Good morning, everyone, and a happy Monday to all of you. I’ve got a brand new mailbag ready to go after taking your questions and sending them to the crew for their take on whatever is on your mind. This week, we’re discussing Stuart Skinner’s rollercoaster start to the year, top six scoring, the Pacific Division, and much more. If you’ve got a question you’d like to ask, email it to me at baggedmilk@oilersnation.com or on Twitter at @jsbmbaggedmilk, and I’ll get to you as soon as I can.

I don’t know if I see it game to game. He had a few rough games earlier in the season, but lately he’s been much better. I wish I had a good answer as why he has those tough funks, like we saw early last year as well. There were a few rough reads off the rush where he took too much ice and was unable to get across, but it’s not like he is always giving up a goal glove side or blocker for instance. I wonder if part of it is more on the mental side.

One thing I notice when he’s off is that he moves around in the crease a lot more. Lately, he’s looked very calm during his last two games and we’re seeing the results. If he can stay patient and not jump around as much, I think we’ll see his numbers go up.

I wish I knew the answer to why his game has been up and down, but I’m choosing to believe he’s rounding the corner. His last two starts have had save percentages of .941 and .967, so I’m hopeful he just needed some time to get himself going. Dare to dream?

Oilers offence has been fine the past month. Were 6^th highest scoring team in November, and it was due to top six finally going. Janmark and Brown each had six points in November, and Adam Henrique outscore opposition 8-2 at 5×5, while Brown was 7-2 and Janmark 6-3. They need an upgrade at 4C. Corey Perry has been fine for a 4RW.

Janmark has been tremendous and Perry has produced a solid amount of offense. Players like Ryan and Henrique need to contribute a bit more, but the production has been fine.

There’s always room for improvement. That said, I do wonder if the Oilers would want to add more speed to the mix with players like Derek Ryan starting to look his age. Could you see a scenario where Noah Philp gets recalled and replaces him? I can.

The only realistic upgrade in net would be the backup position. I don’t see them paying big cost to get a starter. Granted, I feel Skinner is just fine. He got them to game 7 of Cup Final and played very well outside of a few rough early games v. VAN.

Yes. If you go and spend assets on a goalie then you’re basically saying that you’re comfortable with Troy Stecher playing every game in the playoffs. They need a blueline upgrade.

Yes, I absolutely agree. I think bolstering the defensive group would go a long way in terms of locking things down in their own zone. Skinner still has to make the stops, but I think a better d-group will reduce some of the high-danger situations he faces.

I do not, unless an injury occurs.

No. Pickard is playing well and there’s no reason to risk waiving him so that Olivier Rodrigue can get a look. I don’t like that idea at all.

I doubt it. Rodrigue wasn’t great during the pre-season, and I think the better idea would be to leave him do his thing in the AHL without the pressure of having to backstop a Stanley Cup contender.

It is wide open for Edmonton to win it. The Oilers are 13-6-2 in their last 21 games. They’ve played quite well, but it seems many in Oilersnation are focusing more on a few tough plays in games, rather than the wins. Oilers play Vegas twice in their next six games and those games could go a long way in the Oilers winning the division for the first time since 1987.

I slept on Vegas a bit more than I should have. The Kings have been good too, but I think they’ll fall off. I think my big mistake was overlooking Vegas a bit too much. Should be a tight race for the top spot this year.

I think the Pacific Division is starting to take shape. The Oilers are heating up, Calgary is starting to slide, Vancouver is medi0cre, and the Kings are mostly where I expected them to be. Outside of a few fast or slow starts, I’m not overly surprised about where teams are at even though I did absolutely think the Flames would be worse than they are.

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