Stuart Skinner has become a glue guy in the Pittsburgh Penguins locker room. Teammates love him. His performance well exceeds the stats. And it’s become obvious coach Dan Muse is moving toward making Skinner the Penguins’ playoff goalie.

Muse has played coy all season, whether it was questions about Tristan Jarry and Arturs Silovs, and then Silovs and Skinner. Muse has refused to tip his hand publicly but has almost exclusively kept to a goalie rotation while denying the obvious that there was indeed a rotation.

“Nothing is set in stone,” Muse has said many times.

There is no rule that teams must choose a No. 1 for the playoffs and a rotation could work in theory, but not in recent memory has a coach chosen that route. The teams that have tried were generally forced into it.

Silovs has a better save percentage with the Penguins (.891), than Skinner (.888), but the eye test tells a different story of big stops and confidence.

“I think he’s just super calm, and he’s a great guy. He’s honestly one of the best guys I’ve played with … And obviously in Edmonton, when you kind of get dragged through the mud like he did, and he comes here, you could just see his smile rejuvenate,” said Ryan Shea. “And we’re playing our hearts out in front of both our goaltenders, and hopefully they can feel it when they’re in the crease.”

Skinner has twice been through a lengthy playoff run, but his experience is a less important part of the equation compared to his leadership and solid performances. What separates Skinner from Silovs is rebound control, which is especially important given the Penguins’ defense. Rebound control is especially important in the postseason as teams crash the net looking for one more goal.

That’s the obvious point.

“Glue” Guy

The not so obvious is what happens with the depth of the Penguins’ lineup if the team gets healthy? Specifically, what happens with Elmer Soderblom when Blake Lizotte returns at the end of the regular season or in the playoffs?

The Penguins currently have a 94.1% chance to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs, according to MoneyPuck.com.

Presumably, coach Dan Muse would reinstall the fourth line that has been successful this season, putting Connor Dewar and Noel Acciari beside Lizotte. And the Penguins’ penalty kill badly needs all three in the lineup. The PK has given up power play goals in seven of the last nine games.

So, what will happen with Elmer Soderblom?

The Penguins’ big 6-foot-8 winger has been increasingly formidable since the Penguins acquired him before the NHL trade deadline. He has a three game point streak and played nearly 15 minutes without special teams minutes in Tuesday’s 5-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings.

Soderblom was one of the best Penguins forwards Monday in the 8-3 win over the New York Islanders, and again against the Islanders. As a result, Noel Acciari had goals in both games, too.

“I mean, I just try to play my game and use my strengths to my advantage. I try to play hard in the battles, winning pucks, and just try to be tough to play against out there,” Soderblom said. “So, yeah, that comes with it. So I’m trying to be as tough to play against.”

Clearly the Penguins’ push for him to be more physical is paying dividends.

However, Lizotte will be reevaluated four weeks from March 17, so he is unlikely to play again in the regular season, but the Penguins are increasingly like to play behind the regular season, too. f

But when Lizotte comes back, there will be no room in the lineup. Or would Muse have the courage to sit Tommy Nova to create a bigger, tougher bottom six? Such a move would also seem to bolster the Penguins’ offensive output, as Novak has just one assist in his last nine games and two points (1-1-2) in his last 12.

Muse seemed ready to shuffle Novak around the lineup Tuesday when he dropped him from second-line center to third-line winger. However, Bryan Rust’s last-second scratch due to injury forced Muse to shuffle the lineup.

If the lineup gets healthy, the forward lines could be big, physical, and dangerous. In fact, Muse will have choices of where to place Egor Chinakhov, who has shown an electric chemistry with Crosby over the last couple of games.

Egor Chinakhov-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust

Anthony Mantha-Rickard Rakell-Evgeni Malkin

Elmer Soderblom-Ben Kindel-Justin Brazeau

Connor Dewar-Blake Lizotte-Noel Acciari

A playoff lineup will be a nice problem for Muse to have.

Tags: elmer soderblom stuart skinner

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