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Goaltender Stuart Skinner posted his third shutout of the playoffs to backstop the visiting Edmonton Oilers to a 3-0 victory over the Dallas Stars on Friday and even their Western Conference final series.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins collected one goal and one assist to lead the Oilers, who tied the best-of-seven series at 1-1. Brett Kulak and Connor Brown also scored, while Evan Bouchard netted a pair of assists.
Skinner made 25 saves to earn his fourth career playoff shutout, his biggest a sprawling stick stop in the third period when Esa Lindell thought he had an open net.
Goalie Jake Oettinger stopped 22 shots for the Stars, who were blanked for the fourth time in this year's Stanley Cup playoffs.
Game 3 of the series will be Sunday afternoon in Edmonton.
After failing to score a road power-play goal in the first two rounds, the Oilers opened the scoring with a second man-advantage marker in as many outings when Nugent-Hopkins redirected Bouchard's point shot at the 5:51 mark. Leon Draisaitl drew the second assist, his 14th of the playoffs.
Kulak doubled the Edmonton lead at 15:23 of the second period. Seconds after Skinner denied a golden chance, Kulak stepped up from his point position for a feed and converted his own second chance for his first goal of the playoffs.
With his assist on the goal, Connor McDavid became the fourth player in NHL history to collect 20 or more points in four consecutive playoff runs, joining Sergei Fedorov of the Detroit Red Wings, and New York Islanders greats Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier.
Brown made it a three-goal edge 73 seconds later by heading to the net and redirecting a Nugent-Hopkins shot.
Dallas forward Roope Hintz needed help to the dressing room early in the third period after being on the receiving end of a slash near the ankle from Darnell Nurse, for which he was assessed a two-minute penalty. Hintz did not return.
Skinner tied the franchise record for shutouts in a playoff year, equaling the mark set by Curtis Joseph in 1998.
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The Habs Top 10 Prospects: #4 Jacob Fowler
We have finally reached the players in the Canadiens’ prospect pool who have the chance to be elite players, and that starts with the last line of defense in Jacob Fowler as the Habs’ 4th-best prospect. Fowler has the winner’s gene and has won at almost all the highest levels he’s played (he fell just short of a National Championship with Boston College in 2024). Heading into the 2023 NHL Draft, despite posting an incredible .952 save percentage and 1.36 GAA with an 8-1 record in the USHL playoffs for the champion Youngstown Phantoms, many teams were concerned about Fowler’s physique, which made him fall to the Canadiens in the 3rd round. Based on Canadiens US scout Billy Ryan’s fight for Fowler, inside the predraft meetings, it’s hard to imagine the Habs even picking any of the five goalies ahead of him. Ryan believed that this winning pedigree would translate well to the next level, and so far, it has been seemingly going that way. The next season, Fowler was the starter on a stacked Boston College team, where he registered an amazing .926 save percentage and a 2.14 GAA, backstopping the Eagles to the NCAA Championship game, where they fell short to the University of Denver Pioneers. The fact that Fowler didn’t win the National Championship put a chip on his shoulder, and he played even better despite Boston College losing key players to the pros. In his sophomore season with the Eagles, Fowler put up an insane .940 save percentage with a 1.63 GAA. Unfortunately, Boston College not being as strong as the year prior, resulted in Boston College falling in the Regional Finals to Denver once again. Fowler’s season earned him the Mike Richter Award as the best goalie in all of NCAA hockey. He immediately signed his entry-level contract (which only starts next season) and a pro-tryout with the Laval Rocket to help with their Calder Cup push. In 3 regular season games with the Rocket, he posted a solid .914 save percentage with a 2.32 GAA, which is good for a goalie in his first 3 pro games. During the playoffs, he split games with Cayden Primeau and had a few struggles and finished with a .902 with a 2.48 GAA in 8 games. Despite the drop in his stats, his numbers were superior to Primeau’s. .878 save percentage and 3.27 GAA. With that being said, Fowler got his first playoff challenge only four games into his pro hockey career and with goalies, there will be challenges along the way. For the upcoming season, Fowler is expected to be the starting goaltender in Laval with a veteran backup in Kaapo Kahkonen, who will help the young 20-year-old adapt to the pro level. If injuries occur at the goaltending position, the Canadiens shouldn’t rush Fowler up, no matter how well he’s playing, as one bad game in the NHL could destroy his confidence. Goalies can be fragile with confidence, and they need more time to develop than forwards or defensemen. Therefore, it would be better if the Habs instead allow him at least a year or two without seeing any NHL action and then bring him in slowly as a 1a/1b netminder for a year before he could be considered as the team’s starter. It likely won’t be until age 25 that we know Fowler will hit his potential, but as it stands, he’s projected to be an NHL starter with the possibility that he can reach elite status. The uncertainty of the goaltending position for all prospects is why Fowler is not among the top 3 prospects and is instead listed at #4 in the Canadiens’ pipeline. However, he is easily the #1 goalie prospect in the system. Do you think Fowler will reach his potential, and how long until you see him getting NHL time?
