The Edmonton Oilers opened their season without forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, leaving team captain and teammate Connor McDavid adjusting to an early injury.
Nugent-Hopkins missed Tuesday’s 6-5 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks after suffering a lower-body injury in Monday’s practice.
Oilers head coach Mike Babcock said he expects the forward to return around mid-October, while McDavid was clearly upset at missing his teammate for the season opener and a few games after that.
“It sucks, obviously,” McDavid said. “You obviously want as many guys as healthy as you can right off the get-go, but it was just something minor, so we’ll have to do without him. It’s just the way it goes. Just the way injuries have kind of unfolded.”
Even though Nugent-Hopkins is listed as day-to-day, Babcock offered a more realistic two-week rehab estimate. The forward recorded 20 goals and 36 assists for 56 points in 72 games last season.
“Anytime they tell me day-to-day, that usually means two weeks, is what I go by,” Babcock said.
The injury forced Edmonton to alter its lineup for the opener against the Canucks. Nugent-Hopkins was set to center the second line, allowing Babcock to put McDavid and Leon Draisaitl together on the top unit. Instead, Draisaitl returned to centering his own line.
“Obviously, there is going to be guys asked to do different things and put in different spots,” McDavid said. “That’s the nature of this business. It’s a long season. It’s Day 1, but these things happen throughout the course of the season, and we have to adjust as we go.”
Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Edmonton scored five goals on Tuesday without Nugent-Hopkins, including a hat trick from Evan Bouchard in a five-point performance, but allowed three goals early in the third period.
Vasily Podkolzin scored twice as the Oilers rallied from a 5-2 deficit before Paul Cotter won it for the Canucks in overtime. The defeat left Edmonton with one point from its season opener.
The Oilers get another opportunity against Vancouver on Thursday, traveling to Rogers Arena for a rematch at 10 p.m. ET.
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