In December, there appeared to be hope for McDavid to return in early January, but the Oilers will play it safe with their future superstar and hold him out of the lineup for the remainder of January. He could travel with the Oilers on their upcoming road trip to practice with the team, but don’t expect to see him in the lineup until early February.
Lazar will miss his second straight game with a lower-body injury, but it is not believed to be a serious injury. Lazar is considered day-to-day.
On Monday, Pickard will make his first NHL start of the season. He has made two relief appearances, stopping 21 of 25 shots (.840 SV%) that he has faced. In his time with the San Antonio Rampage (AHL), he was 9-8-4 with a 2.75 GAA and .917 SV%. He draws a fairly good matchup against a Sharks team that is 26th in the NHL in goals on home ice (2.23 G/PG).
Lazar was knocked out of Wednesday’s game after a hit from Capitals’ forward Tom Wilson. Lazar was reportedly feeling much better this afternoon, so monitor his status leading up to Friday’s game.
Henrique has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury, but will be back in the lineup tonight in Buffalo. Henrique has 13 goals and 10 assists (23 points) in 28 games and should be activated in all formats tonight vs. the Sabres.
Henrique will miss his second straight game with a lower-body injury that he suffered on Tuesday in Toronto. The injury is not considered to be serious, so he remains day-to-day and has a chance to return to the lineup next week.
Nugent-Hopkins returned to practice on Tuesday after missing Saturday’s game and Monday’s practice. RNH’s return to the ice is a good sign that he is feeling well enough to return to the lineup on Wednesday.
Nugent-Hopkins missed Saturday’s game and now Monday’s practice, which clouds his status for Wednesday’s game vs. the Blackhawks. Monitor RNH’s status as the week progresses.
Pickard has yet to lose in regulation in the AHL this season, going 6-0-3 with a 2.27 GAA and .935 SV% in nine games. Picard, who performed very well with Colorado last season, will serve as Reto Berra’s backup on Thursday in Boston.
As many feared, McDavid did in fact suffer a broken collarbone on Tuesday night and will miss multiple months. McDavid will undergo surgery on Wednesday, but it sounds like he will be back in the lineup before the end of the 2015-16 season. The best case scenario appears to be that McDavid will miss 8-12 weeks, which could have him back in the lineup in mid-to-late January, but it could be much longer.
McDavid crashed hard into the end boards late in the second period and got up clutching his shoulder. It was a heavy collision and the Oilers should provide the media with an update following the contest or on Wednesday.
Lazar has missed the last three games with a concussion, but he is ready to play on Tuesday vs. the Canadiens. With Lazar out, look for Matt Puempel to come out of the lineup. Lazar has one goal and one assist in eight games.
