The Goalie Graveyard: Edmonton Oilers

The current Edmonton Oilers are infamous for 2 things, scoring… and being scored on. While many will blame defence for the latter, goaltending has always been the biggest question mark when it comes to the Edmonton Oilers. In 2015, the Oilers won arguably, the most impactful draft lottery in NHL history and lucked into Connor McDavid, the current consensus best player in the NHL. 10 years later the Oilers are a perennial cup contender making it to 2 Stanley Cup Finals and being as close as it gets to winning the whole thing. Despite being as dominant as they have been, that question mark of goaltending still persists to this day. So it begs the question, how did the Oilers get labeled with this title of being a goalie graveyard? 

Cam Talbot | 2015-19

The Oilers tenure of Cam Talbot can be summarized in 2 ways for the Oilers, burnt out, or the first shot. Out of the 4 seasons Talbot played for the Oilers, 2 of them he gave everything the Oilers needed. With a sv% of .918 within those 2 years Talbot stood on his head but more notably, playing 129 games out of 164 and his 2nd year, playing 73. The next highest goalie in games played was Frederik Andersen playing 66, leaving Talbot with 7 more games played. This reasoning is why many consider the Oilers to have burnt out Cam Talbot and to be quite frank, are absolutely valid in thinking so. The 2nd half of Talbot’s 4 seasons can be defined by his ability to let in the first shot of the game. Talbot became notorious for letting in soft first shots which was an absolute moral killer in terms of trying to win a hockey game. Starting down 1 in almost a quarter of your games is unacceptable in any context. After 2 years of Talbot not returning to form from his first 2 seasons, the Oilers shipped him to the Philadelphia Flyers for Anthony Stolarz who we let go in free agency. Talbot finished his 4 years in Edmonton with a sv% of .909. 

Anders Nilsson | 2015-16

Anders Nilsson didn’t have much of an impact in the grand scheme of the Edmonton Oilers. The massive 6’6, 231 lbs goalie never had much success in the NHL. Playing for multiple teams, the New York Islanders, St. Louis Blues, Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver Canucks, Ottawa Senators and of course, the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers acquired Nilsson in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks for Liam Coughlin who was a previously drafted 5th rounder by the Oilers. Nilsson never contributed much to the Oilers other than below average backup goaltending where he put up a sv% of .901 with a shocking 3.14 GAA while only playing 26 games for the club until he was moved to the Blues. 

Laurent Brossoit | 2014-18

The old boys club is a term used by Oilers fans to brand players that didn’t deserve roles, yet were drafted and/or hired into the team based on similar social backgrounds rather than actual skill. Laurent Brossoit was absolutely one of these players and that stems from his time playing for the Edmonton Oil Kings. The amount of Oil Kings players that were drafted by the Oilers that had no business ever touching the NHL was criminal, Mitch Moroz, Keegan Lowe, Travis Ewanyk and more but Laurent Brossoit at the time, was also part of that club. If you’re wondering how Cam Talbot ever managed to play 73 games, you can essentially put that on Brossoit. And while Brossoit never managed to play well for the Oilers, there’s a reason I said “at the time” because after departing from Edmonton, he became serviceable backup for the Winnipeg Jets and even had a nice stint for Vegas where he won a Stanley Cup. Brossoit finished his tenure in Edmonton with a sv% of .895. 

Mikko Koskinen | 2018-22

Earlier I said many blame defence for the Oilers goaltending struggles and i dont think there’s a goalie more deserving of that excuse than Mikko Koskinen. Something a lot of people don’t realize is how bad the Oilers defence was previously before obtaining Mattias Ekholm and Koskinen performed decently despite never playing with Ekholm. The other thing about him is that the Oilers media hated him with a passion for some reason, specifically Jim Matheson. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say goaltending in the NHL is around 50% mental, 50% physical and the Oilers media did everything they could to ruin Koskinen’s mental game. Koskinen’s tenure with the Oilers finished with a sv% of .906 in 164 games. I think out of all the Edmonton Oilers goalies, Mikko Koskinen was the most undeserving of the title of a “bad goalie.” 

Mike Smith | 2019-22

I think Mike Smith’s tenure as an Oiler is maybe one of the most fun goalies we’ve ever had despite all his shortcomings. As a goalie, Mike Smith was insane, somehow putting up decent stats even with the very occasional terrible mistake. Smith was known for making these crazy full ice length passes despite being a goaltender and having the tenacity of a honey badger. I think the Oilers as a team fed off his intensity quite a lot actually because out of everything Mike Smith did for the Oilers there is a clear moment that made him a fan favourite eternally, and that was his fight vs Cam Talbot in the Battle of Alberta against Calgary. During this time, there was a big rivalry involving Zack Kassian and Matthew Tkachuk and during one of the infamous Battle of Alberta games, Mike Smith dropped the gloves and initiated a fight against Cam Talbot playing for the Flames at the time which may have given the fans not just one of the most iconic goalie fights, but just hockey fights in general. Mike Smith actually played quite well for the Oilers putting up a sv% of .913 which in terms of Edmonton goalies, is basically the best of the best. 

Stuart Skinner | 2021-26

Perhaps the most tragic goalie out of them all, Stuart Skinner is the most home grown talent maybe in NHL history. Born in Edmonton, played for Edmonton pre-junior teams with his only time away from Edmonton being in the WHL and AHL stints. Even drafted by Edmonton themselves in 2017 with a 3rd round pick. Skinner’s tenure in Edmonton can be summarized by one word. Streaky. I don’t think anyone questions whether Stuart Skinner is good at hockey or not, the question is whether or not he will be good at the right time. I think a lot of people forget this by his sub-optimal play in the playoffs, but in the 2024 Western Conference final, Stuart Skinner basically carried the team on his back through that series. People forget that a lot because of his notoriously bad goal let in vs Sam Reinhart to win the Stanley Cup that same year, but they never would have been in that position without him. Skinner finished his Oilers tenure basically being pushed out of the city by fans and out of the 5 years playing here, he put up a .904 sv% for the team. 

Jack Campbell | 2022-24
Perhaps one of the most disastrous signings in Oilers history, there is nothing positive to say about the tenure of Jack Campbell. Campbell was signed to a 5 year deal where he only played… 41 games for the Oilers until being bought out because he played so poorly. Putting up an .881 sv%, there really isn’t much to say about Campbell other than his very questionable goaltending. 

Calvin Pickard | 2023-26

Calvin Pickard’s tenure as an Oilers goalie is a little tragic as well, with it most likely ending as of recently being sent down to the minor team Bakersfield Condors. As a 33 year old goalie being sent back to the minors, that’s most likely it for his NHL aspirations until something really miraculous happens for him. Pickard was actually quite a fan favorite known for his energetic interviews and generally just happy vibes. He was also known to be quite a locker room favorite but even with all that, he couldn’t cut it as an NHL goalie. Playing 75 games as a backup goalie for the Oilers, he put up a sv% of .893 which just doesn’t justify keeping him on the team even with all the intangibles he brings. 

That brings up the question of who are the current Edmonton Oilers goalies though? Currently, Tristan Jarry and Connor Ingram who stats wise, aren’t performing that well with both sitting below a sv% of .900. It is early in their runs as goaltenders though, so there isn’t any reason to be hasty in deciding whether or not they can be deemed failures yet.

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