Leon Draisaitl is eligible to represent Edmonton Oilers played in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday night after avoiding a possible suspension.
Time will tell how things turn out for the other two key players in the series.
The status of Florida captain Aleksander Barkov, who left the field after the Panthers won Game 2 4-1, is the biggest question mark, and Draisaitl, who was hit in the head, will not attend a disciplinary hearing. The Oilers are unsure whether top-four defenseman Darnell Nurse will play after he was injured Monday.
“They’re big parts of our team,” Edmonton coach Chris Knoblauch said Tuesday of Draisaitl and Nurse.
“To say that we have a large portion of our roster out would be an understatement. But whatever happens, we will evaluate it and I expect the same number of players to be available as in the first and second games.”
Draisaitl, who has not scored so far in this series, will be among those to be included in the league's decision that the hit did not warrant an additional penalty. The only off-field penalty in Game 2 was a $2,214 slashing fine — the maximum allowed under the collective bargaining agreement — when Edmonton's Sam Carrick speared Florida's Dmitri Kulikov in the third period.
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After Draisaitl leapt high midway through the third period, Barkov held his chin, left the ice and never returned. The Finn, who won the Selke Trophy as the league's best defensive forward and was a candidate for playoff MVP, went to the Panthers' practice facility, and Florida coach Paul Maurice said it was “not worse.”
“That's a really good thing,” Morris said. “The real evaluation will happen on Wednesday, but if he continues to improve, we should be in good shape.”
Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov (16) is helped by teammates after being injured during the third period of Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday, June 10, 2024, in Sunrise, Florida.
AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee
Morris said Barkov passed the necessary evaluations on Tuesday but stopped short of fully confirming that meant the 28-year-old had avoided a concussion and the absence that would come with it. He did not want to discuss the game itself any further.
“We don't have to deal with that anymore,” Morris said. “Part of it is the mental discipline to keep the game the same no matter what the outcome is. For me, it's over. It's over.”
Still to be determined for the Oilers is whether Nurse will play. Nurse missed most of Game 2 after Evan Rodriguez was hit on his right side in the first period. Nurse skated just three times the rest of the way.
Knoblauch had not yet met with medical staff to discuss Nurse before boarding the team's plane back to Alberta from South Florida. If Nurse is unable to play, Edmonton could use Cody Cece, who was knocked out of Game 2.
© 2024 The Associated Press
