Former Carolina Hurricanes star Jeff Skinner is currently playing in the post-season for the first time in his career as a member of the Edmonton Oilers. It certainly was a long road for Skinner to play playoff hockey, as the 33-year-old is currently in his 15th NHL season.
During Skinner's eight-year stint as a member of the Hurricanes, they missed the playoffs each season. He then spent the next six seasons of his career with the Buffalo Sabres, where they also did not qualify for the post-season each year and still haven't since 2011. Yet, now on a stacked Oilers team, Skinner is finally experiencing playoff hockey.
However, Skinner has spent most of this post-season as a scratch for the Oilers. After recording an assist and a minus-2 rating in the Oilers' Game 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round, Skinner was scratched for every game until Edmonton's Game 5 contest against the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final.
While Skinner was the odd man out for so long, he certainly stepped up in Game 5 when given the chance to play again. At the 8:07 mark of the first period, Skinner scored the first playoff goal of his NHL career to give Edmonton a 3-0 lead.
Skinner's first playoff goal was a nice one, too, as he secured the puck in the slot and beat Stars goaltender Casey DeSmith five-hole.
Skinner getting his first playoff goal is certainly a big moment, as it helped play a role in the Oilers' 6-3 win over the Stars in Game 5. With it, the Oilers have advanced to the Stanley Cup Final for the second year in a row and will look to get revenge on the Florida Panthers from here.
Skinner was selected by the Hurricanes with the seventh-overall pick of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. In 579 games with the Hurricanes from 2010-11 to 2017-18, he posted 204 goals and 379 points.
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