Oilers goaltender Calvin Pickard was back at practice on Monday. Edmonton’s back-up goaltender was injured during his last start against Vegas. He finished the game, but then did not appear on the ice again until now. And Pickard was a full participant in practice, taking shots, etc. So, it would seem he is ready to come back onto the active roster. Kris Knoblauch: Cal is “a good possibility” to back up. Typically, a goaltender who was on a 6-0 run prior to an injury might go right back in as soon as he is cleared. But Stuart Skinner has been so good since, that seems highly unlikely. Pickard is 6-0, 2.84 GAA, 0.888 SV% in the post season.
Connor Brown was not on the ice. Brown left Sunday’s game after absorbing a huge hit along the side wall. To me and others it appeared to be a high hit from Alex Petrovic but no call was forthcoming. It already seemed unlikely he will play Game 4 and Kris Knoblauch confirmed that in his comments, post-practice: “Connor Brown is out for tomorrow”. Brown is 5-3-8 in 14 post-season games so far. They will miss his two-way play. Not 100% clear from the ice session who will step in for him. But Oilers play-by-play broadcaster Jack Michaels expects Viktor Arvidsson to go.
Mattias Ekholm, meanwhile, says he feels really good but is not sure if he will be in the lineup for Game 4. But the big Swede says his return is not far off. Ekholm: “I’m happy with my body & the way I feel. Really excited about where the team’s at & how they’re playing”. Head Coach Kris Knoblauch says it is still undecided if Ekholm will play in Game 4, describes him as “still day-to-day”. Knoblauch added that he has also not ruled out going 11-7.
Maintenance days for Stuart Skinner, Evan Bouchard and Jake Walman. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who went hard into the boards Sunday, was on the ice.
