"It's still there": Oilers' Ekholm learning to play through injury
The Edmonton Oilers are looking a lot better of late, and it may be because some of their players are finally getting over nagging injuries.
Both Connor McDavid and veteran defenceman Mattias Ekholm started the year with some lingering injury troubles that negatively affected their play on the ice.
While much of the focus has been on McDavid’s return to form of late, not much has been said about the improved play of Ekholm, who seems to be playing much better throughout the last few weeks as well.
The 33-year-old Swede missed all of training camp and preseason with a hip flexor issue. This injury also caused him to miss the Oilers season opener.
It appears that Ekholm is over most of the lingering side effects that injury caused but, as he told reporters after Wednesday morning’s practice at Rogers Place, it hasn’t completely gone away.
“It’s way better for sure,” said Ekholm. “I think I’ve learned kind of how to play with it and it’s still there, but at the same time, I feel like now I can move better out [on the ice] and I feel like me and Evan [Bouchard] have played better and better throughout these first 20-something games.”
"He does things that I can’t do, so it’s nice to have a partner where we can compliment each other."
Mattias Ekholm on playing with Evan Bouchard. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/8QiIMGJ1Ci
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) December 6, 2023
If the injury were still bad Ekholm would not be playing, so that is a positive for the Oilers. However, it is still interesting to hear that the veteran defender is still learning to play through an injury sustained before training camp three months ago.
When news initially broke that Ekholm would miss all of training camp and preseason, the narrative coming from then-Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft was that it was just a precautionary measure and that he would be ready for the season. This now appears to be an attempt to downplay the seriousness of the injury.
Either way, Ekholm has been among the most consistent defenders for Edmonton recently and he has even found ways to show up on the scoresheet. Over the past 10 games, he has scored two goals and five points. He has also been a perfect compliment to Evan Bouchard, who is currently on a six-game point streak.
Ekholm is sure to also have been one of the players on the Oilers to have benefited from an extended five-day break that ends tonight as the Carolina Hurricanes come into town for a 7:30 pm MT puck drop.
Follow Channels and Categories