Kristen Shilton
EDMONTON, Alberta — Edmonton Oilers forward Zach Hyman is unlikely to play again in the Stanley Cup playoffs after suffering an injury in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals against the Stars on Tuesday.
Hyman was hurt midway through the first period in a collision with Stars forward Mason Marchment. The winger was clipped at the blue line and immediately left the ice while favoring his right arm/wrist. He did not return.
Coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed Wednesday the latest on Hyman’s status.
“Zach’s season is most likely done,” Knoblauch said. “He’s having surgery today. We’re not expecting him back.”
Knoblauch declined to specify the exact injury Hyman suffered. But Hyman’s absence will leave a significant hole in the Oilers’ lineup at a crucial juncture of their season. Edmonton has a 3-1 series lead over Dallas in their best-of-7 series following Tuesday’s 4-1 victory. The Oilers have a chance to advance to their second straight Stanley Cup Final with a win in Game 5 at Dallas on Thursday.
That becomes a taller task though without having Hyman available. He leads the NHL playoff field in hits with 111 in 15 games while adding five goals and 11 points on the scoresheet. Not only does Hyman skate on the Oilers’ top line with Connor McDavid, but he’s also a fixture on their power play and an important penalty killer.
Edmonton will have to take a by-committee approach to filling in the gaps.
“He’s put everything out there,” Knoblauch said of Hyman. “What he’s done the last two years in the playoffs, he’s scored numerous important goals in the playoffs, and this year [it’s not just] scoring key goals, but the physical department, how many hits he had. His two-way play was tremendous. And you know now that we’re going to be missing him, we’re going to need other guys step up.”
The Oilers have already tapped into their depth during this series. Connor Brown was out for Game 4 after he took a high hit from Stars defenseman Alexander Petrovic in Game 3. Knoblauch said Brown won’t play in Game 5 either, although he was “doing well” and there is hope he can return sooner than later. Viktor Arvidsson reentered the lineup for Brown after sitting out since Game 3 of Edmonton’s second-round series against Vegas.
Knoblauch felt Arvidsson — who played 11:54 and registered two hits — was able to perform despite the long layoff.
“He hadn’t played for a couple weeks and to come into an environment like that against a good team at this point of the season [was good],” Knoblauch said. “And then he just continued to get better. In the third period, he might have been one of our best forwards. He won a lot of puck races. Made some nice plays. His game was kind of what we expected. He played the way we want to play, and we’ll need more of that from Viktor, because with missing guys, especially on the right side with Hyman [out], it’s an opportunity for him to step up and play a more significant role.”
The main message is for everyone dressed for Edmonton to expect Dallas’ best game Thursday. The Stars have been outscored 16-8 in the series so far and have just three goals at even-strength. Even though Dallas has pressured Edmonton with impressive force they’ve been stymied by a terrific Stuart Skinner in net (who has a .939 SV% and 1.76 GAA in the series) and an opportunistic Oilers team that’s made Dallas pay at 5-on-5 and special teams.
The Stars have their backs against the wall now, but Knoblauch insists his club won’t take anything for granted as they look to take a second consecutive conference title.
“I think our confidence with our guys just being mature in their experience, they don’t be too high or too low,” Knoblauch said. “It’s not that they would ever think that we got this under wraps. That is definitely never the case with this team. They know how hard it is to win that last deciding game, and they also have a lot of respect for the Dallas Stars, knowing that they’re a good team. I think we’re just even keeled.”
