Oilers target goalie on trade market, but he isn’t interested!

Life hasn’t been easy on the Edmonton Oilers as they struggle to keep their heads above water in order to make it alive to the postseason. The Oilers sit sixth in the Pacific Division with an 18-15-2 record. The club is 2-6-2 in its last 10 games after a hot start to the 2021-22 season. With playoff hopes dwindling, general manager Ken Holland could have no other choice but to pull the trigger on a trade to get things back on track.

This prompted Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman to report that the Oilers are indeed seeking help on the trade deadline for a boost in between the pipes. However, while a potential target might not be willing to waive its clause to come to the help of the Oilers:

“Elsewhere, I think Edmonton’s looking harder at acquiring a goalie. Remember: Jaroslav Halak has control in Vancouver and doesn’t seem inclined to move.”

Halak has indeed the bigger hand in this situation. The one-year deal he signed under former GM Jim Benning during free agency includes both a full no-move clause and a potential performance bonus, and both are causing issues with the Canucks. When it comes to the latter, if Halak plays in at least 10 regular season games, the Canucks will have to pay out an additional $1.25 million to their backup goaltender. So far Halak has played in eight games, putting him on pace to hit his bonus and his performance has been far from perfect. It took him six starts to earn his first (and so far only) win of the season… With the bonus ahead and his performance, we can understand why the Canucks are looking to move Halak.

On top of that, there is the Canuck’s precarious salary cap structure as Vancouver won’t be able to fit Halak’s performance bonus in without going over the cap ceiling. Under the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement rules : any performance bonus overages are rolled over to the next season’s cap, potentially putting the Canucks $1.25 million short in 2022-23.
We get why the Canucks are looking for a trade partner if not, the Canucks will either have to pay out the bonus at some point. They need to move Halak elsewhere beforehand.

But we are back to his full no-move clause. The veteran goalie will seek a destination that fulfills what he values most; ice time or playoff potential. If he is indeed looking to join a contender for one last Cup run, the options are limited thanks to the impending bonus and we understand if Halak gets the feeling the Oilers are not going deep into a Stanley Cup run…

The Oilers’ current tandem of Mikko Koskinen and Mike Smith have been trending for all the wrong reasons in the past weeks, and Edmonton is under so much pressure to make the playoffs. But we get why Halak would say no to the Oilers…