Oilers hide Stuart Skinner from media, Knoblauch comments on poor play
Throughout the past few seasons, the Oilers have always dealt with rocky goaltending - until Skinner emerged a clear starting goalie this year. Now, Skinner's lost his game again, and even coach Knoblauch knows the Oilers have a problem with Skinner.
Last night, Skinner allowed 4 goals on just 15 shots, and through this series has simply allowed too many weak goals. Knoblauch pulled Skinner for backup Calvin Pickard in the third period, and now is sounding like he may start Pickard in game 4.
Knowing he hasn't played up to standards in the playoffs so far, the Oilers chose to make Skinner unavailable to the media last night to protect him from the tough questions. It's a difficult situation, but hiding him from the media may be the right thing to do for a struggling young starting goalie.
Knoblauch may not start Skinner for Oilers game 4
Still, the Oilers absolutely need more from Skinner or to turn to Pickard entirely. Skinner has actually been one of the worst playoff goalies in the last 20 years, and with this strong of a team, it can't be done in by poor goaltending. Knoblauch may have to make the difficult choice to try to run with Pickard.
»Of all 69 goalies since 2005 with at least 15 playoff appearances, Skinner ranks dead last in save percentage with an .881
-Daily Faceoff
-Daily Faceoff
Knoblauch hasn't committed to a starting goalie for game 4, referencing the emotion of the moment following the loss, and knowing that Skinner got them to this point. He'll have a difficult decision to make, but it seems like Pickard may be called upon to start.
| POLL | ||
Do you think Knoblauch should start Skinner or Pickard in net for Oilers' game 4? | ||
| Start Skinner | 162 | 27.3 % |
| Start Pickard | 387 | 65.3 % |
| See Results | 44 | 7.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
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