The Edmonton Oilers were swept out of the first round of the playoffs, but it wasn’t because of goaltending. The 39-year-old Mike Smith posted a solid .912 save percentage in the four games, good enough to keep every game close between the Oilers and Winnipeg Jets. At his end-of-year media availability, Edmonton GM Ken Holland said plainly that he wants to re-sign Smith after the strong season he experienced.
Now 15 years into his NHL career, Smith posted an outstanding .923 save percentage during the regular season, essentially becoming the only netminder the Oilers could rely on. Despite costing just a third of the cap hit Mikko Koskinen carries, Smith was the unquestioned starter by the end of the season and played every minute of the team’s playoff series, including a back-to-back in games three and four.
Koskinen meanwhile could be on the chopping block after posting a brutal .899 save percentage in 26 games for the team. Holland explained that buyouts are very possible for his club this summer in order to free up additional cap space, and the 32-year-old Koskinen is a prime candidate. Not only was he signed by Holland’s predecessor, but he also would cost just $1.5MM against the cap for the next two seasons. If Smith can be brought back on a reasonable deal, that would free up a good chunk for the team to invest elsewhere.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that Smith can recreate the season he just had. His two previous were poor, posting a .900 save percentage over 81 appearances for the Oilers and Calgary Flames, and he very well could be the oldest netminder in the league in 2021-22. The team does have veteran backup Alex Stalock in the organization now after claiming him in March, but there isn’t yet a prospect pushing for NHL playing time. If Smith is retained and Koskinen bought out, it could still be worthwhile to examine the rest of the goaltending market in case the veteran fails to repeat his excellent 2020-21 performance.
Not a good sign when EDM has to try to keep Smitty and get rid of Koskinen, with no 5-star netminder in Bakersfield yet. Smitty is a bit of a fitness beast, but may not be a super-reliable carrier of a heavy load for a normal season. Trader Pete is still getting his “last laugh”, long after he sabotaged the team…
Skinner made huge strides this year and Konovalev was lights out in the K. That does not mean I think both are ready for the starter job but it’s encouraging to see some goaltending talent in the pipeline. If smith can maintain that play next year while skinner could play back up we might be able to buy enough time without having to spend big in net. On the other hand for the sake of keeping Connor maybe we just go big where we can and try and make a run.
@backhandinbaptist – Agree with Skinner’s progress, but if they are forced into Stalock as backup, it could be a real crap-shoot. I think we are seeing guys traded there (in general) who don’t want to be there and feel like they have to hold their nose until they get moved. I don’t understand why there isn’t more of a (relative) stampede to get the opportunity of playing with #97 & #29. And, there will always be the stink about the tax situation in Canada. Also, will the league hear the teams’ legit gripes about the inefficient scheduling. That’s not only a money saver, but can help the workload balance for the goalies. Let’s not forget to address the perennial problem of depth and the inability to win critical faceoffs. Most importantly, remind the other people saying “Ken Holland should trade for this guy or that guy” that with a flat cap, it isn’t easy to find a willing trade partner to get a win-win deal.
100% Mac. They have a lot of depth issues. The tax situation sucks in Canada and let’s be honest we have 1 month stretches of -30 Celsius. If I can play on a team that wins, where I barely pay taxes, no one knows who I am and it’s beautiful all year..yeah I’m up for that. It’s a bit surprising there are not more guys who want to play with a star, but Edmonton has not shown in the last 15 years they want to win. Flat cap as you mentioned doesn’t help though I’m grateful we’re getting out of our cap situation this year, but some of the talent has to start being homegrown. The oilers drafting has improved substantially the last 5 years so that will start manifesting itself in wins hopefully. Canada is not an easy place to play because it’s freezing cold for 6 months, you can’t go out to eat without everybody knowing you and when the team loses people hate you and throw you under the bus.
@backhandinbaptist – That pretty much sums it up, unfortunately. Maybe the dark clouds of cap hell will part a bit for some glimmers of hope this offseason…
Honestly, not a bad signing unless he’s looking for too hefty a raise after such a good season. Caveat . . . he mustn’t be the starter. Koskinen should be moved and Oilers need to find a solution in goal whom isn’t 40 years old and (usually) wildly inconsistent.
funny how the EDM fans didn’t want mike smith before the season but he was nothing but solid all the way through
I was one of them. I ate my hat.
I like Smitthy but I am more concern who is gonna be the backup when he retires, let say Skinner takes over the number 1 duty I would like to see Koskinen take over the backup job at least he is experienced.
definition of insanity…
The cap struggle is real, folks. Holland is going to have to be just the right mixture of smart and lucky to have any real success. That’s the price of paying 25.7% of your cap to just two forwards. Even as good as those two are, the depth suffers greatly. Just ask Toronto.
The real key here, as stated above by @backhandinbaptist, is homegrown talent. They simply won’t be able to afford enough established UFAs to round out the roster. RNH is a candidate to be gone this off-season, which could help free up some space to balance the depth a bit, but even then I have a hard time believing that they will get quality goaltending at a discounted rate, regardless of how they approach it.
Add to that the lack of picks they have in this draft, the James Neal contract, the flat cap, and the expansion draft….
This is a team that desperately needs to develop some decent NHLers from their own prospect pool.