The Edmonton Oilers have signed veteran goaltender Frederik Andersen to a one-year contract, the team announced Wednesday.
The move introduces a three-goalie rotation system for the upcoming NHL season, a strategy General Manager Stan Bowman confirmed as a response to the modern schedule and injury management.
Contract Details and Role
The deal includes a base salary of $1 million, with incentives based on games played and postseason success that could raise the total to $2.8 million.
Andersen, 36, joins the Oilers fresh off a Stanley Cup championship with the Carolina Hurricanes last month.
Edmonton plans to share goaltending duties among Andersen, Tristan Jarry, and Devon Levi, mirroring systems used by Buffalo and Carolina last season.
Last season, the Oilers struggled defensively, allowing 3.23 goals per game, ranking 25th in the league.
Bowman on the Strategy
Bowman explained the rationale during a radio interview on Edmonton Sports Talk.
“We can give (Andersen) the appropriate rest,” Bowman said. “Because we’re going to have a three-goalie system next year.”
He noted that the league-wide approach to goaltender workloads has evolved significantly, pointing to successes in other franchises.
“I think it’s going to become more common in the coming years,” Bowman said. “Buffalo and Carolina … they both had a lot of success (last season).
It’s been uncommon, for sure, in the past.
But the way the schedule goes, in the modern game goalies just aren’t playing 60, 70 games a year.”
Bowman emphasized that designations for the starting role remain flexible ahead of the season opener.
“I don’t think there’s a big benefit in anointing one guy as the No. 1 in July. Or even in November,” he said.
“You’ve got to win games, and whoever can help you win those games, we’ll figure that out.”
Andersen’s Excitement and Past Performance
Andersen expressed enthusiasm on a media call from Denmark about joining Edmonton’s championship-aspiring core, which includes Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
“Edmonton has been knocking on the door for a while now, it’s a team that’s got aspirations to try to win,” Andersen said.
“They’ve been close and it would be awesome to help them get over the hump. I’m really excited about that opportunity.”
He reflected on his postseason performance with Carolina, where he went 13-2 before a knee injury limited his availability during the final series.
“I think probably since the Olympic break I felt like I was finding my game and again being comfortable with things, the way I was moving around and the structure in my game,” Andersen said.
“I think that was a reset for me, and I continued to build toward the playoffs.
I was really excited about getting the nod in Game 1 (of playoffs) and I just took it from there and really just laid it out there for each game.
It was a really fun run to be a part of and obviously the ending, I would have loved to play, but it still felt amazing to be a part of the team that hoisted it.”
Reunion with Babcock and Team Dynamics
The signing reunites Andersen with newly appointed head coach Mike Babcock, who coached him during his prime years with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“I think my experience with him has been good,” Andersen said.
“As a goalie you don’t really deal with the head coach as much and he kind of leaves you alone with the goalie coach to kind of do your thing.
He’s a great coach, great X’s and O’s. I thought he got a lot out of our group.”
Andersen noted that the team dynamic in Toronto during his initial seasons under Babcock consisted of a very different roster composition.
“We were a young team then and I’m excited to see what we can do together in this new opportunity,” he said.
Adapting to Modern Schedule
Andersen acknowledged that the evolution of NHL scheduling makes distributed workloads preferable for sustaining elite performance.
“I think that’s something that’s not going to be a day-to-day thing, but something we’re going to have to manage,” he said.
“The schedule has been very different from what it used to be, and I think the game has changed as well, and it makes it more demanding to play a lot of games and still perform the way you want to.”
He expressed readiness to work alongside Jarry and Levi under goaltending coach Peter Aubry.
“However it plays out, it’s tough to predict, but I’m ready to support the other guys and play when called upon and I think that’s something we’ll all lean on each other and figure out with Peter (Aubry, goaltending coach) and (Babcock) too,” Andersen said.
“That’s something we’ll have discussions about I’m sure, but we haven’t gotten that far yet.”
He conceded that facing Edmonton’s premier offensive talents in the past was an immense challenge he is glad to avoid on game days.
“They’ve (McDavid and Draisaitl) made me and others look silly in games,” Andersen said. “And now it’ll just be in practices.
Cool to see them up close and see how they operate, those elite players.”
Reflecting on his workload history, Andersen stated he is highly comfortable transitioning away from his past heavy workloads in Toronto.
“I think I’m past my days with Babs… two years in a row I played 66 games (Toronto), and 60 the year after.
Definitely happy to be part of a good goalie rotation. It’s a new thing in the NHL, keeping all the goalies fresh,” he said.
He concluded that physical preparation remains paramount ahead of his upcoming summer wedding and the ensuing September training camp.
“The schedule’s more demanding now.
With any goalie, you don’t know how many games you can play and still perform at a high rate.
We’ll have to manage that (here).
We’ll (goalies here) will lean on each other and it’ll be up to Peter (goalie coach Aubry) and Babs as to who plays,” Andersen said.
