Koskinen agreed to terms on a two-year contract with Swiss club HC Lugano on Monday.
The writing was definitely on the wall for Koskinen that he wasn't going to be back in Edmonton once his contract expired this season. Despite veteran Mike Smith posting a 3.37 GAA in 16 postseason contests, the team continued to utilize him over Koskinen. At 33 years of age, this could mark the end of Koskinen's NHL career -- he's played in 168 games over five years in which he's registered an 85-60-13 record and .906 save percentage.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Strong in relief outing
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Koskinen yielded one goal on 21 shots in relief of Mike Smith during Tuesday's 8-6 loss to the Avalanche in Game 1.
Next verse, same as the first -- Koskinen took the loss despite a strong relief showing in Game 1, which mirrored what happened in the series opener versus the Flames in the last round. Koskinen, to his credit, was much more convincing against a relentless Avalanche offense this time around. Still, he's been limited to only relief outings in three of the Oilers' 13 postseason contests. A starting goalie for Thursday's Game 2 hasn't been named.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Makes brief appearance
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Koskinen played 4:15 during Sunday's 4-1 win over the Flames in Game 3 while Mike Smith was being examined for a possible concussion.
Koskinen didn't face a shot during his time on the ice, most of which came during a major penalty to Milan Lucic for charging Smith. Assuming Smith doesn't have any setbacks, Koskinen will likely return to the backup role for Game 4 on Tuesday. This was Koskinen's second appearance of the playoffs.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Takes loss in relief outing
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Koskinen stopped 32 of 37 shots in relief of Mike Smith in a 9-6 loss to the Flames in Wednesday's Game 1.
Koskinen made his playoff debut for this postseason just 6:05 into the contest after the Flames blitzed Mike Smith. To his credit, Koskinen was the most effective goalie in this throwback to a higher-scoring era. The Finn ended up taking the loss, and it seems likely head coach Jay Woodcroft will give Smith a chance at redemption before Koskinen would get a longer look between the pipes. He went 27-12-4 with a 3.10 GAA and a .903 save percentage in 45 regular-season outings.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Prevails in shootout
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Koskinen stopped 39 of 41 shots in Friday's 3-2 shootout win over the Canucks.
The Oilers twice erased one-goal deficits, and Koskinen was solid between the pipes despite another heavy workload. The 33-year-old was the star in the shootout, making six saves to secure the win. He ends the regular season with a 27-12-4 record, a 3.10 GAA and a .903 save percentage through 45 contests. Despite winning the last two games of the season, Koskinen projects to serve as Mike Smith's backup in the playoffs.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Starting Friday's finale
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Koskinen will start Friday's season finale against Vancouver, Derek Van Diest of Postmedia reports.
Koskinen will backstop an Oilers lineup that will be resting both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Mike Smith's expected to open the playoffs as Edmonton's starter, but Koskinen will look to pick up some momentum heading into the postseason and improve on his 26-12-4 record, 3.14 GAA and .901 save percentage.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Grabs overtime win
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Koskinen allowed four goals on 44 shots in Thursday's 5-4 overtime win over the Sharks.
Koskinen snapped his personal three-game losing streak, though it was still a middling outing for the 33-year-old. He allowed a pair of goals to Noah Gregor in the first period before settling in. Koskinen improved to 26-12-4 with a 3.14 GAA and a .901 save percentage through 44 appearances. Mike Smith will likely get the regular-season finale Friday versus the Canucks.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Tending twine Thursday
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Koskinen will defend the cage versus San Jose at home Thursday, Jason Gregor of OilersNation.com reports.
Koskinen will be in the crease for just the second time in the Oilers' last six contests, giving starter Mike Smith the night off to prepare for Vancouver on Friday. With the veteran Smith riding a nine-game winning streak, Koskinen will likely find himself relegated to the backup role heading into the playoffs.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Loses in Columbus
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Koskinen allowed four goals on 30 shots in Sunday's 5-2 loss to the Blue Jackets. The fifth goal was an empty-netter.
Koskinen let a couple of one-goal leads slip away, and the Blue Jackets took control in the third period. Playing time has been scarce for the Finn lately, and he didn't help his case with a third straight loss. He's at 25-12-4 with a 3.12 GAA and a .901 save percentage through 43 contests. The Oilers have a back-to-back in their last two games of the regular season, so Koskinen will likely draw in for at least one more start.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Starting against Blue Jackets
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Koskinen will man the road crease Sunday in Columbus.
