Calvin Pickard gets the start for Oilers in Game 1 against Golden Knights, but starter to be determined ‘game-to-game’

Calvin Pickard, the crease is yours — at least for now.

That’s the message the Oilers are sending in starting netminder Calvin Pickard for Game 1 of the Edmonton Oilers’ second-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights.

There were rumours swirling over the weekend of the Oilers potentially turning the key to the crease back over to Stuart Skinner, whom Pickard replaced after losses in Games 1 and 2 of Edmonton’s first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings.

“Right now, I guess our No. 1 is the guy that gets a start, but that’s changing from game to game,” Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch said. “We evaluate after every game, and I know there’ll be a time when Stu’s back in that net — whether that’s Game 2, Game 4 or next round, I don’t know — but I think we’ve got two goalies that can win us games.

“And when that changes? I don’t know. I would like it not to change because most likely Picks has put in a good game, and we’ve won that game, and would continue the same process. I think we’re comfortable with either goalie going in.”

Pickard was nothing short of rock solid for the Oilers in the first round, winning Games 3 through 6, posting a combined .898 save percentage and a 2.81 goals against average, and was the only goaltender to win all four of his starts in the first round.

The Oilers sticking with the hot hand isn’t a shock, given his performance across the series, but especially in Games 4 and 5, in which he allowed just four goals against with a .937 save percentage.

Knoblauch’s two-goalie approach isn’t exactly new, he noted, as other teams around the league are starting to transition to such an approach.

“20 years ago, it was all about one goaltender, and it started to change a little bit, and you look at Vegas’ Stanley Cup, where I think they had three goalies that year,” said Knoblauch. “Very rarely is it one goalie throughout the whole stretch — most teams are back-and-forth a little bit — and we’re obviously in that same situation.

“Last year, we went to the Stanley Cup Finals, Game 7, and we needed both goalies to get us there.”

Pickard’s only had one start against the Golden Knights, which came on April 1st this year in which the Oilers won 3-2, with him turning aside 20 of 22 shots for a .909 save percentage and a 2.03 goals against average.

Vegas, meanwhile, are expected to continue to roll with Adin Hill, who struggled in their first round posted a .880 save percentage and a 2.83 goals against averag