Penguins see strong results by platooning Tristan Jarry, Arturs Silovs

Dan Muse isn’t a carbon copy of his predecessor as coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Mike Sullivan. But similarities do exist.

Both hail from Boston, and both speak with accents rooted in the Bay State. And like Sullivan, Muse readily allows players to avoid the ice during optional morning skates for the sake of self-preservation.

Another common trait? Neither will identify his starting goaltender before the day of a game.

But through six contests of the Penguins season, one could logically conclude Arturs Silovs will be in net for Tuesday’s home game against his former team, the Vancouver Canucks.

At least that’s what would be congruent with the platoon the team has developed less than two weeks into the 2025-26 campaign.

Silovs and Tristan Jarry have hitherto started every other game, and that division of labor has produced fairly strong results.

A rookie with parts of three NHL seasons on his resume, Silovs has a 2-1-0 record, a 2.67 goals-against average, a .922 save percentage along with one shutout (which came in a 3-0 win against the New York Rangers in the season opener Oct. 7).

As for Jarry, a 10-year veteran, his mark is 2-1-0, as well, along with a 2.35 goals-against average, a .922 save percentage and one shutout (which came in a 3-0 road win against the San Jose Sharks on Saturday).

“Obviously, it’s gone pretty well so far,” Jarry said Monday in Cranberry. “It’s been good, just pushing each other. It’s really helped us manage workload. When you have both guys playing well, it really helps and it’s been working well.”

The Penguins didn’t exactly enter the season with a platoon in mind. But it wasn’t a happy accident either. It kind of happened organically.

“This year, we didn’t go in there saying going into training camp we want to get into a spot where the goalies are to this point what you’ve seen switching from game to game,” Muse said. “We’ve felt both guys deserved to be getting the opportunities that they’ve been given. They’ve continued to. We’re still taking it looking at things every day.”

Assuming Tuesday is a day Silovs starts, he’s eager to play against the team that selected him in the sixth round (No. 156 overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft.

In July, the Canucks were partially forced to trade him to the Penguins as a result of a logjam at the position.

“It was fun to play for them,” Silovs said. “They have a lot of great (resources) there. It was the move they had to make. If I play or not, I think it’s going to be a fun challenge.”

Platoons in goal aren’t anything new, especially to the Penguins. In recent years, Jarry largely split games to varying degrees with the likes Matt Murray, Casey DeSmith and Alex Nedeljkovic.

But platooning in an orderly fashion of every other game is unique.

“You’ve got to be ready for any given night,” Jarry said. “Just the way it’s been going back and forth, you obviously know which game you’re going to play a little bit before. (Silovs) has done a great job. So it’s just been preparing for the games that I have to.”

The days of a starting goaltender being bolted into the crease for more than 70 games a season largely have gone the way of wooden sticks and goalies wearing cages (instead of masks). The reality is that two goaltenders — if not more — need to punch a time card regularly to get a team through an entire regular season, to say nothing of a successful playoff run.

“I think it’s load management,” Silovs said. “Splitting the games, I guess you’re less prone to injury. (In) practice, you can do your things you need to prepare for the game. I think it’s good.”

As for their teammates, the difference between Jarry and Silovs has been minimal, particularly with regards to their duties in handling the puck.

“At the beginning, it was just getting (Silovs) used to our calls,” defenseman Ryan Shea said. “Obviously, (Jarry) has known them for a long time. After the first probably week, (Silovs) caught on. Him and (Jarry) are probably one of the two better goaltenders, I would say, at playing the puck and their confidence. It’s like having a third (defenseman) on the breakout. They’re both exceptionally good at it.”

It remains to be seen how long the Penguins continue alternating starts for Jarry and Silovs. But so far, the results have sated all parties concerned.

“You get a little bit more rest,” Jarry said. “So you’re prepared, you’re ready. That’s exactly it, just being prepared and ready when you get the opportunity to be in net.

“Obviously, with (Silovs) and I splitting, it’s been pretty good so far.”