetting the other eight players tied to the deal is easy.
While no one involved in the trade matched the impact Gretzky had in Los Angeles, a couple players etched places in hockey history. Martin Rucinsky, whom the Oilers selected using one of the acquired draft picks, and Martin Gelinas were the last active ties to the historic moment. Rucinsky decided to continue his career overseas and Gelinas remains an unrestricted free agent.
Below is a look at the players who were involved with the Gretzky trade and how their careers unfolded after Aug. 9, 1998.
Marty McSorley
McSorley upheld his reputation as one of the league's toughest players in Los Angeles, setting a franchise record for penalty minutes with 1,846. He occasionally provided offense for the Kings, posting double digits in goals four times in his eight years with Los Angeles. McSorely chipped in 10 points during the 1992-93 playoffs, but played the goat in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals when referees caught him using an illegal stick. Montreal scored on the ensuing power play to force overtime and won in sudden death to change the momentum of the series. McSorley also played for Pittsburgh, the New York Rangers, San Jose and Boston, where he received further notoriety in 2000. McSorley knocked out tough guy Donald Brashear with a high stick to the head and received a one-year suspension. He failed to catch on with another NHL team. McSorley attempted a comeback with Grand Rapids (AHL) before retiring. He finished his career fourth on the all-time penalty minutes list with with 3,381.
Mike Krushelnyski
An occasional linemate of Gretzky in Edmonton, Krushelnyski posted the third-highest point total of his career (62 points) in his first season with the Kings. Krushelnyski's production dropped over the next couple years. The Kings traded him in 1990 to Toronto, where he continued to struggle with consistency over the next four seasons. The Maple Leafs eventually relegated the forward to a checking role. Krushelnyski joined the Detroit Red Wings for 20 games during the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season, the last of his career.
Jimmy Carson
The player who joked he'd be remembered as the answer to a trivia question, Carson posted 100 points and nearly reached the 50-goal plateau in his first season with the Oilers. His time in Edmonton was short-lived, however, as Carson demanded a trade and left the team four games into the 1989-90 season. The Oilers sent the forward to Detroit, but Carson never matched the scoring prowess from his days in Los Angeles and Edmonton. In his best season with the Red Wings, Carson recorded 34 goals and 69 points. He returned to Los Angeles in the early 90s, before making stops in Vancouver and Hartford. His last appearance in the NHL came during the 1995-96 season when he played in 11 games with the Whalers.
Martin Gelinas
Gelinas' career took him to seven different cities, but the winger managed to win a Stanley Cup and make three more Stanley Cup Finals appearances over the course of his career. The last active player of the Oilers dynasty, Gelinas had an immediate impact in his first full season with Edmonton, registering 17 goals and 25 points as a member of the "Kid Line." He made a brief stop in Quebec before the Vancouver Canucks claimed him off waivers just before their Stanley Cup run in 1994. Gelinas skated with the Carolina Hurricanes for their Cup run in 2001-02 and the Calgary Flames for yet another in 2003-04. Following the lockout, he played for the Florida Panthers and Nashville Predators. He accumulated 309 goals and 660 points in 1,273 games and is currently an unrestricted free agent.
Corey Foster
At the 1989 Entry Draft, the Oilers moved the first round pick (18th overall) acquired in the Gretzky trade to the New Jersey Devils for Foster. The journeyman defenseman spent two years in Edmonton's farm system, but never found his way into the Oilers lineup. Foster bounced between the NHL and AHL for several years before taking his game overseas.
Jason Miller
New Jersey traded Corey Foster to the Oilers for the 1989 first-round choice (18th overall) which Edmonton previously acquired in the Gretzky deal. The Devils drafted Miller, a winger, with the pick. Miller appeared in just six games with the Devils and currently plays in Germany.
Martin Rucinsky
The Oilers used Los Angeles' first-round choice 1991 to select Martin Rucinsky with the 20th overall pick. The Czech winger appeared in just two games with Edmonton before being shipped to Quebec in March 1992. A third-liner with the Nordiques/Avalanche franchise, Rucinsky never scored more than 20 goals in a season. He became part of another historic trade when the Avalanche included him in a package deal to acquire Patrick Roy from Montreal. As a member of the Canadiens, Rucinsky registered five 20-goal seasons and three 50-point campaigns. Montreal traded the winger to Dallas in November 2001 and Rucinsky spent the remainder of his NHL career with the New York Rangers, Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues. He recorded 241 goals and 612 points in 961 career games. Rucinsky, whose contract with St. Louis expired this summer, signed with Sparta Prague of the Czech ExtraLiga in July.
Nick Stajduhar
With the final first-round choice acquired in the deal, Edmonton selected Nick Stajduhar 16th overall in 1993. A junior standout with the OHL's London Knights, the defenseman made his debut during the 1995-96 season. He appeared in just two games with the Oilers that season, recording no points and four penalty minutes. From 1996 on, Stajduhar played for several teams and leagues in North America. He last played professional hockey during the 2000-01 season with the Idaho Steelheads (WCHL).
