Pickings have been slim thus far for quality NHL goaltenders in this summer's free-agent market.
It's so bad that player agent Allan Walsh said recently that five teams called him on July 1 to ask if his client, Marc-Andre Fleury, might reconsider retirement.
According to Walsh, Fleury isn't returning, which means those teams must find other options to address their goaltending.
Allan Mitchell of The Athletic isn't convinced, suggesting the Edmonton Oilers should still try to bring in Fleury to back up inconsistent starter Stuart Skinner. Given the limited options elsewhere, Mitchell thinks he's worth pursuing even if he keeps rejecting their requests.
Meanwhile, Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journalreported the Oilers had an “active interest” in Arturs Silovs before the Vancouver Canuckstraded him last week to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He indicated that they've also been linked to Boston Bruins third-stringer Michael DiPietro.
Meanwhile, James Nichols of New Jersey Hockey Now wondered what the future holds for netminder Nico Daws after the Devils brought back Jake Allen as starter Jacob Markstrom's understudy.
Daws, 24, appeared in 52 games for the Devils since 2021-22. He's in the final season of his two-year contract with a cap hit of $812,500 and must now pass through waivers to be sent to their AHL affiliate in Utica.
Nichols believes the Devils can't risk losing Daws on the waiver wire this fall. He felt they must trade him, either on his own or perhaps packaged with defenseman Dougie Hamilton or center Dawson Mercer in a larger deal.
Unsurprisingly, Nichols suggested Edmonton as a trade destination for Daws, proposing he'd be a better long-term option for the Oilers than current backup Calvin Pickard.
The Vegas Golden Knights and Calgary Flames were also on Nichols' list. Both clubs require reliable backups, although Calgary may look to free-agent signing Ivan Prosvetov and Devin Cooley to compete for the No. 2 spot. Hannah Kirkell of Vegas Hockey Now thinks Daws could provide some much-needed competition for Akira Schmid for the Golden Knights' backup job.
The Hockey News’ Vani Hanamirian said it would be wise for the Devils to try to keep Daws, since they could use a steady third-string goalie to play if Allen or Markstrom get injured.
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