Considering the wide-open nature of the Pacific Division, losing Leon Draisaitl for the remainder of the regular season might very well have been a blow to the Edmonton Oilers playoff push.
A lower-body injury suffered in mid-March meant that Draisaitl's recovery, which had taken him to Munich, meant that his return to play would be up against the clock when it came to being ready for Game 1 of the first round. Head coach Kris Knoblauch admitted such a statement, noting that he would be back on the ice "this week", and that a general first round return would be more likely than a re-entry for Game 1 specifically.
But in his absence, the Oilers were able to put a 7-3-1 record together while also asserting control of the Pacific Division lead. Their most recent effort - a 5-2 win over the playoff-chasing San Jose Sharks - saw Connor McDavid record a hat-trick and two assists, while defenseman Evan Bouchard would contribute two assists, surpassing the 90 point mark.
With goals in seven of his last nine games, McDavid has also re-entered the conversation for the Rocket Richard Trophy, which is led by Colorado Avalanche forward and Team Canada teammate Nathan MacKinnon with 52 goals, while Habs forward Cole Caufield sits two behind at 50. McDavid still leads the league in points, but he would need to score five goals just to match MacKinnon's total.
While the goaltending side of things still might need work, Connor Ingram has been putting some good form together for the Oilers. He's won four of his last five games, one of which was a shutout against the Seattle Kraken; he would give up just twelve goals over the remaining four games of that stretch.
What does the path forward look like for Edmonton?
The Oilers have three games remaining on their regular-season schedule. The first sees them head to Los Angeles to take on the Kings in their final road game of the season, while the remaining two games will see the Oilers host the MacKinnon-led Avalanche and the Vancouver Canucks.
Edmonton can clinch a postseason berth for the seventh-consecutive season on Saturday. They would do so by winning in any fashion or by losing in overtime, while a loss or overtime win by the Winnipeg Jets would also get the Oilers into the postseason.
In the first round, they could face any one of the Utah Mammoth, the Vegas Golden Knights, the Kings (not again), and the Anaheim Ducks.
For at least the last little stretch of the regular season, the Oilers should be fine. Outside of the Kings game, there's a good chance all of the Oilers' opponents will be resting players to some capacity. Colorado has already clinched the Presidents' Trophy, meaning that they'll be locked into a first-round matchup with the Western Conference's second wild card team (currently the Kings). Vancouver is already locked into last-place in the NHL, meaning that they will be guaranteed the best draft lottery odds of the 16 teams eligible.
Two wins in their final three games is very possible, while three shouldn't be that big of an ask. Even if Edmonton won two of their last three games, they would still enter the Stanley Cup Playoffs with wins in eight of their final 11 games. That does encapsulate the whole meaning of teams needing to enter the playoffs with momentum; considering that the Ducks only recently ended a six-game, the Oilers should be favored to advance out of the Pacific Division side of the bracket.
Add on the fact that Draisaitl will be back for the opening round - the Oilers are currently projected to face the Mammoth - and you have the recipe for a strong few weeks.