Oilers And Red Wings Starting Goalies To Face Former Teams

Calvin Pickard and Cam Talbot are both scheduled to face their former teams on Sunday.

Tim Fuller-Imagn Images - Oilers And Red Wings Starting Goalies To Face Former Teams

It'll be a matchup between familiar foes today as the Oilers and Red Wings face off in Detroit.

Edmonton is giving former Red Wing Calvin Pickard the start in net, while Detroit will likely counter with former Oiler Cam Talbot after Alex Lyon got the start on Saturday.

The Red Wings were Pickard's most recent organization before joining the Oilers, spending three seasons from 2019 to 2022 with the club. He spent most of his time with the Grand Rapids Griffins as the Wings' third-string goalie, making only six starts and twelve total appearances over three years in Detroit. Those were forgettable years for Pickard, posting an .853 save percentage in the NHL and struggling with injuries in Grand Rapids.

Pickard was in net for the Oilers' 3-2 overtime win in Detroit on January 11th last season and carries a career 3-1 record and .913 save percentage against the Red Wings. He's had a trying start to this season, with an .852 SV% in three games.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkWwgRVZT5w[/embed]

Oiler fans will remember Talbot well, as the team's starter from 2015 to 2019. Talbot made 222 starts with the Oilers after being acquired from the New York Rangers, winning 104 games and posting a .912 SV%.

His best year came in 2016-17, when he led the league in starts (73!) and wins (42) and placed 4th in Vezina voting while backstopping the Oilers to their first playoff appearance in a decade.

He was traded to Philadelphia in the middle of a lost season in 2018-19, and has spent the past six seasons bouncing around the league, making stops in Calgary, Minnesota, Ottawa, Los Angeles, and now Detroit, posting great numbers in part-time duty everywhere but Ottawa.

Talbot is no stranger to facing his old club. He holds a 3-2 record against the Oilers in the regular season since leaving Edmonton, with a .927 SV%. They've had his number recently, however, with just an .858 SV% against Edmonton in his past four starts, including three in last year's playoffs.

And of course, the last time Talbot faced an Oiler goalie who was playing his own former team, this happened:

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmmVD_YrK-Y[/embed]

That video is age-restricted because it features the iconic Battle of Alberta goalie fight between Cam Talbot and former Calgary Flame Mike Smith. I can't imagine many people reading this don't know what I'm talking about, but if you don't you should go check it out right now.

Talbot has been his same old steady self this season, with a .913 SV% that matches his career figure while sharing the crease with Alex Lyon.

The rest of the Oilers' lineup stays the same from Friday's win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, with Pickard's start freeing Stuart Skinner up to play tomorrow in Columbus.

Tonight's game gets underway at 4:00 MT, on Sportsnet.

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