McDavid looks sharp in return, lifts short-handed Oilers

EDMONTON -- Connor McDavid decided there was little risk coming back for the Edmonton Oilers against the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday after missing eight games with a lower-body injury.

Edmonton would have been forced to play two players short had McDavid not dressed for the first time since sustaining the injury March 20 against the Winnipeg Jets.

His return was triumphant; the Oilers captain had three assists in a 4-3 win, inching Edmonton closer to clinching a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

“Obviously it was a difficult situation for our group as a whole,” McDavid said. “Guys coming in and out of the lineup, sick, hurt whatever it is, short numbers so we go with five [defensemen]. It was a gutsy effort by them and it was kind of a crazy day for our group not knowing who is going and whatnot. I was just happy to get in there.”

The Oilers are limping towards the end of the regular season and had six regulars out of the lineup Wednesday. Forwards Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (illness) and defenseman Jake Walman (undisclosed) were the latest to go down; they joined Leon Draisaitl (lower body), Trent Frederic (ankle), defenseman Mattias Ekholm (undisclosed) and goalie Stuart Skinner (head) among those injured. Defenseman John Klingberg (lower body) was placed on long-term injured reserve before the game.

“I wasn’t taking anyone’s spot, and I thought it was an opportunity,” McDavid said. “If it was no good, you go out, take a couple of shifts and if it’s no good then you come out. I wasn’t taking anyone’s spot and obviously, I felt good and there were no problems.”

The Oilers had 11 healthy forwards and five defensemen without McDavid. It was decided following the morning skate he would play, and he finished with 20:35 of ice time. McDavid set up Connor Brown for Edmonton's opening goal at 1:30 of the second period, had the secondary assist on Vasily Podkolzin’s goal at 12:39, then set up Brown again at 19:39 of the third for the game-winner.

“He was really close, day to day, the plan was that he was going to play the following game on Friday [San Jose Sharks],” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “He really felt that he was ready and wanted to play, especially with losing another centerman [Nugent-Hopkins]. He felt he was ready, and it was going to be as good as it was going to be. He really wanted to be in the lineup tonight.”

McDavid was welcomed by his teammates, who had to play without him and Draisaitl the previous two games and five in total. Edmonton was 1-4-0 with both of its star players unavailable.

“We kind of knew that he was itching to play,” Brown said. “We knew that it was just a matter of would they let him."

It wasn't until the Oilers got to the arena that they found out McDavid would be playing.

“I knew he would be fine once he got in the lineup," Brown said. "We’ve been practicing with him. Him at three-quarter speed is quicker than all of us. The way he was crossing over, I don’t think there was any sort of concern of his ability when he got in the lineup.”

McDavid said he needed to see how his injury would react in a game. He had been skating on his own for roughly two weeks and joined the Oilers on their recent four-game road trip, although he did not play.

“It’s tough, it’s that time of year where there’s not many practices,” McDavid said. “I’ve been skating by myself; I don’t know how many more tight turns I can do before you just have to go. Obviously coming back from injury [stinks] mentally for any athlete, it’s so unpredictable and there is so many variables and things that you can’t account for. It’s nice to get that out of the way mentally.”

Knoblauch said Wednesday morning he expects all the injured players to be back before the start of the playoffs. Edmonton (45-28-5) is third in the Pacific, two points behind the Los Angeles Kings (44-24-9). The two are likely to meet in the first round for the fourth consecutive season.

“Everyone is on their own path and trying to do what they can to get ready when it’s real,” McDavid said. “Part of that for me is getting into games and feeling the puck and getting into different situations that only a game can provide.”

The three assists gave McDavid 93 points (26 goals, 67 assists) in 64 games. He missed three games from Oct. 31 to Nov. 4 with an ankle injury sustained in a 6-1 loss at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 28. McDavid was also suspended for three games for a cross check on Vancouver Canucks forward Conor Garland in a 3-2 loss on Jan. 18.

Having missed eight games with his most recent injury, McDavid admitted it took a while for him to feel like his old self, although it was difficult to tell by watching him.

“Timing is something guys always talk about,” McDavid said. “It’s not something you can replicate in practice skating by yourself. The pep drills don’t account for all that other stuff, so it was tough.”