Insider Reveals “True Prize” If Oilers Make an Upgrade in Goal

According to Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Edmonton Oilers are “looking at things” when it comes to possible upgrades in goal. While the immediate plan is to run with Calvin Pickard and GM Ken Holland has told Jack Campbell there’s a path back to the NHL for him, the longer-term plan might be to pluck a netminder from another team. Noting that Holland has already made some calls on potential options, Friedman revealed the “true prize” of the bunch in his latest 32 Thoughts column.

Related: Oilers’ Jack Campbell Clears Waivers, Headed to AHL

He writes:

I do think they are contemplating things, looking at several options. There’ve been reports of Jordan Binnington, but unless the Blues are giving up on the season, they need to replace him and won’t be taking Jack Campbell. Binnington’s also a $6M cap hit, which would take quite a bit of finagling. Not impossible, but challenging. They’ve talked to Montreal — which doesn’t need a goalie — about the possibility of Jake Allen, but I don’t sense anything imminent.”

But, as Friedman notes at the end of his commentary on the goaltending search, he says, “Watching Juuse Saros almost single-handedly beat the Flames on Tuesday reminds that he’s the true prize…” In other words, that’s who the Oilers want, if they were able to acquire their top selection.

The problem for the Oilers is two-fold. First, the Nashville Predators have publicly said they aren’t looking to trade him. Second, if they were convinced to change their minds, it would cost the Oilers a pretty penny. Friedman notes, “…in addition to any return, it might cost the team an 18-wheeler full of Alberta crude and media-meal perogies.”

Oilers Might Not Be Able to Afford Their Top Target

What Friedman is trying to say is that if Edmonton is gung-ho to go after their top target (whomever that may be), they’ll be paying a lot to acquire that player. Even their second or third-string option isn’t going to come cheap, so the plan might be to go with what they have at their disposal and hope Campbell finds his game in the AHL.

Friedman wrote, “GM Ken Holland, he has always maintained that, if you are going to make a change in goal, you must be convinced it is an actual upgrade when giving up serious assets.” If the GM still follows that line of thinking, Oilers fans can rest assured that the Oilers won’t be adding a “maybe”. They’ll hold out for the best possible option and Holland will be prepared to pay a steep price if he moves forward.

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