logo
OilersNation has no direct affiliation to the Edmonton Oilers, Oilers Entertainment Group, NHL, or NHLPA
Top 10 Oilers stories of 2025: #6 — Oilers nearly swapped Pickard for Ingram in November
Edmonton Oilers goaltender Calvin Pickard
Photo credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
Zach Laing
Jan 6, 2026, 15:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 6, 2026, 15:29 EST
Comments
Welcome to Oilersnation’s top 10 stories of the year, where we count down the most-read stories you, the reader, clicked on in 2025. 
Goaltending has been a massive story for the Edmonton Oilers in recent years, and it all came to ahead this season.
Weeks before general manager Stan Bowman pulled the trigger on a massive deal to send Stuart Skinner in a package deal to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Tristan Jarry, there was another goaltending move the Oilers considered: waiving Calvin Pickard and calling up Connor Ingram.
The report about the considered swap came from Frank Seravalli, and Dylan Nazareth broke it down for us:
What will it take to see a shakeup between the pipes for the Edmonton Oilers?
So far this season, the team’s tandem of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard has gotten off to an abysmal start, both below a .900 SV% and above a 3.00 GAA. With that in mind, fans have been screaming for something to be done, whether a call-up, trade, waiver claim, or anything really.
Speaking on Bleacher Report on Tuesday, insider Frank Seravalli shared that he believes the team will continue to ride with this tandem for December, but ultimately, they have to step up or something will be done.
“I believe they’ve got until Christmas,” he said. “I think Stan Bowman is gonna afford them a few week runway now that their schedule has normalized … Their goalies, including Calvin Pickard, have a few weeks to straighten out their stats and their feel and get out of this crisis of confidence that has really marred this team in their own end to get back on track.
“And if it’s not better by Christmas, I think that’s when we’re gonna start to see Stan Bowman begin to make something happen.”
The Oilers, of course, didn’t wait until Christmas, as in late November the rumours started to pick up about the team’s serious look at a goaltending change. Jarry was hurt in his third game on December 18th, and since then the Oilers have been running Ingram and Pickard with some success, as the two have provided a .897 save percentage, the 13th best mark in the league, while the team has gone a meagre 4-4.
Jarry’s expected back in the next few weeks, and the Oilers will be forced into a decision about whether or not Pickard or Ingram will remain as his backup.

Top 10 stories of 2025

Oilersnation wants to hear from you, the reader, in our new weekly “Letters to the Editor” segment. Letters can be emailed to Oilersnation’s managing editor Zach Laing (zach.laing@bettercollective.com), titled “Letters to the Editor.” Please include a letter up to 200 words, including your name, place of residence (city, town, province, or state). Your letters may be edited for length and/or clarity. Letters must be submitted by 6 PM MT Saturday night to be considered for feature on Sunday mornings.
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s managing editor, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the Daily Faceoff DFS Hockey Report. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.

ARTICLE PRESENTED BY bet365

Editorials

Breaking News