Oilers not expecting injured McDavid, Draisaitl back this week

Winnipeg Jets' Cole Perfetti (91) chases Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid (97) during second-period NHL action in Edmonton on Thursday, March 20, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

By Sportsnet Staff

Posted March 24, 2025 2:23 pm.

The Edmonton Oilers are not expecting Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to be back in the near future.

Head coach Kris Knoblauch said after practice Monday that McDavid and Draisaitl won’t be available for any of the team’s three games this week.

McDavid appeared to tweak something in his lower body against the Winnipeg Jets last Thursday. He missed his last shift of the second period and did not return to the game.

McDavid, even in a relative down year, has 89 points (26 goals, 63 assists) in 62 games. He scored the overtime winner for Canada to beat the U.S. in the 4 Nations Face-Off final.

Draisaitl, meanwhile, got tangled up back on March 18 against Utah and suffered an undisclosed injury. He leads the league with 49 goals and the Oilers with 101 points.

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