How the Edmonton Oilers crease fell apart and their trade options to fix it

The Edmonton Oilers have painted themselves into a corner. They are out of playoff position and we're past the American Thanksgiving cutoff, which means they'll need to accumulate points at a rapid pace in order to qualify. It’s not impossible, given the offensive talent on the roster, but it will take a lot of work.

First off, they'll have to either overcome or altogether fix the turmoil in their crease. The Oilers have the 31st-ranked 5-on-5 save and all-situations save percentage as of this writing. In response, they've demoted Jack Campbell, their $5-million goalie, to the AHL only 41 games into a five-year contract. They've called up Calvin Pickard in his stead. Meanwhile, Stuart Skinner has failed to build on his rookie year and is struggling in his own right.

Getting Skinner back on track is the easiest path to success for the Oilers. If he can stabilize his game and perform at even a league-average level or higher on a consistent basis, they'll be fine and spared from making a move out of desperation.

If that doesn’t happen? The Oilers may need to get creative and look elsewhere. Let's look at how they got here and what they can do to fix it.