Carter Hart Race Cut Down By 2 Teams

Carter Hart is one of the better goalies in recent memory to become available for multiple teams to fight over and it makes it more interesting that he isn't available to play games until partway through the season. That hasn't dropped the interest though. It was believed that the Philadelphia Flyers and Edmonton Oilers were interested and in the running to be able to sign Hart, but that doesn't seem to be the case for either anymore.

According to Charlie O'Connor, Hart has reached out to the Flyers and told them he prefers a fresh start. As for the Oilers, Daniel Nugent-Bowman reported that Edmonton is not looking to sign Hart.

Hart choosing a fresh start rather than returning to Philadelphia makes a lot more sense than what seems to be going on in Edmonton. The Flyers have goalie options, but that wouldn't have stopped the team from making the necessary moves to get Hart back in the mix and playing half of the games over the next few years.

The Oilers, while it seems like Stuart Skinner looks like a different goalie, still need a change in goaltending, but to replace Calvin Pickard, not Skinner. Hart, being from Alberta, could have been a great choice to bring in. The expectation is that Skinner will be the starter this season and maybe around the trade deadline the Oilers will make a move to get someone else they want in net.

Hart still has interest from the East and West and there are some good teams in the mix for his services. Philadelphia won't be the best in goal or defensively, but they weren't the side making the decision to get taken out of the race for a better goalie. The Oilers better be confident in net and have multiple backup plans for this season. One of the holdups for Connor McDavid signing has to be knowing they can win it all in the next couple of years. Goaltending is a big part of that.

Photo credit: © Eric Hartline-Imagn Images