The Edmonton Oilers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Anaheim Ducks, and GM Stan Bowman now owns one of the most pressing goaltending decisions in the entire NHL this offseason.
The numbers are damning. Edmonton allowed 3.3 goals against per game this season.
Tristan Jarry made 33 starts and posted an .882 save percentage at a $5,375,000 cap hit. That is a contract that looks worse by the month.
Connor Ingram was actually the better option down the stretch, going 13-9 with a .898 save percentage. But Ingram is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
So the Oilers effectively have one starter worth keeping and he is about to walk out the door.
Binnington's brutal year with the Blues changes his trade value
Jordan Binnington finished the 2025-26 season with a 12-19 record and an .875 save percentage for the St. Louis Blues. That is a rough year by anyone's standard.
But here is the thing about Binnington. He has done it at every level under pressure, from junior to that 2019 Stanley Cup run to back-to-back big-stage finishes with Team Canada. Bad seasons happen. That history does not evaporate.
His $6,000,000 cap hit is in its final year. Which for Edmonton actually makes the contract a feature, not a problem.
The Blues have Joel Hofer as their clear number one after a .909 save percentage in 46 starts. Doug Armstrong would likely listen on Binnington. The asking price matters, of course.
Sergei Bobrovsky carries a $10,000,000 cap hit with the Florida Panthers and would require a different kind of pitch from Bowman entirely. Florida finished 40-38-4. Whether Bobrovsky returns there or explores the market as a free agent this summer remains to be seen.
The Jarry situation is the boulder that has to be moved before anything else works. A .882 save percentage for $5.375 million is an anchor in a crease that already sank two playoff runs.
Edmonton went 1-4 in its last five playoff games against Anaheim. They scored just 17 goals across six games. That is not entirely a goaltending problem, but the crease did not help.
Bowman built this roster around Connor McDavid's 138-point season and Leon Draisaitl's 97-point pace. Those two are not the issue. The pipeline between the net and the Stanley Cup runs directly through whoever is wearing the pads next October.
A first-round exit after finishing 14th overall and 93 points is not good enough for this organization. Not with that top six. Not with Evan Bouchard quarterbacking a power play that generates real chances.
The question is not whether Bowman upgrades in net. The question is whether he is willing to eat the cost of moving Jarry to do it.
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Should the Oilers trade Tristan Jarry this summer, even if it costs them an asset to move his contract?
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