Will Ryan Nugent-Hopkins play in Edmonton Oilers Stanley Cup Final game tonight?
The Edmonton Oilers are looking to take a Stanley Cup Final series lead over the Florida Panthers tonight, but will they have Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to help?
Edmonton may be without Nugent-Hopkins in Game 3 due to an undisclosed injury that prevented him from practicing on Sunday morning. At this morning’s skate, it appeared the longest-tenured Oilers player would sit out again, before jumping on the ice later on in the session.
Nugent-Hopkins skating before a game seems to signal that he is good to go, but head coach Kris Knoblauch was not giving anything away to reporters.
“Ryan will be a game-time decision,” Knoblauch said. “He’ll take warmup, and we’ll decide from there.”
"If you play too safe, you end up having to defend… It's up to the players to recognize when they have a play & when they don't. You hope they can make the right judgment."
Coach Knoblauch on the #Oilers balancing aggression & simplicity.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/VxHNVjTsWy
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) June 9, 2025
If Nugent-Hopkins can play, it looks likely that he will stick on the Oilers’ top line alongside Connor McDavid and Corey Perry. If he can’t, then it appears that Jeff Skinner is waiting in the wings to be his replacement on that line.
Though it would be exciting for Skinner to play in his first Stanley Cup Final game, he is hoping that Nugent-Hopkins is healthy.
“If I’m not in, there’s nothing to worry about,” Skinner told reporters after the morning skate. “Just prepare like I’m in and we’ll see, hopefully [Nugent-Hopkins] is ready to go.”
"Just prepare like I'm in & we'll see if Nuggy's good to go."
Jeff Skinner on potentially making his series debut for the #Oilers in place of game-time decision Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/u7HeuROwlX
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) June 9, 2025
Losing Nugent-Hopkins in the Stanley Cup Final would be a massive loss for this Oilers team, considering that they are also without Zach Hyman. The Nuge has managed to put together an excellent playoff run with five goals and 18 points through 18 games.
He is still looking to record his first point in this Stanley Cup Final series.
“He’s been a top player for us for a long time,” Brett Kulak said of Nugent-Hopkins. “He’s been amazing throughout the whole playoff run.”
“I haven’t talked to him, but it was nice to see him on the ice this morning, and we hope to have him in the lineup.”
#Oilers defencemen Darnell Nurse & Brett Kulak spoke with the media ahead of tonight's Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final in Florida.@Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/kTa4BHaZd0
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) June 9, 2025
Plenty of eyes will be glued to the Oilers during warmup tonight to see how #93 is looking.