Latest news with #Knoblauch
Calgary Herald
4 days ago
- Sport
- Calgary Herald
Stuart Skinner will start for Edmonton Oilers in elimination game against Florida Panthers
Much ado about nothing, that saga about who'll be in net for the Edmonton Oilers. Article content It was always going to be Stu Skinner for Game 6 despite all the subterfuge from Oiler coach Kris Knoblauch, who is usually more firm and forthright. Article content All this talk Monday from Knoblauch, saying he was taking input from a long list, including his players, everybody offering up an opinion, short of owner Daryl Katz, was, frankly, idle chatter. Article content Article content Even though Calvin Pickard has been a warm and fuzzy playoff story with his seven wins, winning six straight at one point until Tomas Hertl fell on his leg in the Vegas second-round series, he is still the backup. Skinner got the Oilers to Game 7 last June, losing 2-1 to Sergei Bobrovsky. Article content Article content He got the hook in Game 4 here, but only because the Oilers were awful in the first 20 minutes, and Knoblauch wanted to wake up his team, so he tapped Pickard on the shoulder, and he was outstanding for 51 minutes in the Oilers' rally and OT win. Article content But Pickard lost Game 5 at Rogers Place in one of the Oilers' worst playoff games of this Cup run, when they once again fell behind early to the Panthers and chased the game and lost 5-2. Pickard was beaten four times on 18 shots. So, again, they were always returning to Skinner in the elimination game because he's their guy. Article content 'He's played in a lot of high-pressure games and played well,' said Knoblauch. 'You look at the amount of elimination games he's been in. There was six last year and in every single game he was solid or put in spectacular performances.' Article content So, it's Stu vs Bob with the Stanley Cup in the house here. Article content 'Definitely feels good and I have the confidence of my teammates,' said a calm, composed and often self-deprecating Skinner, who refreshingly always talks on Oiler game mornings, unlike so many goalies. Article content 'We went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals last year, and Stu was amazing. There's just a trust factor there; we have full belief in him. We know that he can get the job done for us and we're looking forward to getting back home (for a Game 7),' said Draisaitl, who finished the big rally to tie the series 2-2 when Pickard took over.
Ottawa Citizen
4 days ago
- Sport
- Ottawa Citizen
Stuart Skinner will start for Edmonton Oilers in elimination game against Florida Panthers
Much ado about nothing, that saga about who'll be in net for the Edmonton Oilers. Article content It was always going to be Stu Skinner for Game 6 despite all the subterfuge from Oiler coach Kris Knoblauch, who is usually more firm and forthright. Article content All this talk Monday from Knoblauch, saying he was taking input from a long list, including his players, everybody offering up an opinion, short of owner Daryl Katz, was, frankly, idle chatter. Article content Even though Calvin Pickard has been a warm and fuzzy playoff story with his seven wins, winning six straight at one point until Tomas Hertl fell on his leg in the Vegas second-round series, he is still the backup. Skinner got the Oilers to Game 7 last June, losing 2-1 to Sergei Bobrovsky. Article content Article content He got the hook in Game 4 here, but only because the Oilers were awful in the first 20 minutes, and Knoblauch wanted to wake up his team, so he tapped Pickard on the shoulder, and he was outstanding for 51 minutes in the Oilers' rally and OT win. Article content But Pickard lost Game 5 at Rogers Place in one of the Oilers' worst playoff games of this Cup run, when they once again fell behind early to the Panthers and chased the game and lost 5-2. Pickard was beaten four times on 18 shots. So, again, they were always returning to Skinner in the elimination game because he's their guy. Article content 'He's played in a lot of high-pressure games and played well,' said Knoblauch. 'You look at the amount of elimination games he's been in. There was six last year and in every single game he was solid or put in spectacular performances.' Article content So, it's Stu vs Bob with the Stanley Cup in the house here. Article content 'Definitely feels good and I have the confidence of my teammates,' said a calm, composed and often self-deprecating Skinner, who refreshingly always talks on Oiler game mornings, unlike so many goalies. Article content 'We went to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals last year, and Stu was amazing. There's just a trust factor there; we have full belief in him. We know that he can get the job done for us and we're looking forward to getting back home (for a Game 7),' said Draisaitl, who finished the big rally to tie the series 2-2 when Pickard took over.
