11:32 a.m.: Ungar’s deal begins next season and carries a cap hit of $860K, per PuckPedia. He’ll earn $775K in base salary, an $85K signing bonus, and $82.5K in minors salary each season.
11:16 a.m.: The Oilers have signed undrafted free agent goaltender Connor Ungar to a two-year entry-level contract, per a team release Monday. The team did not release financial terms but did confirm he’s been assigned to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors for the remainder of the 2023-24 season.
Ungar, 22, was surprisingly not signed by any professional team last summer after posting a .925 SV% and 26-7-0 record in 38 games with the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors. A late bloomer, the Calgary native wasn’t a full-time netminder in the major junior ranks until his age-19 season, but he was one of the best goalies in the league during his two full campaigns with the Warriors and the Red Deer Rebels.
With no professional home and having aged out of the WHL, Ungar took his talents to the Canadian collegiate circuit for 2023-24. Playing with St. Catharines’ Brock University, Ungar led Brock to a first-place finish in the OUA West Division and was the only USports goalie to reach 20 wins. In 26 appearances, he posted a .932 SV% and three shutouts.
He’s now secured his first professional home on the heels of that strong showing. While the team didn’t confirm the start date of the contract, it’s likely his NHL deal begins with the 2024-25 season, and he plays out the season with the Condors on a tryout contract. He’ll join a minor-league rotation with Jack Campbell and Olivier Rodrigue down the stretch, the latter of whom is an RFA this summer. Fifth-string netminder Ryan Fanti, who’s spent all of 2023-24 on assignment to the ECHL’s Fort Wayne Komets, is also a pending RFA and seems unlikely to receive a qualifying offer. Ungar will likely replace Fanti’s job on the depth chart next season, either as a backup or third-string option in Bakersfield behind Rodrigue. If his deal begins next season, Ungar will be an RFA in 2026.