As the Edmonton Oilers move closer to the upcoming season, their main dilemma remains unresolved. The franchise entered the offseason with one clear goal, and it was to find a solution to their goaltending mishaps, which kept them from winning the Stanley Cup.
But eight weeks into the offseason, GM Stan Bowman has yet to find any viable options to replace primary goalie Stuart Skinner. The market for goaltenders being extremely thin has put the Oilers in a tough position, with the future of Skinner’s time on the team hanging in the balance.
Does Stuart Skinner’s Future Hang in the Balance?
Despite having one of the best lineups in the league, the Oilers have failed to clinch the Stanley Cup twice in a row. And a big part of that was their goalies.
In the finals, both Skinner and Calvin Pickard were stretched thin by the Panthers’ offense as they demolished the Oilers.
When the offseason started, the Oilers’ biggest challenge was to get a competitive goalie to improve their chances. But Bowman is yet to find a name that the Oilers can rely on. According to insider James Mirtle, the Oilers’ chances of finding a good replacement are thin.
Mirtle mentioned, “It’s pretty thin out there in NHL creases. A lot of teams are going with pretty inexperienced options in the backup role, so it’s hard to see them moving a starter.”
He continued, “There really aren’t a lot of teams with two veterans you could consider potential No. 1s, which would be what Edmonton would want in an upgrade over their current duo of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard.”
He mentioned that the Oilers’ ideal target would be a team that thought they would have a better season but had a disastrous one come the trade deadline. In that scenario, they would be shedding talent aggressively, which the Oilers could swoop down on.
Mirtle believes Detroit could be an option, moving either John Gibson or Cam Talbot. The Islanders and the Mammoth might also potentially have extra goalies in Semyon Varlamov and Connor Ingram. But he doesn’t believe either offer an upgrade for the Oilers.
“We’re really reaching to even contemplate some of these options for a team with designs on winning a championship,” Mirtle said. However, he also mentioned that it would take something unexpected for the Oilers to land what they wanted.
Recent rumors have brought Michael DiPietro into consideration as a viable option for the Oilers. At 26, DiPietro has played just three NHL games but has been a dominant force in front of the net for the Providence Bruins in the AHL.
Last season saw him play 40 games for the Bruins with a GAA of just 2.2 and a save percentage of .927 in the regular season. In the playoffs, he was even better with a GAA of 1.85 and improved his SP% to 0.928.
He is currently still under a two-year, $1.625 million deal with the Bruins. But with the franchise having Jeremy Swayman locked in as their starter and Joonas Korpisalo as their backup, DiPietro could be a sensible target for the Oilers.
While rumors suggest that the Oilers are also interested in the prospect, no official statements have been made. But the upcoming weeks might bring more details.
