In the game against the San Jose Sharks Leon Draisaitl left the game early and did not return. This is a huge blow for an Edmonton Oilers team that is already without Connor McDavid and Mattias Ekholm. Not to mention other players who have been not played a game for the Oilers this season Evander Kane and Trent Frederic. With Frederic being just back in the lineup and Kane not back till the playoffs. For the Oilers at this point it is very unlikely that they will not make the playoffs so at this point in my opinion I think it would be best for the Oilers to not risk the health of their superstars.
Right now this team is pretty much locked in at least the 3rd spot in the Pacific Division. While having home ice in the first round would be nice, it’s not worth jeopardizing the Stanley Cup run is not worth it. This Oilers team has played a lot of hockey over the past year and giving you top players a break right before a playoff run has almost no negative impact. The only bad thing is that these players would be coming into the playoffs cold and without playing many games. While you want to be rolling heading into a playoff run, missing one of your top players would be much worse than that.
For McDavid, he has played more hockey than almost anyone in the last year. The Oilers went all the way to game 7 of the Cup Final. He then played a majority of the regular season and then he went all the way to the final of the World Cup of Hockey. There are not many players that have played as much as him, so a couple more games off could help this team on its cup run.
Another thing this does is it gives your depth players a chance to handle more of the workload. When you have McDavid and Draisaitl on your team you know who will get all the top minutes and powerplay time. With them not in the lineup other players are getting much better looks. The two main players have been Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson, while the two superstars are out these two players have been much more noticeable. In a perfect world they can keep playing the way they are now when this team gets fully healthy. This would really assist the Oilers in their hoped to win the Stanley Cup.
While having McDavid, Draisatil and Ekholm in right now could help get the Oilers home ice in the first round and possibly a Pacific Division win, their health for the playoffs is more important. The Oilers should just have these players sit and recover the rest of the season, this way they can come in rested and at 100% for the playoffs. For me as an Oilers fan I would rather see this team have playoff wins than win game 78 of the regular season.