The Edmonton Oilers traded Alex Stalock to the San Jose Sharks
The Edmonton Oilers have made a trade involving a goaltender.
No, they didn’t acquire a veteran to shore up their need between the pipes, they dealt one to the San Jose Sharks.
The team announced on Wednesday that Alex Stalock was traded to the Sharks for future considerations.
🔁 TRADE 🔁
The #Oilers have traded goaltender Alex Stalock to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for future considerations. https://t.co/vluKG4yGrZ
Stalock was selected by the Sharks in the fourth round of the 2005 draft and spent the first 11 years of his professional career with the organization. In February of 2016, Stalock was part of a trade that sent James Reimer from Toronto to San Jose. He would then ink a deal with the Minnesota Wild in free agency that same summer.
All told, Stalock has played 151 games at the NHL level with the Sharks and Wild and owns a .909 save percentage.
The Oilers claimed Stalock off of waivers last March and he spent the rest of the season on the team’s Taxi Squad. In September, Oilers general manager Ken Holland said that Stalock was dealing with a complication after contracting COVID-19 and that he would likely miss the entirety of the 2021-22 season.
Stalock returned to play for Edmonton’s AHL affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, back in January. In five games, he posted a 0.862 save percentage.
This trade gives the Sharks a much-needed veteran stopper for their NHL club, as their two young goaltenders, Alexei Melnichuk and Zachary Emond, have an 0.861 and 0.865 save percentage respectively. It also frees up the other goalie spot on Bakersfield’s roster for prospect Ilya Konovlalov to split the net with Stuart Skinner.
Speaking of Edmonton’s goaltending situation, while the team ranks 23rd in the league with a combined .901 save percentage, Holland said on Tuesday that he’s comfortable with the duo of Mike Smith and Mikko Koskinen moving forward.