Good morning, everyone, and a happy Monday to all of you. I&#8217;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&#8217;re discussing the home-ice advantage vs. getting healthy, the goaltending depth, defensive mistakes, and more. If you’ve got a question you’d like to ask, email it to me at <a class="text-accent" href="mailto:baggedmilk@oilersnation.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">baggedmilk@oilersnation.com</a> or on Twitter at <a class="text-accent" href="https://www.twitter.com/jsbmbaggedmilk" rel="noopener noreferrer">@jsbmbaggedmilk</a>, and I’ll get to you as soon as I can.

<figure id="attachment_168971" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-168971" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-168971 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-1024x683.jpg" alt="Connor McDavid Leon Draisaitl Edmonton Oilers" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-300x200.jpg 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-768x512.jpg 768w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-168971" class="wp-caption-text">Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure>
1) Blake asks &#8211; How much does home-ice advantage matter vs. ensuring everyone is as healthy as possible leading into the playoffs?
Tyler Yaremchuk:
They both matter, I&#8217;ll start with that. Starting a series in Edmonton and getting home-ice for a potential game seven is huge, especially when you look at the Kings record when they&#8217;re on the road vs when they&#8217;re at home. I won&#8217;t say it&#8217;s more important than getting everyone up to 100%. That should be the priority. Without Connor and Leon humming at full health, they won&#8217;t beat the Kings, regardless of where the series starts.
Liam Horrobin: 
Health is the most important part of the equation. However, the LA Kings at home versus on the road are two completely different teams. The Kings have a 26-4-4 record at home and a 14-19-5 record on the road.
Zach Laing:
The Oilers are comfortable, though they really shouldn&#8217;t, with not having home-ice in the playoffs. It was a slog for them they managed to get through last year. That being said: getting healthy is the most important thing right now.
Baggedmilk:
I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s an either/or situation. I think the Oilers need to do what they can to get healthy, but the guys who are playing need to make sure they still win. We saw how that can work on both sides of the coin this past week, and the Oilers have fallen out of a home-ice playoff position. Why does that matter? Remember Game 7 against the Kings a few years ago? I was lucky enough to be in the building and you can&#8217;t tell me the home crowd didn&#8217;t help give the Oilers an edge.
<figure id="attachment_172284" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-172284" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-172284 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534-1024x683.jpg" alt="Edmonton Oilers Stuart Skinner" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534-300x200.jpg 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534-768x512.jpg 768w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534.jpg 1896w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-172284" class="wp-caption-text">Mar 26, 2025; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) is tended to by medical staff after being hit in the head with a knee from Dallas Stars forward forward Mikko Rantanen (96) during the third period at Rogers Place.</figcaption></figure>
2) Oilers fan in Van asks &#8211; Doesn&#8217;t the Stuart Skinner injury highlight how silly it was for management not to address the goaltending issue? It seems like everyone was asking for an upgrade in net or at least another veteran to add to the depth chart.
Tyler Yaremchuk:
Yeah, going and grabbing a veteran to stash in the minors probably would have been a decent idea, but they must have some amount of belief in Olivier Rodrigue. Maybe they would just rather have their young goalie get some runway instead of a career third-stringer. If you&#8217;re getting to your third goalie in a playoff series, you&#8217;re probably already hooped.
Liam Horrobin: 
No, because goaltenders weren&#8217;t available at the deadline.
Zach Laing:
The only explanation I can think of for them not doing so is they feel Olivier Rodrigue is better than any of the other options that were out there.
Baggedmilk:
The only thing I can think of is that the Oilers think Rodrigue is ready for some primetime minutes. Otherwise, that&#8217;s a big miss imo.
<figure id="attachment_172048" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-172048" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-172048 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-1024x683.jpg" alt="Winnipeg Jets celebrate goal at Rogers Place" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-300x200.jpg 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-768x512.jpg 768w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-2048x1365.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-172048" class="wp-caption-text">Mar 20, 2025; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Winnipeg Jets left winger Brandon Tanev (73) celebrates a goal on Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the third period at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure>
