The New York Islanders drafted goaltender Jakub Skarek with the 72nd pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. Normally third-round picks don’t pan out for a couple of years, but I think it’s time to call it on Skarek. He was an average goalie coming out of Czechoslovakia.
Now, Skarek is one of the worst goalies I’ve ever seen. Jakub Skarek was loaned out to Mestis in order to hone in on his skills before returning to Bridgeport. Skarek hasn’t won a game, and he’s started all four games. He currently has a GAA of 4.44 and a save percentage of .833%. There are multiple reasons why it’s time to give up on Jakub Skarek.
Depth
I view Jakub Skarek as the 5th goalie in the Islanders’ system. Obviously, Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin are numbers 1 and 2. Cory Schneider is number 3 just off his veteran experience.
Then, I say Henrik Tikkanen is the 4th goalie in the depth chart. I base this off of what he’s currently doing in Finland. In 9 games at Mestis, he’s rocking a 2.55 GAA, and a .901 save percentage. These two goalies are in the same league, and one is way better than the other one. Despite Skarek having 30 games of experience in North America, I’m giving this one to Henrik Tikkanen.
Regression
As I’ve said before, when the Islanders drafted Skarek, he was an average goalie from Czechoslovakia. Now, Skarek can’t save a volleyball from scoring. Jason Chimera, who has literal cataracts, could score easily on Jakub Skarek. Ever since 2018, when Skarek played in the International Juniors, he’s been a liability.
His stats in that tournament was a 6.75 GAA, and a .808 save percentage in 4 games. Then he went on to post a 3.27 GAA, and a .888 save percentage in Bridgeport. I like him as a person, but he needs to get out of his head ASAP.