It’s crunch time for the Edmonton Oilers with only 21 games remaining.

After earning just two points out of a possible six on the recent California road trip, sitting only four points above the playoff cut line, and with the trade deadline coming on March 6, they’ve got to be feeling the pressure.

With that in mind, in this edition of Oilers Thoughts, we discuss the Oilers’ goaltending duo on the recent three-game road trip and who should get the next start, Connor McDavid maintaining his pace post-Olympics, the team’s depth scoring stepping up despite defensive struggles, and whether the Oilers should be rethinking the Darnell Nurse–Jake Walman pairing.

Who should get the next start: Connor Ingram or Tristan Jarry?

Before the Oilers headed out on their three-game California road trip, I explored which netminder should get the bulk of the starts moving forward — Tristan Jarry or Connor Ingram. I mentioned that Jarry should get the slightly longer leash to start, but ultimately it should boil down to this: you win, you’re in. If no one is winning, whoever plays better gets the next start, and repeat until someone takes the reins and runs with it.

Jarry put up a stinker against the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 25, allowing five goals, with some sneaking right through him, before he was pulled in favour of Ingram. Ingram won the next night, 8-1 against the Los Angeles Kings, and while he wasn’t heavily tested, he still made some big stops, posting a .955 save percentage (SV%).

Pete Blackburn

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Tristan Jarry getting pulled in a third period tie during the first game back after extended break. If that doesn't send a message to your goaltender...

8:39 AM · Feb 26, 2026

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It seems like head coach Kris Knoblauch applied the ‘you win, and you’re in’ method, giving Ingram the start against the San Jose Sharks. However, the Oilers’ netminder allowed five goals, and while the loss can’t be pinned entirely on him — the team in front of him gave up too many chances against — and he did make a series of big saves, it was by no means a Grade-A performance, as he posted a .848 SV%.

So, who should get the next start? Since Ingram wasn’t at his best last game, I’d turn to Jarry for the next game against the Ottawa Senators and see if he can find a rhythm. Also, perhaps he’ll be a little extra motivated after being pulled in a tie game in his last start.

Nevertheless, not even a prime Dominik Hasek could have bailed the Oilers out, given some of their lacklustre defensive play over the road trip. So while the netminders need to be better, the team as a whole needs to tighten up on defence, which we’ll talk about a bit later.

The highs and lows of the Olympics haven’t slowed down Connor McDavid

If I had........

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