Skinner 'felt really good' in Oilers' Game 3 win

EDMONTON, Alberta -- The Edmonton Oilers appeared to handily triumph Game 3 of the Western Conference finals against the Dallas Stars connected Sunday, posting a wide 6-1 margin to instrumentality a 2-1 bid lead. But looks tin beryllium deceiving.

The Oilers were really outplayed for stretches by a much urgent Stars team, but Dallas was repeatedly stifled by different sensational show from Stuart Skinner.

Edmonton's netminder stole the amusement successful Game 3 with a 33-save showing that lifted the Oilers to a 2nd consecutive win. It's each portion of a superb caller tally for Skinner, who's trying to enactment even-keeled successful the look of his ain triumphs.

"It's ebbs and flows," helium said of being dialed in. "You tin consciousness it close away. Sometimes you don't consciousness it close away. I privation I felt it each the time. But that's conscionable thing that benignant of comes with it. For myself, it's coming retired of past game, too. I felt truly good. So conscionable trying my champion to support that going."

Skinner has crushed to beryllium cautiously optimistic. This has, aft all, been a roller-coaster postseason for him. Skinner was replaced by Calvin Pickard arsenic Edmonton's starter during its first-round bid against the Los Angeles Kings aft giving up 11 goals successful 2 games to enactment the Oilers successful a 2-0 deficit. Pickard backstopped the Oilers to six consecutive wins from there, closing retired the Kings and taking the archetypal 2 games implicit the Vegas Golden Knights successful the 2nd round. But Pickard was injured successful Game 2 against the Golden Knights, putting Skinner backmost successful the starter's role. He has tally with it since, signaling 3 shutouts successful his past 5 games, including a 3-0 triumph implicit Dallas successful Game 2 connected Friday.

But Skinner's finest show to day was successful Game 3. Dallas pressed Edmonton hard passim Sunday's game, peculiarly successful the 2nd period, and it was Skinner who ensured Edmonton's violative gains weren't for nothing.

The Oilers had scored archetypal with a brace of goals conscionable 36 seconds isolated precocious successful the archetypal play that enactment Edmonton up 2-0 done 20 minutes, but Dallas' effect was scorching.

The Stars turned up the tempo by outshooting Edmonton 21-7 successful the mediate framework -- and 34-24 for the crippled -- leaving Skinner to clasp the Stars astatine bay portion giving Edmonton an accidental to enactment retired front.

"They brought a ton of speed," Skinner said of the 2nd period. "They got a batch of O-zone time, got immoderate bully chances. At that constituent we're conscionable trying to effort to support things astatine zero. We knew that was going to happen. They were down 2-0 astatine that point. So, you knew that they were going to travel retired hard and springiness everything that they had. They decidedly did that. They were decidedly the amended squad successful the 2nd period. And we knew that going into the third, truthful we conscionable had to reset, and we battled it out."

Dallas entered Sunday with a 5-0 grounds aft a nonaccomplishment successful this postseason. And the Stars were having possibly their champion archetypal play of the bid Sunday adjacent earlier elevating higher successful the second. But Edmonton got a interruption -- earlier breaking the crippled open.

The Oilers were exiting their portion erstwhile defenseman Brett Kulak's clearing effort went implicit the glass, initiating a speech among officials. No punishment was called for hold of game, and the Oilers' adjacent displacement was a occurrence starter.

Edmonton pounced connected the Stars successful their end, and trailing defenseman Evan Bouchard fired a changeable disconnected the unreserved past a screened Jake Oettinger to springiness the Oilers a 1-0 lead. Only 36 seconds later, Connor McDavid took disconnected connected a 3-on-1 and finished a give-and-go play with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- who besides assisted connected Bouchard's onslaught -- to spot Edmonton a 2-0 lead.

While the Oilers' discourtesy was rolling, Dallas was down a cardinal subordinate of its own: halfway Roope Hintz was ruled retired of Game 3 due to the fact that of a lower-body wounded (and is listed arsenic day-to-day going forward). He near successful the 3rd play of Game 2 aft a slash from Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse. Hintz was capable to question with Dallas to Edmonton and participated successful warmups up of Game 3 but near aboriginal aft speaking with a trainer, leaving Stars manager Peter DeBoer to elevate Jason Robertson onto the Stars' apical enactment with Mikko Rantanen and Mikael Granlund, portion Oskar Back checked into a fourth-line slot.

That portion was among the Stars' champion each night, generating immoderate terrific chances that Skinner had to beryllium crisp on. Dallas hasn't been the aforesaid scoring menace astatine 5-on-5 that it has been connected peculiar teams successful this series, though, and it showed again successful Game 3. The Stars person lone 3 5-on-5 goals successful the league finals truthful acold and lone 23 even-strength goals successful 16 postseason games. But the Stars pb the postseason tract with 15 power-play goals.

Defenseman Lian Bichsel did yet bushed Skinner with his archetypal vocation playoff goal, scoring from the slot successful the last minutes of the 2nd play to chopped Edmonton's pb to 2-1. It was the lone blemish connected Skinner's start, and his teammates appreciated however coagulated helium was arsenic the Stars attempted to heap on.

"I thought we had a spot of a dip," Nugent-Hopkins said. "They had a spot of a propulsion successful the second. We knew it was going to happen. [Skinner] stepped up big-time for us, made immoderate large saves, and you request your goalie to bash that for you. And helium decidedly stepped up for us."

Skinner remained the quality for Edmonton, though, arsenic Dallas kept pressing against a abruptly listless Oilers group. Oilers manager Kris Knoblauch had to enactment his lines successful a blender by the extremity of the 2nd aft Connor Brown near the crippled pursuing a precocious deed from Alexander Petrovic.

Knobloch was searching for a spark, and it worked. McDavid scored again with conscionable 18 seconds near successful the second, shooting acold broadside to the precocious near corner.

"The 3rd extremity is simply a backbreaker astatine the extremity of the 2nd period," DeBoer said. "I loved our crippled to that point. We were carrying momentum, we were doing a batch of bully things. They get that goal, and it bleeds into the third. There was gathering blocks determination for america to commencement winning immoderate of these games."

Dallas kept coming successful the 3rd but again, erstwhile the Stars couldn't person their opportunities, the Oilers recovered mode to person theirs. This time, it was Skinner stoning Tyler Seguin astatine 1 extremity of the crystal lone for Dallas to spot Zach Hyman bushed Oettinger connected the Oilers' adjacent rush.

"The mode we play defensively impacts the goaltending truthful much," Nugent-Hopkins said. "We evidently request to beryllium crisp successful beforehand of him, springiness him each accidental to marque the casual saves. And past sometimes helium needs to measurement up and marque the large ones, and he's been doing that. He wants to execute for us, and we spot him vie each day."

Hyman grabbed different extremity successful the 3rd period, going precocious mitt connected Oettinger to crystal Edmonton's victory. John Klingberg added much security with the Oilers' sixth goal.

Now, the Oilers person a accidental to tilt the bid further successful their favour successful Game 4 connected Tuesday. That's erstwhile Skinner tin proceed rewriting what has been 1 chaotic postseason section aft another. Knoblauch said helium isn't the slightest spot amazed astatine however Skinner has rebounded -- and expected helium would enactment hot.

"I was truthful impressed [when I came here] that erstwhile helium did person a atrocious game, however good helium responded close away," Knoblauch said. "And that's not casual for immoderate player, particularly a goalie. I deliberation he's done a truly bully job. I'm conscionable impressed with however good helium manages the expectations playing successful beforehand of a bully team, and erstwhile we bash need, helium comes up tonight, determination was a batch of enactment for him. I deliberation helium was very, precise solid."