The Edmonton Oil Kings’ 2024-25 season is underway and their current record sits at 1-2-0-0. While they are hoping they can make a playoff push and finish the rebuild with a much more powerful lineup, one player has stood out in a big way and didn’t get much recognition until recently. Alex Worthington has found himself as the starting goaltender after the team decided to place Kolby Hay on waivers the same day they placed defender Matthew Gallant on waivers. Worthington was playing in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) with Briercrest College in the 2023-24 season and while his numbers were impressive, no one could have predicted they would trust him as a starter.
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At 19 years old, Worthington has two seasons remaining of eligibility in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Before this season, he had played six games with the Oil Kings between the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons but was underwhelming. Last season, Worthington posted a 2.50 goals-against average (GAA) and a .926 save percentage (SV%) through 10 games with Briercrest, posting a 9-1-0 record. Despite his lack of experience and underwhelming previous numbers, Worthington earned a spot out of training camp and has played well through two starts. In those two starts, he has posted a 2.55 GAA and a .933 SV%.
Hay had been the starting goaltender for the Oil Kings since the 2021-22 season and had decent numbers, so him being placed on waivers was a surprise to fans. Through 124 games, Hay had a 4.06 GAA and a .881 SV% while posting a 44-59-4 record. Reports from the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Ontario Reign lead me to believe Hay will be signing an AHL deal, which would make sense as to why he is no longer in the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), but even if that wasn’t the case, Worthington has proven in a small sample size that he has the potential to lead the Oil Kings to the postseason.
Worthington/Perry Likely Tandem for Foreseeable Future
While Worthington looked calm and collected in his win against the Calgary Hitmen, some fans would be right to question the strength of their tandem as the season goes on. The backup goaltender will now be 17-year-old Hudson Perry, who seems to have a bright future at the WHL level. Last season, he played 17 games with the Oil Kings backing up Hay but struggled, posting a 4.54 GAA, .865 SV%, and 4-9-2 record. He should get his first start of the 2024-25 season in one of the next two games which will give him a chance to prove his worth alongside Worthington.
Regardless of how Perry performs, it seems likely that those two will be the Oil Kings’ tandem for the foreseeable future. There will be goalies available closer to the trade deadline and the team should have a better indication of what their plans will be when that time comes, but there doesn’t seem to be any plans to make an acquisition any time soon.
While it was just two games, Worthington has some serious potential. His poise in the net, combined with his positioning and hand speed, make him seem like a trustworthy addition, and it looks like there is a chance he could be better than Hay. While time will tell if he can continue to keep up this pace all season, the start of his 2024-25 campaign has shown some real promise, and fans should be excited.
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