As Artūrs Šilovs prepared for just his sixth start of the season for the Canucks, the circumstances seemed favourable. The Penguins had a losing record at home, the league's worst goal difference, and the third -fewest points in the NHL.
What could possibly go wrong for a team with just one loss on the road so far in 2024-25? Well, quite a lot as it turned out, as a goalie with just one win as a starter this season endured a nightmare outing on Wednesday night in Pittsburgh.
Šilovs allowed a goal on the very first shot he faced, as the Pengins took an early lead. Aatu Raty did manage to tie the game at the 8:52 mark of the first period, but then it all fell apart in spectacular fashion for the Canucks.
Uninspired play in net
The Penguins took less than five minutes to score three unanswered goals, to take a 4-1 lead after 20 minutes. Certainly, you're not going to inspire much confidence as a goalie, when you allow four goals on the first 10 shots you face.
Then, when the Penguins increased their advantage to 5-1 just 3:40 into the middle period, fans must have feared just how much more embarrassing it was going to get. In fairness the Canucks then began to display their renowned collective mental fortitude and battled back, but the deficit was just too much to overcome as they eventually lost 5-4.
Just to stress, the blame for this defeat doesn't lie solely on the shoulders of Šilovs, with the players in front of him contributing towards the defensive calamity. However, he made mistakes on three of the goals and just never stepped up with the type of big save you need from your netminder when a team is backed up against the wall.
The 23-year-old finished the night with just 18 saves on 23 shot attempts at goal, and fell to a record of 1-4-1 on the season. He now has a terrible .847 save percentage and poor 4.11 Goals Against Average, with him looking nothing like the player who starred for the Canucks during the playoffs back in May.
A struggle on the night
Šilovs was understandably crestfallen, when speaking afterwards to the media about his performance. As per Sportsnet's Iain MacIntyre, he said:
"You wait for your opportunity, and then it's, like, 4-1 in the first period. So it's hard. But I'm just trying to push through, trying to shut it down as much as I can."
The Latvia native went on to discuss the struggles with trying to remain positive when it's all going wrong during a game. He said:
"It is hard. You know, it's like, I have 10 shots and four goals. I think any goalie would think something's wrong, something's not going the way you want it. You just have to stick to the next shot"
Canucks coach Rick Tocchet was as honest as you'd expect in his assessment, when asked about his goalie's play. Also as per MacIntyre, he said:
"It's the goalmouth stuff that seems to be going in all year. I think he's just got to be a little bit bigger in the net. I guess when you don't have confidence, you sink in your net. So, you know, he's got a battle. It's like everybody. When you're struggling, you've got to battle through it."
Teammate defends Silovs
Defenceman Carson Soucy did his best to stick up for his goalie, saying he doesn't deserve the majority of the blame. He said:
"The chances we gave up were just too Grade-A. We can't put that on Arty. We need to come out and be ready to take away the high-danger scoring areas better, especially on back-to-back (games). ... Ultimately, we've got to be better in front of him. It starts with us."
Irrespective of how much truth there is in this, Šilovs has done enough damage to himself, to seal his fate when Thatcher Demko finally returns to the crease. He's going to be heading down to Abbotsford, helped by being waiver exempt and Kevin Lankinen playing so well between the pipes.
Entering this season, Šilovs was projected as the number one in Demko's absence, which was understandable after how he performed in the playoffs. Now though, he's at a crucial point of his NHL career, needing to prove to the Canucks he can be of use long-term in Vancouver.
Demko is no sure bet
If nothing else, the 2019 sixth round draft pick should still get more opportunities down the road. The reality is that Demko has been injury-prone ever since taking over as the number one, with the genuine concern of how long he will be able to remain healthy this time around.
First things first though, Šilovs has to focus on himself and find a way to improve his play in net. As Tocchet said:
"You know, he's got to battle. He's got to get bigger in the net and battle. It's the NHL. It is what it is. (He has) got to work tomorrow and get his game."
Šilovs is still the same player who has a lot of the attributes you look for in an NHL goaltender, including size and athleticism. However, until he can rediscover his form and confidence, he's likely going to be spending more of his time in the AHL moving forward.