'I Could Get a Little Bit of a Better Sleep': Stuart Skinner Has a Sparkle in His Eye When Talking About Shutting Out Alex Ovechkin

Caleb Kerney

Mar 15, 2024, 16:56

Caleb Kerney

Mar 15, 2024, 16:56

Stuart Skinner came up big against the Washington Capitals legendary sniper, Alex Ovechkin.

EDMONTON -- There were a few impressive things about the Edmonton Oilers 7-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Wednesday night.

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The first was Zach Hyman's fourth hat trick of the season - and another was Connor McDavid reaching the 80 assist mark in a season for the second straight year.

Perhaps most impressive was the play of starting goaltender Stuart Skinner.

He stopped 23 of 25 shots for a .920 save percentage (SV%) on the night. It wasn't an easy start for him as the first two shots of the game made it past him.

When speaking at Oilers practice yesterday, Skinner reflected on the win against the Capitals. Obviously his saves against Alex Ovechkin dominated the conversation.

To open his availability, he spoke to The Hockey News about his favorite save from the night, "I would say the first one, because if I didn't save that one it would have been three for three for them. Obviously [it's] more of a mental save than anything."

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That's quite a save to make - especially for your first one of the game.

"My actual favorite one was probably the last one," he revealed after a bit more thought. "I caught him with the glove and [it] definitely felt good."

It's an impressive accomplishment for a goalie to completely shut out in a game, one of the best goal scorers to ever play hockey in the NHL.

When asked about watching those saves after the game - or if he even thinks about that, Skinner spoke candidly (as he always does), "I looked at it a few times."

He flashes a smile at the press and then continues, "It's pretty cool to stop the greatest goal scorer - potentially - of all time."

Skinner heaped praise on Ovechkin's game the other night. He highlighted his playmaking and scoring chances specifically, "I thought he played a phenomenal game. He was getting a lot of shots off, he was getting a lot of chances. Made some nice moves in the offensive zone, made some great plays for the other guys to score. That's the kind of player he is."

He wrangled the conversation back around to watching his saves over again - and brought things to a humourous close, "For me, I definitely watched those ones a couple times last night."

"Just so I could get a little bit of a better sleep."

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Rest up Skinner - surely you will get many more starts before season's end - especially after an effort like that.

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