Oilers HC provides major injury updates on star trio amid playoff push

Edmonton Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch provided an update on his host of injured players Wednesday, noting that all of Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Mattias Ekholm are now considered day-to-day and should return to the lineup ahead of the upcoming Stanley Cup Playoffs, per Tom Gazzola of Edmonton Sports Talk.

For McDavid, the Oilers captain has been sidelined since mid-March due to a lower-body ailment, a stretch that has seen him miss the past eight games. Despite the extended absence, the five-time Art Ross Trophy winner and reigning Conn Smythe Trophy recipient remains second in Oilers scoring with 90 points counting 26 goals and 64 assists coming in 63 games this season.

Also up front, Draisaitl has continued to battle an undisclosed injury in recent weeks. After missing four games through late March, the 29-year-old German-born forward returned for three games before exiting midway through the third contest. Draisaitl did not return and has since missed the two subsequent games. On the season, Draisaitl sits third in the Art Ross Trophy race with 106 points, behind only Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning, while his 52 goals rank tops leaguewide, eight ahead of second-placed William Nylander of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Like Draisaitl, Ekholm has missed no shortage of game action in recent weeks. Following a six-game absence due to an illness, the veteran defenseman returned for four games before suffering an undisclosed injury that has kept him out of the lineup for the past six games. Skating in his second full season with the Oilers, the 34-year-old Swedish-born rearguard has made 64 appearances in 2024-25 in which he has collected nine goals and 24 assists for 33 points.

With five games remaining in their regular-season schedule, the Oilers sit third place in the Pacific Division with a 44-28-5 record and four points shy of the second-placed Los Angeles Kings.