3) Clay asks &#8211; What is everyone&#8217;s take regarding why the Oilers have been so poor defensively this season? You&#8217;d think with the same coaching staff that everyone would know the system by now, but there still seem to be a handful of glaring mistakes every night.
Tyler Yaremchuk:
They allow the 11th fewest shots against/60 at 5v5, 4th fewest shot attempts against/60 at 5v5, and they&#8217;re 17th in expected goals against/60 at 5v5. They give up a lot of goals and make a lot of big mistakes, but it&#8217;s not a system problem. It&#8217;s a goaltending and decision-making problem.
Liam Horrobin: 
There was a portion of the season for about 30 games that the defence was rock solid. Right now, it lacks in games but I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s as drastic as it&#8217;s been made out to seem. Individual errors aren&#8217;t always due to a bad system but more of a brain fart by the player.
Zach Laing:
Here&#8217;s the Oilers defensive metrics vs. the rest of the league at five-on-five this year:
<ul>
<li>Shot attempts against per hour &#8211; 53..7 &#8211; 4th</li>
<li>Shots against per hour &#8211; 26.2 &#8211; 11th</li>
<li>Expected goals against per hour &#8211; 2.5 &#8211; 17th</li>
<li>Goals against per hour &#8211; 2.6 &#8211; 22nd</li>
<li>Scoring chances against per hour &#8211; 25.3 &#8211; 12th</li>
<li>High danger scoring chances against per hour &#8211; 9.9 &#8211; 7th</li>
<li>Save percentage &#8211; .903 &#8211; 25th</li>
</ul>
Baggedmilk:
How do you quantify bonehead/60? Sometimes, you&#8217;ve got the system, but you&#8217;ve still got guys making errors within that space.
<figure id="attachment_161058" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-161058" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-161058 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_23577687_168383996_lowres-1024x683.jpg" alt="Edmonton Oilers celebrate goal" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_23577687_168383996_lowres-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_23577687_168383996_lowres-300x200.jpg 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_23577687_168383996_lowres-768x512.jpg 768w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_23577687_168383996_lowres.jpg 1390w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-161058" class="wp-caption-text">Jun 18, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Edmonton Oilers forward Corey Perry (90) celebrates scoring against Florida Panthers with forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (93) and forward Leon Draisaitl (29) and defenseman Evan Bouchard (2) during the second period in game five of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure>
4) Anna asks &#8211; Do you think we&#8217;re seeing the underrated effects of a long playoff run with the recent run of injuries, or do you believe that&#8217;s more of a coincidence?
Tyler Yaremchuk:
I think it&#8217;s a bit of a coincidence. Playing a lot of hockey over the last 10 months doesn&#8217;t help, obviously, but it is worth noting that the Oilers have been very healthy over the last few seasons, and that&#8217;s just not always going to be the case.
Liam Horrobin: 
I believe the roster was constructed poorly by Jeff Jackson and they moved on from too many players this summer.
Zach Laing:
The long run has something to do with it, I think, and it didn&#8217;t help that some of these guys had been dealing with injuries during that run, too. Could it be that some of them never healed up properly last summer?
Baggedmilk:
I think it&#8217;s more of a confidence problem with a bunch of guys who have lofty expectations placed upon them. Look at Ryan Nugent-Hopkins over the last few weeks. My man is feeling good about his game, and it&#8217;s no surprise that he&#8217;s also starting to put up points the way we expect.
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-142318 size-full" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Help-White-Flag.png" alt="" width="1024" height="682" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Help-White-Flag.png 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Help-White-Flag-300x200.png 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Help-White-Flag-768x512.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />
5) Alex asks &#8211; If you could describe the 2024-25 Oilers season using a movie title, which would you pick?
Tyler Yaremchuk:
The Pursuit of Happyness (I used ChatGPT for this answer because I famously don&#8217;t watch a lot of movies. I don&#8217;t even know if it makes sense. Never seen the movie)
Liam Horrobin: 
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Zach Laing:
Idiocracy.
Baggedmilk:
Thank You for Smoking. Not because the Oilers&#8217; season has anything to do with the topic of that movie, but rather because it reminds me of the Ben Affleck stressed out smoking meme.
<h2>PRESENTED BY STAR MECHANICAL</h2>
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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 discussing the home-ice advantage vs. getting healthy, the goaltending depth, defensive mistakes, and more. If you’ve got a question you’d like to ask, email it to me at <a class="text-accent" href="mailto:baggedmilk@oilersnation.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">baggedmilk@oilersnation.com</a> or on Twitter at <a class="text-accent" href="https://www.twitter.com/jsbmbaggedmilk" rel="noopener noreferrer">@jsbmbaggedmilk</a>, and I’ll get to you as soon as I can.



