Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch has had great goaltending so far during his tenure with the Oilers.
Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch has had great goaltending so far during his tenure with the Oilers.
EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Oilers are one win away from tying the record for most consecutive wins in a row. The Oilers 4-1 victory over the Nashville Predators has the team heading into the All-Star break on a high note.
Connor McDavid had a four point game, Leon Draisaitl had three, and Stuart Skinner saved 28 out of 29 shots that were fired his way. Additionally, Corey Perry played his first game as an Oiler. That win now extends their streak to 16 wins in a row - with 14 consecutive games of allowing two or less goals against.
Both goalies have been playing great, a sentiment that Kris Knoblauch echoed when speaking with the press after the game.
"Goaltending has been spectacular. I don't know the last time a bad goal went in. Very solid."
This is a far cry from the games the team was playing at the beginning of this season - but the transformation of this Oilers team is apparent and drastic. At least when it comes to goaltending.
Knoblauch has had zero issues with Skinner and Pickard. He went as far as to say, "10 out of 10 almost every night." That's not too bad for a sophomore starting netminder and a career third-string goalie.
Pickard has been able to come in for spot starts to great effect - he's 5-2-0 with a 2.34 goals against average (GAA), a .915 save percentage (SV%) and a 1.8 goals saved above expected (xGSA).
Skinner has been impressive with a 23-9-1 record in 34 games played. He is sporting a 2.44 GAA, .910 SV% and a 0.5 xGSA. These are tremendous numbers considering the huge hole that he dug for himself with his poor play at the beginning of the year.
With the first half of the season in the rearview mirror, the Oilers turn their attention to having some time off and then getting ready to play the Vegas Golden Knights to tie the NHL record of 17 straight wins.
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