4 new teams have goalies on trade block after free agency, insider believes Oilers interested

NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman recently reported the Oilers will be looking to replace Calvin Pickard this offseason, targeting an improvement for a tandem with Stuart Skinner.

After the adds of free agency, the Oilers should be calling the New York Islanders, Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, and Vancouver Canucks for goaltending help.

Each of these 4 teams now has at least 3 NHL caliber goaltenders, not just by skill, but also by salary. It's very possible something shakes loose from these teams this offseason.

The New York Islanders have a trio of NHL veterans under contract with Ilya Sorokin, Semyon Varlamov, and David Rittich. All three goalies will be healthy for the beginning of next season.

The 37 year old veteran Varlamov may be nearing the end of his career, and suffered a major injury last year that limited him to 10 games. However, he's still under contract for the next two seasons at $2.75M, and the Islanders have a logjam with Rittich signed as their new backup.

Ilya Sorokin is by far the elite goalie of the three, and should be the Oilers top target - but if he's healthy, Varlamov may be a cheap and experienced option with Skinner.

The Anaheim Ducks have a similar logjam in net after signing 30 year old Ville Husso, and trading for Petr Mrazek. Their clear starter is the young Lukas Dostal, but they're now caught paying two veteran backups.

Petr Mrazek seems to be the clear candidate to flip in a trade, but the issue with that will purely be concerns about his effectiveness. For 2 of his last 3 seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, Mrazek was one of the worst goaltenders in the NHL - he was even cast off the Leafs after an unimpressive 20 game stint.

Anaheim will surely be looking to trade a goalie this offseason, but they may not have anything interesting the Oilers.

The Buffalo Sabres are another team with a logjam in net. With Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon, and Devon Levi, they've got three NHL calibre goaltenders who need the ice time.

They're another team where one goalie may request a larger role that the Oilers will be able to provide. In that sense, it may be smart for the Oilers to wait and allow leverage to develop on another team to make a trade.

The Canucks directionless management has seen them re-sign Thatcher Demko, Kevin Lankinen, and Arturs Silovs to significant contracts.

They're another team where one goaltender is bound to shake loose, potentially even on waivers. Again, the issue here is that the Oilers may not be interested in Lankinen's contract, or Silovs' ability in net.

The Edmonton Oilers desperately need an upgrade in net, and they'll surely be canvassing the league for one. With so many teams having a logjam in net, maybe their strategy is to wait to see who becomes available.