Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner rebounds in playoffs
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DALLAS — Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner has gone from getting pulled to being praised again this postseason.
“He’s a huge part of this team. Ever since he let ‘Picks’ get in there for two games against Vancouver he’s come back, and he’s been on fire,” Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “He’s a calm presence out there and makes himself big.”
Add in a couple of posts and a penalty kill unit that suddenly is giving up absolutely nothing, and the Oilers find themselves with a chance to do more than just split the first two games of the Western Conference final on the road against top-seeded Dallas.
Game 2 is Saturday night.
Skinner was watching after a goalie switch midway through the second round. He got pulled in the third period of Game 3 against the Canucks after giving up four goals on 15 shots. Calvin Pickard took over, then won Game 4 and had 32 saves in a Game 5 loss before Skinner was back in net.
In three games since, including back-to-back games facing elimination against Vancouver, Skinner is 3-0 with a 1.50 goals-against average and .923 save percentage.
Edmonton opened the West final with a 3-2 double-overtime win, when Skinner had nine of his 31 saves after regulation. He pushed away late shots by Tyler Seguin, who scored both Dallas goals, and Jason Robertson, who also hit both posts during an extended power play in that first overtime.
“He was everything that we needed,” Oilers captain Connor McDavid said.
McDavid scored the winning goal 32 seconds into the second overtime but only had that chance because his teammates killed off a four-minute penalty after his double-minor penalty for a high stick seconds into the first extra period.
The Oilers killed off five penalties against Dallas, extending their streak to 20 in a row without giving up a power-play goal. They are an NHL-best 92.5% (37 of 40) on the PK this postseason, 12 of 12 in their five-game series against the Los Angeles Kings in the opening round, after ranking right in the middle of the pack during the regular season.
“Our work ethic has gone up, our structure and detail have gone up, and it has to at this time of year,” Oilers forward Derek Ryan said. “Usually, your best penalty killer is your goaltender, and (Skinner) has done a great job of that, and the guys up front have done a good job as well.”