San Francisco Chronicle
5 days ago
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
Skinner or Pickard? Oilers' Knoblauch still not naming starting goalie for Stanley Cup Final Game 6
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — It's anyone's guess who starts in goal for the Edmonton Oilers when they face elimination in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night. Coach Kris Knoblauch did not say Monday whether it would be Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard. 'It's who we feel can win us a game,' Knoblauch said after practice. "That's how it's gone in other games, and we'll make that decision.' Skinner was Edmonton's starting goaltender to begin the playoffs, lost the first two games and was replaced by Pickard, who went 6-0 before getting injured. Skinner also started the first four in the final, got pulled twice and for Pickard, who won Game 4 and lost Game 5. 'A strength of our team is that we can go with both guys,' winger Connor Brown said. "They're up for the challenge. I mean, they're both absolute pros. Both have given this their best every time they come in there, and they both work hard, so we're in it as a group.' Ryan Nugent-Hopkins did not practice Monday, though Knoblauch expects the Oilers' longest-tenured player to be in the lineup Tuesday night in Sunrise. That is a constant, even if Nugent-Hopkins is not 100% healthy, though there could be other changes coming. Either Jeff Skinner or Vasily Podkolzin may be ticketed for the press box as a healthy scratch up front, while John Klingberg is a candidate to return on defense. Status quo Panthers Florida will be making no such changes, barring something unforeseen, in the first chance to clinch back-to-back championships. The same 12 forwards and six defensemen who have been in place since A.J. Greer returned from injury in Game 3 figure to be in the lineup again. 'It's all health based,' coach Paul Maurice said. 'We're a pretty healthy team, fortunately, at this point, and we've got good players." That includes Matthew Tkachuk, who missed the remainder of the regular season after getting injured at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. After some ups and downs and uncertainty, he's 'feeling the best' he has during this run. 'I thought there was maybe a 50% chance I wouldn't be playing as close to about a week or five days before the playoffs started,' Tkachuk said. 'Very lucky and fortunate that I've got great trainers and doctors, and they all somehow got me healthy enough to play.' Florida Olympians The Panthers have five players already bound for the 2026 Olympics in Milan: Tkachuk for the U.S., Sam Reinhart for Canada, Aleksander Barkov for Finland, Nico Sturm for Germany and Uvis Balinskis for Latvia. The 12 teams participating unveiled their preliminary six-man rosters Monday. Sturm and Balinskis have not played in the final, but the Olympic announcements put them in the spotlight. 'Being an Olympian is something that not a lot of athletes can say about their careers," Sturm said. 'It's the best athletes in the world from every sport, and it's definitely something that I've marked on my calendar, something that I want to achieve in my career. It'd be a huge accomplish to be able to play there and, once your career's done, to say you participated in the Olympics, I think that's a huge accomplishment not to be understated.'
