Matt Tomkins made 27 saves in his seventh NHL start and helped the Edmonton Oilers beat the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
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Matt Tomkins delivered a standout performance for the Edmonton Oilers in his seventh NHL start, backstopping the team to an 11th win in 15 games to begin the season.
Tomkins was making his first start since April 17, 2024, and he stopped 27 of the 28 shots he faced in a win over the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Edmonton captain Connor McDavid said Tomkins “was awesome for us,” adding that he “just gave us a chance to win.”
McDavid also described Tomkins’ play as “just solid, honestly: made the saves he needed to and gave us a chance.”
Tomkins, 32, has been working through a long path that included earlier playing stops in the minors with teams such as the Indy Fuel and Rockford IceHogs, and in Sweden with Frolunda and Farjestads BK.
He also tended goal at Ohio State and became Canada’s starter at the 2022 Olympics in the Beijing bubble after the NHL pulled out at the last minute.
Tomkins debuted in the NHL in 2023, a few months after turning 29.
In the 928 days since he started for the Tampa Bay Lightning in their 2023-24 regular-season finale, Tomkins played 74 games in the AHL with the Syracuse Crunch and Bakersfield Condors.
The immediate opportunity with Edmonton came after injuries to fellow goaltenders Devon Levi and Frederik Andersen and the team’s weekend scheduling of games on back-to-back days.
Tomkins said the “human element” can create “a little bit of doubt,” explaining that “there’s only 64 jobs at any given time and incredible goalies all over the world are fighting for them every single day.”
He said he was excited to get the call and described his approach as trying “to enjoy the day and take it all in and do my part to contribute and help the team win.”
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