The Edmonton Oilers did what they’ve been doing all season, chilling on a see-saw. After racking up a season-high five-game winning streak, the Oilers were brought back down to earth with a 5-1 humbling at the hands of their Pacific Division rivals, the Vegas Golden Knights.
While they could very well face Vegas in the first round of the playoffs, Edmonton will point to the absence of Leon Draisaitl as evidence that they have something else in store if they face off against the Golden Knights in the first round. However, the German superstar’s availability is not exactly cut and dry despite the playoffs inching closer.
Oilers HC Drops Leon Draisaitl Injury Update
In the middle of March, Draisaitl suffered an injury that ruled him out of the rest of the regular season. Oilers fans immediately started panicking, but the organization moved quickly to calm the waters, announcing that while they expected their German sharpshooter to miss the regular season, he was on track to suit up for the playoffs.
That timeline may have to be adjusted a bit. Speaking to reporters ahead of their Tuesday night game against the Utah Mammoth, Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch told Sportsnet’s Mark Spector that as things stand, Draisaitl’s only a “maybe” to be back in time for Game 1 of the playoffs.
“Leon is going to be on the ice this week. I don’t anticipate him playing any games in the regular season. Playoffs, sometime in the first round, if things go well. I’m not ruling that out [Game 1 availability], but there’s a period of time that we anticipated him returning,” Knoblauch outlined.
“We said it would be right around the end of regular season, start of playoffs. If he gets in that first game, great. He has not been on the ice yet. We anticipate he’ll be on the ice sometime this week,” the Oilers HC noted.
Knoblauch’s update on Draisaitl’s injury will not offer much solace to fans in Edmonton, especially coming off the back of a 5-1 defeat to the Golden Knights.
In late March, Draisaitl visited a specialist in Germany to try to accelerate the timeline for his return. Speaking to Sky Germany at the time, the Oilers star said, “It will definitely take a few weeks. I hope we go far enough so I can help the team again.”
While those words may come across as ominous, GM Stan Bowman echoed the same sentiment at the time, expressing confidence that Draisaitl would be back for a playoff push.
However, Leon Draisaitl’s injury isn’t the only one the Oilers are sweating over. Winger Zach Hyman was ruled out of the last game, sparking some concern. However, unlike Draisaitl, Hyman’s expected to return before the regular season finale.
“Hyman is going to play one, if not two, games before the end of the season, so this week he’s not playing,” Knoblauch told reporters.
As things stand, the Oilers are set up to make another run at the Stanley Cup Final push. Their trade deadline additions have gelled in well, their goaltending situation is clearer, and their blueliners have finally been playing to their strengths, thanks in part to Paul Coffey’s return to Knoblauch’s staff.
All that’s left is to lock in the Pacific Division lead and go from there to give Draisaitl the most comfortable platform to make his return.
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