Along with Draisaitl, forward Zach Hyman will return for Game 1. He missed the last three games of the season with an undisclosed injury. Defenseman Jake Walman is also expected to play after sitting out the last five games with an undisclosed injury.
Defensemen Mattias Ekholm (undisclosed), Troy Stecher (undisclosed), and forward Trent Frederic (ankle) are still out. Ekholm is expected to miss the entire series. Forward Evander Kane (sports hernia, knee), and defenseman John Klingberg (lower body) have yet to be activated off injured reserve.
Because of all the injuries, Edmonton has been unable to put together a consistent lineup leading into the postseason, but that does not concern Draisaitl.
“We have one new player that’s going to come in at some point that has only played one game with us (Frederic), other than that, we’ve all played together,” Draisaitl said. “We’ve played together plenty of times. It’s just a matter of going out there, having the right mindset and getting to work.”
Defenseman Brett Kulak did not practice on Sunday, returning to Alberta to accompany his wife in anticipation of the birth of their second child. Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch hopes he will be back for Game 1.
Knoblauch has been busy getting the lineup sorted with so many players out, but he likes the state of the Oilers, who are looking to go on another extended playoff run after making it to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final last season.
“I feel very confident with it, just because we have a lot of very good hockey players,” Knoblauch said. “Ultimately, that’s the most important thing, is having a lot of good players. Now, constructing it and putting the guys in the right positions to play on the power play and penalty kill, lines and stuff like that is important, but the most important is having a good group of guys, and we have that.”
