Oilers' top former goalie prospect Olivier Rodrigue signs a surprising new contract

Jesse Courville-Lynch of the Hockey News was the first to report Rodrigue's departure from the NHL, just a few months after he finally made his debut with the Oilers.

Rodrigue was selected in the second round by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2018 NHL draft. He spent nearly 5 full seasons with the Oilers AHL team and developed into their starting goaltender in the last two seasons.

With the Oilers goaltending struggling significantly last season, there were often calls to bring up Rodrigue to the NHL. He finally made his NHL debut in relief on March 28th 2025, and soon after got his first start.

However, Rodrigue took a major step back last season that may have concerned Oilers management about his ability to be an NHL goalie.

Now 25 years old, Rodrigue's save percentage fell to an .897 in 41 games last season with the Condors. In his limited NHL minutes, Rodrigue posted a brutal .862. There was also concerns about him being a smaller goalie at only 6'1.

The Oilers spent years developing Rodrigue, and it looks like it's netted them only 2 games in return. Edmonton also had his father Sylvain Rodrigue on staff as the goalie coach, who's now been hired by the Florida Panthers organization.

It's fairly surprising that no other NHL Team was willing to take a chance on Rodrigue, but his last poor season may have hurt his stock. Hopefully he's able to happily continue his career overseas.