Heading into the 2019-20 season, the Edmonton Oilers chances of returning to the Stanley Cup Playoffs laid at the feet of two men. Ultimately, the play of Mikko Koskinen and Mike Smith would determine how things play out and through the team’s first 57 games that is exactly what has occurred.
Though neither one’s been spectacular, both have been good enough and in the end, that was what was going to be required to give this group a legitimate shot at playing games into mid-April. There are those who would argue one has been much better than the other that would be a bit of stretch.
The Oilers Unsexy Tandem
Anyone who’s watched the vast majority of the Oilers games this season and viewed the play of their netminders in an objective manner will tell you there hasn’t been a much to choose between the two. Koskinen has arguably been the better of the two but by the narrowest of margins, which speaks volumes.
To suggest either one has been above average would be a stretch and even the most traditional of goaltending counting stats suggest that is, in fact, the case. The numbers speak for themselves but at the end of a day on a team that employs the league’s two leading scorers and plays in one of its weakest divisions, all that was required was the Oilers goaltending to not be a complete and utter disaster.
To their credit, both men have stolen points in the standings and while they’ve coughed up a few along the way, it has been nowhere near as bad as some envisioned. Though the tandem of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl has given Edmonton a shot at banking wins on a nightly basis, with a roster as unbalanced as this one, having a goalie stand on his head from time to time was a necessity.
McDavid and Draisaitl Need Help
There have certainly been bright spots along the way, most notably the play of rookies Ethan Bear and Kailer Yamamoto, but don’t kid yourself. The Oilers have been carried all season long by their two best players and while some would have you believe that isn’t sustainable over the course of an entire 82-game campaign, if healthy, it is more than doable in today’s watered-down NHL.
Unfortunately, an apparent quad injury has forced McDavid out of the lineup for at very least a couple of weeks and could severely damage Edmonton’s chance down the stretch. In other words, now would be the perfect time for one or both of these netminders to go on a run and help carry the load until their captain returns.
As of this moment, Dave Tippett seems to think Smith is the guy with the hot-hand and has had him start the Oilers last three games. However, if the first two-thirds of the season has told us nothing else, it is that neither of these goalies can go long stretch carrying a heavy workload. Koskinen has never shown capable of doing it and mere weeks away from his 38th birthday, Smith is well past his best before date.
Tippett Needs to Tread Carefully
This has to continue to be a joint effort and Tippett will need to find that perfect mix in getting both goaltenders regular duty, while still turning to the guy he feels most comfortable going with against certain opponents. Not an easy task by any means and in a situation like this, the chance of both players going south at the same time is a real possibility.
Add the recent seven-game suspension the league handed Zack Kassian to the McDavid injury and the Oilers forward ranks are about as paper-thin as it gets. Now could Draisaitl will this team to some wins and/or loser points over the coming weeks? You bet but in order for Edmonton to stay comfortably in a playoff position during that time period, it’ll be up to Koskinen and Smith to ensure it happens.
Far from an ideal situation but this is the hand the Edmonton Oilers have been dealt and outside of a surprise trade from Ken Holland, which seems unlikely, it's sink or swim time. While we may have arrived here in a manner not exactly everyone saw coming, it’ll still about the goaltending and that was always going to be the deciding factor…no matter how it ultimately ends up playing out.
Be it tonight against the New York Islanders or in a couple of days from now when the Edmonton Oilers pay a visit to the New Jersey Devils, Mikko Koskinen will get a chance to start his first game of the 2019-20 campaign. No matter which one he winds up playing, it is apparent the towering guardian is going to have to hit the ground running in order to win over Dave Tippett’s trust and earn regular playing time.
It’s not every day that we see a team with two of the league’s top four scorers miss the playoffs but the Edmonton Oilers managed to accomplish just that in 2018-19 and by a rather comfortable margin. And yet, with as poorly constructed as their roster was, had the duo of Cam Talbot and Mikko Koskinen found a way to raise their level of play, we are likely talking about a playoff team.
The Edmonton Oilers are about to reach the quarter pole in their 2018-19 schedule and netminder Cam Talbot may be on the verge of losing his spot as the team’s No. 1 goalie. With the 31-year-old still struggling with consistency, the improved play of Mikko Koskinen and the NHL standings being as tight as they are, the time for patience is something this organization does not have.
It has been just over two months since Mikko Koskinen kicked off his return to North America and what a whirlwind it has been. After spending the last seven years tending twine in the KHL and SM-liiga, the Edmonton Oilers goaltender has gone from unknown commodity…to pre-season disaster…to fan-favourite over the course of nine weeks. Impressive to be sure but the real test will be what comes next.
After not only surviving but thriving through the month of October, the Edmonton Oilers have positioned themselves in a pretty good spot as they make their way through November. How good you ask? Well, despite falling to the Stanley Cup champion Capitals in Washington last night and a pending date with the Tampa Bay Lightning later today, a pair of back-to-back regulation losses would be of no real consequence and that in itself is saying something.
Of all the free agent signings made across the league this summer, arguably the most curious move of all was the Edmonton Oilers decision to hand Mikko Koskinen the contract they did. Though a one-year deal at $2.5 million isn’t a large chunk of change in today’s NHL, when we are talking about a 30-year old backup goalie with no resume to speak of and a roster starving for cap flexibility, it is certainly a headscratcher.
