From being pencilled into the top-six to sitting in the press box, it hasn’t been the first half of the season anyone envisioned Jeff Skinner having.
After he was bought out by the Buffalo Sabres and signed a one-year, $3-million contract with the Edmonton Oilers this summer, there was more than enough reason to think he would be a fixture in the team’s top-six. He had been a consistent scorer for years playing with skilled players, and the Oilers needed an influx of offence with Dylan Holloway off to St. Louis and Evander Kane on the shelf.
In the pre-season and early in the regular season, Skinner got a look in the top-six, but it didn’t take long for him to slide down the lineup. He’s chipped in some offence, scoring seven goals and 15 points in 41 games, but his underlying numbers are bleak. With him on the ice at five-on-five, the Oilers control 49.7 percent of the shot attempt share, 47.7 percent of the expected goal share, and just 40 percent of the goal share.
Hockey Viz’s individual impact charts highlight what’s been the Oilers’ biggest concern this year: his defensive game. While he drives offence at an eight percent rate above league average, his defensive contributions are 13 percent below league average. Not just that, but Hockey Viz also has noted a drop off in both his finishing and setting ability, two of his strengths.
It all begs the question of what Skinner’s future looks like, and if it’s in Edmonton or not.
On Wednesday’s edition of Oilersnation Everyday, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli was asked what Skinner’s future looks like in Edmonton:
“I don’t see a lot. I think the biggest thing is does this get to an uncomfortable enough position where he might be considering being willing to waive that no-move clause and move on, which I think would be the best thing for the Oilers. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy to move him, but to get rid of that extra $3-million bucks, if possible, could just open up a whole other range of possibilities to maybe fill another forward position, or use it to get a bigger, more impact defenceman.“I can’t stress the optionality and flexibility enough for the Oilers front office if that were to happen, but in the same time, it’s not really a position you want to be in asking. You went out on a limb and you really pushed and pushed to get him and to take less than what was available on the open market. He believed in you and your team, and he wanted to be part of the solution. With that, you gave him the full no-move as the incentive to get the deal done, and now, you can’t go back on that and pressure him the other way, I don’t think. I don’t think it looks good for whatever you want to do in the future, even though many fans would like to see that happen now.“I think, perhaps, an extended run as a healthy scratch might change some feelings.”
Seravalli went on to note how some of Skinner’s offence could be considered empty calories, as while he has chipped in, sitting fourth among forwards in five-on-five goals on the team, what other impacts is he having on the game?
A strong defensive calling card has never been his game, and that’s nothing new about who Jeff Skinner is as a player. He’s always been a high-end offensive player who struggles to play a 200-foot game. And while we ponder about what Skinner’s future looks like, if it’s in Edmonton or not, it also opens the door to conversations about where the Oilers may have gone wrong in terms of their evaluation of Skinner’s fit in the lineup.
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.
