Edmonton Oilers might have perfect trade partner for Calvin Pickard
The Edmonton Oilers might be forced to move another goalie at some point this season, and they may have the perfect trade partner to do so.
It’s becoming more and more apparent that the Oilers like what they’ve seen from Connor Ingram over the past few weeks. Tristan Jarry has also returned to the Edmonton lineup and will presumably be the team’s starter for the remainder of the season.
This leaves veteran goalie Calvin Pickard as the odd man out, and it’s looking like his Oilers tenure is close to coming to an end. The 33-year-old is at risk of being put on waivers, but Edmonton could also explore trading Pickard to put him in a better position.
If they opt to go with the latter, the Philadelphia Flyers may be the first team that GM Stan Bowman calls. Philadelphia is desperately holding onto a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and just recently, starting goalie Dan Vladar went down with an injury.
Here is the video of potential Dan Vladar injury. When he was pushing to his left after the initial save, it looked like he was laboring a little. Was slow to get up after the goal went in as well. #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/vrUH40Pfir
— Brandon J. Sommermann (@B_Sommermann) January 15, 2026
Outside of Vladar, the Flyers don’t have many quality goaltending options to rely on. Samuel Ersson has struggled with an .855 SV% and a losing record, while nobody in the AHL is doing much to inspire confidence.
Even if they get back Vladar soon, Philadelphia needs another option to throw in between the pipes every once in a while. With the goaltending market looking fairly thin going into the trade deadline, a player like Pickard could wind up looking like a good option.
The stats aren’t pretty for the Oilers’ netminder, who is sitting at .871 SV% of his own, but he could be had for cheap and doesn’t carry much of a cap hit ($1 million) on an expiring contract. There is also the fact that Pickard has a previous history of doing well when put relied on in quick spurts.
It hasn’t worked out in Edmonton this year, but he’d be a fairly low-cost option for the Flyers if they are looking for a new look in net.
Trading Pickard would allow the Oilers to avoid sending him to the AHL, keeping his NHL career alive for the time being, and would not take away starts from red-hot goalie prospect Connor Ungar.
There is no guarantee that the Flyers would view Pickard as a viable trade option, but there does appear to be some kind of fit between the two sides. Only time will tell if there is a deal to be had.