EDMONTON, AB – Defenceman John Klingberg will make his long-awaited Blue & Orange debut on Thursday night when the Edmonton Oilers host the Detroit Red Wings at Rogers Place, Head Coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed following the morning skate.
Klingberg's first game since Nov. 11, 2023 will come almost two weeks after he signed a one-year contract with the Oilers on Jan. 17, marking one of the final steps left for him to complete in his long NHL comeback from having season-ending double hip surgery last season.
With his return tonight, the 32-year-old right-handed blueliner is set to play for the first time in 446 days.
Coach Knoblauch doesn't want to overload the defenceman in his first competitive action in over a season-and-a-half and expects the Swede to play with multiple D partners against the Red Wings to help him adjust to different teammates and the pace of NHL play. Over his career, Klingberg has
"Our plan is to go six defencemen and the pairs will work themselves out tonight," Knoblauch said. "Obviously, the workload with him coming in, it's not going to be a 25-minute night for him. You'll probably see numerous partners throughout the night."
Knoblauch also confirmed that winger Kasperi Kapanen will be the healthy scratch up front for the Oilers, while defenceman Troy Stecher is expected to come out to allow Klingberg to make his Edmonton debut.
Defenceman Mattias Ekholm missed Wednesday's practice due to illness along with Kapanen, but Klingberg's countryman – who was just named an alternate captain for Sweden at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off – should be good to go after speaking to the media following the pre-game skate.