Has Jack Campbell Already Been Usurped as the Oilers' Starter?
Edmonton Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft has opted to start Stuart Skinner in the team's contest against the Calgary Flames tonight. On any given Saturday, this might not be news. But this is the Battle of Alberta, not just another game.
Woodcroft has tapped Skinner to backstop his team, placing Campbell on the bench. Has Skinner already usurped Campbell as the Oilers starting goaltender? It does kind of look that way...
On one hand, Campbell has six starts to Skinner's two, but Campbell was pulled in the team's last game against Calgary and comparing the duo's stats isn't exactly flattering for Campbell.
Campbell: 6 GP - 4-2-0 // 3.89 GAA / .888 SV%
Skinner: 2 GP - 1-1 // 1.44 GAA / .957 SV%
Skinner: 2 GP - 1-1 // 1.44 GAA / .957 SV%
When asked about his decision to start Skinner over Campbell, Woodcroft's answer was simply: «I think he has a chance to help us win the game.»
Call me crazy, but do you not want the goaltender making $5 million to give you a chance to win? Listen, I really, really like Jack Campbell, and I love that he went and secured a bag for himself. I really do.
That said though, Oilers fans can't be happy that they signed Campbell to this contract (signed through 2027, by the way). I know, I know. It is still early yet, but I don't know if Campbell's start could be much worse on an individual level. Sure, the Oilers are finding ways to win games, but a sub-.900 save-percentage is simply not going to cut it.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 29 | 246 ANSWERS Has Jack Campbell Already Been Usurped as the Oilers' Starter? Who would you name the "starter" for the Oilers? | ||
| Campbell | 96 | 39 % |
| Skinner | 150 | 61 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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