Oilers Could Target Promising Young Goaltender with Revenge Offer Sheet
The Oilers lost two quality players to offer sheets from the St. Louis Blues this offseason, but they may have a chance to get revenge.
The Blues signed forward Jake Neighbours this morning, but they still have four more restricted free agents this upcoming offseason. That includes one promising young goalie that may interest the Oilers: Joel Hofer.
Hofer is a 24 year old goaltender who was drafted by the Blues in the fourth round in 2018. The Winnipeg native has played 41 career games in the NHL with fantastic results, last season posting a 2.62 GAA and .914 save percentage on a mediocre team. Behind Jordan Binnington who's signed for 3 more years at $6M, Hofer is squarely a backup in St. Louis, and may want a change of scenery if his success continues.
Offer sheets are incredibly rare in the NHL, and considered to even be an offside shot toward another team. The last offer sheet that was signed by Jesper Kotkaniemi with the Carolina Hurricanes was perhaps influenced by the fact that Sebastian Aho signed with the Montreal Canadiens. The Oilers could use another young goaltender in the organization, and if they can find a salary with Hofer that St. Louis won't match, perhaps they can pick up a quality young starting goalie.
A few Oilers fans have passively mentioned the possibility of an offer sheet towards Hofer, and while it is pretty unlikely in the long run, CEO Jeff Jackson has been vocal about restocking the cupboards with younger players. Zach Laing of Oilers Nation mentioned today the possibility of a revenge offer sheet after the Neighbours' signing. If the Oilers are genuinely ticked about losing Broberg and Holloway, then there's some extra motivation to make the offer sheet.
We'll have to see how the season plays out with Stuart Skinner as the Oilers' starter, and the success of Hofer and other goaltenders around the league. If a quality long term option in net becomes available for Edmonton, they should absolutely take it.
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