- Arturs Silovs starts Game 4 in net for the Penguins
- Stuart Skinner went 0-3 in the first three games of the series
- Read below for Muse’s reasoning and Silovs’s 2024 playoff history
Pittsburgh has seen enough.
Penguins coach Dan Muse confirmed Saturday that Arturs Silovs will start in goal for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference First Round against the Flyers, with Pittsburgh facing a sweep at Xfinity Mobile Arena, per NHL.com. Stuart Skinner started the first three games and went 0-3 with a 3.08 goals-against average and .873 save percentage.
Muse made it clear the swap was about the situation, not the goalie.
“Both guys have played very well for us all year. We have a lot of confidence in both guys. Decision isn’t based on Stu’s play. I thought Stu’s played really well this series. We lost three games and so we decided that we made some changes there in the lineup.”
The Pens picked up Silovs in a July trade with Vancouver:
Silovs has 10 career playoff games, all from Vancouver’s 2023-24 run after injuries to Thatcher Demko and Casey DeSmith pushed him into the starter’s role. He went 5-5 with a .898 save percentage and helped the Canucks push the Oilers to Game 7 of the second round. That run came under current Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet.
Game 3 was the breaking point. Philadelphia rolled to a 5-2 win on Wednesday, and now the Penguins are staring at elimination:
The 25-year-old Latvian wrapped his Penguins debut season at 19-12-8 with a 3.07 GAA, .888 save percentage and two shutouts across 39 appearances. He also won the Calder Cup with AHL Abbotsford last spring and earned playoff MVP honors.
Defenseman Ryan Shea said the room isn’t pinning the series on whoever wears the pads.
“I think both goalies have played great. As you saw during the year, we really haven’t lost a step no matter who was in the net. I think Stu has been incredible for us. The last couple of games, I think we were the ones almost letting him down.”
The Pens need a win Saturday to force Game 5 in Pittsburgh on Monday. No team has come back from down 3-0 in a best-of-7 NHL series since the 1942 Maple Leafs. The Flyers are working through their own goalie question with Dan Vladar a game-time decision.
Silovs has one chance to keep the season going.
