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Stuart Skinner's 'Devastating' Message After Golden Knights Beat Oilers

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated May 11, 2025 6:40 AM ET

Stuart Skinner was back in the net for the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night after Calvin Pickard’s injury, but the return ended in heartbreak as the Vegas Golden Knights scored with 0.4 seconds left to win Game 3.

While a few fans pointed to Skinner’s bad positioning and failure to properly cover the net on the game-winning play, the goaltender emphasized misfortune over fault.

“Devastating, but again, things happen. Good bounces, tough bounces,” Skinner said. “It happens for everybody. Just move forward.”

The deciding goal came after Reilly Smith faked a shot, moved wide to the left and around Skinner, and ultimately fired the puck across the crease. The puck deflected off Leon Draisaitl’s stick and crossed the line just before the buzzer.

Skinner, who made 20 saves, acknowledged the chaos of the play but didn’t shoulder full responsibility for the goal allowed.

“Especially when Karlsson’s coming in with so much speed,” Skinner said. “I’m not really counting down the seconds. I just had an awareness that it’s not a lot of time.

”That’s kind of why I played it the way I did.”

"That's a goalie's job to give your team a chance to win the game. I thought I did, but it's a couple of tough bounces here & there."

Skinner reflects on his first game back between the #Oilers pipes.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/QqWHcdcpCl
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 11, 2025

Skinner added that he expected a quicker shot from Reilly, which is why he committed early to blocking the path of the Golden Knights player instead of staying put in net.

“I thought he didn’t have that much time, so I just sprawled, went out there,” Skinner said. “I stayed with him for another half second… and then it catches us with point four seconds left.”

A BUZZER BEATER OF ALL BUZZER BEATERS

REILLY SMITH WINS IT FOR VEGAS WITH 0.4 SECONDS LEFT IN REGULATION!!! #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/PZIGMQE1Ba
— NHL (@NHL) May 11, 2025

Skinner had lost his starting job earlier in the postseason, but returned out of necessity due to Pickard’s lower-body injury.

In three playoff starts this year, Skinner holds a 5.36 goals-against average and an .817 save percentage. Both figures rank last among goalies with at least three games played this postseason.

The Oilers still lead the second-round series 2-1 over the Golden Knights, with Game 4 scheduled for Monday and puck drop set at 9:30 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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