The Edmonton Oilers will raise a banner next season in honor of former coach, general manager and executive Glen Sather.
From the club:
Fans attending the Edmonton Oilers December 11, 2015 game versus the New York Rangers will be part of a special night, as the Oilers welcome back Sather and honour his leadership that resulted in five Stanley Cup Championships for the organization.
Sather will become the ninth Oiler to have a banner raised by the team, joining Al Hamilton, Wayne Gretzky, Jari Kurri, Grant Fuhr, Paul Coffey, Mark Messier, Glenn Anderson and long-time radio broadcaster Rod Phillips in the hallowed rafters of Rexall Place.
Sather, who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1997, was one of the great coaches and managers in the history of the National Hockey League (NHL), winning four Stanley Cups as a Head Coach (1984, 85, 87, 88) and a fifth Stanley cup in 1990 as President and General Manager, all with the Oilers.
As noted, Sather enjoyed a tremendous amount of success in Edmonton. But even without a salary cap, he eventually faced the same challenges that GMs like Stan Bowman are facing today.
''I remember (player agent) Don Baizley told me a long time ago that I would have to be a wizard to keep this team together because of money,’' Sather told Sports Illustrated back in 1990, after the Oilers had won their fifth Stanley Cup in seven years, but their only championship without Wayne Gretzky.
''I knew there was no way they would all stick around.’'
The Oilers have not won a Cup since. Nor has Sather, having joined the Rangers in 2000.
Almost 72 years old now, Sather recently ceded to his general manager duties with New York to Jeff Gorton.