Oilers were among teams ‘in the mix’ for Arturs Silovs before trade to Penguins

The Edmonton Oilers were one of the teams that had found themselves in talks with the Vancouver Canucks around goaltender Arturs Silovs before a Sunday night trade sent him to Pittsburgh.

It should come as no surprise that the Oilers were checking in on the prices, as that’s what the team has done for much of the off-season. They signed netminder Matt Tomkins to help fill some minor league depth and made a coaching change, bringing in Peter Aubry to replace Dustin Schwartz as goalie coach.

According to hockey insider Frank Seravalli, the Oilers weren’t sold that Silovs was better than either of their current goalies, he said Tuesday

“The Oilers, they were one of the teams that were in on Silovs. They didn’t have as much ammo at this as the Pittsburgh Penguins did, who still get a really good deal… I think there was another team that was in the mix, but just couldn’t quite get it done and the Oilers don’t really have a ton to offer, and weren’t entirely sure that Silovs was better than what they have now in Skinner as well as Cal Pickard.”

Silovs, who helped backstop the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks to a Calder Cup win getting named playoff MVP, returned Vancouver failed first-round draft pick Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round pick. And while I find it hard to believe that the Oilers couldn’t have matched that offer in some way shape or form, Silovs has yet to put it together in the NHL.

He’s appeared in 19 NHL games so far, but got his biggest look this season when Thatcher Demko had been down with injury. The Canucks hoped that this was a time where Silovs could take that step forward, but instead he flopped to the tune of a 2-6-1 record, a .861 save percentage and a 3.65 goals against average.

And while his AHL numbers this year were solid — even better in the playoffs with a .931 save percentage and a 2.01 goals against average — that’s an entirely different league.

While signs point towards the Oilers running it back with Skinner and Calvin Pickard, there’s other options out there. Tristan Jarry could shake loose from the Pittsburgh Penguins, and a goaltending logjam in Boston needs to be sorted out, too.