Oilers winger Skinner trying to work his way out of doghouse

Edmonton Oilers forward Jeff Skinner during NHL action on Dec. 12, 2024, in St. Paul, Minn. (Matt Krohn/Associated Press)

There's little doubt Jeff Skinner is in his coach's doghouse.

The winger signed by the Edmonton Oilers this summer to a $3-million contract to play among their top-six forwards was a healthy scratch for his team's game Sunday, a 5-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

Not only that, Skinner – a 363 career goal-scorer who has notched 30-plus goals in a campaign six times over his 14 seasons in the National Hockey League – hasn't been a regular alongside the likes of star centremen Leon Draisaitl or Connor McDavid in more than a month.

Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said Monday it was Skinner's "turn" to be a scratch and didn't say if he would be back in the lineup for Tuesday night's New Year's Eve game at home against the Utah Hockey Club.

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"He hasn't had the confidence in the puck as much as he has in the past," Knoblauch told media Monday after practice.

"A lot of the things that a coach can do to facilitate (regaining confidence) is showing things, being positive and putting him in a situation where he can succeed playing with other players who would help his game, but a lot of it's just him finding his game (and) how he usually plays."

Skinner has scored six goals and six assists for 12 points in 35 games this season, with two of the goals and three of the assists coming over the 12 games he's played in the last month. He said Monday he's working on finding his game, building it "day by day."

"I think as an offensive player, you go through stretches," Skinner told reporters.

"Obviously you're not going to score every game, but if you're going through a tough stretch, you just work through it, try and get chances, create opportunities, and eventually things will turn around. I think that's been the case for me for most of my career."

Knoblauch said Skinner can get back into the Oilers' lineup if someone else gets injured or isn't playing well.

"Right now, you look at those guys that he needs to jump over, they've been playing really well," the coach said, referencing other Oilers forwards such as Vasily Podkolzin, Kasperi Kapanen, Mattias Janmark, Connor Brown and Derek Ryan.

"It's tough to demote those guys. He'd need to outplay them."