Hyman has missed the four games with a lingering injury issue that hasn’t been revealed publicly. With him out of the lineup, the Oilers have gone 1-1-2. His addition back into the Oilers’ forward group comes as the team prepares for the last game of the regular season.

If Edmonton wins, they could ensure home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs, or even win the Pacific Division with a Vegas loss. If the Oilers lose, they could fall as far as the last wildcard spot and be forced to play Colorado.

“It’s never easy to sit out and not play games,” Hyman told reporters on Wednesday after a full practice.

“I don’t just sit out games. I don’t like doing that. So it’s not something that I was just kind of sitting out. It was taking care of something and making sure that you’re able to contribute at the level that you need to in order to make sure that the team has success. In the playoffs, you play a little bit more physical, obviously, so I gotta make sure that I’m ready to play at that level.”

Hyman has been productive this season, once again. In just 57 games, he’s scored 31 goals and 51 points. He is first on the Oilers with 1.63 goals per 60 in all situations, the 14th highest mark in the NHL this year.

In a familiar role, Hyman skated on Connor McDavid’s wing at practice, with Matthew Savoie on the left side. Despite being the sixth-highest scoring team in goals per game, the Oilers have been uncharacteristically starved for them in the last two games, scoring just once.

“It’s nice having a big-time goal scorer back in your lineup, especially after the last two games where we’ve fallen a little short. Played well, but not been able to put the puck in the net. That’s what Zach is really good at,” said coach Kris Knoblauch on Wednesday, underlining the importance of winning tomorrow’s game.

“If it was a week ago and we’re in the playoffs, I don’t think he would have sat any time out, but we wanted him healthy and ready for the playoffs. We also feel that Zach felt comfortable getting a game in before he hits the playoffs. He’s cleared, and he’s healthy, so I think that’s a good idea to put him in and see what he can do.”

Other injuries:

Leon Draisaitl skated on the fifth line at practice. The situation is status quo.
Jason Dickinson will get looked at by doctors after Thursday’s game and then the Oilers will have a better idea on his status.

Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and co-host of PreGaming and Oilersnation After Dark. He’s also been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years of news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, Menzies collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues. Follow him on X at Menzies_4.

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