PROJECTED LINEUP: McDavid ready to go against Golden Knights

EDMONTON, AB – Connor McDavid will make his return to the lineup ahead of schedule on Wednesday night when the Edmonton Oilers face the Golden Knights at Rogers Place.

"I feel good," McDavid mentioned. "I'm looking forward to going and getting back in there."

McDavid suffered an ankle injury in the opening minute of last Monday's defeat in Columbus and was given a two-to-three-week timetable to recover, but after spending this morning's pre-game skate on the top line and confirming his availability with the media, the captain is poised to complete his recovery in only 10 days ahead of tonight's important Pacific Division battle against the Golden Knights.

"It's very important to get Connor back in our lineup," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "We're playing one of the best teams right now. They're playing extremely well, scoring a lot of goals, and to get your number one center back in the lineup is a huge boost for us because we know it's going to be a big test tonight."

On Saturday, the Oilers also visit Vancouver for a rematch of their 2024 Second Round series against the Canucks – another game he didn't want to miss – and McDavid is confident he can carry forward into these next two pivotal matches without any limitations.

"Two games that I certainly wanted to be a part of, but not the deciding factor for sure," he said. "You'd rather miss these ones in November than later in the year, but ultimately, I'm going to get to play and I'm looking forward to it. They're two great teams. Obviously, tonight with Vegas, they're a great team with great D-men and are strong up the middle. They're always a good challenge for us."

McDavid admitted that the initial feeling he had about his ankle injury in Columbus wasn't great, but that it cleared up quicker than he and the Oilers medical staff expected as he went through his recovery process this past week.

"I didn't feel very good about it," he said. "It can feel bad and swell up and stuff, but it can clear out pretty quick. This is something that I've had a little bit before and maybe it's just a tweak of an old injury or something, but it feels good."

"I'm really confident. If I wasn't confident, I wouldn't be preparing to play. I'm confident with the doctors' opinions, confident with listening to my body and telling me what feels good and what doesn't. Ultimately, together, we felt it was safe for me to come back and play."

McDavid will jump back onto the top line between Jeff Skinner and Zach Hyman, as per Wednesday's morning skate, and is hoping to establish some further chemistry with Skinner while Hyman has been a mainstay on his line for the majority of the right-winger's tenure in Edmonton.

"Obviously a really skilled guy," McDavid said of Skinner. "He's good around the net. I played with him for a little bit against Calgary early in the season and thought we had a little bit of success, but I'm looking forward to another chance and trying to build something."

Speaker 2: 00:35
Well, I think Ryan does a lot of things. I think he's versatile and right now it looks like he's going to play third line center. But we know that the first line left wing is a place that he spends a lot of time and will in the future. Right now, you know, I think he's put in a couple, you know, three games now playing center. He's done a really good job and just gives us a little more balance for a lineup, especially with the team that we're facing tonight.

View the Oilers Projected Lineup vs. Vegas below:

Forwards

Skinner - McDavid - Hyman
Podkolzin - Draisaitl - Arvidsson
Henrique - Nugent-Hopkins - Brown
Janmark - Ryan - Perry

Defence

Ekholm - Bouchard
Nurse - Stecher
Kulak - Emberson

Goalies

Skinner
Pickard