THROWBACK THURSDAY: November 15, 2002

During the Oilers 40th Anniversary Season, EdmontonOilers.com is looking back at the history of the franchise weekly with Throwback Thursdays.
EDMONTON, AB - Oilers 5, Blues 0 |
Box Score
After missing the playoffs for the first time in six seasons in 2001-02, the Oilers quest to make it back to the big dance was off to a rocky start. Beginning the season with a 5-7-3-1 record, Edmonton had a stiff test against the 10-3-1-0 St. Louis Blues.
Third-year Head Coach Craig MacTavish was coming off 39 and 38-win seasons in his first two seasons and had a well-balanced group to deploy against the Blues.
And they capitalized.
Led by Anson Carter's two-goal performance, the Oilers left St. Louis singing the Blues en route to a 5-0 win - their largest margin of victory recorded during the season.

Carter was acquired by Edmonton exactly two years prior (November 15, 2000) in a trade that saw Bill Guerin become a Boston Bruin. The Oilers also acquired a 2001 first-round pick - which became fan-favourite Ales Hemsky - and a second-round pick (Doug Lynch) in the deal.
Carter registered a career-high 60 points in 01-02 and continued his hot play to begin the 02-03 season. Following the game, the Toronto, ON native had an impressive 19 points (9G, 10A) in his first 17 games of the season. This season would mark Carter's last as an Oiler as the winger would eventually be traded to the New York Rangers moments before the 2013 trade deadline.
The aforementioned Hemsky was just kicking off his NHL career and notched his fifth career NHL point on a first period powerplay tally by Marty Reasoner. Hemsky would go on to score his first NHL goal on January 4, 2003 against Montreal and finished the season with 30 points (6G, 24A) in 59 games.
Ryan Smyth and Mike Comrie also had big nights against the Blues as the pair notched three-points each. Smyth (3 assists versus St. Louis) would go on to lead the team in scoring for the first time in his career (61 points in 66 games) while dawning the "A" for the third straight season. Meanwhile, Comrie (1G, 2A against the Blues) would hit the 20-goal mark for the second time in his three-year career (20G, 31A).
In goal, Tommy Salo turned aside 29 shots for his first shutout of the season and 17th in an Oiler uniform. Coming into the 02-03 season, Salo placed top-10 in voting for the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender in each of the past three seasons - all with the Oilers. The season would mark Salo's final full season with the Oilers as the netminder was dealt to the Colorado Avalanche during the 03-04 season.
Including the victory, the Oilers went on a 11-2-1-0 run into mid-December. The stretch helped Edmonton make the Stanley Cup Playoffs once again as the team finished fourth in the Northwest Division and eighth in the Western Conference.