EDMONTON — Connor McDavid skated Thursday and has not been ruled out to play in the 2023 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic against the Calgary Flames at Commonwealth Stadium on Sunday (7 p.m. ET; SN, TVAS, TBS, Max). McDavid missed his second straight game with an upper-body injury Thursday, a 3-0 loss to the New York Rangers at Rogers Place. The Oilers center sustained the injury late in the third period of a 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets last Saturday.
The Oilers announced Sunday that McDavid, the reigning Hart Trophy winner as the NHL’s most valuable player, would be out 1-2 weeks. McDavid has eight points (two goals, six assists) in five games this season. “He skated today and had a good day,” Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said after the game Thursday. “We have time before our next game, so we’ll see how he is [Friday]. He skated today, and so I took that as a good sign [that] he had a good day.”
On Saturday against the Jets, McDavid reached for his left side after jumping into a rush led by forward Zach Hyman at 15:13 of the third. McDavid pulled up and continued the shift before heading to the bench with 4:20 remaining. He took a light skate prior to the start of overtime but did not participate in the 3-on-3 session. Mark Scheifele scored for Winnipeg at 3:53.
Edmonton (1-6-1) has lost four in a row (0-3-1), including both games without McDavid. It gave up five goals in the third period of a 7-4 loss at the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday before being shut out Thursday. Temperatures for the Heritage Classic are forecast to hover near freezing by puck drop Sunday. The Oilers are off Friday and will practice Saturday in preparation for the outdoor game. Woodcroft said he has not thought about the possible risks of McDavid, their captain, returning to the lineup for an outdoor game.
“I think for him, he knows his body better than anybody,” Woodcroft said. “We’ll see where he is tomorrow, I think he had a good day today. I wouldn’t rule him out, but I’m not saying he’s going to play or he’s not going to play. We have some time here before Sunday’s game.”