Stuart Skinner snubbed from NHL Network top 10 goalies
By Paul Taylor
We appreciate Stuart Skinner has been a bit of a focus for us of late. First came the news that he has changed agents, soon followed by the question of if fatigue is a genuine concern for the Edmonton Oilers netminder?
Well, now we have another topic to discuss in respect of Skinner. As per NHL.com, it comes about after the NHL Network's producers and analysts unveiled their top 10 goalies in the league right now:
Rank | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
10) | Linus Ullmark | Ottawa Senators |
9) | Juuse Saros | Nashville Predators |
8) | Jake Oettinger | Dallas Stars |
7) | Sergei Bobrovsky | Florida Panthers |
6) | Thatcher Demko | Vancouver Canucks |
5) | Ilya Sorokin | New York Islanders |
4) | Jeremy Swayman | Boston Bruins |
3) | Andrei Vasilevskiy | Tampa Bay Lightning |
2) | Connor Hellebuyck | Winnipeg Jets |
1) | Igor Shesterkin | New York Rangers |
From an Oilers perspective, the obvious omission from this list is Skinner. However, even allowing for the reality that lists like this are all about opinions and almost wanting them to result in heated discussions, does he have a case for being wronged?
The simple answer is yes, but we realise that this has to be expanded on to justify the same. Doing this only enhances the case for the 25-year-old deserving to be in the NHL Network's top 10.
Let's be clear in stating that all 10 of the goalies who did make the list, are excellent in their own right. Further, we're just making the argument for Skinner to be included full stop, not for him to be somewhere right near the top of the rankings.
The case for Skinner
For our case in favour of the Edmonton native being included in the list, we ranked him compared to the other 10 goalies in a number of categories. First up, his 36 wins are tied second-best alongside Bobrovsky and Shesterkin, with only Hellebuyck ranked higher on 37 wins.
Next, Skinner is tied-third with 35 quality starts along with Saros, with only Hellebuyck's remarkable 40 and that man Bobrovsky's 37 ahead of him. Where it isn't quite as impressive -- but still good enough -- is in quality start percentage, where the Oilers goalie ranks seventh at .614 percent.
Skinner's Goals Against Average of 2.62 is similarly ranked seventh-best. Where he ranks worst in the categories we looked at is save percentage, but even here he is still in the top 10 at ninth-best, at .905 percent.
Durability and toughness
We included starts, just because if nothing else, it helps to have someone durable in goal and capable of dealing with a heavy workload. In this respect, the 2023 All-Star's 57 starts were fourth-best this past regular season.
Two final factors we would consider in Skinner's favour, begin with his age of 25. This ties him for the youngest goalie on the list, alluding to both his ability to continue improving and the potential to be a number one for years to come.
Finally, we have to throw in the fact that the 2017 third round draft pick just helped his team go all the way to game seven of the Stanley Cup Final. We appreciate he's still prone to bouts of inconsistency, but when the pressure is increased and the stakes are raised, he has shown a penchant for stepping up and performing well.
Next. Is fatigue with Stuart Skinner really a genuine concern?. Is fatigue with Stuart Skinner really a genuine concern?. dark
Overall, everyone is entitled to their opinion and again, we realise one of the ideas of lists is to encourage debates and disagreements. This withstanding though, the NHL Network basically screwed up in snubbing Skinner from their top 10 goalies in the league right now.
N.B. All statistics courtesy of hockey-reference.com
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