Calvin Pickard of Moncton, New Brunswick recorded his fifth career National Hockey League shutout on Sunday. He accomplished the feat in a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers win over the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Pickard made 41 saves overall for the shutout. In the sparkling performance, he made 13 saves in the first period, 12 saves in the second period, and 16 saves in the third period. Reilly Smith of Mimico, Ontario, Bryan Rust and Valtteri Puustinen led the Penguins with six shots on goal each.
Offensively, two Canadians scored for the Oilers and had multi-point games. They were Darnell Nurse of Hamilton, Ontario, who had two goals, and Connor McDavid of Richmond Hill, Ontario, who had one goal and one assist fort two points.
In 14 games this season, Pickard has a record of nine wins and four losses. He has one shutout and a goals against average of 2.27 and a save percentage of .919.
Of Pickard’s five prior shutouts, three have come with the Colorado Avalanche, one with the Philadelphia Flyers, and now one with Edmonton. Pickard’s three previous shutouts with the Avalanche came in a 3-0 Colorado win over the New Jersey Devils on January 14, 2016, in a 1-0 Avalanche win over the Minnesota Wild on November 5, 2016, and in a 4-0 Avalanche win over the Montreal Canadiens on February 7, 2017. Pickard’s previous shutout with the Flyers came on November 23, 2018 in a 4-0 Flyers win over the New York Rangers on November 23, 2018.
With the win, the Oilers improve to a record of 39 wins, 21 regulation losses and three losses in extra time for 81 points. They are in second place in the Pacific Division.