[caption id="attachment_168971" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]<img class="wp-image-168971 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/P-DRAISAITL-MCDAVID-1024x683.jpg" alt="Connor McDavid Leon Draisaitl Edmonton Oilers" width="1024" height="683" /> Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports[/caption]

1) Blake asks - How much does home-ice advantage matter vs. ensuring everyone is as healthy as possible leading into the playoffs?

Tyler Yaremchuk:

They both matter, I'll start with that. Starting a series in Edmonton and getting home-ice for a potential game seven is huge, especially when you look at the Kings record when they're on the road vs when they're at home. I won't say it's more important than getting everyone up to 100%. That should be the priority. Without Connor and Leon humming at full health, they won't beat the Kings, regardless of where the series starts.

Liam Horrobin: 

Health is the most important part of the equation. However, the LA Kings at home versus on the road are two completely different teams. The Kings have a 26-4-4 record at home and a 14-19-5 record on the road.

Zach Laing:

The Oilers are comfortable, though they really shouldn't, with not having home-ice in the playoffs. It was a slog for them they managed to get through last year. That being said: getting healthy is the most important thing right now.

Baggedmilk:

I don't think it's an either/or situation. I think the Oilers need to do what they can to get healthy, but the guys who are playing need to make sure they still win. We saw how that can work on both sides of the coin this past week, and the Oilers have fallen out of a home-ice playoff position. Why does that matter? Remember Game 7 against the Kings a few years ago? I was lucky enough to be in the building and you can't tell me the home crowd didn't help give the Oilers an edge.

[caption id="attachment_172284" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]<img class="wp-image-172284 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25776534-1024x683.jpg" alt="Edmonton Oilers Stuart Skinner" width="1024" height="683" /> Mar 26, 2025; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) is tended to by medical staff after being hit in the head with a knee from Dallas Stars forward forward Mikko Rantanen (96) during the third period at Rogers Place.[/caption]

2) Oilers fan in Van asks - Doesn't the Stuart Skinner injury highlight how silly it was for management not to address the goaltending issue? It seems like everyone was asking for an upgrade in net or at least another veteran to add to the depth chart.

Tyler Yaremchuk:

Yeah, going and grabbing a veteran to stash in the minors probably would have been a decent idea, but they must have some amount of belief in Olivier Rodrigue. Maybe they would just rather have their young goalie get some runway instead of a career third-stringer. If you're getting to your third goalie in a playoff series, you're probably already hooped.

Liam Horrobin: 

No, because goaltenders weren't available at the deadline.

Zach Laing:

The only explanation I can think of for them not doing so is they feel Olivier Rodrigue is better than any of the other options that were out there.

Baggedmilk:

The only thing I can think of is that the Oilers think Rodrigue is ready for some primetime minutes. Otherwise, that's a big miss imo.

[caption id="attachment_172048" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]<img class="wp-image-172048 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/USATSI_25727613_168383996_lowres-1024x683.jpg" alt="Winnipeg Jets celebrate goal at Rogers Place" width="1024" height="683" /> Mar 20, 2025; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Winnipeg Jets left winger Brandon Tanev (73) celebrates a goal on Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner (74) during the third period at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images[/caption]

3) Clay asks - What is everyone's take regarding why the Oilers have been so poor defensively this season? You'd think with the same coaching staff that everyone would know the system by now, but there still seem to be a handful of glaring mistakes every night.

