"He would say he doesn't really care": Ollers' Stuart Skinner reflects on netminder duel with Stars' Jake Oettinger

Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner brushed off the idea of a goalie showdown with Dallas Stars' Jake Oettinger following Edmonton’s 4-1 win in Game 4. The win gave Edmonton a 3-1 series lead in the Western Conference Final.

Stuart Skinner stopped 28 shots in the win. Jake Oettinger made 30 saves for Dallas. When asked about the tight game between the pipes compared to a blowout, Skinner said:

"I know you guys love the goalie battle, but if you asked [Oettinger] the same question, he would say he doesn't really care," Skinner said (2:15). "I would say the same thing. I'm just trying to outplay him, he's trying to outplay me. But it's not going head-to-head."

Skinner explained further:

"It's a little bit different when you're a goalie. I can't body check him,he can't cross-check me, so it's a little different. As a goalie, he gave his team a chance to win tonight and so did I."

Skinner stopped 86 of 88 shots in the past three games for an incredible .977 save percentage.

Leon Draisaitl, Kasperi Kapanen, Adam Henrique and Corey Perry scored for the Oilers. Jason Robertson scored the only goal for the Stars.

Stuart Skinner and Oilers win 4-1 against Dallas

Draisaitl got the first opened the scoring for Edmonton midway through the first period with a power-play goal, working a quick give-and-go with Nugent-Hopkins before firing a one-timer from his familiar spot near the right circle.

Dallas answered in the second, as Robertson capitalized on a power play, ripping a shot over Skinner’s shoulder through traffic after taking a feed from Harley.

The Oilers regained the lead a few minutes later when Perry finished off a slick setup from Nugent-Hopkins, who danced around Ceci and threaded a cross-ice pass for an easy tap-in at the post.

Kapanen and Henrique scored at 17:33 and 19:10 of the third, each burying an empty-netter to lock in the 4-1 final.

"It shows a lot the way that we came out, going into the third with a 2-1 lead. It's easy to back off & try to play it safe, I thought we just played the exact same way." Stuart Skinner said on the third-period performance.

Game 5 shifts back to Dallas on Thursday, with the Oilers looking to punch their ticket to the Final.