Good morning, everyone, and a happy Monday to you all. As always, I’ve got a brand new mailbag ready to go after taking your questions and sending them to the crew for their take. This week, we’re discussing Brett Kulak’s future, salary cap flexibility, under-appreciated Edmonton Oilers, and 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.

Very, very little. For bubble guys that are trying to crack the roster or even young players getting their first taste of professional hockey, I do put some stock into how they’re performing. For veterans, I just don’t think they’re all that dialed in so I don’t worry about struggles or success for that matter.

I put no stock into preseason performances. Jack Campbell was so good in preseason one year that he was named the starter for the season opener against Vancouver. The Oilers lost that game 8-1 and Campbell was put on waivers not long after.

It’s only valuable for younger players to see where they stack up against NHL talent.

None. A few years ago, Jack Campbell finished the pre-season with three wins a .968 save percentage. Take that as you will.

My first instinct is to say he walks at the end of the year. He still has some good hockey left in him and I think he could get a somewhat decent payday on the open market. I don’t think the Oilers can afford to keep both him and Mattias Ekholm, unless there are some serious hometown discounts involved.

He might be a player that walks at the end of the season. He’s been a good player for the Oilers but there’s value on the open market for him. I hope he signs in Edmonton because he’s a fantastic 5th defenceman. I wouldn’t worry about him too much though.

As much as I want the Oilers to keep him, I can’t see it happening if they extend Jake Walman and Mattias Ekholm. Nurse isn’t going anywhere, and, unfortunately, that doesn’t leave much room for Kulak. I don’t like it, but that’s how I see it.

Not much. You can run with 12 forwards on the roster after the deadline if you need to. Could move Kapanen or Janmark if you want to free up a little bit more money as well.

They’re under the cap right now with 13 forwards, 7 defencemen and 2 goaltenders on the roster, and that’s with an injured Zach Hyman active. If they want to create more money, and keep Noah Philp in the NHL, they could send down Tomasek to create $1.2 M in space.

It’s not as bad as it has been, but Bowman may have to move a player at the deadline to generate more space. Maybe Janmark or Kapanen become expendable.

With the new playoff cap rules, I don’t even know how much it matters. That said, if they want to add at the deadline then they’ll have to get creative. Not much space available, and some of the players you’d probably want to move could have some form of trade protection.

I’ve been impressed with Quinn Hutson. I did not have high hopes for him coming into camp but he’s starting to make me think he could be more than just a “Quad-A” player.

Quinn Hutson has been a nice surprise. He just needs to continue to develop his offensive game in Bakersfield.

Quinn Hutson is my early horse for the Ty Rattie Award. He’s got strong offensive instincts, gets to the greasy areas on the ice, and often seems to make the right play when the puck is on his stick. I don’t think he makes the team, but I’ve been very impressed with him.

Honourable mention to Mike Smith while we’re having this conversation. Mikko Koskinen as well. As for current Oilers, I’ll say Brett Kulak.

Evan Bouchard and Stuart Skinner.

Shawn Horcoff. He was a great captain at that point in the franchise’s history, and people used to get on him because of his contract way too much.

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