The Edmonton Oilers' 2026 offseason is already off to an unimpressive start.
Should we be surprised? Absolutely not.
Having already renewed the Mike Babcock Saga for what could be an unimpressive fifth run, the Oilers took another unreasonably big swing by trading for former Buffalo Sabres netminder Devon Levi.
I will commend the Oilers for putting themselves in position to win this trade, doing so by acquiring Buffalo's seventh-rounder in 2028 as a sweetener for the deal.
But does it improve the Oilers' goaltending situation? Absolutely not
Though the Oilers gave Levi a chance to shine in their organization, they only succeed in kicking the can that is their goaltending situation one year down the road. Tristan Jarry is set to become eligible for an extension next offseason, and Levi enters restricted free agency at the same time. And Connor Ingram is still a major question mark as he enters free agency.
The Oilers were able to add the veteran goalkeeper Frederik Andersen to a one year deal which makes the Levi move even more puzzling.
And teams around the league are making moves to acquire better goaltenders. The Toronto Maple Leafs continued what has already been a strong offseason by signing former Florida Panthers netminder Sergei Bobrovsky to a three-year deal worth $7 million annually. The Panthers also won the offseason goaltending frenzy, doing so by acquiring Jacob Markstrom from the New Jersey Devils, sending veteran forwards Jesper Boqvist and Evan Rodrigues the other way.
Elsewhere, former Oiler Stuart Skinner was signed to a two-year deal by the Winnipeg Jets in a move that, to some capacity, seemed to represent preparation for Connor Hellebuyck and his potential departure.
I can understand why the Oilers would look to acquire Levi; he's a younger option who almost got the Buffalo Sabres into the playoffs three years ago. But Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Alex Lyon occupy the top two spots of Buffalo's goaltending depth, and Colten Ellis is a promising option for the long-term future of that unit. As a result, there wasn't much space for Levi to re-emerge as an contender for the team's goaltending lineup after being initially relegated to Rochester during the start of the 2023-24 campaign.
Getting Levi means pulling him out of the logjam that is the Sabres' goaltending unit and giving him a chance to earn meaningful NHL playing time.
For Levi, this is a great opportunity.
But for the Oilers, this is not the right move. They need that goaltender who will win them playoff games and who will step up when the offense isn't functional.
Unfortunately for them, they have to bank on Levi putting together a strong season behind an already-questionable Jarry.
The rest of the league pulls ahead once again, while Edmonton is left in the dust.
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