Life will go on without Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in the Edmonton Oilers lineup for at least the next three games, Oilersnation’s Jason Gregor reported Monday.
That means McDavid and Draisaitl, both recovering from what are believed to be minor injuries, won’t play Wednesday when the Oilers host the Dallas Stars, Thursday when they visit the Seattle Kraken, or next Saturday when the Calgary Flames come to town.
McDavid and Draisaitl unlikely to play any of the three games this week.
— Jason Gregor (@JasonGregor) March 24, 2025
Draisaitl was shaken up in last Tuesday’s game against the Utah Hockey Club when he was hauled down in the neutral zone. It was an innocuous play and while Draisaitl seemed to be feeling the effects of it, he remained in the game searching for his 50th goal of the season.
He wasn’t in the lineup for last Thursday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets, and while McDavid was, he ended up suffering what the team called a lower-body injury. He was on the receiving end of a Josh Morrissey slash late in the second that appeared to cause discomfort, and was later ruled out for the third period.
Their teammates picked up the slack on Saturday night when the Kraken came to town, as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored a hat-trick with Jeff Skinner and Adam Henrique adding markers of their own.
When the Oilers practiced Monday, they rolled the same lines as they did against Seattle, an indication they’ll likely stick in a tough game on Wednesday against a deep Dallas team.
Oilers general manager provided an update on the status of McDavid and Draisaitl on Saturday when he was on Sportsnet’s After Hours program.
“Thankfully they’re not serious injuries,” he said, noting both are expected back before the end of the regular season. “As far as the exact timeline, we don’t know that, but it’s not going to be a long time. Not concerned.
“I think you always want them back in the lineup, and you want them there every night, but missing a little time at this time of year probably isn’t the worst thing. I think Leon will be back before Connor, but I don’t think he’ll be too much after that.”
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.
