A steady rain this evening. Showers continuing overnight. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low 53F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a half an inch..
A steady rain this evening. Showers continuing overnight. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low 53F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall near a half an inch.
Updated: April 20, 2026 @ 8:49 pm
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — The Edmonton Oilers got a boost in Monday’s opener of their first-round playoff series against the Anaheim Ducks with the return of Leon Draisaitl.
Draisaitl missed the final 14 games of the regular season with a knee injury.
The German star was activated from the long-term injured list before Monday’s game.
Draisaitl skated with the team over the past week.
Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch predicted the forward would return some time during the first round, but had been coy about when.
“Now that it’s playoffs, it’s a little more sacred about what our lineups are going to be,” Knoblauch said Monday morning. “We’re not going to announce who’s playing and what our lines are going to be exactly.”
Draisaitl has compiled 141 points in 96 career playoff games.
Edmonton went 8-4-2 without Draisaitl to close out the season in second place in the Pacific Division and get home-ice advantage for their series with Anaheim.
Draisaitl added 35 goals and 62 assists in 65 games this season, just missing a fifth straight 100-point campaign.
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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