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Eakins wants to see if Scrivens is ‘for real’

Richard Bachman

Edmonton Oilers goalie Richard Bachman (30) deflects a shot on-goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the New York Rangers, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014, in New York. The Oilers won the game 2-1. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

AP

Since joining the Edmonton Oilers in a trade, Ben Scrivens has stood on his head. While he’s gone 3-3-0 in his six games there, his numbers are outstanding.

Oilers coach Dallas Eakins has Scrivens and Ilya Bryzgalov in goal and said he’ll ride the hot hand. As Chris O’Leary of the Edmonton Journal shares, he wants to know if Scrivens is the real deal.

“There’s a part of me that yeah, I want to see if Scrivens is for real,” Eakins said. “I’d like to give him more games, but then the delicate balance is handing and giving things to people. But (Scrivens) has earned his starts and, as of late, Bryz has earned his too. I think coming out of the break we’ll probably tiptoe into it a bit and get both guys up to speed.”

The Olympic break came at a poor time for Scrivens as he was playing strong including a record-setting 59-save shutout against the San Jose Sharks. The same can be said of Bryzgalov as well as his past three starts have also been strong, albeit without setting any records.

That said the opportunity is there for Scrivens to grab hold of the No. 1 job and not let go. That first opportunity to lock it down may come when the Oilers host the Minnesota Wild on Thursday.

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