Some Edmonton Oilers fans have been hoping their team would make a push to bring in a new goaltender this offseason, while some fans are content running it back with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard under a new goaltending coach. While the widespread belief is that the Oilers are going to hire someone new to work with their goaltenders this summer, according to some reports, they could still look to bring in a depth goaltender who could create some internal competition heading into the 2025-26 season. One option that fans were hoping the Oilers would target is Arturs Silovs, but the Pittsburgh Penguins acquired him on Sunday (Jul. 13).
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After that deal was done, Oilers fans showcased their dismay on social media at general manager Stan Bowman for not pulling the trigger on a trade with the Vancouver Canucks after Silovs had a strong run in the American Hockey League (AHL) where he won a championship and was honoured with the playoff MVP, but his lack of experience at the NHL level made bringing him in too risky.
Silovs, who is 24 years old, has played 19 regular season games in his career, winning eight of them, and posting a 3.13 goals-against-average (GAA) and a .880 save percentage (SV%). In the 2023-24 playoffs, he stepped in for an injured Thatcher Demko and played 10 games, winning five of them, posting a 2.91 GAA and a .898 SV%.
The Penguins bring in an unproven goaltender in Silovs, but because of the position they’re in and how they’re likely headed for another season near the bottom of the standings, creating some internal competition between the pipes is never a bad thing. The Oilers could look to do the same thing if they don’t like what they see with Skinner and Pickard, but all Silovs would’ve done is push Pickard for the backup spot, which may have helped, but with his lack of success in the NHL, the risk was too high to take a chance on him being a potential future starter.
The Penguins are a much better situation for Silovs to enter into, considering Joel Blomqvist may not be ready for a full-time NHL spot, having some security in net is always a smart move. However, if the Penguins think both Silovs and Blomqvist are NHL ready and they want to run a young tandem, Tristan Jarry could fall right into the Oilers’ lap.
Jarry’s Previous Edmonton Connection Makes Trade Make Sense
Jarry, who is 30 years old, spent parts of four seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Edmonton Oil Kings between 2011 and 2015. He has struggled to find his footing over the past couple of seasons, and he was sent to the AHL last season where he played 12 games posting a .908 SV% and a 2.67 GAA. In 36 NHL games, last season he posted a .893 SV% and a 2.91 GAA.
His previous connection to Edmonton, combined with his need for a fresh start, could make a trade make sense for the Oilers and Penguins. His $5,375,000 cap hit and his 12-team no-trade list would make things difficult for the Oilers to pull off, but considering they could benefit from creating a new tandem with Skinner, this could make sense for both teams.
The Oilers would have to move some money out to make this work, but, it could be something that they consider to make some of their fanbase happy with a change between the pipes, but if the risk pays off and Jarry returns to his elite form that Penguins fans remember, he could help lead the Oilers to another deep playoff run.
Time will tell if the Penguins decide to move out a goaltender, specifically Jarry, but with the way things are trending in Pittsburgh, he could be the odd one out, and the Oilers could consider bringing him back to a city he’s comfortable playing in.
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