As Devon Levi prepares to make his first start for the Edmonton Oilers, the team’s parade to the infirmary continues.

Already down top-nine forwards Matt Savoie, Jason Dickinson, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, on top of Mattias Janmark and Alec Regula, as well as goaltender Freddie Andersen, Zach Hyman is the latest to join the battered and bruised.

Hyman’s injury, called upper-body by Oilers head coach Mike Babcock, was suffered during the final pre-season game against the Calgary Flames, adding that the winger is day-to-day, but put a two-week timeline on a return.

“For me, I gotta figure out who they are, but for them, what an opportunity,” said Babcock of the depth players getting bigger roles. “If you’re a young guy or you’re a new guy and you’re trying to find a role on a team, we’re trying everybody, and because we’re trying to figure it out ourselves.

“You might say it’s not ideal, but another way, it’s really ideal. A little adversity at the start of the year never hurt anybody. Let’s dig in.”

It’s not only an opportunity for the depth players, but for Levi, too.

“He’s been a very confident, quality goalie all camp,” said Babcock. “Seems to have a good disposition, and I imagine he wants to play.

“If you believe in yourself, and that’s the whole key in everything in life - your dad can’t give you confidence, your coach can’t give you confidence, you gotta earn confidence. And by doing good things, you make good things happen. And I think he’s a confident young man, and I bet you he’s just relishing the opportunity.”

What does the Edmonton Oilers’ projected lineup look like?

When you look at the Oilers’ lineup ahead of Thursday’s rematch against the Vancouver Canucks, it feels like a flashback to the days of the Decade of Darkness.

The top line will feature Connor McDavid, centring Leon Draisaitl and Vasily Podkolzin, while the second line will see Colton Dach up the middle, flanked by Max Jones and Kasperi Kapanen. The third line has Owen Michaels as the pivot, with Alex Formenton and Mathieu Joseph on his wings; the fourth sees the newly recalled Josh Samanski centring Isaac Howard and Trent Frederic.

Edmonton’s blue line, thankfully healthy, has a mix-up, too. Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard remain the top pair, but Ryan Shea will play alongside Connor Murphy on the second, and Jake Walman will hold down the third pair alongside Shakir Mukhamadullin.

The Oilers had enough issues in their 6-5 season-opening overtime loss to the Canucks, and will now go to battle with an even weaker lineup. But injuries breed opportunity, and there will be lots of it for the depth players on this roster to take advantage of.

The @EdmontonOilers morning skate in Vancouver:

Podkolzin-McDavid-Draisaitl Jones-Dach-Kapanen Formenton-Michaels-Joseph Howard-Samanski-Frederic

Ekholm-Bouchard Shea-Murphy Walman-Mukhamadullin

Levi

(Zach Hyman not on trip. Mike Babcock will update after practice)

- Bob Stauffer (@Bob_Stauffer) October 1, 2026

 

News of Hyman’s injury comes as the Oilers shuffled their roster Thursday morning, placing Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on injured reserve, moving Savoie and Regula to long-term injured reserve. It leaves the Oilers with $761,666 in cap space, according to PuckPedia, which noted on X that the team likely placed just Savoie and Regula on LTIR, as they’re the two players closest to a return from injury, allowing the team to begin accruing cap space when they are activated.

After facing the Canucks Thursday night, they return home to host the Seattle Kraken, before beginning a three-game road trip next Wednesday, visiting the Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks, and Los Angeles Kings.

Zach Laing is the managing editor at Daily Faceoff Edmonton and news director at The Nation Network. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.

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