The Edmonton Oilers will be without the likes of Evander Kane, Vincent Desharnais, and Sam Carrick on Thursday night as they host the Florida Panthers in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Kane, who has been battling through injury during the playoffs, was seen briefly at a Wednesday’s practice for the Oilers. While he was one of the first players on the ice, Kane left before the main practice was underway following a long conversation with head coach Kris Knoblauch.
Vincent Desharnais also draws out of the Oilers lineup as Cody Ceci draws back in. The veteran defenceman was healthy scratched for Game 2 after a tough Game 1 of the series in which he was caught on the ice for two Panthers goals.
Ceci is set to play on the Oilers’ third pairing with Brett Kulak, while an interesting lineup change saw Philip Broberg up on the second pairing alongside Darnell Nurse. For Broberg, it marks one of his first games in the NHL playing on the right side, something he had done previously playing in Sweden, but rarely since coming to North America.
Other notable lineup changes saw Corey Perry elevated to the second line alongside Ryan McLeod and Leon Drasiaitl, as Dylan Holloway was dropped to the fourth line. Holloway lineup alongside Derek Ryan and Warren Foegele.
Thursday night marks the Oilers first home game in the Stanley Cup playoffs since June 17th, 2006 — Game 6 against the Carolina Hurricanes. It was a game the Oilers won 4-0 thanks to a trio of power-play goals from Fernando Pisani, Ryan Smyth and Shawn Horcoff. Raffi Torres added an even-strength goal, as Jussi Markkanen notched a 16-save shutout, the lone playoff shutout of his career.
