Oilers’ Stuart Skinner won’t travel to Seattle after leaving game against Stars

The Edmonton Oilers will be without goaltender Stuart Skinner on Thursday versus the Pacific Division rival Seattle Kraken, Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed per team reporter Tony Brar.

Facing the Dallas Stars on Wednesday, Skinner exited early in the third period and did not return after being bumped by Stars right winger Mikko Rantanen. Backup netminder Calvin Pickard entered in place of Skinner, turning aside all three shots he faced in an eventual 4-3 regulation loss.

On the season, Skinner has made 49 appearances with the Oilers in which he has posted a 24-17-4 record coupled with an .894 save percentage, 2.91 goals-against average, plus a pair of shutouts. Originally chosen by the Oilers in the third round of the 2017 NHL Draft, the 26-year-old Edmonton native has since played part of five seasons with the club in which he has compiled a 96-53-14 career record with a .905 save percentage, 2.75 goals-against average, and six shutouts.

En route to last year’s Stanley Cup Final, Skinner won 14 of 23 games while posting a .901 save percentage, 2.45 goals-against average, and one shutout before ultimately falling to the Florida Panthers in the seven-game final.

For Pickard, the 32-year-old native of Moncton, N.B., has seen 28 showings with the Oilers this season in which he has went 17-7-1 with a .901 save percentage and 2.61 goals-against average. A 2010 second-round selection by the Colorado Avalanche, Pickard has seen 167 career contests counting stops with the Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, the former Arizona Coyotes, Detroit Red Wings, and Oilers in which he has posted a 64-68-12 career record with a .904 save percentage, 2.88 goals-against average, and five shutouts.

Entering Thursday’s contest against the Kraken, the Oilers sit third place in the Pacific Division with a 41-25-5 record and 87 points.