BLOG: Koskinen's simple approach

EDMONTON, AB- Goaltender Mikko Koskinen is just as capable of blocking out the noise and the numbers as he is at stopping shots from NHL shooters.
When asked after Monday's morning skate if the Finnish netminder is ready to shoulder the majority of the workload in the Oilers crease over the club's final 23 games, Koskinen quickly confirmed his readiness to lead the Oilers to a playoff spot from the blue paint before brushing away questions on his fatigue as a fabrication.
"Yeah," Koskinen stated. "I think that's something that [the media] made up in their heads. I'm not going to buy that. I'm going to do my thing and go one day at a time. I'm not worried about that."
The 33-year-old is an exceptional 9-1-2 in his last 13 appearances (12 starts) with a 2.46 goals-against average, .922 save percentage, and one shutout, but the only statistic that matters for the Vantaa, Finland native if the Oilers are going to secure a shot at the Stanley Cup is the 32 victories in the win column.
"I'm only interested in the standings," he said. "We need to be in the playoffs to win the Stanley Cup, so I don't care about anything else. I think that's how every player should [do it].
"When the season's over, you can have a look there, but it's not even the stats. You know after the game if you played well or not. You can have a .850 save percentage after the game and have still played well, or maybe a .920 and didn't play that well, so those are just stats and we're more worried about the standings."

Head Coach Jay Woodcroft has observed a consummate professional in the big Finn since he became bench boss of the Oilers just over a month ago, characterizing Koskinen as someone who's single-minded in his approach towards improving his game and controlling the aspects he has influence over to make the biggest impact on Edmonton's playoff aspirations.
"I would use the term that he's 'team first'," Woodcroft said. "The most important stat he cares about is wins, and I think that's the way he carries himself. He's been playing very well for us here lately.
"I think in my experience being around Mikko, the impression I have is someone who's dialed in and very focused on doing his job. He's not worried about doing anyone else's job other than his own, so I've been very impressed with his level of concentration and focus just on trying to play his part."
The Finn's confidence in the crease is trickling down to the rest of the players in the dressing room knowing they have a resilient goalie behind them that's prepared with a single focus each night to backstop the Oilers to victory.

"He's been unbelievable for us," defenceman Evan Bouchard said. "His record in his past 11 or 12 games is off the charts and he's won us some games, which has been huge inside the room. Everybody respects him. You see the work he puts in, and everyone appreciates someone like that and wants to win for someone like that."
Koskinen put the onus on himself in the offseason to improve his speed and movement in the crease so that he can cover more angles and set himself in the right spots on the smaller ice for when shots from NHL shooters arrive at his net.
A better team defence at even strength under Woodcroft's coaching staff, including the Oilers players in front of him doing a better job at limiting chances off the rush and on the cycle, have meshed with Koskinen's off-season work to produce a great stretch of form for the Finn in between the pipes over his last dozen starts.
To Koskinen, that importance placed on team defence was exemplified perfectly in a great 4-1 team win for the Oilers over the two-time Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.

"For me, it feels like we're playing tighter," he said. "We're taking time and space away, which makes the reads easier for me when there's no time and space. You kind of knew where the puck was going to go next, and that's been a big part of our game over the last couple of weeks.
"I think the way we played, it gives us a lot of confidence. We played a really good game, I think one of the best so far in the year, and that gives everyone a confidence boost. We have to make sure that we use that in the next couple of games.
As much as Koskinen isn't going to evaluate stats heavily, he also isn't going to dwell too long on results whether it's a big victory or a tough defeat.
When he takes to the crease on Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings after being confirmed by Woodcroft as the Oilers starter for the fourth straight game, it's a clean slate.
"It doesn't matter. The past is past, and tomorrow is a new game," he said. "You just have to keep your focus there. When you start thinking about what happened in the past, you're going to lose the next game, so it's not really helpful."