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Standout Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl is expected to miss the rest of the NHL regular season because of what the team called a lower-body injury.
The Oilers announced his status Tuesday, ruling him out for their remaining 14 games through April 16.
Draisaitl left a game Sunday against Nashville after getting bumped hard by the Predators’ Ozzy Wiesblatt during the first period.
He went to the locker room, then returned for one shift before the end of the period, but was not on the bench to start the second and did not practice with his teammates on Monday.
It was not immediately clear what the injury was or whether Draisaitl will miss any time once the playoffs begin on the weekend of April 18-19.
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On Monday, head coach Kris Knoblauch didn’t have an injury update available but said Draisaitl was expected to miss some games.
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“We don’t want to aggravate it, make it worse. Obviously we’re looking at the big picture, but the games are important. There’s nothing for sure right now, making the playoffs,” Knoblauch said.
“And we need to win hockey games but obviously if he’s not healthy to play, he’s not going to play.”
The Oilers after winning that game sat in third place in the Pacific Division, one point back of Vegas and two behind Anaheim, though the Golden Knights and Ducks each have an extra game left to play.
Draisaitl has been a big part of getting Edmonton to this point. The 30-year-old ranks fourth in the league in scoring with 97 points in 65 games, second on the team behind only Connor McDavid, atop the NHL with 114 points.
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Draisaitl won the Hart Trophy as MVP in 2020 and was the runner-up last season. Last month, he played at the Olympics and was Germany’s leading scorer with seven points in five games.
Draisaitl is the second prominent player to be sidelined for the rest of the regular season. Toronto’s Auston Matthews won’t play again because of a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee.
The Oilers are set to host the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
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