Goalie allowed 3 goals on 17 shots before being replaced by Pickard to begin 2nd period
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SUNRISE, Fla. — Stuart Skinner was pulled again by the Edmonton Oilers in a 5-4 overtime win against the Florida Panthers in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday.
Skinner was replaced by Calvin Pickard to start the second period after he allowed three goals on 17 shots in the first. In Game 3 on Monday, a 6-1 loss, Skinner was pulled in the third period after giving up five goals on 23 shots.
Matthew Tkachuk scored the first goal of Game 4 on a 5-on-3 power play at 11:40 of the first. Following a face-off win by Aleksander Barkov, he snapped a shot past Skinner’s blocker from the left circle with Oilers forward Evander Kane (high-sticking) and defenseman Darnell Nurse (tripping) in the penalty box.
Tkachuk then made it 2-0 during another power play at 16:56. He got the rebound of Sam Reinhart‘s initial shot and scored past the lunging glove of Skinner from near the right post.
Anton Lundell pushed the lead to 3-0 at 19:18, converting a pass from behind the net by Carter Verhaeghe following a turnover by Oilers defenseman Troy Stecher.
Pickard would go on to stop 22 of the 23 shots he faced, with the lone goal being scored by Reinhart with 20 seconds left in regulation to tie the game 4-4. The Oilers, however, would recover for the win at 11:18 of overtime on a goal by Leon Draisaitl.
“It’s unfortunate for Stu to be pulled there,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “Our team was flat. We needed to change things up and it was great the way [Pickard] played. He made some really big saves. I didn’t think there was many shots in the second period, but there was a couple of really good quality ones that he came up with.
“As the game went on, the one in overtime, he got his glove on it just enough to keep that from going in and it was great to see him make the saves when we needed them.”
Skinner is 7-6 with a 2.99 goals-against average, .891 save percentage and three shutouts in 14 starts this postseason. Pickard is 7-0 with a 2.69 GAA and .896 save percentage in nine games (six starts).
“I felt for [Skinner] today,” Pickard said. “He came ready to play today, he made some big saves early, we just didn’t have it as a team early and I think [Knoblauch] just wanted to switch it up. If he was playing behind our team in the second and third and overtime, he would have done what I did, too.”
The best-of-7 series is tied 2-2. Game 5 will be at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, MAX).
FLA vs. EDM
FLA vs. CAR | EDM vs. DAL
FLA vs. TOR | CAR vs. WSH | DAL vs. WPG | EDM vs. VGK
OTT vs. TOR | FLA vs. TBL | MTL vs. WSH | NJD vs. CAR
STL vs. WPG | COL vs. DAL | MIN vs. VGK | EDM vs. LAK
