Good morning, everyone, and a happy Monday to all of you. I’ve got a fresh 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 talking about Evan Bouchard’s next contract, expectations for John Klingberg, the goalie rotation, 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.

My expectations are tempered. I think he’s more of a 6/7 than a 4/5, but I’ll be the first to admit his comments last week got me a little excited.

Honestly, it’s hard to predict because he’s been out for so long. I fully expect mistakes off the bat but if he can become someone we don’t talk about then that’s good too. He needs to get the puck to the forwards and become someone you can rely on to make plays.

All I know for sure is that he’s going to be rusty after not playing in more than a year. I’m going to say he’s going to get third pairing minutes and some time on PP2, but I don’t know what to expect from him down the stretch. If he can just look steady and chip in with 10-15 points then I’d be pumped, I think.

I don’t subscribe to the idea that Evan Bouchard’s play isn’t where it was last year. There may be moments he hasn’t passed the eye test — like with all players — but his underlying numbers remain as strong, if not stronger than what they were last year. He’ll be in the $10-million range on a long-term deal.

100% and I wouldn’t think twice. Evan Bouchard has had his struggles but he’s played significantly better than the majority of the fan base thinks he has. One bad game against Washington the other day seemed to make everyone forget how good he’s been recently. His season hasn’t been great but to not sign him long term would be idioitc by the Oilers.

I would 1000% sign him to a long-term deal, and I’d try to get it done soon since he’s not playing up to his usual offensive standards. Anything to bring that price down.

Henrique has played low-event hockey on both ends of the ice, and has been swamped with defensive zone starts this season. Despite that he’s a plus-three in terms of raw goals for and against and while may not be driving offence, the Oilers aren’t asking him to in the role they’ve set out for him. $3-million might be a little much for what he’s doing, but he gelled well in the room, and wanted to be here. That’s worth something.

Henrique has been fine. I just wish he would contribute more consistently to the offence but maybe that’s because of his linemates too. Defensively he’s still doing a strong job as the team’s third line 3C. I would strongly consider bringing in a better scoring two-way winger to play with him at the deadline.

It’s important to remember he was getting a lot of power play time in Anaheim, which helped get him over 20 goals last season. He’s not getting those minutes in Edmonton, but has still managed to register seven goals. He’s not the perfect player, but I like having him in the roster in a bottom six role.

I have no issue with it. In the first month after Pickard was recalled and made his first start last season, Skinner started 10 of 14 games, or a roughly 70/30 percent split. That carried through the rest of the season last year, and so far this season, it’s closer to a 65/35 split.

I wondered this the other day too. I don’t think it’ll disrupt his play in the postseason much considering he now has the experience. This is just about managing his workload while still giving him consistent starts.

I’m guessing they’re doing this to try and keep Stu fresh for the playoffs. We always complain that he’s tired when the playoff roll around, but now we’re saying the opposite that he’s not playing enough in the regular season. We can’t have it both ways, and so I don’t mind that Kris Knoblauch is trying to save some juice for later.

I would’ve made the Oilers forfeit a third-round draft pick, too.

I would’ve given Connor McDavid three games and Tyler Myers four games. The McDavid cross-check to Conor Garland fully warranted a suspension but I don’t think it was the same as Myers. Myers was unprovoked and after the whistle, which should’ve warranted more games.

I thought Connor would get two games and Myers would get three, but clearly the NHL wanted to give them matching suspensions for whatever reason that may be. I don’t agree with it, but I can’t change the ruling, so I’m not going to stress about it too much. He’ll be back this week — we’re all good.

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