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According to a recent Bleacher Report Goalie Ranking Edmonton Oilers’ duo of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard were ranked 23rd of the 32 team’s goaltenders.
In an era in which the pure starting-goalie is becoming more and more the exception, teams are relying on a goalie-tandem to achieve success in the NHL.
Report ranks Edmonton’s goalies in lower-third on NHL teams
Yet, though having two competent goaltenders is the ideal in today’s NHL, one of the two usually takes the lead, and in the Oilers’ case, that is Stuart Skinner.
His play, however, has come under significant criticism, after the Oilers could not get past the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals for a second-straight post-season.
In the Bleacher Report hockey writer and analyst Joe Yerdon had this to say about Stuart Skinner:
“The best thing that can happen for the Oilers is to have Stuart Skinner find his game and his confidence again and maintain both of them. His roller coaster-like play last season made it so Edmonton had to consider trying to acquire another netminder.”
However, given that GM Stan Bowman has not replaced Skinner as the teams’ 1A netminder is an indication of his faith in him. Whether that happens sometime during next season remains to be seen, of course, but the uncertainty of it can be problematic, according to B/R.
“For a team with Stanley Cup aspirations, figuring out what to do in goal takes away from that in a big way and it was more than apparent in the Final against Florida.
Skinner can be very good and while Calvin Pickard was able to step in in a pinch, he’s probably not at the front of GM Stan Bowman’s mind as the solution to winning the Cup. This duo isn’t ranked terribly low, but the confidence the organization has in this group just might be.”
The new season will begin soon enough, with both Oilers’ goalie ready to stabilize the net and take their team deep into the playoffs for another run at the Cup.
Previously on Oilers Daily
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Edmonton Oilers goalie tandem gets bad news from top NHL analysts
Do you think 23rd is a fair ranking for Edmonton’s tandem of goalies?