PROJECTED LINEUP: Nurse out five to 10 days; Pickard starts vs. Canadiens

MONTREAL, QC – The Edmonton Oilers won't have defenceman Darnell Nurse for the next "five to 10 days," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch confirmed, beginning Monday night when they open back-to-back games at the Bell Centre against the Montreal Canadiens.

The Oilers bench boss said following Monday's pre-game skate in Montreal that Nurse will miss the next few games from an illegal check to the head he received from Maple Leafs forward Ryan Reaves during the second period of Saturday's 4-3 overtime defeat to the Maple Leafs.

The defenceman was shaken up and bloodied, needing to be helped off the ice by his teammates before missing the remainder of the contest.

"Obviously, there was a big scare there when it happened on the ice. But since then, he's progressed really well," Knoblauch said. "He's doing as good as he can. We'll take our time and make sure that he's ready when he does return."

Reaves was ejected from the game and received a five-game suspension from the NHL's Department of Player Safety for the hit on Sunday.

"I was very nervous about the hit. I didn't love the hit. You don't love what's happening," goaltender Calvin Pickard said. "When he's down on the ice, it's scary for all of us because he's such a close friend of ours, but it's definitely good to see him doing well."

Nurse's absence will be a big loss, having averaged nearly 21 minutes of ice time this season as a top-four defenceman and contributing two goals and seven assists in 18 games. Both of Nurse's goals this season came in last Thursday's 3-2 overtime win over the Predators, including the game-winner assisted by Connor McDavid, before Reaves' dangerous hit on Saturday night limited him to only 7:45 of ice time in his team's defeat to the Maple Leafs.

The Oilers will be down the services of two key players, with Viktor Arvidsson also set to miss a second straight game with a minor injury.

"He's the emotional leader," Pickard said of Nurse. "He's a huge leader for us. He's been playing great hockey, moving the puck, skating up and down the rink and scoring goals. He's been awesome. But it's up to us to fill the void, and everybody needs to step up a little bit more and play their game."

Defenceman Josh Brown was called up from the AHL's Bakersfield Condors on Sunday and will make his regular-season Oilers debut tonight as the team's seventh defenceman.

Brown has recorded two assists and a +5 plus/minus in 12 games this AHL season for the Condors while leading the league with 46 penalty minutes. The right-shot defenceman picked up two assists and a fighting major in Bakersfield's thrilling 8-7 shootout victory over the San Diego Gulls on Sunday.

"He's been playing really well, contributing to their success and he's been really physical," Knoblauch said. "Obviously, he's a shut-down defenceman who takes a lot of space. But also, the physicality and he's had some fights down there."

Goaltender Calvin Pickard will make his second start in three games for the Oilers, having made 20 saves on Thursday against the Predators to improve to 4-2-0 this season with a 2.49 GAA and .890 SV%.

Pickard will be between the pipes on Monday to make his seventh start of the season in the Bell Centre – the building where he made his first NHL start on Oct. 18, 2014 as a member of the Colorado Avalanche.

"I was a bright-eyed kid at that point," Pickard said. "A lot of nerves stepping into that situation. But now, over 10 years later, I've been through a lot of different experiences and I definitely have those to rely on.

"I've definitely tightened up my game since then. I was a bit of a loose cannon in the crease, but the game's changed a lot over the last 10 years, too. It's gotten faster. Guys are making plays a lot more creatively, so I had to adapt. But I have the same personality, same work ethic and the same battle."

View the Oilers Projected Lineup vs. Montreal below:

Forwards

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

Defence

Ekholm - Bouchard
Kulak - Emberson
Stecher - Dermott
Brown

Goalies

Pickard
Skinner