EDMONTON — It took until Game 78 of the regular season for the Edmonton Oilers to punch their ticket to the playoffs, but they’re back where they’re supposed to be.
“It’s been up and down,” veteran Corey Perry said about the season, “but that X is beside our name.”
Now the most pressing question: What will the team look like when it gets there?
The Oilers beat the San Jose Sharks 4-2 on Friday to qualify for the postseason for the sixth consecutive season. They needed just one point to ensure the rival Calgary Flames couldn’t pass them for third in the Pacific Division.
However, already playing without four impactful regulars, including Hart Trophy candidate Leon Draisaitl, the Oilers lost stars Mattias Ekholm and Zach Hyman against the Sharks. Both left the game and didn’t return.
Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said it’s “a possibility” that one of the two players won’t be ready to start the playoffs. He wouldn’t say which one, but the more likely of the two is Ekholm. Knoblauch said Hyman was bothered by an ailment he’d been playing through and didn’t feel like he should continue.
“It’s tough to see another two big (players) go down,” Perry said. “They play a lot of minutes. They play important roles for our team. But we’ll get through this and move forward.”
The Oilers are limping toward the playoffs, figuratively and literally.
They were third in the NHL by points percentage before a Jan. 30 game against the Detroit Red Wings. Friday’s win was just their 14th in 29 games since. Their 34 regulation wins on the season are good for sixth in the Western Conference, one ahead of Minnesota.
They are now likely to start a first-round series on the road for the first time with Draisaitl and Connor McDavid on the roster.
Injuries have made the last few weeks an uphill battle for the Oilers, something further exacerbated on Friday with Ekholm’s and Hyman’s departures.
“It’s tough to see,” blueliner Brett Kulak said. “You want all your guys in the lineup, let alone that most of our impactful guys are coming out. It’s not like this has happened the last couple days. It’s been a month or so now.”
Ekholm returned to the lineup Friday after sitting out the last seven games, and 13 of the past 17, with a lower-body ailment. That second attempt at a return lasted just three shifts and 1:52 after he fell twice, the second time when he got tangled up with the Sharks’ Ty Dellandrea in the neutral zone.
Hyman left the game midway through the second period. Those departures left the Oilers with 11 forwards and five defencemen and only added to the lengthy list of sidelined players.
The most important of whom is Draisaitl, who remains out with a lower-body ailment. He’s missed the last four games and eight of the past 11 due to injury. Knoblauch expects him back before the playoffs.
“I would like to get a game or two, but I also want to put myself in a situation where I’m not making it any worse,” Draisaitl said Friday morning. “I want to be smart about it and be careful with it, cautious with it. Those are the steps that we’re taking right now.”
Knoblauch said winger Trent Frederic (ankle) might not be available for Game 1 of the playoffs. Frederic, who was acquired March 4 from Boston, was limited to just 7:10 in his Oilers debut Saturday in Los Angeles after suffering a setback.
Draisaitl, Frederic and Ekholm are all players who’ve made it back into the lineup only to leave again in short order. In Ekholm’s case, it’s now happened twice.
“We’ve been very fortunate in the past about our injuries, not losing guys,” Knoblauch said when asked about those three players. “Now, our luck has run out. We’ve been very unfortunate with those. Just some freak accidents and feeling those players were ready to return. Unfortunate circumstances. That can always happen.”
And then there’s Evander Kane. He hasn’t played all season, and the status of the 33-year-old winger for the start of the playoffs hasn’t been determined.
Jake Walman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also missed the last two games with an injury and illness, respectively, but both should be back in the lineup before the playoffs. Depth defenceman John Klingberg (foot) was put on LTIR on Wednesday, ruling him out as an option for the rest of the regular season.
At least they got a couple of players back this week.
McDavid came back Wednesday after an eight-game absence with a lower-body injury. He recorded three assists in a 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Blues and added another four helpers against the Sharks.
“He’s come in and looked like Connor McDavid,” Perry said.
“It’s remarkable (him) coming back and playing at the level he has,” Knoblauch added.
Goalie Stuart Skinner (head) was also medically cleared and backed up Calvin Pickard on Friday after being unavailable for seven contests.
On top of all the problems in recent weeks, there is uncertainty about who will start in net when the Oilers open the playoffs.
Skinner has been out of commission since getting an inadvertent knee in the head from the Dallas Stars’ Mikko Rantanen on March 26. Pickard has more impressive numbers and has helped the Oilers weather the storm in Skinner’s absence. He stopped 22 shots on Friday.
Skinner is scheduled to start two of the remaining three games, but it’s an open competition for who will be tabbed for Game 1.
“We are going to play the goalie that’s playing the best and giving us the best opportunity to win that night,” Knoblauch said before Friday’s game.
That’s a lot of question marks for the defending Western Conference champions and the preseason Stanley Cup favourites.
They’ve got three games remaining to cobble together a lineup and sort out key personnel issues before the first round begins.
“There’s nothing you can do,” Perry said. “If guys can’t play, they can’t play. You have to rally around the guys that are on the ice and come together. We have a group in here that can step up and fill holes and play bigger minutes, play bigger roles and get the job done.”
(Top photo: Walter Tychnowicz / Imagn Images)
