It`s never a good situation for the Edmonton Oilers to be without their star players, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
Fortunately for the team, this has been a rare occurrence. Their recent 5-4 victory over the Seattle Kraken marked only the third time in the last decade that both McDavid and Draisaitl were absent from the lineup. Notably, this was the first instance where their absence was due to injuries. In previous situations in 2021-22 and 2023-24, the Oilers rested McDavid and Draisaitl before the playoffs.
Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch informed reporters on Monday that these key centers are expected to remain out of play for the current week. He also highlighted this period as a chance for other players to elevate their performance as the playoffs draw closer.
“We are optimistic that this will benefit us in the long run,” Knoblauch stated to the press. “Of course, we prefer to have McDavid and Draisaitl in our lineup. In the short term, their absence makes winning and climbing the standings more challenging, and our goal is always to win as much as possible. However, our primary objective is to be at our peak for the playoffs. This brief period without these two might just be what other players need to discover and enhance their own game.”
