Artūrs Šilovs had a wild summer. He backstopped the Abbotsford Canucks to the club’s first Calder Cup in the AHL in late June. Only a few weeks later, with the Vancouver Canucks’ crease a bit overcrowded, Šilovs was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for prospect Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round draft pick.

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Fast forward to Tuesday night and Šilovs was the confirmed starter for the Pens in their season-opening game on the road against the New York Rangers. 

The Latvian netminder had no guarantee that he would get the net with veteran Tristan Jarry still holding it down in Pittsburgh, but getting the nod for opening night is a great vote of confidence from the club that acquired him this summer. 

Head coach Dan Muse told the assembled media that he expects both goalies to play throughout the season, but Šilovs had a good camp and earned the opportunity.

Arturs Silovs will make the opening night start for the #Penguins in New York.

Dan Muse:

“Silovs has a good camp. We’re going to be looking at both Arturs & Tristan to come up big early this season.” pic.twitter.com/iLjjQYUnmG

— Joe Brand (@Joe_Brand1) October 7, 2025

A goalie’s career arc is always interesting to follow. For Šilovs, his has been winding even though he was in the same organization for a number of years. He had a number of call-ups with Vancouver including during the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs where he ended up appearing in 10 games. 

But he spent most of last year in the AHL and only played 10 NHL games over the course of the season with poor results. 

Things really seemed to turn for Šilovs during the Calder Cup Playoffs, though. He was dominant for two straight months, making the Abbotsford Canucks the story of the season and the team to beat almost all on his own.

He was named the Calder Cup Playoffs MVP after posting a .931 save percentage in the postseason, winning 16 of 23 starts with five shutouts along the way. His ability to close the door on series was practically legendary, allowing two or fewer goals in each clinching game – including a pair of shutouts.

🎉 The Abbotsford Arty Party continued in Game 4 as the Canucks took a 3-1 series lead in the Calder Cup Finals@abbycanucks | @Canucks | @CanucksArmy #AHL #CalderCup #ProudlyAbbotsford #Canucks pic.twitter.com/G2XfAcXTbf

— FloHockey (@FloHockey) June 20, 2025

This opportunity with the Penguins is well earned. Šilovs has proven himself at a number of levels and the goaltending position is one that Pittsburgh sorely needs some stability as they look to maintain some level of competitiveness in Sidney Crosby’s twilight years in the league.

At just 24 years old, Šilovs is still young for a goalie and has had a boatload of positive experiences to bring with him to the NHL.

This Penguins team looks like it could be pretty leaky, which means he’s going to have his work cut out for him. But it seems like Šilovs is ever closer to being an AHL graduate and a full-time NHLer. The best opportunity of his career awaits.

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