Stuart Skinner Has Something to Prove in Winnipeg

Stuart Skinner had kind of a rough night Friday. He gave up five goals on 32 shots against Colorado, though one was an empty-netter, so it looks a little uglier on paper than it was. Add it up over his two preseason starts — both against the Avs — and he’s let in five goals on 64 shots. That works out to a .922 save percentage.

So even with Friday’s ugly-looking result, the two-game preseason picture isn’t exactly a disaster. And zooming out for a second, two preseason games really shouldn’t be the headline here.

Fans Have Seen Skinner Do It Before

Don’t sleep on what Skinner’s already pulled off. He was the starting goalie on two deep Oilers playoff runs, including that run all the way to the Stanley Cup Final in 2024. Two real playoff runs, two years of handling the kind of pressure where every single game feels massive. That’s not something you just brush aside.

Edmonton got rough for him at times. There were great nights and some ugly ones, and honestly, the defence in front of him wasn’t always doing him any favours. But we already know he can handle the big stage. He’s done it. So a couple of shaky preseason outings against Colorado aren’t exactly a reason to panic.

Now he’s in Winnipeg, and that might be exactly the reset he needed.

It Looks as if Winnipeg Is Handing Him the Keys

Here’s the part that actually matters, way more than Friday night did. It sounds like the Jets are ready to lean on Skinner hard to start the year, while easing Domenic DiVincentiis in behind him. Translation: you’re the guy, go play.

For now, there doesn’t appear to be a messy timeshare to worry about. Just a clean runway for Skinner to settle in, play a ton, and find his groove. And sometimes really all a goalie needs is a clean slate, a little confidence, and a coach basically saying “you’ve got this, go stop pucks.”

On top of that, Winnipeg’s defence should give him a different kind of environment than the one he sometimes had in Edmonton. Doesn’t mean every night’s a breeze. This is still the NHL. But the setup here is legitimately good.