Insider Predicts Oilers Grab $66 Million Goalie Upgrade in Blockbuster Trade
The Edmonton Oilers last year came within two goals of winning their sixth Stanley Cup, and first since 1990. Instead, they dropped a 2-1 decision in Game Seven of the Finals to the Florida Panthers — and according to one longtime Oilers insider reporter, “it’s possible the appearance in 2024’s Stanley Cup Final represents the absolute best of what this roster can deliver.”
This season’s edition of the Oilers may not be willing to accept that fate. After falling behind two games to none to Los Angeles, Edmonton has rallied back to win three straight and can eliminate the Kings for the fourth straight season with a win on Thursday at Rogers Place in Edmonton.
However, if the Oilers fail to close out the series and allow Los Angeles to win two more, insider Allan Mitchell of The Athletic sees big changes coming to the Edmonton roster.
First-year general manager Stan Bowman will probably be forced to part with some of the team’s home-grown talent, Mitchell says, because “based on management vision and cap constraints, we could see another cull of younger Oilers again this offseason.”
Insider Envisions Major Goaltender Upgrade
Prior to the 2025-2025 season, Edmonton parted with four players that the organization had drafted and developed though its American Hockey League affiliate the Bakersfield Condors.
Those were 2019 first round draft pick Philip Broberg, who signed as a free agent with the St. Louis Blues; 2020 first rounder Dylan Holloway who also signed with the Blues; 28-year-old defenseman and 2016 seventh-rounder Vincent Desharnais, who signed with the Vancouver Canucks and after two trades and now plays for the San Jose Sharks; and 2018 second round pick, center Ryan McLeod, who was traded to the Buffalo Sabres along with Tyler Tullio in exchange for Matthew Savoie.
Mitchell feels that there may be something bigger coming this time. Specifically, the Oilers may be looking for an upgrade at the goalkeeper position, and that means Stuart Skinner, who played 51 games for Edmonton in the regular season, could be swapped, potentially to the Boston Bruins in what would in effect be a goalie trade.
Though the Oilers finished with 48 wins and 101 points, third in the Pacific Division, Skinner’s goaltending was shaky. The Edmonton native’s goals against average (that is, goals allowed per 60 minutes of playing time) of 6.11 ranked him 24th in the NHL.
Jennings Trophy Winner May Be Oilers’ Trade Target
The target according to Mitchell — Jeremy Swayman of the Boston Bruins, a 26-year-old who will be entering the second year of an eight-year $66 million contract he signed with Boston before the season.
Swayman, just two years removed from a Jennings Trophy, allowed more goals than any goalie in the NHL in 2024-2025, 176, with a GAA of 3.11. Both were career-worst numbers for the five-year veteran who was a 2017 Bruins fourth-round draft pick.
Nonetheless, based on his career performance, Swayman should bounce back. He undoubtedly suffered from being surrounded by a Bruins team that went into a complete rebuild this year, shipping out veterans Charlie Coyle, Brad Marchand and Brandon Carlo plus three other players at the trade deadline.
With 271, the Bruins ended up allowing the seventh-most goals in the NHL.
Clearly Skinner alone would not be enough to extract Swayman from the Bruins. According to Mitchell, another homegrown player, defenseman Evan Bouchard — the Oilers’ 2017 first round pick, 10th overall — along with the 26-year-old goalie “could be used as trade assets in order to acquire an upgrade in goal.”