Pirates' longtime failure can be explained by their new prospect's shocking revelation
It's not just a lack of spending or money that keeps the Pittsburgh Pirates at the bottom of the Major League Baseball standings every year. It's also the fact that they are poorly run. Especially when it comes to player development throughout their own farm system. One of their newest prospects, catcher Rafael Flores, who was just acquired before the trade deadline in the David Bednar trade with the New York Yankees, unintentionally gave an example as to one of the flaws with the Pirates. As Flores explained to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette this week, the Yankees' minor league focus is almost entirely on individual player development, while the Pirates — in his early view — seem more focused on team success at the minor league level. He also explained that the Yankees give their catchers every piece of information and data that they possibly can, while the Pirates only give their catchers the information that they specifically ask for. Those are two very eye-opening comparisons, and the first one is by far the most problematic and shows a very serious flaw with the Pirates' approach. The major league team should never, under any circumstances, care about the team success of a minor league team. Those teams do not exist to win games or win championships. They exist as an avenue to teach players how to play professional baseball, develop their skills and get them ready to be contributors for the major league team. Everything else is secondary. Now, Flores has only been in the Pirates system for two weeks. It is possible his initial perception is not the entire reality. But it's still an eye-opening comparison for a player to make when coming over from a completely different — and far more successful — organization. It would also track with a lot of the recent Pirates issues in developing players. They have been awful at developing position players, especially under general manager Ben Cherington, and tend to be slow to promote players through the system. (Paul Skenes was a rare exception to both issues.) It would also make sense that they want their minor league teams to do well. It makes it easy to sell hope to a frustrated fan base. If the major league team is not winning, it is easy for the Pirates to point out the success of their farm teams and say, "see, they are doing well ... there is help on the way" even if it is entirely misleading. The Pirates do have two of the best prospects in baseball in infielder Konnor Griffin and starting pitcher Bubba Chandler, but neither is currently in the major leagues. It remains to be seen if they will develop them into top-tier major leaguers. Recent history suggests the odds are not in their favor. Especially if the team is more concerned about its minor league teams winning games over individual players developing.
Jimmy Garoppolo's pass to Davante Adams draws attention for wrong reasons
Jimmy Garoppolo and Davante Adams have been reunited on the Los Angeles Rams, and the star receiver may have nightmares over one throw that came his way on Thursday. The Rams and New Orleans Saints held a joint training camp practice on Thursday. At one point during an 11-on-11 scrimmage, Garoppolo floated a pass toward Adams into traffic over the middle of the field. Adams did not make the catch, and for good reason. He was between three defenders and was fortunate that hitting was not allowed. Otherwise, he probably would have gotten throttled. It is possible that Garoppolo threw the pass knowing Adams was not going to be hit by a defender. The veteran quarterback would probably think twice about making a throw like that during an actual game — or so Adams hopes. Adams was one of the players featured on the Netflix documentary series "Receivers" last year. During one of the episodes, Adams was shown ranting about Garoppolo when the two were teammates on the Raiders. Adams was heard saying he needed to get out of Las Vegas "before I lose my (expletive) life." The six-time Pro Bowl receiver also said he had "never been hit this many (expletive) times in my career." Garoppolo is now the backup with the Rams and has been taking first-team reps while Matthew Stafford nurses a back injury. Adams said in an interview last month that he loves Garoppolo and chalked any previous issues up to everyone being "pretty miserable" when the Raiders were losing. The Rams are hoping Stafford will be fully healthy by Week 1. If he is not, Garoppolo may have to play. The quarterback had better get those so-called "hospital balls" out of his system in training camp.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth’s honest Aaron Rodgers verdict after joint practice
The Pittsburgh Steelers are getting closer to regular-season form, and tight end Pat Freiermuth is already liking what he sees. After Thursday’s joint practice between Pittsburgh and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Acrisure Stadium, the fifth-year veteran offered high praise for his new quarterback, while also pointing to strides being made across the offense. Aaron Rodgers’s joint practice performance was under the microscope — and Freiermuth’s take was clear. In an article posted by Steelers.com’s Teresa Varley, she noted that Freiermuth has been encouraged by what the team has shown offensively. He especially liked what he saw from the offensive line and their new signal-caller. “I thought the offensive line played pretty solid. I thought Aaron played really well. I think we came out here and did our job, and I thought we all looked pretty solid as an offense. We have to continue to grow, but I think we’re taking steps in the right direction.” The comments from Freiermuth reflect a broader theme from the day, progress with room for growth. Pittsburgh’s offense reportedly won the majority of the Seven Shots period during Thursday’s session, with strong execution in red-zone situations. The two-minute drill was more mixed, but the exposure to Tampa Bay’s different defensive looks — including four-man fronts — added real value to the day’s work. The Steelers offense update comes as Rodgers continues ramping up in live action after sitting out the first preseason game. Thursday’s joint practice marked his most substantial work of August so far, and his timing with the 2021 draft pick out of Penn State and the rest of the offense appears to be coming together. With a retooled wide receiver group and a revamped offensive line, joint sessions are providing valuable live reps in simulated game conditions. Rodgers is not expected to suit up for Saturday’s preseason matchup, as Pittsburgh continues to manage his workload ahead of Week 1. Freiermuth remains a key target in the red zone and in middle-field route concepts, and his chemistry with the 41-year-old quarterback is already drawing attention. The offensive line, meanwhile, earned a public shout-out — a sign that communication and protection are trending in the right direction. The staff continues to manage preseason usage carefully, meaning Rodgers and other starters may be limited again in Saturday’s exhibition against the Buccaneers. The Steelers and Buccaneers joint-practice offered the kind of controlled but competitive reps that coaches and players value most. No major injuries were reported, and the work helped refine offensive timing, especially in pressure moments. While Freiermuth emphasized that the unit is still building, Thursday’s showing was a positive sign. With Week 1 of the regular season approaching, the offense looks like it’s beginning to click — and the veteran tight end seems confident they’re headed in the right direction.
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