Boosted by being back in the playoffs for the first time since 2020, Dickinson had his strong start to his Oilers tenure derailed when he sustained an undisclosed injury before the end of the regular season on Apr. 8 in a 5-2 win over the San Jose Sharks.
The forward has been battling to get fully healthy ever since, having been able to dress back on Wednesday in Game 1 and score two crucial goals before missing the last two contests with the same ailment that’s forced him back to the sidelines.
“It’s been really frustrating,” Dickinson said. “Kind of something just out of my control that I would love to avoid, but sometimes you can’t do anything about it, and it’s just been killing me to watch.”
During Saturday’s practice at Honda Center, Dickinson was put through the paces down the middle with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl both not on the ice for maintenance, giving the Deadline acquisition from Chicago a chance at extra reps to get up to speed.
“It was a good skate,” he said. “I was able to get out there and move my legs and feel the ice again.”
Dickinson could slot back into the lineup between Jack Roslovic and Matt Savoie if he’s good to go on Sunday after having success late in Game 1 with that line, potentially giving the Oilers a much-needed body back at the centre position.