How long can Stan Bowman continue the three-goalie charade while forwards are required?\u00a0<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the biggest question coming out of the week that was in Oilersnation<\/a>, a week that all things considered, fared better than I expected (my lowly prediction<\/a> was 2-2-1 after all).\u00a0<\/p>\n Connor Ingram has shattered any doubt in his ability to provide stable goaltending for the Edmonton Oilers. His save percentage<\/a> after Sunday night\u2019s 27-save shutout is .917.\u00a0<\/p>\n If you remove his worst game against Boston, where he was simply missing pucks (his only game below a .900 sv%), his save percentage is .934. It\u2019s a slippery slope doing that, granted, but it further illustrates the point that eight out of nine starts have been quality.\u00a0<\/p>\n Tristan Jarry has played twice upon his return from injury, and after looking alright in Nashville, he blanked the dreadful Vancouver Canucks. He\u2019ll finally get a look at home ice.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Calvin Pickard is the odd man out.\u00a0<\/p>\n A luxury they don\u2019t have<\/p>\n However, there is much talk in the market about placing Calvin Pickard on waivers and losing him for nothing. That\u2019s poor asset management. There may even be some truth in it.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Ottawa Senators are in need, surely. The Philadelphia Flyers have a backup problem. The NHL\u2019s goaltending has been so poor that it wouldn\u2019t surprise me if a team took a flier on his $1 million contract. The Sens did just revive James Reimer.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n But now with Kasperi Kapanen\u2019s injury \u00a0\u2013 which luckily sounds more day-to-day<\/a> than long-term, if you believe Knoblauch anyways \u00a0\u2013 and Leon Draisaitl on leave<\/a> for an indeterminate amount of time, there\u2019s little flexibility.\u00a0<\/p>\n The microscope is shining on this three-headed goalie tandem like a nihilistic boy searing poor red ants against asphalt. Simply, Pickard\u2019s chance of starting while Jarry and Ingram are playing this way is nil.\u00a0<\/p>\n To have a third goalie while you dress 11 forwards and seven defencemen reeks of the same poor asset management, does it not?\u00a0<\/p>\n Especially when this could be more of an extended opportunity again for the yo-yo Quinn Hutson, who dutifully signed the dotted line<\/a> for a cheap two-year extension this week, and was named as an AHL all-star.\u00a0<\/p>\n Heck, Max Jones was providing energy in his limited minutes while with the big club.\u00a0<\/p>\n But we won\u2019t see them unless a decision is made with Pickard because of the salary cap implications.\u00a0<\/p>\n Salute to Picks<\/p>\n Calvin Pickard\u2019s contributions to the organization have been fantastic, all things considered. Without Pickard last season, the Oilers regular season and playoffs would\u2019ve been much murkier. I don\u2019t believe they beat the Kings without him.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the rollercoaster ride has come to an end.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s time to force a trade for Pickard for a bottom pick, or bite the bullet, and ship him down to waivers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yes, I am concerned that Tristan Jarry could reaggravate his injury. But I\u2019m also concerned that the forward group will continue to get injured, because that\u2019s what\u2019s been happening all season long.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n For me, checking this box to give them some breathing room is not ideal, but it\u2019s simply what has to be done.\u00a0<\/p>\n No more injuries, please?<\/p>\n I\u2019m no enemy of the old Jay Woodcroft special \u2014 11 forwards and seven defencemen \u2014 if required for a couple of games, the Oilers can manage.\u00a0<\/p>\n When you have Connor McDavid, it creates fun matchups, especially as Edmonton is about to cruise into one of the franchise\u2019s longest homestands, and Knoblauch can deploy with last change.\u00a0<\/p>\n Injuries have been the rule this year, not the exception.\u00a0<\/p>\n Just as the team became the healthiest they\u2019ve been since the Western Conference Final in late May, they\u2019re dealt more thunderbolts.\u00a0<\/p>\n It wouldn\u2019t have hurt my feelings for Andrew Mangiapane\u2019s last game in an Oilers sweater to have been in Nashville after an ugly performance. Maybe his goal will reinvigorate him. But I thought the same after he scored in Minnesota last time.\u00a0<\/p>\n Depending on Kapanen\u2019s prognosis, I assume Bowman will stall what seemed to be already slow-moving trade negotiations to ship Mangiapane out.\u00a0<\/p>\n But once again, the long-term planning of the roster moving forward is delayed. At some point this season, it\u2019ll be important to improve the team.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n That\u2019s been replaced. Survival is the key now.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hopefully, Draisaitl\u2019s family matter results in great news for everybody. Hopefully, Kapanen just needs a few days. Hopefully, that\u2019s it for forward injuries.