Stuart Skinner has been in the hot seat lately, but not exactly in the way a goalie dreams of. After the Oilers took down the Canadiens and the Stars, they shockingly fell to a Sabres squad that hadn’t seen a win since February. Yep, you heard that right—the Sabres ended a six-game losing skid, and Oilers fans didn’t waste any time to start blaming. And who’s taking the heat? None other than Skinner himself. The fans expressed their anger on X with one of them even capturing it all in one tweet, “The Sabres were on a 6-game losing streak… then they played Stuart Skinner’s Oilers.” Ouch.
But while all that is happening, Skinner is not just standing tall in the crease but is gaining superstar status. In a twist no one saw coming, he’s now receiving Edmonton honors that put him in the same berth as Connor McDavid himself. That’s right! While the critics pile on, the Oilers netminder is still collecting major respect, proving that even under fire, he’s got that undeniable game-changer energy.
Stuart Skinner’s season has been a wild ride, but Edmonton’s about to serve up something extra special in his honor—literally. Get ready, Oilers fans, because Pizza 73 is flipping the script and temporarily renaming itself Pizza 74 in a nod to the hometown goalie’s jersey number. And that’s not all—along with the name change, they’re rolling out a limited-time feast called the “Skinner Dinner” that brings the heat with a large two-topping pizza and three drinks for just $18.99. A steal, right?
Skinner himself couldn’t be more excited, calling it a privilege to be associated with a company that has been around Edmonton for years. And here is the best part–this is not just a low-profile cooperation. The new logo of Pizza 74 has appeared, and soon, it will be illuminated during the Oilers’ games. The official Pizza 74 website is also yet to be launched and is expected to be launched anytime soon, making this partnership look even bigger.
“Pizza 73, temporarily now Pizza 74, is proud to partner with Stuart Skinner, a true local hero,” said Pizza 73’s marketing director, Adam Williamson. No word yet on how long this crispy, cheesy goodness will last, but one thing’s for sure—whether fans are celebrating wins or drowning their sorrows, they’ll be doing it with some budget-friendly game-day pizza, all thanks to their goalie. But he isn’t the first one to get this honor!
Not just Stuart Skinner, but his teammate too!
In February, Stuart Skinner’s teammate, Connor McDavid, was not only scoring goals on the ice—he was taking over McDonald’s too. After his jaw-dropping overtime goal sealed Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off victory against the U.S., the fast-food giant decided it was time to give the Oilers’ superstar the ultimate tribute. For one full week, two McDonald’s locations—one in Newmarket and another in Edmonton—ditched their golden arches branding for something even more legendary: McDavid’s. It turns out this was actually a long-overdue promise from McDonald’s, originally meant to happen if McDavid’s Oilers had defeated the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final.
That didn’t go as planned, but hey, better late than never, right?
But a simple name change wasn’t nearly enough. McDonald’s went all in, rolling out a chef’s kiss promo to match the occasion. At the Newmarket location, fans could snag World Famous Fries for just $0.97 (because, obviously, #97) from Feb. 28 to March 2, with a five-order limit per customer—though let’s be real, some fans probably found a way around that. And if that wasn’t enough, McDavid’s already-popular Big Mac-David burger had been making waves on menus for weeks, right alongside Auston Matthews’ Smoky Quarter Papi. Clearly, the Golden Arches knew exactly how to fuel up hockey fans.
And now that the Edmonton Oilers are eyeing another deep playoff run, who knows what other interesting honors the likes of McDavid and Skinner may receive?
The post Stuart Skinner Receives Connor McDavid-Like Edmonton Honors Despite Ongoing Backlash appeared first on EssentiallySports.