Kris Knoblauch confirms major lineup change ahead of Game 3.

This sounds less than ideal if you're the Edmonton Oilers.

On Saturday morning, the Oilers hit the ice for a morning skate ahead of Game 3 and those in attendance immediately noticed that something wasn't quite right when it comes to the players that were on the ice. Positioned in the starters net was Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner, who has been riding the bench in the Stanley Cup playoffs since losing his net to backup goaltender Calvin Pickard, and at the other end of the ice was Oilers goaltender Olivier Rodrigue, who played in just 2 games all season long for the Oilers at the NHL level.

That is to say that goaltender Calvin Pickard, winner of 6 straight games, was nowhere to be found on the ice.

Of course at this time of year it could have been a bit of gamesmanship on the part of the Oilers while they gave Pickard a much deserved rest from a pre-game skate, but unfortunately the Oilers are not that fortunate.

It has now been officially confirmed that Stuart Skinner will start Game 3 in net for the Oilers and I can almost hear the collective groan that news will elicit from an Oilers fan base that saw Skinner put up a 6.11 goals against average and a .810 save percentage in the two playoff starts he has had so far in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Head coach Kris Knoblauch has confirmed that Pickard is dealing with an injury and has listed him as "day to day" but as of yet has not provided any details that would point more specifically to a particular injury or timeline for his return to action.

The only silver lining here is that the Golden Knights are also dealing with injuries of their own heading into Game 3.