The Edmonton Oilers need goaltending help. That much is extremely obvious.
What is now apparent is that any potential goaltending solutions are dwindling quite quickly.
While the Toronto Maple Leafs had previously been named as a prospective trade partner for the Oilers in other regards, they would have presented a unique opportunity for Edmonton to fix their goaltending woes. With their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, now one win away from a first Calder Cup trophy, it seemed that the Leafs could have turned to the trade market as a means to create an opportunity to promote Marlies goaltender Artur Akhtyamov to the rotation.
The Leafs did end up turning to the trade market, but general manager John Chayka chose not to call Edmonton and their factory of goaltending sadness. Instead, he sent Joseph Woll, who is a very good goaltender but has struggled with injuries and inconsistencies (the latter came up several times during the 2026 IIHF World Championship), and defenseman Simon Benoit to the Philadelphia Flyers. Coming back to Toronto is another promising-but-inconsistent netminder in Sam Ersson, a puck-moving defenseman in Emil Andrae, and a third-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
In my opinion, that's a win for the Leafs. They know that they have a potential star goaltender in their AHL system and it's clear they're trying to pave the way for him. They get slightly younger on the defensive side of the ice (the only caveat here is that Andrae is set to become a restricted free agent), and they add a second third-round pick to a chest of draft selections that was more or less barren one year ago.
My opinion aside, the Oilers lose the Woll deal
Say what you will about Sergei Bobrovsky and Frederik Andersen hitting the free agency market in a few weeks time, but Woll heading to Philadelphia is a big loss for the Oilers.
The past season or so has seen the Oilers' goaltending unit take on short-to-medium term options, something that doesn't necessarily suit a vision of long-term contention. Tristan Jarry, who hasn't exactly lived up to his past performance in Pittsburgh, is eligible for an extension next offseason. At the same time, Connor Ingram, Connor Ungar, and Calvin Pickard are set to hit free agency, leaving the Oilers with Jarry and two additional non-roster goaltenders.
Therefore, to say that the Oilers need goaltending should scream no-brainer more times than Justin Bieber in a collab with DJ Khaled.
You know what other DJ Khaled lyric best describes the Oilers' goaltending? "Another one", because it seems the team is going to need another goaltender.
Yes, I'm aware of the fact that Bobrovsky and Andersen are options. But both are in their mid-to-late 30's and would likely command significant money over a short amount of time, something that the Oilers desperately need.
Outside of Ingram and restricted free agent Sebastian Cossa, who the Oilers have been linked to, there aren't too many ultra-appealing goaltending options on the free agent market.
That's why losing out on Woll is a troubling development. Had the Oilers acquired Woll, they would have been able to add a younger option to their goaltending unit, though he has the same amount of term left as Jarry. And if they end up locking Ingram up to a short-term deal, the Oilers would more or less be set at that position (at least on paper) for at least the next two seasons.
It remains to be seen if there was even any sort of discussion between the Leafs and Oilers with regard to a potential goaltending trade. But if there were any such talks, it would be easily to conclude that the Oilers lost out big time.
Add us as a preferred source on Google