The Panthers made it clear, even before playing this game and losing it 3-2, that they knew they were playing an opponent that could burn them.
LAS VEGAS — Calvin Pickard was a big name in this town once, the first player picked in the Golden Knights expansion draft back in June of 2017.
“A legend. An absolute legend,” he said, playing right along.
The fans? They loved him here, creating a goalie mask that would have been a real keepsake — had he played even a minute of regular season hockey for the Golden Knights.
It’s somewhere in the garage back in Winnipeg now, another keepsake in a long and winding road through seven NHL organizations.
“I got picked up, got here, got a place. Had a decent pre-season — not great,” he recalled on Tuesday night. “But I think it was always their plan to find somebody else on the (waiver) wire. I never landed on my feet here. I was gone by Day 1 of the season.”
Pickard had to wait almost eight years to start a game here at T-Mobile Arena, and it came as an Edmonton Oiler — five organizations removed from his short time as a Golden Knight.
Making his third consecutive start of the season in Edmonton’s net, with No. 1 Stuart Skinner sidelined with a concussion, Pickard was fantastic Tuesday night in a stunning 3-2 road win by the undermanned Oilers.
Vegas scored first and last, while the Oilers made three second-period goals stand up for an impressive win against a Golden Knights team they could possibly see in Round 2 of the playoffs, if both survive Round 1.
Vegas claimed Pickard off Colorado’s expansion list, then chose Marc-Andre Fleury with their 29th selection. When the Golden Knights claimed goalie Malcolm Subban on waivers from Boston four months later, that was it for Pickard, traded to Toronto for Tobias Lindberg and a sixth-round pick.
Today, 32-year-old Pickard has made an impressive career as that well-liked backup who never complains — who stays out on the practice ice until the last shooter has fired the last puck — the quintessential backup goaler whose disposition is almost as important as his actual position.
“It’s been honestly bothersome over the course of my career, kind of getting labelled as a good guy backup,” he said after making 20 stops in a low-event, grind-it-out game against the gnarly Knights. “I’ve always wanted to be a good goaltender first, and then the fun guy part will take care of itself. But I’ve always believed in myself. And I’ve played a few games in a row here.”
It’s true — you can’t just get by on good looks. Eventually, the starter goes down, and they need you to play every night. Pickard showed Tuesday that he’s up to the task.