The bulk of the Edmonton Oilers’ work this off-season is finished.

They’ve added Andrew Mangiapane, Ike Howard, and Curtis Lazar at forward, while Matthew Savoie should get an extended look in the middle six. That said, many depth players have departed, such as Connor Brown, Corey Perry, Evander Kane, and John Klingberg.
There are still some loose ends the Oilers need to attend to. First and foremost, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-ceo-jeff-jackson-discusses-connor-mcdavid-contract">Connor McDavid’s extension</a> needs to get done. The other is improving their goaltending situation, as the <a href="https://oilersnation.com/combinations">Oilers</a> are set to use <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/thoughts-leon-draisaitl-stuart-skinner-observations-edmonton-oilers-thursday-skate">Stuart Skinner</a> and Calvin Pickard as the tandem once again.
Although it’s an area of need, there wasn’t a whole lot that could’ve been done. The biggest name goaltender to move this off-season was John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks to the Detroit Red Wings, and aside from 29 games last season, Gibson has been one of the worst netminders in the league since 2019-20.
There are still a handful of notable netminders on the market who could be brought in for a professional tryout. Let’s take a look at them.
<h2>Ilya Samsonov</h2>
Russian netminder Ilya Samsonov was selected 22nd overall in the 2015 draft by the Washington Capitals. Before the 2024-25 season, Samsonov had served in a 1A/1B tandem for the past three seasons. In 2021-22, he posted an .896 save percentage and 3.02 goals against average in 44 games.
The following season, Samsonov played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and had a career year, posting a .919 save percentage and 2.33 goals against average. Unfortunately, his 2023-24 season saw him struggle as he finished with an .890 save percentage and 3.13 goals against average.
Last season with the defensively strong Vegas Golden Knights, Samsonov got off to a strong start, but ended the year with an .891 save percentage and 2.82 goals against average in 29 games.
Although he had a sub-.900 save percentage, Samsonov finished with a Goals Saved Above Expected of 0.6, which is around average. For context, Stuart Skinner had a -1.5 GSAE, albeit in significantly more games.
There’s rarely a bad professional tryout, so it may be worthwhile to see how Samsonov performs in the pre-season and go from there.
<h2>Alexandar Georgiev</h2>
Alexander Georgiev is the first Bulgarian-born player in National Hockey League history, and he immediately found success in the New York Rangers organization once he came to North America. In his first five seasons, Georgiev had a .908 save percentage and 2.94 goals against average.
The netminder played the 2022-23 season with the Colorado Avalanche, becoming their full-time starter. He played an incredible 62 games, finishing with a .918 save percentage and 2.53 goals against average, finishing seventh in Vezina Trophy voting.
Although he was named an All-Star in 2023-24, he finished with a much worse .897 save percentage and a 3.02 goals against average in 63 games played. The wheel completely fell off in 2024-25, playing 18 games with the Avalanche before being traded to the San Jose Sharks in the deal involving Mackenzie Blackwood. In 49 games, Georgiev finished with an .875 save percentage and 3.71 goals against average.
In terms of Goals Saved Above Expected, Georgiev had the second-worst GSAE in the league with -17.9. He was much better in 2023-24, as he had a 5 GSAE, good enough for 24th in the league.
Georgiev is two seasons removed from his excellent 2022-23 season, but if the Oilers can get him back to that form somehow, that could solve their goaltending woes.
<h2>James Reimer</h2>
If the Oilers are to sign a goalie to a PTO, they’d at best split the crease evenly with Skinner, but more than likely serve as the backup. Thus, the question becomes “Is this netminder better than Calvin Pickard?”
 For James Reimer, there’s a fair argument that he is. 
The journeyman backup has played all over the place, with his most recent stop being the Buffalo Sabres and Anaheim Ducks in 2024-25. Reimer only played two games with the Ducks after they claimed him off waivers, before the Sabres reclaimed him.
With the Sabres, Reimer had a .901 save percentage and 2.85 goals against average in 22 games played, finishing with a 10-8-2 record. Reimer has made a living off being a backup, and last season, the 37-year-old had a Goals Saved Above Expected of 8. Of any netminder with 15 or more games played, that ranked 25th and significantly better than Pickard’s -9.1 GSAE.
<hr />
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

The bulk of the Edmonton Oilers’ work this off-season is finished.



