The Edmonton Oilers could use a pick-me-up heading into Saturday night’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, N.C.
After all, the Oilers have just two wins in their last six games (2-3-1) and are in the midst of a seven-game road trip.
And according to coach Kris Knoblauch, Edmonton just might get a boost on Saturday, because Zach Hyman is expected to make his season debut.
Hyman has at least 27 goals in each of his four seasons with the Oilers, including a career-high 54 in 2023-24.
“We anticipate he’ll be ready to play on Saturday,” Knoblauch said following Edmonton’s 5-4 loss at Columbus on Thursday.
Hyman has been out since sustaining a fractured wrist on a hit by then-Dallas Stars forward Mason Marchment in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals on May 27. He was placed on long-term injury reserve to start this season.
Hyman had been expected to return earlier in the month and then again for Wednesday’s game at Philadelphia — a 2-1 Oilers win in overtime — but Edmonton is being cautious against rushing him back. Knoblauch said he was waiting for the team’s medical staff to give him the go-ahead.
The Oilers will face a Carolina team that has won five of its last six games, including 4-3 in overtime over the Vancouver Canucks on Friday in the front end of a back-to-back.
Sebastian Aho scored at 4:29 of OT and Andrei Svechnikov tallied twice in a 54-second span for the Hurricanes, who also received a three-assist performance from defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere.
Carolina finished with a lopsided 38-17 edge in shots on goal and controlled the majority of the game but couldn’t put the Canucks away until Aho scored his 17th career overtime goal.
“Obviously, (overtime is) something I enjoy,” Aho said. “The crowd is into it, and you have some more time to make some plays. We’ve had some success in (overtime), and we’ll try and keep it going.”
The Hurricanes needed a Taylor Hall goal at 6:26 of the third period to forge a 3-3 tie.
“You don’t always get what you deserve in this game, but we got what we deserved with the two points,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said.
The Hurricanes won despite losing leading goal scorer Seth Jarvis in the first period after he was hit in the right eye in a scrum along the boards by the stick of teammate Svechnikov. Jarvis fell to ice and was writhing in pain before being helped off holding a towel against his face.
Jarvis has 10 goals, including four game-winners. The good news is that the injury apparently isn’t as serious as it looked.
“He got it kind of in the eye,” Brind’Amour said Friday. “I don’t know much more. It sounded positive. I think they’ll know more maybe tomorrow. I don’t expect him to be out long right now.”
