Monday Mailbag – Tyson Barrie or Evan Bouchard on the power play?

Happy long weekend Monday, Nation, and welcome to a brand new edition of the Mailbag to help you start your week and break down everything that’s happening with our beloved Edmonton Oilers. This week we’re looking at Evan Bouchard’s next contract, Stuart Skinner and Jack Campbell, Jesse Puljujarvi, and a whole lot more. If you’ve got got a question you’d like to ask, email it to me at baggedmilk@oilersnation.com or hit me up on Twitter at @jsbmbaggedmilk and I’ll get to you as soon as we can.

I don’t think so. If Skinner makes 30-34 starts that would be a very solid season for him.

I don’t see it. Skinner could get a run of starts in short stretches if Campbell struggles, but I don’t think the Oilers coughed up $25 million over five years to relegate him to backup at the first sign of trouble. I expect we’ll see Skinner in 28-32 games.

Not any time soon. I could see it happening by the end of Campbell’s time here, but not before that. We’ll see.

It would put him in running I’d think. To say he’d win it for sure is hard considering you’re saying Holloway or the field. Odds are in favour of the field.

Majority of the year . . . 42 games, 50 games, 65 games? Obviously how many games he’s with Draisaitl will make a difference but I don’t think it’s as far-fetched as some might. I don’t know what the rest of the rookie field looks like, but I picked Holloway for the Calder as my surprise for the season in another poll, so I’ll stick with that.

I’m not even thinking about the Calder Trophy right now. If Holloway can come in and contribute say… 12-15 goals? I’d be pretty happy with that.

Depends on where he plays. He isn’t on PK nor the 1^st PP unit. If he can produce 40-45 points that’d be good. He isn’t a lock to play in top six all season. He and Yamamoto will get time in the top six, but neither is a lock at this point. Same as Holloway, and if they spend more time on the third line, then their production will decrease.

Puljujarvi hasn’t shown he belongs in the top six over the long term. If he does, production goes up. If not, it goes the other way. Until I see something more than a segment of the fan base touting his underlying numbers, I’m not sold. Show me goals. Show me assists — the good old-fashioned counting numbers you get on the scoresheet, not on a spreadsheet. In that regard, if Puljujarvi wants to be a top six winger he needs to be producing at least 20 goals and 45 points over a full season.

I’m expecting a career-high in both goals and points. I bet he hits 20 goals this year, and we’ll all be wondering why anyone would want to trade him.

Yes. Barrie is very good on the power play. He is very good at moving the puck. Bouchard has a better point shot, but this PP doesn’t need a heavy shot. The PP is best when 29 and 97 are the main shooters. Today, I see Barrie as a better distributor. You are correct that a potential bonus is it keeps Bouchard’s point totals down.

I think you do it because Barrie is better at moving the puck at this point — the contract stuff is an aside, but it certainly matters. Bouchard will run the power play soon enough. It doesn’t have to be this season. McDavid and Draisaitl are the triggermen right now, so having Bouchard blasting away from the point isn’t a big priority.

Put the best power play on the ice regardless of who is manning the point.

Mashed potatoes and gravy. The best dinner. Pumpkin pie and homemade whip cream for dessert. Unreal.

Stuffing will never touch my plate.

Mashed sweet potatoes. Not a fan of canned cranberry sauce.

I love it all except brussels sprouts.

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