The Edmonton Oilers have finally found some form of late, winning five of their past seven games and securing a playoff spot and a first round rematch with the Los Angeles Kings. On top of this some of their walking wounded have returned to action, including most noticeably Connor McDavid and Stuart Skinner.
However, another player who made his return from injury on Friday night against the San Jose Sharks, has apparently suffered what could be a significant setback. As per Sportsnet, the Oilers are now bracing for the genuine possibility that Mattias Ekholm could be out for the rest of the season.
Ekholm only lasted two shifts against the Sharks, before leaving the game and not returning. Discussing the situation on Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday night, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman said: "A pretty innocuous-looking play that Ekholm suffered last night and immediately the news after the game was (that) it wasn't good. They haven't said anything officially yet because I still think they're trying to determine the exact recovery period, that's number one."
Oilers looking at a potentially bleak outlook
Then came the bombshell from Friedman, as he said: "Number two, there's no confirmation on the exact injury, although there's been some rumbling that it's not the same one that he came back from to play in this particular game. They are preparing for the potential worst possible scenario, and that is he might not play the rest of the year."
If true this is a crushing blow for the Oilers, with Ekholm being their best defenceman and one of the leaders on the team. As things stand, the thinking is that he will at least miss the remainder of the regular season and then probably the team's first round playoff series versus the Kings.
Ekholm has only played five games for the Oilers since Mar. 4, but still stands out for his contributions and rankings on the team statistically. He's tied-sixth with 33 points, fifth with a +11 rating, tied-fourth with 95 blocks and third among all skaters with an average ice time of 22:12.
Oilers will miss the overall influence of Mattias Ekholm
Of course Ekholm's influence goes beyond the numbers and extends to the intangibles he brings to the ice. He has been an absolute revelation and cornerstone of the Oilers' success since he arrived in a trade from Nashville in Feb. 2023.
The feeling is that the Oilers can survive without Ekholm, with the belief that this is one of the best overall blue line corps in Edmonton for quite some time. And certainly having a six-man unit including Evan Bouchard, Darnell Nurse, Jake Walman, Brett Kulak, Ty Emberson and Troy Stecher is a strong collection.
However, it just isn't as good without Ekholm, no matter how you want to paint the picture. If he's only gone for a couple of weeks then the Oilers should have just enough to get by, but if it is the worst -case scenario, the team is going to be in a lot of trouble.
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