They’ve added Andrew Mangiapane, Ike Howard, and Curtis Lazar at forward, while Matthew Savoie should get an extended look in the middle six. That said, many depth players have departed, such as Connor Brown, Corey Perry, Evander Kane, and John Klingberg.

There are still some loose ends the Oilers need to attend to. First and foremost, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-ceo-jeff-jackson-discusses-connor-mcdavid-contract">Connor McDavid’s extension</a> needs to get done. The other is improving their goaltending situation, as the <a href="https://oilersnation.com/combinations">Oilers</a> are set to use <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/thoughts-leon-draisaitl-stuart-skinner-observations-edmonton-oilers-thursday-skate">Stuart Skinner</a> and Calvin Pickard as the tandem once again.

Although it’s an area of need, there wasn’t a whole lot that could’ve been done. The biggest name goaltender to move this off-season was John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks to the Detroit Red Wings, and aside from 29 games last season, Gibson has been one of the worst netminders in the league since 2019-20.

There are still a handful of notable netminders on the market who could be brought in for a professional tryout. Let’s take a look at them.
<h2>Ilya Samsonov</h2>
Russian netminder Ilya Samsonov was selected 22nd overall in the 2015 draft by the Washington Capitals. Before the 2024-25 season, Samsonov had served in a 1A/1B tandem for the past three seasons. In 2021-22, he posted an .896 save percentage and 3.02 goals against average in 44 games.

The following season, Samsonov played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and had a career year, posting a .919 save percentage and 2.33 goals against average. Unfortunately, his 2023-24 season saw him struggle as he finished with an .890 save percentage and 3.13 goals against average.

Last season with the defensively strong Vegas Golden Knights, Samsonov got off to a strong start, but ended the year with an .891 save percentage and 2.82 goals against average in 29 games.

Although he had a sub-.900 save percentage, Samsonov finished with a Goals Saved Above Expected of 0.6, which is around average. For context, Stuart Skinner had a -1.5 GSAE, albeit in significantly more games.

There’s rarely a bad professional tryout, so it may be worthwhile to see how Samsonov performs in the pre-season and go from there.
<h2>Alexandar Georgiev</h2>
Alexander Georgiev is the first Bulgarian-born player in National Hockey League history, and he immediately found success in the New York Rangers organization once he came to North America. In his first five seasons, Georgiev had a .908 save percentage and 2.94 goals against average.

The netminder played the 2022-23 season with the Colorado Avalanche, becoming their full-time starter. He played an incredible 62 games, finishing with a .918 save percentage and 2.53 goals against average, finishing seventh in Vezina Trophy voting.

Although he was named an All-Star in 2023-24, he finished with a much worse .897 save percentage and a 3.02 goals against average in 63 games played. The wheel completely fell off in 2024-25, playing 18 games with the Avalanche before being traded to the San Jose Sharks in the deal involving Mackenzie Blackwood. In 49 games, Georgiev finished with an .875 save percentage and 3.71 goals against average.

In terms of Goals Saved Above Expected, Georgiev had the second-worst GSAE in the league with -17.9. He was much better in 2023-24, as he had a 5 GSAE, good enough for 24th in the league.

Georgiev is two seasons removed from his excellent 2022-23 season, but if the Oilers can get him back to that form somehow, that could solve their goaltending woes.
<h2>James Reimer</h2>
If the Oilers are to sign a goalie to a PTO, they’d at best split the crease evenly with Skinner, but more than likely serve as the backup. Thus, the question becomes “Is this netminder better than Calvin Pickard?”

 For James Reimer, there’s a fair argument that he is. 

The journeyman backup has played all over the place, with his most recent stop being the Buffalo Sabres and Anaheim Ducks in 2024-25. Reimer only played two games with the Ducks after they claimed him off waivers, before the Sabres reclaimed him.

With the Sabres, Reimer had a .901 save percentage and 2.85 goals against average in 22 games played, finishing with a 10-8-2 record. Reimer has made a living off being a backup, and last season, the 37-year-old had a Goals Saved Above Expected of 8. Of any netminder with 15 or more games played, that ranked 25th and significantly better than Pickard’s -9.1 GSAE.

<hr />

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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