Report: Oilers not interested in lateral goaltender trade
A big development on Saturday night, as Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported the Edmonton Oilers are open to making a goaltending trade, but aren't going to make a move they consider to be a 'lateral' trade.
Friedman confirmed there have been talks around the league, but internally in Edmonton, the team is content with their current set up and will only make a trade if they feel it makes them significantly better. Friedman pointed out that Oilers netminder Stuart Skinner recently did an autograph signing, and if he was going to be traded in the next few days, that wouldn't have been the case at all. Add in the fact Skinner shut out the Seattle Kraken on Saturday night, and currently, the waters are calm in Edmonton.
The team has been linked to Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry, who is having a great bounce back season, and is signed for two more years at a reasonable cap hit of just over $5 million. However, the Penguins would need to take a significant contract back to make the deal work out financially, and the Oilers don't necessarily have too much to offer the Pens, as Kyle Dubas is looking to get younger, and cheaper. Plus, Jarry is playing so well, the Penguins are thinking playoffs..
The St. Louis Blues are a team to watch for the Oilers, as Jordan Binnington is someone the team would love to acquire. However, Binnington has trade protection, and there's been rumblings over the weekend that the Oilers were on his no-trade list.
Elliotte Friedman: Re Oilers goalies: I don't think Stuart Skinner's asked for a trade; I don't think anything like that has happened; but I think from an organizational point of view, you have to be asking the question if it's time for everybody involved - 32 Thoughts
While talks continue around the league, as Friedman reports, don't expect to see the Oilers make a patch-work trade, just for the sake of making changes. If they wind up trading for a goalie, it's going to be a massive deal, for someone who has term left on their contract, and is considered an upgrade over their current two options.
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