Leon Draisaitl Takes A Shot At Starting Goalie Stuart Skinner In New Interview

Recently dmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner responded to criticism he was facing from fans.

Since making those comments and believing he could turn things around Skinner has continued to still struggle to be a starting-caliber goaltender for the Edmonton Oilers.

With the stretch run of the NHL season coming up the Oilers decided to make an interesting switch last night and give Calvin Pickard a start.

In his opportunity, Pickard looked great against the Islanders even picking up an assist on the overtime winner scored by Leon Draisaitl.

In the post-game media availability, Leon Draisaitl was singing Pickard's praises but also seemed to take a bit of a shot at Skinner in a way that could impact the season going forward.

During his post-game interview, Draisaitl was asked about Pickard's performance and what he means to the team.

Draisaitl not only praised Pickard's on-ice skill but revealed he considers Pickard to be the heart and soul of the team and the locker room.

He goes on to say that the Oilers love playing for Pickard and take pride in defending well in front of him.

While these are subtle comments they are not things you hear Draisaitl or any Oiler for that matter say about Skinner when he has a good game.

With Draisaitl's comments now out in the open it will be interesting to see if head coach Kris Knoblauch changes his strategy and gives Pickard an opportunity to be the starter backed by the now public support of Leon Draisaitl and likely others in the locker room.