BLOG: Oilers celebrate Henrique's 1000th game with special shirts in Ottawa

KANATA, ON – Start your engines for Rico’s special day.

A milestone evening for Oilers forward Adam Henrique in celebrating his 1,000^th career NHL game on Tuesday night became even more memorable thanks to his teammates and the club’s support staff before the morning skate at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa.

To mark the occasion, Henrique’s teammates and the Oilers travelling staff surprised him by showing up to team breakfast and this morning’s pre-game skate wearing custom shirts crested with Castrol, Coors Light and Red Bull logos, along with a special racing font that reads ‘RICO’ on the front in homage of the 35-year-old’s love of Nascar and motorsports.

On the back of the shirts, six lines of text read:

DRAFTED: 3RD ROUND, 82ND OVERALL, IN 2008 BY NEW JERSEY

1^ST NHL GOAL: 11/3/2022 AT PHI – 455 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED

TRADED TO ANAHEIM ON 11/30/2017

1^ST NHL HAT TRICK AT NJD ON 12/17/2023 – 435 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED

TRADED TO EDMONTON ON 03/06/2024 – 110 TOTAL GAMES PLAYED

1000^TH NHL GAME 10/21/2025 AT OTT

For Henrique, it was a special day made even more memorable by the ones he shares the Oilers’ locker room with, underpinning what he believes to be the best part about being in the NHL and professional hockey – the people around him that make every day great.

“It's been a fun morning,” Henrique said. “I kind of forgot about the shirts, and that's kind of a bit of a tradition. So that was fun at breakfast, seeing that this morning, and [Assistant Equipment Manager Brad Harrison] up to his old tricks with some videos and all that sort of stuff… I saw Savvy wearing out the Red Bull logo on the back, and I was like, ‘Ah, he must be a race fan too, I guess.’ And then I saw the rest of the shirt.”

“That's the best part of the game – that camaraderie in the room and joking around with everybody and having fun and being light-hearted and just the joy that that brings to the game with everybody in there and being a part of it.

The 35-year-old has tried to embrace that ethos of being the best teammate possible, while being a leader in the locker room for some of the team’s younger players and a reliable one on the ice by leading by example.

“Just a good person, a good teammate, and that's all I've ever tried to do,” he said. “I try just to be a leader in the room and lead by example. I'm not a rah-rah type of guy. I just try to go about my business every day as a professional and I take that very seriously. But at the same time, I like to have fun and joke around and keep things light and that sort of thing too.

“I hope along the way that there are a number of guys out there who I’ve helped in their career somehow, and I think that's all you can kind of ask for.

Head Coach Kris Knoblauch reinforced Henrique's hopes exactly by saying he's been instrumental in guiding the team's younger players after he was between two NHL newcomers in Isaac Howard and Matt Savoie on a line just a few games ago, while being a versatile player for the Oilers since arriving from the Anaheim Ducks before the Trade Deadline in March 2024.

"A lot of guys have a lot of respect for him just with everything he's gone through with his experience with Anaheim, New Jersey, and now Edmonton playing a different and significant role with our team," Knoblauch said. "He's been on the power play, penalty kill, and a key face-off guy, so a lot of respect for him. He's a good hockey player, and right now, he's spending a lot of time with our young players helping them take the next step into their NHL career."

Henrique is a multi-50-point scorer in the NHL and has always tried to fill in the gaps around his teammates to be a complementary player, and that's helped him reach the century milestone for games that he didn't always think was possible.

"Early on, you just kind of want to get established, right? You want to become an everyday guy, and I've never been 'the guy'," he said. "I feel that I've always tried to make sure I'm doing everything the right way, leading by example and doing what I have to do to contribute and be a difference maker every single night.

"Not for a long time really did it seem like it was coming, and then, when it's getting closer and closer, it's a special thing. I've been a part of the ceremonies before for guys who've been there, it means a lot to players to get to a thousand games. I played with a lot of guys who have been close, and for whatever reason, you don't get there. Guys have had great careers and played less than a thousand games, and guys that have played 1,400 to 1500 games. So it's one of those special milestones that means a lot at the end of your career."