Oilers Missed Out On Major Opportunity to Acquire Star Goaltender
It was revealed earlier today at the Edmonton Oilers may have missed out on a great opportunity to upgrade their goaltending as MacKenzie Blackwood has posted a great stretch of hockey as the new Avalanche starter.
The former New Jersey Devils netminder who was selected in 2015 42nd overall was playing for the San Jose Sharks earlier this season.
The Sharks decided to make a trade with the Colorado Avalanche which sent Blackwood to the Mile High City including Givani Smith and a 5th round pick it will last in exchange for Alexandar Georgiev, Nikolai Kovalenko and a 2025 conditional fifth round pick and a second round pick in 2026.
Since arriving, Blackwood has gone on a run of 7-1-1 and has posted a save percentage of .940.
There has been talk over the past couple of years that the Oilers should consider upgrading their goaltending as they've had unstable goaltenders at times in terms of their play. Some pundits feel that this could be what's holding the Oilers back and would put them over the top to help win the Stanley Cup.
Adding Blackwood to the Oilers would have been a good acquisition and would have given the Oilers the stability they need in net and likely would have negotiated a new contract extension as he had done with the Avalanche for a five year $26.25 million extension.
Oilers May Renew Interest In John Gibson
Rumors continue to swirl around the Oilers that goaltending is still on their radar and with Blackwood out of the picture, many have turnedtheir attention to John Gibson of the Anaheim Ducks and pundits feel that he needs a change of scenery and the Oilers maybe the team of choice.
It's expected the team will continue to scour the league for upgrades as the season now ticks into its second-half and the trade deadline is looming in March.
General manager Stan Bowman will continue to work the phones and will likely have goaltending in his conversations.
