Coming in at #4 in the 2026 The Oil Rig Prospect Ranking is netminder Samuel Jonsson. The former fifth-round pick was ranked by all but one of our writers, and was mostly ranked in the three to six range this year.
| Position | Year Drafted | Highest Ranking | Lowest Ranking | 2025 Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalie | 2022 | 2 | Unranked | 4 |
Who is he?
The biggest thing to know about Jonsson is that he has the size and build to be an NHL goaltender. Standing 6’5″ and weighing in over 200 pounds, the Swedish goalie has the fundamentals in place to be a goalie down the line.
His professional development
The challenge over the past few years for Jonsson has been luck. He did not get enough opportunities to play in the higher leagues in Sweden, having never played in the Swedish SHL. Between injuries and being stuck down the depth chart, he has played a good number of games, but not against elite competition.
This past year, Jonsson was the victim of numbers, with the Oilers playing Stuart Skinner, Conner Ingram, Calvin Pickard, and Tristan Jarry at various points last year. They then had Matt Tomkins in the AHL, with Pickard, Ingram, and Connor Ungar all splitting time in the AHL with him. This left Jonsson to play in the ECHL.
In his first season in North America, Jonsson played quite well, finding his way into 33 games and putting up a very respectable 0.910 save percentage. The Komets finished second in the Western Conference last year. Through the playoffs Jonsson was lights out. Through ten games, he recorded six wins and stole the crease from Nathaniel Day. Expect Jonsson to find his way to the AHL next season
Jonsson’s strengths and weaknesses
Jonsson’s strength as a goalie starts with his size, allowing him to be in the right place at the right time simply because he is able to cover so much of the net without moving too much. Beyond that, he is strong at squaring himself to the shot, positioning well in the butterfly to see shots as they come through and limit rebounds.
When he was drafted, scouts did note major concerns with his lateral movement and speed, with him being quite slow to move from side to side. This is common with large goalies, who can often rely on simply being big to stop most chances against, but as they progress up the ranks, skaters get quicker and chances get more dangerous. This is not enough anymore. Luckily, Jonsson has taken major strides to increase his speed and refine his coordination to complement his size.
The biggest area of opportunity in his game is his glove. Jonsson is often beat on his glove side, with his catching not as quick as it should be. With some time in the gym working on his coordination and increasing his speed, expect Jonsson to take strides to becoming a really good netminder in the next few years.
What’s next for Jonsson
Despite reporting this summer that Jonsson was destined to head back to Sweden this year, it appears the netminder will remain in North America this season. The Oilers have cleared some space in the crease, and Jonsson will likely be fighting for an AHL job this year.
He likely needs two full seasons in the AHL before he can make the jump to the NHL, but goalies are really difficult to predict, so it could be longer, but it’s reasonable to expect it to be much shorter as well. If Jonsson can continue his strong form this season, he could be a viable option in the NHL crease in the next few seasons.
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