Jack Campbell continues to struggle in the American Hockey League

Things have gone from bad to worse for goaltender Jack Campbell.

The Edmonton Oilers sent the 31-year-old to their American Hockey League affiliate earlier this month after he posted an .873 save percentage across his first five games of the season. Through three games with the Bakersfield Condors, Campbell has allowed 13 goals, good for an .819 save percentage.

Campbell allowed four goals in back-to-back games against the Abbotsford Canucks last week and got lit up for five goals on 26 shots by the Calgary Wranglers on Tuesday. Zach has a thread of all five of the goals on Twitter that can be viewed by clicking this link.

Campbell has played 205 games in the AHL throughout his career but this is his first stint in the league since he spent two games with the L.A. Kings’ farm team on a conditioning stint in 2018-19. He was selected with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2010 draft by the Dallas Stars but didn’t break through as an NHL goaltender until being traded to the Kings a few years later.

The Oilers signed Campbell to a five-year, $25 million contract after a couple of strong seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Campbell split the net with Frederik Andersen during the shortened 2021 season and took over the starting gig in 2021-22. He posted a .916 save percentage across 77 games in Toronto all told.

Since signing that contract with Edmonton, Campbell has looked nothing like the goalie who had success with the Kings and Leafs. He put up an .888 save percentage over 36 games in his debut season with the Oilers in 2022-23 and rookie Stuart Skinner ultimately took over the starting goaltender job.

The hope for the Oilers is that Campbell can find his game playing in the AHL but the early results don’t offer much in terms of optimism. While in the minors, Campbell has a salary cap hit of $3.85 million, giving the Oilers $1.15 million in added financial wiggle room from his regular $5 million cap hit.