3 NHL teams that could benefit from signing former Leafs goalie Ilya Samsonov ft. Edmonton Oilers

The goalie market in NHL free agency wasn't the best, as the top goalie, Jake Allen, re-signed with New Jersey just hours before free agency opened.

With the first wave of free agency done, most of the top players and goalies have signed. But, Ilya Samsonov, who played last season with the Vegas Golden Knights, and had started for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals, remains the top goalie available.

With Samsonov still available, here are three teams who should sign him.

3 NHL teams that should sign Ilya Samsonov

#1, Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton has lost in the Stanley Cup Final in back-to-back years, despite some poor goaltending.

The Oilers have both Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard under contract for one more year. But, Edmonton GM Stan Bowman has said the team will look to improve goaltending.

Whether or not Samsonov is an upgrade over Pickard is uncertain. But, the Russian would come in cheap and may be worth a flyer for the Oilers.

Samsonov went 16-9-4 with a 2.82 GAA and a .891 SV%.

#2, Calgary Flames

Calgary has Dustin Wolf as their starting goalie, who came second in Rookie of the Year voting.

Wolf looks like a future Vezina winner and star goalie, so the Flames would be signing Samsonov as a veteran backup. The Flames had Dan Vladar as the backup, but he left in free agency, and although Calgary did sign Devin Cooley, it's a one-year, $775k deal that can be sent to the minors.

Samsonov would be an upgrade over Cooley and likely would get a one-year, $1 million deal.

#3, Columbus Blue Jackets

Columbus has Elvis Merzlikins and Jet Greaves under contract, but signing Ilya Samsonov makes sense.

Greaves is just 24 and could benefit from being a full-time starter in the AHL next season. Columbus could sign Samsonov to split starts with Merzlikins and give Greaves another year in the minors before likely becoming the starting goalie in 2026-27.