The Panic Button: Why a Knee-Jerk Stuart Skinner Trade Could Destroy the Edmonton Oilers’ Season

0 Diana khan November 09, 2025

After a catastrophic 9-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, the torches and pitchforks are out in Edmonton, and they’re pointed squarely at the crease. Insider Mark Spector didn’t mince words, stating the Edmonton Oilers “are done with this netminder.” It’s the kind of comment that fans eat up because it’s simple, it’s angry, and it identifies a single scapegoat for a team-wide collapse.

I get it. I understand the frustration. Watching your team get dismantled like that, seeing undefended players tap in goals, it makes you want someone to pay the price. But as someone who’s been around this league a long time, I’m telling you: a panic move right now is the worst possible thing Stan Bowman could do.

Is the Blame on Skinner or the Team in Front of Him?

Spector’s right about one thing: the team in front of Stuart Skinner did quit. Whether they quit on him or on themselves, the result is the same. No goaltender in the NHL, not Hellebuyck, not Shesterkin, not Saros, survives an onslaught like that. The number of “undefended players right in front” of the net tells you this is a five-man problem, not a one-man problem.

This is where the “expert” analysis falls flat for me. Calling for a full-court press on the trade market sounds great in a column, but what does that actually mean? The goalie market is notoriously thin, especially for true No. 1 netminders. The pickings are slim, and GMs aren’t lining up to give away franchise goalies in November.

Bowman already made his move by acquiring Connor Ingram last month. The very fact that Ingram is still in Bakersfield tells you exactly what the organization thinks of his NHL readiness. He isn’t the savior. If he were, he’d be in Edmonton.

The hard truth is this: the Edmonton Oilers’ problem is likely far deeper than Stuart Skinner. A panic trade for a sideways move or, worse, an overpayment for a marginal upgrade won’t fix the defensive-zone collapses. For now, Skinner is their guy. The Oilers need to fix the room and the system before they blow up the crease.