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The Edmonton Oilers will welcome back leading goal-scorer Zach Hyman for their regular-season finale against the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night, providing a timely boost as the club pushes to lock down second place in the Pacific Division ahead of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
After missing time late in the season due to injury, Hyman returned to practice on Wednesday and confirmed he is ready to rejoin the lineup for the pivotal matchup at Rogers Place.
Edmonton enters Game 82 below the 100-point mark after surpassing that threshold in each of the previous four seasons, with injuries to Hyman and Leon Draisaitl contributing to the lower total. Despite that dip, the Oilers remain in position to secure home-ice advantage for the opening playoff round.
Hyman made clear that Edmonton’s ambitions extend far beyond simply reaching the postseason.
“The expectations are to win the Stanley Cup,” Hyman said. “We lose in the final, we lose in the first round — we’re going to be pissed.”
The veteran winger stressed that the team’s growing playoff experience has transformed its understanding of what is required in the postseason.
“When you don’t have playoff experience, you don’t really think it’s that important,” Hyman said. “And when you do, you realize it is important.”
He also reflected on how dramatically playoff hockey differs from the regular season, particularly for younger players experiencing it for the first time.
“When you’re a young kid and it’s your first playoff game, you’re taken aback. Everything’s different,” Hyman explained. “Players play differently. Everything’s faster. Every play matters.”
Using last season’s Florida Panthers as an example, Hyman noted how elite teams can elevate their game once the playoffs begin regardless of regular-season standings.
“That’s why you see teams like Florida, who had 98 points last year, and then they turned it on,” he said.
The Oilers’ first-round opponent remains uncertain heading into the finale, with potential matchups against the Anaheim Ducks, Los Angeles Kings, or Colorado Avalanche still in play depending on final results around the league.
Still, Hyman acknowledged Edmonton would prefer to enter the postseason in a stronger position.
“We’ve got to win a game here,” Hyman said. “But at the same time, you still have the confidence that when you get in you can beat anybody.”
Veteran defenseman Darnell Nurse echoed that sentiment, saying the Oilers’ deep playoff runs in recent years have given the group valuable composure and familiarity with postseason intensity.
“There’s a familiarity and comfort to it,” Nurse said. “It’s more amplified than a regular-season game, but we know what it takes.”
Despite inconsistent results in the closing stretch of the season, Nurse believes Edmonton’s overall performances have remained encouraging.
“We haven’t gotten all the results we wanted, but we’ve played really well,” Nurse said. “It’s on us to bring that again against Vancouver — the full package.”
With Hyman back in the fold and the playoffs looming, Edmonton now turns its focus to finishing the regular season with momentum and securing the strongest possible path into the postseason.