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Skinner or Pickard? Oilers' Knoblauch still not naming starting goalie for Stanley Cup Final Game 6
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — It's anyone's guess who starts in goal for the Edmonton Oilers when they face elimination in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night. Coach Kris Knoblauch did not say Monday whether it would be Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard. 'It's who we feel can win us a game,' Knoblauch said after practice. 'That's how it's gone in other games, and we'll make that decision.' Skinner was Edmonton's starting goaltender to begin the playoffs, lost the first two games and was replaced by Pickard, who went 6-0 before getting injured. Skinner also started the first four in the final, got pulled twice and for Pickard, who won Game 4 and lost Game 5. 'A strength of our team is that we can go with both guys,' winger Connor Brown said. 'They're up for the challenge. I mean, they're both absolute pros. Both have given this their best every time they come in there, and they both work hard, so we're in it as a group.' Ryan Nugent-Hopkins did not practice Monday, though Knoblauch expects the Oilers' longest-tenured player to be in the lineup Tuesday night in Sunrise. That is a constant, even if Nugent-Hopkins is not 100% healthy, though there could be other changes coming. Either Jeff Skinner or Vasily Podkolzin may be ticketed for the press box as a healthy scratch up front, while John Klingberg is a candidate to return on defense. Status quo Panthers Florida will be making no such changes, barring something unforeseen, in the first chance to clinch back-to-back championships. The same 12 forwards and six defensemen who have been in place since A.J. Greer returned from injury in Game 3 figure to be in the lineup again. 'It's all health based,' coach Paul Maurice said. 'We're a pretty healthy team, fortunately, at this point, and we've got good players.' That includes Matthew Tkachuk, who missed the remainder of the regular season after getting injured at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February. After some ups and downs and uncertainty, he's 'feeling the best' he has during this run. 'I thought there was maybe a 50% chance I wouldn't be playing as close to about a week or five days before the playoffs started,' Tkachuk said. 'Very lucky and fortunate that I've got great trainers and doctors, and they all somehow got me healthy enough to play.' Florida Olympians The Panthers have five players already bound for the 2026 Olympics in Milan: Tkachuk for the U.S., Sam Reinhart for Canada, Aleksander Barkov for Finland, Nico Sturm for Germany and Uvis Balinskis for Latvia. The 12 teams participating unveiled their preliminary six-man rosters Monday. Sturm and Balinskis have not played in the final, but the Olympic announcements put them in the spotlight. 'Being an Olympian is something that not a lot of athletes can say about their careers,' Sturm said. 'It's the best athletes in the world from every sport, and it's definitely something that I've marked on my calendar, something that I want to achieve in my career. It'd be a huge accomplish to be able to play there and, once your career's done, to say you participated in the Olympics, I think that's a huge accomplishment not to be understated.' ___ AP NHL playoffs: and
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Oilers' Kris Knoblauch Offers Head-Scratching Comments on Goalie Issue
Oilers' Kris Knoblauch Offers Head-Scratching Comments on Goalie Issue originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Edmonton Oilers dropped Game 5 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final to the Florida Panthers. From the start of the game, Florida looked very much in control and used that to grab a massive 3-2 series lead over the Oilers. Advertisement The Oilers are now being tasked with having to go on the road in Game 6 to avoid elimination. But if they can make it happen, Game 7 would be played back home in front of their loyal fans. However, the Oilers have a real problem at the goalie position right now. Both Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard have struggled against the Panthers, and it has put Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch in a tough position. Knoblauch wouldn't name who the starter would be in Game 6, but he didn't shy away from defending his players. The Oilers leader pushed back on criticism of his guys, and said that either player could help them win the elimination game. However, his comments were a little odd considering both have struggled heavily of late. Advertisement 'We've got two goalies that have shown that they can play extremely well and win hockey games, and we feel that no matter who we choose they can win the game," Knoblauch said. Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch looks on during the third period against the Florida Panthers in game four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena. Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Skinner has gone 7-6 with a 2.99 GAA, a .891 save percentage, and three shutouts in 14 starts this postseason. Pickard owns a record of 7-1, with 2.85 GAA and a .886 save percentage in 10 games. Edmonton will need to figure something out; otherwise, they run the risk of losing two straight Stanley Cup Finals to Florida. Game 6 will be played on Tuesday, June 17, at 8 p.m. ET from Sunrise, Florida. Related: Mitch Marner Rumors: 4 Teams May Have Upper Hand on Maple Leafs Star Related: Panthers' Paul Maurice Turns Heads With Stanley Cup Final Comments This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
