Oilers Recall Two Forwards, As McDavid's Absence Could Be Longer Than Hoped

 


The Edmonton Oilers might know more than they're letting on today about the potential timeline for injured superstar Connor McDavid. They've bolstered their forward depth with not one, but two skaters from their AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.

Drake Caggiula and Noah Philp get the call from the Condors. 

Caggiula is an experienced forward, with 282 games of NHL action in his 11-year pro career, though only four games total in the last two seasons. He did begin his career in Edmonton, playing three seasons with the Oil, from 2016 through 2019. 

Philp is a tremendous story. He is a 26-year-old who has yet to make his NHL debut, but as noted by Elliotte Friedman, he came close to breaking camp with the team earlier this month. And that came after he took last season off after a full year with the Condors in 2022-23, making this an improbable run to the big time. He is an Alberta native, who has two goals in six games this year with Bakersfield. 

As for McDavid, the Oilers say they'll have more information on his lower-body injury tomorrow after more tests are run. But insider Frank Seravalli said earlier on Tuesday that he believes the "best case scenario" is a multiple-week absence. Yikes.

"It's certainly a big concern," said Seravalli. He compared McDavid's potential injury to Aleksander Barkov's few-week absence due to a high ankle sprain earlier this season. "In a best-case scenario, based on what I've heard in the early going, that seems like it would be the best outcome."

Photo: © Tim Heitman-Imagn Images