No one—truly, no one—could have predicted that I would watch the Pittsburgh Penguins struggle for a playoff spot in Game 4 against their long-time rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers, and that would be the moment it all turned around.
In a significant move, the team decided to trade goaltender Stuart Skinner, who had been with the Edmonton Oilers for the last couple of Stanley Cup Finals, in exchange for backup Artur Sirovs.
The 25-year-old has made three appearances for Latvia in the 2026 Winter Olympics and has previously started ten games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, all unexpected appearances with the Vancouver Canucks during the 2023-24 season.
This decision definitely adds a twist to the ongoing series.
Interestingly, the Canucks’ coach for the 2023-24 season was Rick Tocchet, who now leads the Flyers.
“Both players have performed exceptionally well for us this entire season,” Penguins coach Dan Muse noted. “They’ve won crucial games throughout the regular season. We trust both of them. This choice wasn’t really about Stuart’s performance; I thought he did fine,” he added. “We lost three games, so we felt some changes were necessary.”
I find it amusing when coaches say things like, “It’s not his fault…” It does seem to imply there’s more to it. If they’d been winning, there’s a good chance they wouldn’t have made such a change.
Yet, in circumstances like this, sometimes you just have to mix things up. But, is it truly wise for a coach to go with a backup goaltender? Very debatable.
Honestly, what other options do they really have?
Furthermore, goaltending is only one part of a larger problem for the Penguins this season. They’ve struggled against the Flyers’ physical play and tactics, and their normally explosive offense has significantly dwindled.
However, giving this a shot seems worth it, even with the possibility that other players could highlight his weaknesses. If everything falls into place, and they find themselves returning to Pittsburgh for Game 5, it might just alter the course of the series.
