The Edmonton Oilers' Goaltending Search Continues

Calvin Pickard and Stuart Skinner James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

Despite the demotion of goaltender Jack Campbell and bringing in Kris Knoblauch as the new coach, the Edmonton Oilers have made little progress in saving their season.

They remain near the bottom of the overall standings, while their 4.00 goals-against per game is among the league’s worst.

The Oilers’ problems aren’t solely due to poor goaltending. Their porous defense made life miserable for Campbell and continues to do so for Stuart Skinner and call-up Calvin Pickard. Nevertheless, they’re rumored to be seeking an upgrade between the pipes.

On Saturday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported the Oilers were recently in Montreal scouting Canadiens goalies Jake Allen, Sam Montembeault and Cayden Primeau. Three days later, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported they were also in touch with free agent Jaroslav Halak, who was recently released from his professional tryout offer with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli included Allen on his list of five goalie options for the Oilers to target. Detroit’s James Reimer, San Jose’s Mackenzie Blackwood, Arizona’s Karel Vejmelka and Philadelphia’s Carter Hart also made Seravalli’s list.

Friedman said the Oilers don’t want to make a panic move that they would regret later. However, they’re not dealing from a position of strength. It will cost them plenty to acquire one of those goalies on Seravalli’s list.

The Athletic’s Allan Mitchell wrote the Oilers must find a trade partner to take Campbell and his $5-million annual average salary off their hands to free the cap dollars for his replacement. He felt it would mean bundling Campbell with at least three good prospects/draft picks as sweeteners.

Given that high cost, the Oilers might be better off gambling on Halak, provided he’s willing to sign a low-cost contract for the remainder of this season.

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