All season long, we’ve been told that the Oilers’ problems were in front of the net.
Jake Allen’s name was often bandied about, and in the end, the club never got their hands on the former Habs or another netminder to help them in the playoffs.
And to everyone’s surprise, the Edmonton Oilers’ goaltender is sinking the club. How could the Oilers’ top brass have foreseen such an outcome?
Yesterday, in the playoffs, that’s what got my attention.
We can talk about Jim Montgomery winning, the refereeing, Sam Bennett making friends in New England or any other aspect of the Panthers-Bruins game, but I can’t take my eyes off the goaltending situation in Canada.
While the Canucks are down to their #3 goalie in front of the net (Arturs Silovs) and it’s working, the Oilers are once again victims of their problems in front of the net.
Stuart Skinner was very bad yesterday (let’s call a spade a spade), giving away four goals on just fifteen shots. While his teammates fired 45 shots at the former Trois-Rivières Lions man, Skinner was replaced by his assistant Calvin Pickard for the first time in the playoffs.
That sound you hear? It’s the #Oilers Stanley Cup hopes swirling – because it’s not possible to win with this goaltending.
Stuart Skinner has been one of the worst playoff goalies of the salary cap era. And it’s no longer a small sample size.
Link: https://t.co/Gk9zQKFmG1 pic.twitter.com/DceDD2jiAi
– Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) May 13, 2024
But it wasn’t just yesterday that he was tearing it up.
His 3.22 average is among the worst of any goaltender since the start of the playoffs. Charlie Lindgren (who faced the Rangers while playing for the Capitals), Linus Ullmark (two games only), Connor Hellebuyck, Cam Talbot and Ilya Sorokin (one game) only do worse.
(Credit: NHL.com)
And the efficiency rate?
The two Kings goalies (who were ironically playing the Oilers), Hellebuyck, Lindgren and Sorokin are the only ones to have done worse than the .877 posted by the Oilers’ #1 goalie.
(Credit: NHL.com)
The Oilers have opened the door to giving Calvin Pickard his next start , and even though the Oilers’ defense is horrible, the fact remains that Skinner really is a goalie who doesn’t have what it takes to win hockey series.
For every Adin Hill who comes out of nowhere, there are Skinner goalies who predictably don’t deliver.
The Habs have to look at the whole thing and say they’re doing the right thing by building defensively, but also ask themselves whether Samuel Montembeault and Cayden Primeau, in the short term, can lead the Habs to playoff success one day.
It’s still early days, and these aren’t the only two options on the table, but these are questions that need to be asked.
In gusto
– Juraj Slafkovsky hates to lose.
A Slovak hockey scout on Juraj Slafkovsky.
pic.twitter.com/hd3dZ3TPiC
– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) May 13, 2024
– Things are going well for the Habs prospect.
Try to stop Oliver Kapanen 
from tipping in a point shot challenge (impossible) https://t.co/oHQQYaVxj5
– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) May 13, 2024
– Valerio Gazzola to become Montreal CF sporting director? [BPM Sports]
– Wow.
Just before the doors opened in Ostrava, I stumbled upon Juraj Slafkovsky’s two grandmothers arriving at their grandson’s game together! pic.twitter.com/p1xx2OMBfy
– Luc Gelinas (@LucGelinasRDS) May 13, 2024
– Logical.
Soucy will have to explain himself. https://t.co/7nJrxc1QWk
– Sébastien Goulet (@SebGouletTVAS) May 13, 2024
– Really?
For him, it’s more important than wearing a Pirates uniform. https://t.co/5zteLuLOnu
– Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) May 13, 2024
– For soccer fans.
Josef Martínez on Venezuela’s preliminary roster for the Copa América.
Remember, we still don’t have a timetable for his return to action with #cfmtl. https://t.co/GXDdCtVSlY
– Jean-François Téotonio (@JFTeotonio) May 13, 2024
– P.K. Subban is 35 years old.
Happy birthday to P.K. Subban @PKSubban1 who turns 35 today. #Habs @mtlgazette photo pic.twitter.com/pjcCS6Dzrx
– Stu Cowan (@StuCowan1) May 13, 2024
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