The Edmonton Oilers are expected to turn to Stuart Skinner to start in net for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup final.
Skinner told reporters on Tuesday he'll be in goal as the Oilers look to force Game 7 against the Florida Panthers, which are one win away from back-to-back Stanley Cup championships.
The 26-year-old last played in Game 4, allowing three goals on 17 shots before Calvin Pickard replaced him and backstopped the Oilers to a comeback overtime win. Pickard, 33, conceded four goals on 18 shots in Game 5 at home as the Panthers took a 3-2 series lead.
Edmonton faces elimination for the first time in this year's playoffs – the Oilers won the first round in six games, and it only took them five games to win in the second and third rounds.
But Skinner has played in do-or-die games before in the Stanley Cup playoffs – six times so far in his career, to be specific.
In those games, Skinner has a 4-2 record with a combined .908 save percentage and 2.30 goals-against average.
Four of those elimination games came in last year's Cup final.
After losing the first three games of the 2024 final to the Panthers, Skinner and the Oilers went 3-1 in the next four matches. Skinner had a .935 save percentage and 1.76 goals-against average in that span, including allowing only one goal on 33 shots in Game 4 and a .952 SP in Game 6. In Game 7, Skinner stopped 19 of 21 shots for a .905 SP in the Oilers' 2-1 loss.
Skinner also started for the Oilers in Game 7 of the second round against the Vancouver Canucks in 2024. Edmonton limited the Canucks to 17 shots, but Skinner allowed two goals for a .882 save percentage in the 3-2 Oilers win.
The third-round draft pick in 2017 played his first game facing elimination in the NHL playoffs on May 14, 2023, in Game 6 against the Vegas Golden Knights. Vegas scored on Skinner four times on 17 shots, with Jonathan Marchessault recording a natural hat trick in the second period. Jack Campbell replaced Skinner in net for the third period in the Golden Knights' 5-2 win. Vegas went on to defeat the Panthers in the Cup final.
In this year's playoffs, Skinner lost starting duties to Pickard in the first round against the Los Angeles Kings and in Game 5 of the final. When Pickard suffered an injury in the second round, Skinner recorded three shutouts in his next five starts to eliminate the Golden Knights and tie the Western Conference final against the Dallas Stars at 1-1.
"That's been the most impressive over my time with him, especially being a young goalie, is being able to bounce back," Oilers center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins told reporters. "It's not always going to be easy. There's always going to be difficulties, especially as a goalie, whether it's your fault or not. He has an ability to silence everything around him and focus on the task at hand. It's been impressive. He has an infectious personality, and it's been fun to watch."
The Oilers Must Address Their Goaltending, Regardless Of What Happens In The Final
There was a time during the playoffs this year where Stuart Skinner of the Edmonton Oilers had not posted a single-game save percentage between .835 and .999, which means he was <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/oilers-stuart-skinner-ties-for-the-nhl-lead-in-playoff-shutouts-it-s-a-rollercoaster">either lights-out</a> or out to lunch in every game.
The national broadcasts for Game 6 at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla., begin at 8 p.m. ET.
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