Half of a decade ago, Tristan Jarry seemed like he was on pace to become the Pittsburgh Penguins' goaltender of the future. Now on the Edmonton Oilers, it seems like the 31-year-old netminder is finding his game once again.
Despite starting off on a low note when he surrendered six goals to the Vancouver Canucks to start the season, Jarry had one of his most memorable months in recent history this October. Notably, he ended it with two straight shutouts against the Calgary Flames and the New York Islanders. Now, he'll just need to prove that he can perform at a high level consistently.
It had been almost exactly five years since Tristan Jarry last recorded a shutout in back-to-back games. Ironically, the last time he did so was against two of the NHL's most iconic franchises while a member of the Penguins. According to StatMuse, in November of 2021, he shut out the Montreal Canadiens on November 18 then did the same to the Toronto Maple Leafs two nights later.
That season, the 2021-22 campaign, Jarry had arguably the best overall performance of his career. In 56 starts, he had a .919 save percentage and allowed an average of 2.42 goals per game, picking up four shutouts in the process. After that season, his level of play quickly declined, resulting in him being traded to the Oilers nearly one year ago.
Last season, it seemed like his decline would continue in Edmonton as he had another disappointing season between the pipes. But now under new head coach Mike Babcock, it seems that Jarry has gotten his confidence back and it shows on the ice.
The Oilers' goaltending was a major question mark heading into this season. Frederik Andersen was projected to be the starter, but an offseason injury has kept him out of action for the foreseeable future. As a result, the Oilers were left with a trio of Jarry, Devon Levi, and Matt Tomkins, none of whom had done anything to inspire confidence at the NHL level as of late.
Jarry's season debut didn't inspire much confidence either, but when he got his second chance of the season against the San Jose Sharks, he was a brick wall against one of the NHL's top young teams allowing just a single goal on 20 shots. He continued that momentum against the Utah Mammoth, allowing two goals on 28 shots before hitting a bit of a roadblock against the Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings.
From there, Jarry led the Oilers to a 4-0 win in the Battle of Alberta against the Calgary Flames before continuing his hot streak against the New York Islanders on Halloween night. His efforts in those two games helped earn him the honor being named the NHL's Second Star of the Week.
It remains to be seen whether or not this is a true bounce back season for Jarry or if it's just a flash in the pan. He's shown that he still has the talent, he just needs to find a way to be playing at that level consistently.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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