In theory, having players returning from injury just before the playoffs is a great thing.
I mean, look at what the likes of Nikita Kucherov and Mark Stone have done for the Tampa Bay Lightning and Vegas Golden Knights, respectively, when they’ve spent significant time on the Long Term Injured Reserve before parachuting down from the press box in time for the playoffs.
Kucherov missed the entire 2020-21 regular season, arriving just in time for the playoffs where he was lights out, scoring eight goals and 32 points in 23 games helping the Lightning earn their second straight Stanley Cup. Tampa Bay swung trades to add Brandon Hagel and Nick Paul.
Stone, meanwhile, missed significant time in 2022-23 playing just 43 games before landing on the LTIR with a back injury, arriving just before the playoffs. He racked up 11 goals and 24 points in 22 games that year, allowing the Golden Knights the cap space to acquire Ivan Barbashev and Jonathan Quick ahead of the trade deadline.
A lacerated spleen kept him out of a chunk of the 2023-24 season where they swung big deals for Anthony Mantha, Noah Hanifin and Tomas Hertl, though the Golden Knights would be bounced in the first round by Dallas and Stone had just three goals in seven games.
You can also look at Matthew Tkachuk and his immediate impact on the Florida Panthers this year. He had two goals and three points in Game 1 against the Lightning, while the Cats were able to pick up Seth Jones and Brad Marchand ahead of the deadline.
The Oilers? Well, they didn’t see the immediate impact they hoped for from Evander Kane Wednesday night in their Game 2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. Kane, of course, missed the entirety of the regular season recovering from surgery last September, and didn’t dress for Game 1, either.
Edmonton wasn’t as successful in their use of the LTIR space Kane opened up this year, using some of it to sign defenceman John Klingberg, who missed more games than he played, and more to acquire another blueliner in Jake Walman and forward Trent Frederic. The latter, of course, arrived injured, stayed injured and even reinjured himself when he finally made his regular season debut with the Oilers, remaining out until the playoffs.
All three of them drew in for Game 2, and the results weren’t pretty for the Oilers in their 6-2 loss.
But Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch is optimistic the longer the series goes, the more they could get from that trio.
“I think they didn’t hurt us,” he said of their Game 2 performances. “Some areas of the game they helped us, but we feel those three are just going to continue to get better.
“Coming back after a long stretch, whether that’s a guy that’s been out eight weeks with Frederic, Klingberg for probably four weeks and Kane 10 months, that’s a tall order, but we feel they’re just going to get better with more playing time and more games under their belt.”
Klingberg looked the best of the bunch, playing 18:48 with 46 seconds shorthanded, blocking a trio of shots and even taking one, as well. You could tell Kane had some rust on him, which was to be expected, playing 14:46, laying four hits and taking a shot, while Frederic laid five hits in his 10:12 of ice-time.
Any offence from Klingberg would be a plus, but the biggest concern for him is remaining sound in the Oilers defensive zone. When it comes to Kane and Frederic, however, they’re going to need to find ways to impact the game on the score sheet, as both are players who can put up points offensively. Even moreso, being physically engaged and working to get under the Kings’ skin could help open up space for the big guns to get going, too.
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.
