Looks like Evander Kane might play for the Oilers tonight
As was speculated yesterday, it appears that Evander Kane has a chance of suiting up for the Edmonton Oilers tonight.
After sitting out the last two games due to injury, Kane has been back on the ice skating with his teammates and could draw back into the lineup for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final tonight against the Florida Panthers.
“He’s looked good on the ice, and he’s feeling much better,” head coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters this morning. “That’ll be a game-time decision.”
Many thought that if Kane did suit up, it would be in place of Derek Ryan, who is averaging just 8:40 minutes of ice time through the 17 games he has played. That said, he has been a big part of an excellent Oilers penalty kill and appears to be staying in the lineup.
Instead, there was some speculation that Dylan Holloway may be the man drawing out. This would be a surprising move as the 22-year-old has had a solid playoff showing with five goals and seven points through 23 games. That said, he was directly responsible for the Panthers’ first goal of the night off the stick of Matthew Tkachuk in Game 5.
Dylan Holloway still on the ice with the scratches. We could see Evander Kane back in @EdmontonOilers lineup tonight.
— Renaud Lavoie (@renlavoietva) June 21, 2024
Sports 1440’s Jason Gregor refuted the Holloway report a short time later, however, saying that Holloway will 100% be in the lineup tonight. It appears that we will have to wait until warmup to see whether or not Kane plays and who he could draw in for.
Holloway came off the ice about one minute after Broberg from the optional, which also had McDavid, Perry and a few others for a short time. Holloway is 100% playing. The extras, Desharnais, Gagner and Carrick were still on the ice 15 minutes after Holloway was one his interviews…
— Jason Gregor (@JasonGregor) June 21, 2024
The Oilers will be looking to continue a two-game winning streak to extend this series to Game 7, a shocking turn of events after they found themselves trailing in the series 3-0. Should they come out victorious, the series finale will be played in Sunrise, Florida, on Monday night.
“I think our team’s just enjoying the process,” Knoblauch said. “I think we’ve talked about being down and out and are just enjoying playing the game.”
Puck drop tonight between the Oilers and Panthers is set for 6 pm MT.
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