\u00a0<\/p>\n Especially because this is the time for the Oilers to make their move in the standings.\u00a0<\/p>\n Time to dominate<\/p>\n I don\u2019t label every section of the season schedule<\/a>, but there are always a few that stand out. If you don\u2019t read my column regularly (well, friggin\u2019 change that first off, it\u2019s usually Sundays!), you\u2019d know I called the seven games after they finished the wicked long Eastern roadtrip in Florida the \u201chinge\u201d part of the year.\u00a0<\/p>\n In other words, a time where they needed to reverse their fortunes and would have schedule opportunities to do so. They went 4-2-1 in that stretch.\u00a0<\/p>\n Beginning Sunday night was the \u201cdominance\u201d part of their schedule, where for the next nine games they play eight in a row at home, and then finish in Calgary before the Olympic break.\u00a0<\/p>\n Only one of those nine teams they play are currently top-10 in NHL standings currently in the Minnesota Wild. Two of them are bottom-10.\u00a0<\/p>\n So it\u2019s largely a mushy middle of the league they welcome to Rogers Place, the types of games they need to start winning consistently if a Pacific Division crown is in their future.\u00a0<\/p>\n As silly as this season has been, and even with all the reservations I have about the ceiling of this team, it\u2019s not ridiculous for them to win the division.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yes, they are two points back of Vegas, who have three games in hand. But the Oilers have more wins than the loser-point-laden Golden Knights. They made their splash by acquiring Rasmus Andersson<\/a> on Sunday. He\u2019ll help in the fight to take games into overtime.\u00a0<\/p>\n Almost half of Edmonton\u2019s remaining games \u2013 15 out of 32 \u2013 are against the Pacific.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t try to figure out the Edmonton Oilers, lean into the silly games they play.\u00a0For example, they will try for a ninth time to achieve a three-game winning streak on Tuesday. Two days off in a row would\u2019ve been a nice luxury for this group after five games in seven nights, but to no avail.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Although a great philosopher once said, two out of three ain\u2019t bad, right Meatloaf?\u00a0<\/p>\n Record last week: 3-1-1.\u00a0<\/p>\n Record at home: 12-6-4<\/p>\n This week:\u00a0<\/p>\n Home to New Jersey on Tuesday\u00a0<\/p>\n Home to Pittsburgh on Thursday (Stu?!)\u00a0<\/p>\n Home to Washington on Saturday\u00a0<\/p>\n Historically bad goaltending<\/p>\n Let\u2019s peruse some other notes that caught my eye this week.\u00a0<\/p>\n Before Sunday\u2019s games, here were the three worst single-season NHL team save percentages since 1990-91, a pretty big sample size.\u00a0<\/p>\n 1. 1992-93 Ottawa Senators (.852)<\/p>\n 2. 1993-94 Ottawa Senators (.857)<\/p>\n And?\u00a0<\/p>\n 3. 2025-26 Ottawa Senators (.865)<\/p>\n For reference, those expansion Senators teams were awful, all-time NHL history bad. Funnily enough, newly re-hired Columbus coach Rick Bowness was at the helm, and they went 10-70-4 and if you can believe that, winning just one road game all year.\u00a0<\/p>\n They won just four more games the next season, and are the last team in the NHL history to record 60 or more losses.\u00a0<\/p>\n So these current Senators are dwelling amongst some of the worst hockey teams that have ever been assembled in the NHL.\u00a0<\/p>\n Linus Ullmark was deep in the struggle bus before his leave from the team. Leevi Merlainen has been even worse.\u00a0<\/p>\n On prestigious Hockey Day in Canada, the Sens scored five goals against the hallowed Montreal Canadiens. But Merilainen allowed six on 19 shots, they blew a two-goal lead, and lost in overtime.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think Leevi made some good saves,\u201d said defenceman Jake Sanderson in a post-game<\/a> media scrum. \u201cBut I think, at the end of the day, you\u2019ve got to make more than 10 saves to win a game.\u201d<\/p>\n With that save percentage, it\u2019s remarkable the Senators are above Gary .500 at 22-19-6. Correction: 22-19-7 as the Sens lost 4-3 in overtime to the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n A point is a point in Gary\u2019s NHL.\u00a0<\/p>\n Maybe it wouldn\u2019t be such a big deal if Ottawa played in the Pacific Division, where they\u2019d be in third, but pulling James Reimer off the couch was a desperate move.\u00a0<\/p>\n He played well, all things considered. But what\u2019s the answer here?\u00a0<\/p>\n Ullmark skated Friday, but head coach Travis Green was quick to point out that there\u2019s no rush, and understandably so, as he comes back from his mental health leave.\u00a0<\/p>\n They\u2019re six points back of a playoff spot. A season is swirling down the drain if something doesn\u2019t change.\u00a0<\/p>\n Does Steve Staios have no interest in Calvin Pickard?\u00a0<\/p>\n The wagon Sabres<\/p>\n The Buffalo Sabres are not a mirage and I\u2019m here for it. They\u2019re 8-2-1 since the Christmas break. They\u2019re in a wildcard spot.\u00a0<\/p>\n Playoff hockey deserves to return to Buffalo, one of the better markets in the league.\u00a0<\/p>\n Let\u2019s go Buffalo!\u00a0<\/p>\n What if?<\/p>\n