Tyler Yaremchuk:

They allow the 11th fewest shots against/60 at 5v5, 4th fewest shot attempts against/60 at 5v5, and they're 17th in expected goals against/60 at 5v5. They give up a lot of goals and make a lot of big mistakes, but it's not a system problem. It's a goaltending and decision-making problem.

Liam Horrobin: 

There was a portion of the season for about 30 games that the defence was rock solid. Right now, it lacks in games but I don't think it's as drastic as it's been made out to seem. Individual errors aren't always due to a bad system but more of a brain fart by the player.

Zach Laing:

Here's the Oilers defensive metrics vs. the rest of the league at five-on-five this year:
<ul>
 	<li>Shot attempts against per hour - 53..7 - 4th</li>
 	<li>Shots against per hour - 26.2 - 11th</li>
 	<li>Expected goals against per hour - 2.5 - 17th</li>
 	<li>Goals against per hour - 2.6 - 22nd</li>
 	<li>Scoring chances against per hour - 25.3 - 12th</li>
 	<li>High danger scoring chances against per hour - 9.9 - 7th</li>
 	<li>Save percentage - .903 - 25th</li>
</ul>
Baggedmilk:

How do you quantify bonehead/60? Sometimes, you've got the system, but you've still got guys making errors within that space.

[caption id="attachment_161058" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]<img class="wp-image-161058 size-large" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_23577687_168383996_lowres-1024x683.jpg" alt="Edmonton Oilers celebrate goal" width="1024" height="683" /> Jun 18, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Edmonton Oilers forward Corey Perry (90) celebrates scoring against Florida Panthers with forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (93) and forward Leon Draisaitl (29) and defenseman Evan Bouchard (2) during the second period in game five of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports[/caption]

4) Anna asks - Do you think we're seeing the underrated effects of a long playoff run with the recent run of injuries, or do you believe that's more of a coincidence?

Tyler Yaremchuk:

I think it's a bit of a coincidence. Playing a lot of hockey over the last 10 months doesn't help, obviously, but it is worth noting that the Oilers have been very healthy over the last few seasons, and that's just not always going to be the case.

Liam Horrobin: 

I believe the roster was constructed poorly by Jeff Jackson and they moved on from too many players this summer.

Zach Laing:

The long run has something to do with it, I think, and it didn't help that some of these guys had been dealing with injuries during that run, too. Could it be that some of them never healed up properly last summer?

Baggedmilk:

I think it's more of a confidence problem with a bunch of guys who have lofty expectations placed upon them. Look at Ryan Nugent-Hopkins over the last few weeks. My man is feeling good about his game, and it's no surprise that he's also starting to put up points the way we expect.

<img class="aligncenter wp-image-142318 size-full" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Help-White-Flag.png" alt="" width="1024" height="682" />

5) Alex asks - If you could describe the 2024-25 Oilers season using a movie title, which would you pick?

Tyler Yaremchuk:

The Pursuit of Happyness (I used ChatGPT for this answer because I famously don't watch a lot of movies. I don't even know if it makes sense. Never seen the movie)

Liam Horrobin: 

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Zach Laing:

Idiocracy.

Baggedmilk:

Thank You for Smoking. Not because the Oilers' season has anything to do with the topic of that movie, but rather because it reminds me of the Ben Affleck stressed out smoking meme.
<h2>PRESENTED BY STAR MECHANICAL</h2>
<img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-146181" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Article-2-SME.png" alt="" width="728" height="404" />

Star Mechanical is one of Edmonton’s biggest locally owned and operated plumbing and heating businesses. They have been working within the community for over 20 years, and many of the homes built in Edmonton over the last two decades have had their plumbing and heating systems installed by Star Mechanical.  Visit them at <a href="http://starmechanical.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://starmechanical.ca&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1707492487512000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2mVs3WUkp8iUCZ0kJRe9lJ">starmechanical.ca</a> to schedule an appointment and let them help keep your home running smoothly.

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