Oilers: Nobody Is Going To Do Them Any Favours With Goaltending

Stuart Skinner & Calvin Pickard, Edmonton Oilers

There has been one glaring problem with the Edmonton Oilers for many years, and that's goaltending. The entire league knows that and the Oilers also know that, but it's not easy getting capable or elite goaltending in the NHL. Plenty of teams struggle on and off and few have consistent elite talent in net year after year.

Many believe that is the piece that is missing from the Oilers finally hoisting the Stanley Cup again, but according to Jeff Marek, "this goes back to Ken Holland. Everybody knows the Oilers have been and continue to look for a goaltender. No one's doing them any favours here."

This can be analyzed over the past couple of seasons, where top goalies have been traded elsewhere when the Oilers are clearly looking for help, whether they intended on targeting these netminders or not. Goalies like Jacob Markstrom, Mackenzie Blackwood, Lunis Ullmark, John Gibson, and Spencer Knight have all been moved, and the Oilers are still holding onto Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard.

Stan Bowman did what he could to bring in an option that may or may not pay off later this season when he acquired Connor Ingram from the Utah Mammoth. I would argue that this is doing the Oilers a favour by retaining enough cap so that there is no cap hit for him while in the AHL, and it cost Edmonton no assets to bring him in.

The Oilers have some of the cheapest goaltending in the league, and it shows in games. But with the cap going up as well as the prospect of the number one position being up for grabs by next summer, it may get a bit easier for the Oilers, but they will likely have to dip into free agency to upgrade rather than overpay in a trade.

The Oilers keep proving they are an elite team, even without top tier goaltending, so teams don't want to help make them better if they don't get anything really good out of it.