Edmonton Oilers

Insider Reveals First Order of Business for Oilers After McDavid Injury

What will the Edmonton Oilers do while they wait for the status of Connor McDavid’s injury to be revealed. If he’s out long-term, then what?

by
Jim Parsons
October 29, 2024

TSN’s Chris Johnston spoke with Gino Reda on an early episode of TSN Insider Trading on Tuesday, specifically with respect to updates on the Connor McDavid injury. Saying that there might not be official news on the injury for another 24 hours, McDavid flew home to Edmonton to see specialists and get some imaging done. Once the severity of the foot injury is learned, the Oilers will make plans to fill holes as best they can without the best player in the world available to them.

Johnston was asked what the Oilers would do in the meantime and as they waited. He said the first order of business is to make a recall from the AHL to cover for the game against the Nashville Predators on Thursday. Understanding that no one coming up will effectively replace McDavid, the idea is to shuffle the roster around and find a suitable fourth-line center. That likely means either Matt Savoie or Noah Philp gets the call.

From there, Johnston believes the Oilers will lean a bit more on players who haven’t had the best starts this season. Specifically, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will shift over to center on the second line, with Leon Draisaitl on the top line. It is believed Adam Henrique might be elevated in the lineup as well, running a Draisaitl, Nugent-Hopkins, and Henrique 1-2-3 down the middle.

Will the Oilers Consider a Trade if McDavid Is Out Long-Term?

It’s too early to know if McDavid is going to be out longer than a couple of games. If he is, there will be questions about what the Oilers do to fill a giant hole on the roster. The answer, likely, is very little.

Hyman and Nugent Hopkins are among players who will have to step up with McDavid injured for the Oilers

A new and unfortunate development would have to occur that changes the early thoughts this isn’t a terribly serious issue. It isn’t likely that McDavid will even be considered for LTIR and the Oilers certainly know they can’t find anything on the market to fill in. The rest of team will simply have to step up in his absence.

In fact, the Oilers will probably avoid making any big moves in the hope that McDavid’s injury will rally the rest of the troops. The last time McDavid went down, some key people stepped up in a big way. The Oilers need that again.

Next: McDavid’s Team to Join Oilers Medical Staff in Injury Recovery Plan