Oilers fans know that if the team can address three simple areas, they can become Cup contenders. Those three areas are at forward, defense, and goaltending. Easy.
New General Manager Ken Holland quickly pointed to goaltending as an area he plans to address this summer. In a recent interview on TSN1260, Holland elaborated further, saying ideally he wants to find a goalie that can play 30-35 games.
Edmonton will likely be looking at the free agent market for this goalie and there are a number of names that should fit that role, if unspectacular.
Here are the goalies who played at least 20 games last season that could be asked to meet that role.
Semyon Varlamov
Robin Lehner
Mike Smith
Keith Kinkaid
Petr Mrazek
Anders Nilsson
Cam Ward
Curtis McElhinney
Brian Elliott
Ryan Miller
I've taken out Cam Talbot's name for obvious reasons as well as Sergei Bobrovsky because there is no chance the Oilers will have the cap to sign him.
This leaves ten goaltenders, ten names that could be the solution to either provide the Oilers with a strong backup or potentially take over as a starter should Koskinen struggle. From these names which are the best fit?
SV% is the easiest and most straightforward stat to look at to judge a goalie's performance. Simply put it is the percentage of shots that a goalie has stopped over the total number of shots on net they faced. Overall SV% can be skewed however, based on how the team in front fairs at special teams, mainly on the PK. I prefer looking at a goalies 5 on 5 numbers because that is where goalies will face the bulk of shots.
Here is a graph I pulled together using some of these stats to see how these different goalies compare to one another.
Right away I would eliminate Mike Smith and Keith Kinkaid from these talks. Smith is 37 years old and while he had a strong performance in the playoffs, he is clearly on the downturn of his career. Despite the Flames being one of the better teams in the league at suppressing shots, Smith has the lowest 5 on 5 SV% of any goalie on this list.
Likewise Kinkaid struggled in this area, though the Devils were an average team in shots against, Kinkaid was well below average in his performance. Last season while Schneider was down Kinkaid did step up, but I would not bank on him to rebound.
There are three names that should jump to the top of the list here. Mrazek, McElhinney, and Lehner. All three have had strong campaigns, with Lehner being a Vezina finalist. Shockingly, their respective teams might want to keep these players for that reason. Lehner is 27 and is entering the prime of a goaltenders career, I can't imagine that the Islanders will want to let him go and I don't see him becoming available.
For the Hurricanes however, with both of their goalies set to be UFA, they may look to keep one but not both. Mrazek is the obvious choice for the Canes to sign due to his age. Mrazek is only 27 while McElhinney is 35. A strong playoff showing from McElhinney combined with his regular season work could make him an acceptable option for a one year deal.
Cam Ward is another option that could be a sneaky good signing. Overall, the 35 year old netminder had a below .900 SV% as a whole but had strong numbers at 5 on 5, posting a 0.919%. Chicago allowed the second most shots in the league last season at 2852, roughly 300 more than Edmonton. Where Ward's numbers took a big hit were on the PK, where the Blackhawks had the worst PK in the league (Edmonton was second worst).
It wouldn't be a perfect fit but Ward could be the cheapest option on a one year deal and actually put out strong numbers.
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Quick thoughts on a few other names.
- Varlamov has been streaky over the years and at 31 he will likely be looking to cash in on a longer term deal. With Koskinen already a question mark and signed to an albatross of a deal, the Oilers should not aim to the the same with Varly.
- Ryan Miller is a name I believe could start 40 games but rumor has it he will be resigning in Anaheim.
- Elliot spent time in the AHL this season and another goalie I don't want to count on to rebound. Philly are goalie killers.
- Anders Nilsson has made a career lately in the NHL putting up decent numbers on bad teams. He might end up being a consolation prize for a team this summer.
Which free agent goalie would you go after?
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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