EDMONTON — The Edmonton Oilers without both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl? What kind of sorcery is this?
They never miss the same game, do they?
“I think it's first time those two have not been available since they've ever played,” said Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch, who announced on Friday that neither Oilers superstar is expected to play in the next week.
“I'd say (McDavid is) day to day, maybe a week,” he said.
And Draisaitl?
“Same kind of timeline. Won’t be back immediately. He’ll be probably up to a week.”
McDavid appeared to tweak something in his groin or core area — sheer speculation — Thursday night against the Winnipeg Jets. He missed his last shift of the second period and did not return to the game.
Draisaitl, meanwhile, got tangled up the previous game against Utah, yet still played 22:23 in a 7-1 Oilers win.
“The next day they re-evaluated him and figured out that it was more than they anticipated,” Knoblauch said.
Neither player practised on Friday or was made available to the media.
There was some good news for Oilers fans on Friday, however. Goalie Stuart Skinner, who was taken out of Thursday’s game by the concussion spotter after a collision in his crease with Winnipeg’s Gabriel Vilardi, is healthy and declared good to go for Saturday’s home game against the Seattle Kraken.
With 12 healthy forwards in town and limited call-ups as mandated by league rules, Knoblauch said Edmonton won’t be calling anybody up from AHL Bakersfield for Saturday’s game. If it was a playoff game would either Draisaitl or McDavid suck it up and play?
“I don’t think they would,” Knoblauch said, a sign that these are real injuries and not just precautionary rest.
Still, on a team with Stanley Cup aspirations, health decisions can change a bit at this time of year, with 13 regular season games remaining and playoffs looming after that.
“We have to be cognizant about what's ahead of us. The playoffs are very important, and pushing guys to make themselves worse is not ideal. But even if it was Game 5 or 6 (of a playoff series), we wouldn't want to put somebody in (that) position,” he said. “The schedule has something to do with it, but ultimately it comes down to the medical staff saying when the player should return and how much time they should have off.”
Meanwhile, Knoblauch has to field a set of four lines Saturday that lack his top two centres and minutes leaders. McDavid (22:08) and Draisaitl (21:39) play more minutes per game than any other Oilers forward.
“You look at our lineup,” Knoblauch said. “Let's just say it’s mid-January, just a typical game, and you look at the minutes certain guys have played. There are numerous guys who can handle (more), guys who play 10 or 12 minutes. (Adam) Henrique plays 14, 15 minutes? He could certainly play more.”
Knoblauch also said Friday that trade deadline acquisition Trent Frederic was still two weeks away from playing his first game as an Oiler.
Evander Kane skated with the team for the second straight day, but his return is too far off to put a date on.
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