The Edmonton Oilers spent the first 55 games of the 2025–26 NHL season fixing an area that sorely needed it. After bringing in a new goaltending coach only brought about marginal improvement, the Oilers went full Colorado Avalanche, and replaced both their goaltenders. Out went Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard; in came Tristan Jarry (at a high cost) and Connor Ingram (for nothing).
So far Ingram especially has been solid, even if let down by bad defence the past few games. Jarry has been more of a mixed bag; it turns out he was, in fact, a more expensive Skinner, and Stan Bowman should not have capitulated to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ demands. On the whole, though, the goaltending room is better now than it was previously. But what if it could be better, and not just simply “passable”?
The story out of the Oilers’ AHL affiliate Bakersfield Condors has been one Connor Ungar. Ungar was previously an ECHL goalie prospect, who got promoted when Ingram was recalled to the NHL. All Ungar has done since arriving in the AHL is eat it alive. He has put together a string of excellent starts, helping the Condors go on a stellar run since his arrival.
Could his excellent play in the AHL translate to the NHL level? Even if the Oilers have two NHL goalies already, is it worth giving the kid a look as the rest of the season unfolds? There’s several things to consider, both in positives and negatives, but there’s certainly a case to be made.
The numbers so far look very positive, even with the AHL jump
Ungar started the 2025–26 season in the ECHL, and split time between three different clubs. No matter which team he was suiting up for, he was posting an identical save percentage. Goals-against wise, he was in the 1.40’s with the Fort Wayne Komets and Greensboro Gargoyles, while at a 1.68 with the Orlando Solar Bears. He basically proved everything he needed to prove at the ECHL level.
Once Ingram had gotten up to speed and was called up by the Oilers, Ungar got the AHL call-up. With how many good prospects and former NHLers or NHL depth players reside in the A’, the competition is tougher there. Yet, Ungar’s numbers have continued to be phenomenal.
In the same 11-game sample size at that level, with the Condors, Ungar rocks a 2.17 GAA and a .933 save percentage. .933 is 11 points lower than .944, yes, but .933 is also still absurd to consider. Most goalies consider it a hot streak if their 11-game save percentage crests .915 or .920.
#Oilers prospect Connor Ungar (undrafted) made 21 saves in a 3-2 overtime win for the Bakersfield Condors last night!
Ungar now has an 8-1-0 record with a 1.76 goals against average, a .946 save percentage and one shutout in nine AHL games as a rookie this season! #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/RQKpciBQjU
— Eric Friesen 🏒 (@EricJFriesen) February 4, 2026
Most notably, Ungar made 51 saves in a Condors win over Abbotsford, channeling Ben Scrivens right around the anniversary of his historic shutout. Overall however, the Condors have gone 9–2 in his 11 starts, and it’s safe to say they wouldn’t be anywhere close to that without his brilliance. Ungar may already be ready to make the jump to the NHL with games like those. That’s nuts to say for a goalie who was in U Sports two seasons ago.
Contract situations play a small part as well in calling him up
Generally, there isn’t a rush to bring Ungar up in a situation like this. The Oilers already remodeled the goalie room top-to-bottom, and maybe him marinating for a full season in the A’ is the best call. He also just turned 24 last month, and most goalies don’t burst onto the NHL scene until they’re 25.
One extra motivating factor for bringing him up, though, is the contract situations. Jarry may still have two seasons left after this one, however Ingram is an unrestricted free agent (UFA), and Ungar himself is a restricted free agent (RFA). There’s essentially a very real scenario of being forced to choose between one or the other.
If Ingram commands a significant raise from his current cap hit, the Oilers wouldn’t be able to pay it. As it is, they’re only paying him $1.15M this season because the Utah Mammoth retained half of his salary. Likewise, it would be prudent asset management to see if Ungar can step in and maintain said $1.15M cap hit for a couple more seasons.
Given that goaltending has been the bane of the Oilers’ existence in the era of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, this is a pivotal moment. Can Ungar be the future the Oilers desperately need? Side note, Skinner played NHL games at age 23, and acquitted himself well. Ungar debuting at 24 wouldn’t be any worse.
There is risk in giving Ungar NHL games, but it’s not significant
The caveat to that last note is that there’s an argument to be made that Skinner was rushed into a starting role too soon. Jack Campbell turning into a pumpkin forced him to make more starts than he may have been ready for. The Oilers don’t want to ruin another good goalie prospect.
That is a worthwhile tidbit to consider, when determining whether to play him now or not. The other reason for pause is the incredibly tight Pacific Division standings. The Oilers could end up winning the division, or they could miss the playoffs altogether. This would be a difficult situation to put Ungar in.
The good news is that Ungar is waivers-exempt, and could be sent back to Bakersfield at any time. If you manage his starts wisely, and give him lighter competition to start off with, you can ease him in. And if he doesn’t perform well in those games, right back to the AHL he goes. In the process, you’ve given Jarry and Ingram a reset, which could come in handy down the stretch.
Like with anything, there’s pros and cons to an Ungar call-up. But this can be classified as one of those “low-risk, high-reward” situations. There’s enough positives to this scenario that it’s worth chancing the downsides.
The three-goalie path has been walked before (including by the Oilers)
The other concern would be for the Oilers maintaining three goalies at the NHL level. It has already been sort of tricky with Pickard stuck in the press box most of the time, before he was finally waived and sent to the Condors. Keeping a three-goalie rotation might not be the best thing for the room.
However, it’s becoming a more common thing, to have three goalies at the NHL level. Teams that currently have a three-goalie rotation include the Montreal Canadiens, Buffalo Sabres, Carolina Hurricanes, Vancouver Canucks, and Vegas Golden Knights. Of those teams, all but the Canucks currently occupy playoff spots. It doesn’t really stunt the success of a team.
Additionally, there’s precedent for the Oilers themselves doing it, even if in a different manner. The 2005–06 season saw the Oilers start with just Ty Conklin and Jussi Markkanen, then add Dwayne Roloson midseason. It ended up coming in handy when Roloson went down with injury, and Conklin forgot how to do his job sufficiently.
This would be a different process, calling up a prospect as your trade-deadline goalie acquisition. But three goalies down the home stretch of the season has been done by the Oilers before, and worked out well. Nothing says it can’t happen a second time.
Overall, it’s a worthwhile move that has massive potential
The Oilers need solid goaltending from anyone they can get it from. Through their cap situation, they haven’t been able to go out and acquire a star goaltender via trade. But that doesn’t mean they should stop trying to get better at goaltending. There are other ways to go about it.
Connor Ungar should see NHL games this year IMHO
— Mathew Panchyshyn (@mathewjdp) February 5, 2026
Looking to Ungar as an option is a safe gamble, all things considered. There’s a lot of potential in giving him the opportunity to shine. And if he doesn’t perform as well as hoped, the move can be corrected rather easily. This also offers a glimpse into the possible future of the Oilers’ goaltending room, and offers some solutions to impending salary-cap questions.
A lot is riding on this year, and the situation calls for creative answers. It doesn’t get any more creative than banking on the player who began in the ECHL this season. But you have to ride the hot hand, and if the hot hand is in the AHL, you have to give him the chance to steal the show.
Follow The Oil Rig on social media!
Like this:
Like Loading…