The Oilers’ goaltending has already turned into a real question, and the answer is nowhere near clear after two ugly nights against the Vancouver Canucks.
On Tuesday, Tristan Jarry gave up six goals. On Thursday, Devon Levi allowed seven.
That kind of start leaves Edmonton staring at a mess in net, with Saturday night’s game against the Seattle Kraken now forcing a decision on who gets the crease next. Levi’s .682 save percentage is the worst in the NHL, and Jarry still hasn’t put together a strong outing for Edmonton in a while.
Still, the issue is bigger than the two goalies.
Edmonton’s team defence has been shaky for most of both games, and that’s part of why the netminders have looked so exposed. Babcock’s tight defensive structure has only held up for about thirty or forty minutes in each contest, and that’s simply not enough.
The Oilers should have more to give on that side of the puck, especially with Jake Walman going -3 five-on-five in Game 2 and Shakir Mukhamadullin finishing -4 five-on-five against Vancouver. The forwards have to do more too.
That doesn’t erase the rough work in goal, but it does put it in context. When the whole team is committed defensively, the goalies should look a lot better.
In both games, the ice was heavily tilted, and Edmonton should have blown out the Canucks. Instead, Jarry and Levi spent long stretches as spectators and never really settled into a rhythm.
If the Oilers are choosing between the two right now, the veteran has the edge.
Jarry is the only experienced goalie in the mix at the moment. Frederik Andersen is still recovering from an injury suffered in last year’s playoffs and won’t be ready until December at the earliest. Levi is new to the NHL and new to this team, so there’s a case for bringing him along slowly and leaning on Jarry for the bulk of the starts.
Jarry at least took ownership after Game One, and he said confidence is the main issue. He was solid for the first two periods against Vancouver before things unraveled in the final half hour. That doesn’t make the performance good, but it does make him the best option Edmonton has right now.
For the Oilers, the cleanest path may be to give Jarry most of the starts and hope one of these goalies can get the goals against down to two or three. At this point, that would count as a major step forward.
Now it’s up to Edmonton to decide how it wants to handle the next turn in the schedule.
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