The Edmonton Oilers have nearly locked up a playoff spot and look to make another deep playoff run. Compared to their previous two runs, one aspect stands out as completely different. That, of course, is goaltending.
This year, the team will be running with Tristan Jarry and Connor Ingram in the playoff run. Previously, it was obviously Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard running the back end. Many Oilers fans have blamed goaltending for their losses in the playoffs, but is this year’s tandem really that much better?
Let’s take a look at how the current goaltending lines up for the playoffs.
Ingram’s playoff experience
Both current goalies on the Oilers lack a bit of playoff experience. Jarry has only appeared in eight career playoff games, while Ingram has only appeared in four. Both of these experiences were obviously with different teams as well. Jarry was a part of a downward-trending Pittsburgh Penguins team, while Ingram had the pleasure of facing the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. On the bright side, one of these goalies did fairly well, but unfortunately, the other did not.
Ingram was on the Nashville Predators for the 2022 playoffs. The Predators were massive underdogs in the series against the Colorado Avalanche, and as Darryl Sutter stated, “playing Colorado in the first round is a waste of eight days.”
Ingram and the Predators got swept, but it was certainly not Ingram’s fault. The netminder actually played extremely well in the series, posting a .913 save percentage in the series. Ingram had a legendary performance in Game 2, where he stopped 49 of 51 shots in a 2–1 overtime
Jarry’s playoff experience
On the other hand, Jarry has struggled significantly in the playoffs. His best playoff performance came in the 2020 bubble playoffs, where he made one start against the Montreal Canadiens. Here, he posted a .952 save percentage in a 2–0 loss. This could be seen as impressive, but he only faced 21 shots.
Outside of this, Jarry has had some struggles. He appeared in all six games of the 2021 series against the New York Islanders and posted a sub .900 save percentage in the final four games. Pittsburgh went on to lose that series 4–2.
A comparison to Skinner and Pickard
The previous goaltending duo that took the Oilers to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals included Skinner and Pickard. Both goalies had some awesome moments in their time, but failed to help capture the ultimate goal. During his time as an Oiler, Skinner had plenty of mediocre seasons with the Oilers. Sadly, his play often became even worse during the playoffs, where he nearly posted a sub-900 save percentage in every Oilers playoff run.
Skinner’s best playoff run as an Oiler came in the 2024 Cup run. Here, Skinner made 23 starts, posted a 14–8–1 record, and a 2.45 goals against average. Those numbers are decently acceptable, outside of the .901 save percentage he had. You need a goalie better than that to help win a Stanley Cup.
Unfortunately, the 2025 run was much worse. Skinner only made 15 starts in this stretch and posted a 7–6–1 record. His stats got worse with a 2.99 goals against average and a .889 save percentage. In the end, Edmonton had to turn towards Pickard in multiple situations.
Pickard barely played in the 2024 run, where he only appeared in three games. In 2025, it was the complete opposite. Pickard was a regular for the Oilers in the playoffs, as he ended up making 10 starts and posted an impressive 7–1 record. Although his record was phenomenal, the stats did not back him up. Pickard posted a .886 save percentage and 2.85 goals against average during this time. He was more of a good luck charm than a star goalie who shut things down. At the end of his run, Pickard’s only loss came in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, which was a huge turning point in the series.
Different opponents for the goalies
With Skinner and Pickard in the net, it was always the same opponents on the other side. Edmonton faced Los Angeles, Vegas, Dallas, and Florida multiple times with these two as their goalies. They found excellent success against all of these teams except for the Florida Panthers. However, that path seems to have closed now without Skinner and Pickard.
At the current moment, it looks like the Oilers will have a different pathway to the Cup Final. There is a chance the Oilers could face teams like the Anaheim Ducks or Utah Mammoth in the first round. These teams would give the Oilers a different sense of competition as they are younger, less experienced teams. Both have had some good battles against the Oilers this season, most recently being Utah. Jarry had a rough go against the Mammoth on Tuesday, where he let in six goals on just 31 shots in a 6–5 overtime loss.
Beyond the first round, the Oilers could face familiar teams in Vegas and Dallas. However, depending on how the playoffs unfold, they could face the Colorado Avalanche or the Minnesota Wild. Both of those teams would be fierce opponents with a ton of talent. Would a tandem of Jarry and Ingram be enough to beat these opponents? Or are the Oilers in for some more awful playoff goaltending?
How confident are you in the Jarry/Ingram tandem in Oil Country?
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