Edmonton Oilers Demote New Top Six Forward in Opening Night Lineup
Photo credit: Edmonton Oilers RAW
The Oilers took the ice for their first practice with the opening night roster, and Jeff Skinner found himself down in the lineup.
Prior to today, Jeff Skinner had been skating with Leon Draisaitl and Victor Arvidsson on the second line in preseason. It was expected that flanking Draisaitl with two 30+ goal threats would be the best lineup. However, Skinner has now been moved down to the third line, and Janmark moved up to the second.
Skinner had a slow preseason which may not help his case to stay up in the lineup, but Coach Knoblauch may be making this move for other reasons. Connor Brown and Mattias Janmark combined for only 8 regular season goals last season, and getting some offence on the third line is a need for the team. Oilers reporter Mark Spector said this may be a way to jolt Skinner after a disappointing camp, though.
Knoblauch explained the decision after practice. Skinner and Henrique can combine to be an offensive threat on the third line, which would spread the Oilers offence out a bit more. Unfortunately, it'll come at the cost of taking away a good passing option for Draisaitl.
Insiders have made it clear the Edmonton Oilers will target a defenceman at the trade deadline, but they might need a bottom six forward too if Evander Kane doesn't return. Brown and Janmark are great checkers, but NHL players need to be able to score the odd goal too, it can't just be the first two lines. This move from Knoblauch indicates they know they need another forward, so we'll have to see if the Oilers make a move in season to acquire one.
For now, it appears the opening night lineup has been set. Fans had high expectations of Jeff Skinner scoring up to 40 goals next to Leon Draisaitl, but Knoblauch has other plans. It's a bold choice for Knoblauch off the bat, but Oilers fans have grown to trust his decision making - it got them to the Final once, and now they've got to do it again. For the next 82 games, Knoblauch will be tweaking to get the ideal line combinations for playoffs.
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