Oilers injury updates on Evander Kane and Troy Stecher

Even during the offseason, injuries are still an important focus for the Edmonton Oilers specifically, and NHL teams as a whole. Plus, it's always good to get an idea of any injury situations, regardless of what time of year it is.

In this respect, the Oilers are actually in a very healthy position on the injury front, with few issues. Let's take a look at them now:

Evander Kane

To say Kane was battling adversity all season long, would be an understatement. However, we've talking about actual genuine challenges as opposed to any other perceived adversity.

The main issue the 32-year-old was dealing with was a sports hernia, which hampered him throughout the 2023-24 campaign. For the most part he did extremely well to deal with it, at times being the Oilers' best player on the ice - which tells you everything you need to know about his toughness and talent.

However, the situation become more complicated when Kane also developed a hip issue. Eventually it all became too much to overcome, with him finally becoming largely ineffective.

In a cruel twist of fate, this turn of events came at the beginning of the Stanley Cup Final, after the Vancouver native had finally gotten to the biggest stage you can offer an NHL player, in his 15th season. He played in the first two games, but by this point he had become a liability through no fault of his own.

As a result, Kane was removed from the lineup and didn't appear again during the final five games versus the Florida Panthers. This is of course a shame for the player, but also tells you just how bad his injuries were.

We're at a point now where the Oilers are theoretically ready to move on from Kane, who still has two seasons remaining on his current contract, with an annual value of $5.125 million. However, his injury issues are complicating matters, with no decision having been made yet, on if surgery is needed.

As a result of this, there has been some speculation the Oilers will place the 2009 fourth overall draft pick on the Long Term Injured Reserve List for this coming season. Through no fault of his own, Kane continues to remain in the headlines and it will be interesting to see how things play out in the next two-to-three months.

Troy Stecher

Unlike Kane, there is no uncertainty surrounding Stecher's place within the Oilers organisation for the 2024-25 season. He was re-signed to a two-year, $1.575 million deal on the first day of free agency.

This speaks volumes about the Oilers' lack of concern regarding the 30-year-old's recent injury setback, with him expected to be back and healthy before training camp begins. This is surely welcome news for fans, after all the issues surrounding his health.

Stecher arrived in Edmonton after a trade with the then-Arizona Coyotes on Mar. 7. After playing in the Coyotes' second-pairing, he was expected to add excellent depth as part of the Oilers' third pairing.

Except Stecher only went on to play seven regular season games for the Oilers, with no further appearances come playoff time. In the playoffs specifically, a big part of the reason for this was down to the overall health and stability of the defencemen, although when the decision was made to change it up, Philip Broberg got the nod instead.

This was partly because, after the situation being originally downplayed, it turns out the Stecher's injury was actually quite a nasty one. As per Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal, the blueliner had a cyst on his ankle -- already there before his trade from Arizona -- which subsequently became infected.

This got so bad, that the Richmond, British Columbia native couldn't fit his foot into his boot, so the cyst had to be drained. However, this provided only temporary relief, as the cyst became painful and he had to stop practising with the rest of the team.

Stecher would eventually go to see a doctor, who advised the cyst was feeding off his body, leading to him undergoing surgery. The projection is he will return to the ice at some point during August, with the Oilers looking forward to taking advantage of his veteran NHL experience and leadership during the 2024-25 campaign.

Other notes

After the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Final, it was revealed both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl had been playing with injuries. McDavid's unconfirmed injury does not require any off-season surgery, while Draisaitl is resting and recovering from hand and rib injuries.

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