Koskinen has struggled recently, allowing at least four goals in four of his last eight appearances. Between Koskinen's inconsistent play and Mike Smith's recent surge, Smith appears to have retaken the top spot on Edmonton's depth chart in net, but this game against a non-playoff Blue Jackets team will present Koskinen with an opportunity to make his case for more playing time in the playoffs.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Inconsistent play continues
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Koskinen gave up five goals on 23 shots in Tuesday's 5-1 loss to the Wild.
Minnesota took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission, then added three more against Koskinen to pull away on a rare quiet night for Edmonton's offense. By the time Leon Drasaitl got the Oilers on the board, it was already 5-0 Minnesota. Koskinen has been all over the map in his last nine starts, allowing five goals three times while limiting the opposition to one goal three times during that stretch as well.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Between pipes Tuesday
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Koskinen is expected to start Tuesday in Minnesota, Mark Spector of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Koskinen was the hard-luck loser in his last start Saturday, stopping 33 of 34 shots in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Avalanche. Tuesday's matchup won't get any easier, as the Wild are 25-7-2 on home ice, where they've averaged a whopping 4.00 goals for this season (tied for second only behind Florida's 4.72).
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Loses low-scoring battle
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Koskinen allowed one goal on 34 shots in Saturday's 2-1 shootout loss to the Avalanche.
Koskinen was unlucky to lose this one, but Darcy Kuemper was even better with 49 saves on 50 shots in the goalie duel. Nathan MacKinnon accounted for both the lone regulation goal and shootout tally that sent Koskinen to the defeat. The 33-year-old netminder is down to 25-10-4 with a 3.04 GAA and a .904 save percentage through 41 appearances. Mike Smith seems to have the momentum in net for the Oilers, and it wouldn't be surprising to see Koskinen return to backup duties Tuesday versus the Wild.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Facing Avalanche on Saturday
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Koskinen will start against visiting Colorado on Saturday, Jack Michaels of the Oilers Radio Network reports.
Koskinen has yet to start in April, but he's won back-to-back games while stopping 69 of 73 shots in the process. He'll look to lead the Oilers to their seventh consecutive victory against a first-place Colorado squad that's 8-1-1 over its last 10 and a tidy 23-10-3 on the road.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Not starting Tuesday
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Koskinen won't start Tuesday's game versus the Sharks, but he is clear of his illness and expected to back up Mike Smith, Jack Michaels of the Oilers Radio Network reports.
Koskinen was initially in line to start Tuesday, but he'll have to wait until at least Thursday's game versus the Kings to draw back in.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Starting in San Jose
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Koskinen (illness) will patrol the crease during Tuesday's road game versus the Sharks, source reports.
Koskinen has been excellent recently, picking up back-to-back wins over the Coyotes and the Kings while posting an admirable 1.92 GAA and .945 save percentage. He'll attempt to secure his 26th win of the season in a road matchup with a slumping San Jose squad that's lost three straight contests.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Out Sunday
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Koskinen (illness) will not be available Sunday against the Ducks.
With Koskinen unavailable, Stuart Skinner was promoted to the NHL level and will likely back up Mike Smith. The 33-year-old went 7-2-0 with a .906 save percentage in March. He'll be questionable for Tuesday's tilt with the Sharks.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Wins possible playoff preview
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Koskinen made 38 saves through overtime and stopped both shootout attempts in Wednesday's 4-3 win over Los Angeles.
Koskinen was staked to a 3-1 lead in the second period, but the game was tied 1:01 later, as the Kings responded with two goals 14 seconds apart. Outside of that momentary lapse, Koskinen played well in this one to earn his 25th win of the season. He's 13-2-2 since Jan. 22.
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Oilers' Mikko Koskinen: Tending twine Wednesday
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Koskinen will defend the cage at home versus the Kings on Wednesday, Reid Wilkins of 630 CHED reports.
Koskinen has given up five goals in two of his last five contests and is sporting a 4.09 GAA over that stretch. Despite those numbers, the netminder is 3-1-0 in those games thanks to his offensively gifted teammates. Still, the Finn should continue to pick up wins and appears to have played his way into a larger portion of the starts over Mike Smith.
