Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner found himself at the center of trade speculation leading up to the deadline. But if he was worried about the rumors, he certainly didn’t show it.
In an interview with The Athletic's Daniel Nugent-Bowman (subscription required), Skinner revealed that he wasn’t even aware of the discussions surrounding his future—because he’s not on social media.
The Oilers goaltender shared that he had deleted all the apps from his phone last season to shut out the noise. “I learned pretty quickly that you’ve got to delete everything, so I don’t have any apps on my phone,” Skinner said. “I’ve got my text messages. I’ve got my phone call and Clash Royale. That’s about it. I’ve got some chess in there, too.”
For Skinner, avoiding outside noise has helped him stay locked in on his game. That focus paid off on Sunday when he delivered one of his best performances of the season, stopping 21 of 22 shots in a 3-1 victory over the New York Rangers.
“All that (other) stuff, you’ve just got to delete it, especially with how it was feeding me. I realized it was pointless for myself to be involved in that stuff.”
Stuart Skinner knows ‘pressure’ comes with the trust Oilers put in him
Despite the trade speculation and the general consensus that at least reinforcements should have been brought in the net for Edmonton, Oilers general manager Stan Bowman stuck by his goaltender. No big-name replacement was brought in.
Skinner mentioned that he understands the weight of that decision and the responsibility that comes with it. “After that time, you realized that you were trusted with this opportunity to bring a team that wants to win the Cup,” he said.“That’s pressure, and that pressure is on you. That trust is on me. It’s a really good feeling just because I know that they do believe in me.”
Skinner is now focused on winning, and he plays to outdo himself every night. He claimed that he feels frustrated when he fails to live up to his own expectations.
“I still get frustrated by the way that I played or if I let in too many goals. … Even though we win, I still get frustrated with myself and still expect more out of myself. But it helps letting in goals and still winning. It’s definitely a lot worse when you play that exact same way and you lose. It’s 10 times worse.”
Skinner has been faring decent this season with a goals against average of 2.84 and a save percentage of .897 in 46 games. Meanwhile, Edmonton sits second in the Pacific Division and fifth in the Western Conference, going 39-24-4 so far this season.
Last year, the Oilers came up one win short of the Stanley Cup title. Skinner hasn’t forgotten. And he’s locked in on making sure this year ends differently.
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