Edmonton Oilers Stuart Skinner just passed a legend with his win tonight.
Edmonton Oilers Stuart Skinner just passed a legend with his win tonight.
EDMONTON -- The Edmonton Oilers simply cannot be stopped. They won their 14th straight game with a 4-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Warren Foegele and Evander Kane both had two points - but the real star of the show was Stuart Skinner.
Skinner stopped 27 of 28 total shots on the night. He faced 23 by the end of the first two periods, delivering the excellent goaltending that this team needed to get the win. His impact on this game cannot be overstated.
When asked about what allowed the team to pull away from the Blue Jackets in the third Foegele summed it up well, "it starts off with Stu [Stuart Skinner] keeping us in that game."
With a very lopsided shot clock at the end of two periods - 23 to 13 - there was only one reason that the game was tied 1-1. Foegele believes it could have been a lot worse.
"That honestly could have been 5-0 after the first two periods."
With his tremendous play over the past 14 games - and at least a month prior to that - Skinner etched his name in the record books last night. He passed Grant Fuhr for the all-time leader in consecutive wins for an Oilers goaltender.
The significance was not lost on Skinner who described what it was like to be named the first star of the game, "I was feeling a lot of emotion, especially when I went out on the ice for the first star."
"It's pretty cool to break a record from one of the best goalies to ever live."
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CuCvuWcG7Q[/embed]
The record that Fuhr set was in the 1985-86 season. He had a 29-8-0 record, with a 3.93 goals against average (GAA) to go along with an .890 save percentage (SV%).
It was a game of smaller (and heavier) pads back then, so important context is needed. The league average GAA and SV% was 3.87 and .874 respectively. So Fuhr's GAA was a touch higher than league average while his SV% was a bit better.
Skinner wasn't even born yet when Fuhr was playing, so how does he know what Fuhr was like as a goaltender?
"I've watched every single YouTube video possible on him. From his interviews to his incredible saves."
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X4IRNKEOK0[/embed]
Skinner praised Fuhr's play and what he meant to the Oilers as he continued, "He's one of the best. Hall of famer, as he should be. One of the best goalies to ever live."
I have a feeling that Skinner is going to remember this game for a very long time.
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