It might be too soon to call it a pickle, but the Edmonton Oilers are getting awfully close to a time crunch and a big decision they don't appear ready to make. 

“We aren’t set on what we are going to do with three goalies. Will it be for the rest of the season, a few weeks, or a few months? We haven’t decided yet," said Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch on Thursday as the team gets set to take on the New York Islanders. 

When it comes to tonight's game, Connor Ingram will start. He will get another important look while his window to play remains consequence-free. However, it won't be long before his waiver-exempt status expires, and the Oilers risk running low on options and losing either Ingram or Calvin Pickard, whether they like it or not.

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Knoblauch added, "With Jarry just returning from injury, we want to be cautious and not overplay him.” That makes sense. And, if Edmonton hasn't seen enough of Ingram yet, playing him until they know makes sense, too.

But because it seems the Oilers aren't prepared to commit to either Pickard or Ingram as the official backup, they'll have to tread carefully. Knoblauch noted the Oilers will run with three goalies for the time being. How long they can get away with it remains to be seen. 

When the Oilers do decide which two goalies to run with, who gets the nod? It's feeling more and more like a Jarry and Ingram combo. However, that means the Oilers potentially lose Pickard on waivers.

There has to be a better way.

Jim Matheson of The Edmonton Journal tweeted, "With Dan Vladar now hurt and Sam Ersson struggling as backup in Philly, suspect GM Danny Briere is monitoring Calvin Pickard's goalie situation here." There will be teams in the same situation as Philly. This poses an interesting question: would the Oilers trade Pickard if the waiver market is so strong that teams would rather give up something in return?

Assuming the team hasn't made up its mind yet about Ingram, it would make sense that if there's enough demand for an inexpensive backup, Edmonton would test the trade market instead of using waivers. If they know Pickard will get plucked by at least one team, why not play dangle him out there to see what shakes loose?

Trading Pickard comes with risk, but it's less of a risk if the Oilers know they're going with Jarry and Ingram and losing Pickard becomes inevitable. 

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