Connor Ungar Is Forcing the Oilers to Take Notice - One Start at a Time
When you hear "Connor" and "Oilers" in the same sentence, your mind probably jumps straight to McDavid - and rightfully so. He’s been on an absolute tear lately, climbing the NHL points leaderboard like it’s a personal challenge. But there’s another Connor quietly making waves in the Oilers organization, and this one’s doing his work between the pipes.
Actually, make that two Connors in net.
First, there’s Connor Ingram, who’s been lights-out since stepping in for the injured Tristan Jarry. Ingram just notched back-to-back shutouts - including a commanding 5-0 win over the Blues - and now owns the best numbers of any goalie to suit up for Edmonton this season.
With a 5-3-1 record, a 2.22 goals-against average, and a .917 save percentage, Ingram’s emergency call-up has turned into a real roster dilemma - the good kind. Even with Jarry healthy again, the Oilers are opting to carry three goaltenders, keeping Ingram and Calvin Pickard in the fold for now.
That shuffle at the NHL level created a domino effect down the pipeline, and that’s where we finally land on the Connor you might not know yet - but probably should.
Meet Connor Ungar.
Ungar was tapped to step in for Ingram with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors, and all he’s done since arriving is dominate. Through six starts, Ungar is a perfect 6-0-0 with a sparkling 1.32 goals-against average and an eye-popping .955 save percentage. He’s already posted his first AHL shutout, and frankly, if you’re just looking at the numbers, you’d have a hard time telling him apart from the other Connor in net.
What makes Ungar’s rise even more impressive is how far he’s come in such a short time. He didn’t even have a stable home to start the season, bouncing around between three ECHL teams - Fort Wayne, Greensboro, and Orlando.
That’s not exactly the traditional path to becoming a breakout AHL star. But Ungar’s made the most of every opportunity, and now he’s forcing the Oilers organization to take a long, hard look at their depth chart.
Last season, Ungar went 19-12-4 with a 2.74 GAA and a .903 save percentage as a rookie with Fort Wayne. Solid numbers, but not the kind that scream “next man up.”
And after signing an entry-level deal with Edmonton in March 2024, he found himself buried in the goalie hierarchy - behind names like Nathaniel Day and Samuel Jonsson in the ECHL, and behind Ingram and Matt Tomkins in Bakersfield. That’s before you even get to Jarry and Pickard in Edmonton.
“He didn’t really play much last year, got hurt, and next thing you know, he’s in the seven-hole,” said Condors head coach Colin Chaulk, outlining just how deep Ungar was on the organizational depth chart.
But injuries and call-ups have a way of opening doors, and Ungar has kicked his wide open. It’s still early, but if he keeps stringing together performances like these, the Oilers are going to have some tough decisions to make - and one more Connor to keep track of.