Analyzing the Edmonton Oilers’ three-way goaltending battle

The Connor McDavid era has been defined by many things, but one of the most prominent has been the Edmonton Oilers’ goaltending. The lack of a consistent, dependable starter during much of McDavid’s tenure has been one of the biggest drags on the team’s potential with McDavid.

Mike Smith was good, but not reliable enough. Stuart Skinner brought them to consecutive Stanley Cup Finals, but couldn’t get the job done in either of them.

It appears that this season, Edmonton will be trying a different strategy. Rather than relying on a tandem in net, it seems the Oilers will carry three NHL goalies throughout the season. Even a trio has a pecking order, though. So who will claim the top spot, and who will be the third banana?

Jarry looking for a bounce back

Let’s start by looking at the one returning goalie from last year. Acquired in the Stuart Skinner trade, Tristan Jarry never really got a chance to get going. He suffered a lower-body injury in just his third game as an Oiler. After he returned, his play was so bad he was essentially benched in favour of Connor Ingram, who became the team’s defacto starter into the playoffs. Jarry did get one playoff start in Game 4 against Anaheim, and played well enough to win, but Edmonton lost 4–3 in overtime.

Before the trade to Edmonton, Jarry was showing flashes of the goaltender he was when he entered the league, averaging a .909SV% and 2.66GAA in 14 games with Pittsburgh. Alas, it was a year to forget for Jarry.

He’ll get a chance to bounce back as a part of this goaltending trio, and it’s important to note Jarry is a career .907 goalie. Last year’s dismal total of .858 is an extreme outlier among his stats. How much playing time he gets as a part of the three-goalie system remains to be seen, but he’s not a horrible bet to have a rebound season. The Oilers defence is much more solidfied than the ones he was playing against last season, and if he can return to being the .910 goalie he was with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton will gladly take it.

Levi looks to make his mark

It hasn’t quite all come together yet for Devon Levi. His performance at the 2021 World Juniors put him on the map, as he set the all-time SV% tournament record with a .964 and .075GAA. He was named both the best goaltender of the tournament and part of the tournament All-Star team.

In college, he gained even more acclaim, as he won two Mike Richter awards for best college goaltender, and finished his NCAA career with the second best save percentage in NCAA history.

When he joined the Buffalo Sabres, however, it didn’t go quite as well. Levi bounced from Buffalo to their AHL affiliate in Rochester. He never really got a solid shot at the NHL level, aside from a 23-game stretch in 2023–24 that left a lot to be desired—.899SV% and 3.10GAA. Levi has yet to truly cement his status as an NHL-calibre goaltender.

As a part of this new Oilers goalie trio, he’s going to get that chance. Levi is just 24, and has played less than 50 games at the NHL level. It’s fair to say his potential is still unknown. Perhaps he channels his college and World Juniors form into being a star goaltender. Maybe he levels out into a decent young starter the Oilers can continue to develop. It’s possible he’s just never able to find his game at the professional level as well.

However, there are certainly worse ways to insulate a young goalie than to pair him with two veteran netminders. If it truly doesn’t work out for Levi in Edmonton, the third-round pick they paid isn’t much of a loss either. Levi is a good young bet and has the most potential of the Oilers three goalies to become a star. However, the third man of this trio is the most experienced, and is a newly minted champion.

Andersen looks to keep championship pedigree

Frederik Andersen is the definition of a veteran goalie. The 36-year-old has been one of the most consistent goalies in the NHL since he began his career proper in the 2014–15 season. From Anaheim to Toronto to Carolina, where he recently captured his first Stanley Cup, Andersen is known for his steady play. His career .913SV% and 2.59GAA are markers of reliability.

He was never a Vezina nominee, but Andersen was always in the higher end of NHL goaltending. His most recent run to the Cup was particularly impressive, as he went 13–2 leading Carolina past Ottawa, Philadelphia, and Montreal in dominant fashion. Andersen’s playoff performances were no doubt a reason why the Oilers signed him—when the games get tough, Andersen is up to the task.

As he turns 37 in October, there is one concern with Andersen: being healthy. Andersen has always struggled with injury throughout his career, suffering lower-body and knee injuries and a blood clotting issue that took him out for much of 2023–24. When he’s available, he’s great, but sometimes the injury bug bites him hard.

Given as he’s only on a one-year contract this doesn’t seem to be a major issue, but it could cause the Oilers imagined trio of goalies to become a tandem quickly if Andersen suffers injury again. All in all, however, Andersen is a good veteran goalie for Edmonton to have. Coming off a championship, he can not only provide some mentorship for Levi, but take some of the load from Jarry for heavy starter minutes.

Who will lead the way?

It’s hard to say now with the season still so far away, but I think there’s a best case and worst case scenario for the Oilers and their three-headed goaltender situation.

Best case, Andersen is healthy, Jarry bounces back, and Levi shows real signs of development. The three goalies trade starts all season, and I think the absolute best case is Levi establishing himself as the young starter, while Andersen and Jarry are the veteran backups taking games wherever needed.

Worst case, Andersen struggles with injury, Jarry doesn’t bounce back, and Levi struggles to establish himself. In that case, the Oilers will be goalie shopping again come the deadline. However, that’s the doomsday scenario. I think ultimately one of Levi or Andersen will be the main guy, and Jarry ends up as the third man taking starts to give rest to the others. It’ll be very interesting to watch how Mike Babcock manages his three netminders as the season rolls along.