Stuart Skinner will start in goal for the Pittsburgh Penguins when they open the Eastern Conference First Round against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night. Arturs Silovs will back him up for Game 1, and Dan Muse made the call after an optional morning skate.
The Penguins and Flyers meet at 8 p.m. ET with Pittsburgh entering as the No. 2 seed in the Metropolitan Division at 41-25-16 and Philadelphia holding the No. 3 seed at 43-27-12. Muse said on Friday that he was looking at all factors and that both goaltenders had been great for the Penguins, adding that both were a big part of why the team reached this point.
Skinner, 27, arrived in Pittsburgh on Dec. 12 in the trade that sent Tristan Jarry to the Oilers. He played 27 games for Pittsburgh after the deal, one more than Silovs, and finished the regular season 12-9-5 with a 2.99 goals-against average and a.885 save percentage. Silovs, 25, went 19-12-8 with a 3.07 goals-against average and a.888 save percentage in 26 games.
The choice also gives Pittsburgh the more experienced playoff goalie. Skinner has played 38 Stanley Cup playoff games over the last two seasons, including 12 in the Cup Final, while Silovs has appeared in 10 career playoff games. Skinner said the experience he has picked up has been extremely valuable, especially going into a first-round series against Philadelphia, where he expects the emotional swings of the postseason to matter as much as the saves.
That experience comes with a reminder of how quickly a playoff series can turn. Skinner allowed 11 goals on 58 shots in the first two games against the Los Angeles Kings in the Western Conference First Round last season, and Edmonton won the final four games with Calvin Pickard in net. Skinner did not start again until Game 3 of the second round, when he made 20 saves in a 4-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Skinner said the Penguins are in a good position no matter who is in the crease because they have a team that knows how to win games. Silovs echoed that feeling, saying the two goalies have tried to be two pillars holding the net and that the playoffs offer a new page and a new chapter to write.
