Key trade acquisitions and superstar forward off the shelf, skating in main Oilers practice

Things looked bleak for the Edmonton Oilers this morning, but only for a moment. This came in from Mark Spector of Sportsnet: “Frederic and Walman take the ice early at practice here on San Jose. A sports writer’s take: Frederic is a ways away from playing. Walman is even further.”

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But then came good news from Tony Brar of the Oilers, his report that Jake Walman and Leon Draisaitl were both back on regular lines at the main practice, with Trent Frederic also on the ice.

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EDM lines & pairings – Friday’s practice:

Hyman – McDavid – Brown

Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Arvidsson

Skinner – RNH – Henrique

Perry – Janmark – Kapanen

Kane – Ryan – Jones

Nurse – Bouchard

Kulak – Walman

Emberson – Brown

Dineen – Klingberg

Trent Frederic is on the ice as well. Troy Stecher is not.

In his interview, Walman said, “I feel good & ready to go.”

My take

1. The Oilers traded a second and a fourth round pick, plus intriguing prospect to get Frederic from Boston. They gave up a first round pick in 2026 for Walman. I’m not saying that Oilers GM Stan Bowman made any kind of mistake here with Frederic, who was injured at the time of the trade. But his slow return to play is still unwelcome.

Such is hockey, I suppose, a rough and tough sport. It’s hard for a full team to maintain good health.

2. Great to see Evander Kane skating on a line here with Derek Ryan and Max Jones. If Kane is ready to go that will be a critical factor in the series. Same can be said of Frederic, who has many of the same attributes as Kane. Frederic has been cleared for contact, but not yet Kane.

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3. No surprise to see Vasili Podkolzin and Viktor Arvidsson (who has been trending up fast) back with Leon Draisaitl. That line has been solid all year. It has the size and grit to give the L.A. defence some trouble.

4. Also no surprise to see Zach Hyman back on the top line with Connor McDavid, with Jeff Skinner bumped down to the third line. McDavid now has two reasonably rugged linemates in Hyman and Connor Brown to go up against the Kings.

Meanwhile the third line with Jeff Skinner, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Adam Henrique has plenty of skill. But can that line hold its own physically against the aggressive Kings?

5. Of course, if Kane comes back for Monday’s game there will be more shuffling. Kasperi Kapanen would likely come out of the line-up, with Kane on the third line and Henrique centering the fourth line.

6. If Josh Brown is on the third-pairing, all due respect, but that’s a major hole in Edmonton’s line-up. Brown has leaked Grade A shots against whenever he’s played this year. He struggles with the speed of an NHL game.

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