Fans furious with Coach Knoblauch's decision with Oilers veteran

Jeff Skinner has arguably in the doghouse of Coach Knoblauch for most of the season, but Skinner's play has begun to turn around since the New Year which does warrant more ice time.

The absence of McDavid and Draisaitl, the Oilers lineup is looking much different - definitely not stronger. Jeff Skinner is riding on the third line with defensive specialists Connor Brown and Mattias Janmark, which isn't exactly a pair expected to score goals.

Skinner's getting a tough assignment to play 5 on 5 minutes with two defensive specialists when his talent is contributing offensively. Even last game, Skinner scored two goals and was one of the most engaged Oilers.

Knoblauch has put Skinner on the first power play unit for tonight, which could continue for the next few games if McDavid and Draisaitl are out for a week.

Still, Oilers fans are furious that Skinner seemingly gets demoted after scoring 2 goals and continuing a trend of quality play over the last few months - especially with their two best offensive players out.

The positive sign is that Skinner played an unusually high 17:06 of ice time in the Oilers last game, and perhaps that trend will continue tonight. Corey Perry can't handle 2nd line minutes at his age now, so perhaps Skinner gets some spot-promotions on offensive zone faceoffs.

Hopefully the Oilers depth can be reinvigorated with the extra opportunity in this stretch of games with McDavid and Draisaitl, and it will begin tonight against the Kraken.