Skinner 'won't be thinking about' costly gaffe in Oilers' opener

Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner insists he won't dwell on the blunder that stifled his club's momentum in Wednesday's season opener against the Calgary Flames.

Skinner and defenseman Evan Bouchard miscommunicated on a dump-in, allowing Blake Coleman to tie the game early in the third period. Calgary won in a shootout.

"I won't be thinking about it, no," Skinner said, per Sportsnet's Mark Spector. "It happens. It's probably the easiest fix I'll make this year. A quick decision, throw it in the corner, that's that. ...

"It was one bad decision and it makes you look really bad and that's kind of how it goes."

Goaltending was a major talking point of the Oilers' offseason. Skinner and backup Calvin Pickard struggled to find consistency in the playoffs even though the club reached the Stanley Cup Final for the second consecutive year. Skinner posted an .889 save percentage in 15 playoff games this past spring.

Oilers general manager Stan Bowman maintained confidence in the tandem throughout the summer but brought in Connor Ingram via trade with the Utah Mammoth earlier in October. Ingram was assigned to the AHL after the deal.

Edmonton outshot Calgary 35-22 in the contest and controlled 63.32% of expected goals at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick. Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch attributed the loss to poor team play rather than goaltending.

"Anytime you get scored on, yes, it's a gut punch," Knoblauch said. "Whether it's us playing an almost perfect first half of the game, and then we get sloppy, and they score on (a fluke deflection) goal - that was a gut punch (too)."

The Oilers return to action Saturday against the Vancouver Canucks.