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Stuart Skinner’s Penguins arrival changes the vibe, and Arturs Silovs backs it up
Photo credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Stuart Skinner settling into the Pittsburgh Penguins room is the kind of goalie news that can flip a season fast.
The move still feels weird on paper, because it started with Pittsburgh shipping Tristan Jarry out and taking Skinner back in December.
But the early returns sound simple, he fits, he talks, he competes, and nobody has to tiptoe around the crease.
Dan Muse has leaned into a true split with Arturs Silovs, and Skinner has publicly been fine with it.
Silovs is the younger play here, a 24-year-old drafted in 2019, sixth round, by the Vancouver Canucks, now getting real NHL reps.
What matters is the stretch where Skinner stopped almost everything for weeks, then didn’t pout when the rotation stayed intact.
Silovs has carried plenty of the load too, sitting at 11-7-8 with a 2.93 goals-against average and a .896 save percentage so far.
Pittsburgh’s bigger picture is steady, the Penguins are 29-15-12, and they look like a team that trusts its next save.
Stuart Skinner gives Pittsburgh Penguins a calmer crease
I can feel the fanbase exhale a little, because the chaos around the crease finally sounds quieter.
Skinner’s best moments in this setup are clean touches, fewer rebounds, and a calmer bench when the other team starts cycling.
That’s also why Silovs works beside him, he’s athletic, he battles, and he can steal a night even when the structure bends.
The timing is sharp too, with Silovs heading into the Olympic break spotlight and Skinner trying to stack consistent starts.
If this tandem holds, Kyle Dubas can spend his deadline energy elsewhere, and that’s the real win.
Either way, the next back-to-back is the test, not the quotes, not the vibes, just stops when legs get heavy.
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